While our eyes are fixed on Detroit, on the other side of the world, Japan’s burgeoning automotive industry is gearing up for another show: the Tokyo Auto Salon, set to take place the second weekend of the new year. And Daihatsu, for its part, isn’t just bringing one concept car to showcase – it’s bringing eleven.
Not to be confused with the principal Tokyo Motor Show that takes place every other fall, the Tokyo Auto Salon is a tuner expo – Japan’s equivalent, in short, to the SEMA show in Las Vegas or the Essen Motor Show in Germany. So like any other JDM automaker, Daihatsu’s lineup is based on existing production models. Only each has been thoroughly modified along one of four lines.
The largest and potentially most exciting of the displays that Toyota’s little brother has in store is dubbed Sporza. It includes versions of the Copen roadster, Boon hatchback, and the Thor and Move Canbus mini-wagons – all done up in red and black with gold wheels.
The Grand Custom takes a more refined approach to customizing the Thor, Tanto, and Move – each of the three tall boxes rendered in dark shades of black and grey, with blue wheels, trim, and accent lighting. Fans of retro styling will be more enticed by the Beach Cruising series that takes the Canbus and Boon back to another time, with light blue paint, wood trim, and chrome wheels.
Finally the Cross Field versons of the Cast Activa and Wake take a more outdoorsy approach, with their green paintjobs and orange accents that would make any fan of the Subaru Crosstrek feel right at home – albeit in much smaller form.
It’s a staggering array of concepts from such a small automaker of small automobiles, and if you’re not heading to Tokyo for the show, you can check them each out in the photo gallery below.
Photo Gallery
