Toyota’s North American design studio, Calty, has been dreaming up new vehicle concepts since the 1970s. That means that it has a lot of cool stuff in the vault, and it has decided to share a few of them with the world for the first time.
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Read: Toyota Unlocks CALTY Vault To Show Prototypes That Never Saw The Light Of Day
Among the vehicles seeing the public light for the first time, there’s the studio’s first EV concept, a wagon version of the Scion FR-S, a mid-engine sports car, a city car with fence seating, a lunar rover, and more.
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The X86D
Although it is now called the Toyota GR86, it was originally sold as the Scion FR-S, and it excited the team at Calty. So enthralled were they, that they took the platform, and put this four-door wagon body on top. Described as a shooting brake, the changes were more than skin deep. Inside, the X86D got a driver-focused cockpit, and, since the engine was from Subaru, the studio decided to use it to power all four wheels.
Calty’s First EV
Before it announced its upcoming wave of electric vehicles, and even before it had even made its first Prius, Toyota wanted to see what a production EV might look like. The result was this lightweight, compact vehicle whose shape was dominated by aerodynamics. With narrow tires, a wind-cutting profile, and a two-door four-seat layout, Calty envisioned it as the perfect commuter car for cities. The studio’s first real attempt at designing an EV, the TEV may be more relevant than ever, as automakers try to figure out how to make low-cost EVs for regular buyers.
The Future High Performance Concept
In 1989 Calty created the Future High Performance Concept, a mid-engine speedster with two seats. Although its wild body and transparent body panels were sure to catch the eyes of passers-by, they weren’t even its craziest feature. That honor goes to the rising air intake that emerged from the body and brought the engine up with it. In addition, the driver-side windshield could fold down while the vehicle was parked to seal the cockpit completely.
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The 2012 NYC Concept
Although you may remember this concept from October, when Calty revealed a few other past concepts, we’re now getting some more information about the unusual-looking vehicle. Designed to drive around cities with ease, the concept has “fence seats.” These don’t allow the driver to fully sit down, rather they lean against the “seat,” as they would against a fence or a wall. This was supposed to move the driver’s eye line up, closer to pedestrians’ to enhance eye contact with them at crosswalks. They also helped give the NYC Concept a more compact footprint, ideal for tightly congested cities.
The Baby Land Cruiser Returns
Calty is once again showing off the Baby Land Cruiser, a small off-roader designed for the moon. We first saw this concept in October, and Calty says that the vehicle is controlled via “drive control” joysticks and that it features an augmented reality “drivetainment” system that turns driving into an interactive video game. That means that its “Mobility Teammate Concept” becomes a copilot that offers route suggestions and driving assistance in the form of steering, throttle, and brake inputs where necessary. The goal is to allow any driver to perform like an overlanding pro, even on hazardous, lunar terrain.
Land Cruiser Interior Proposal
Finally, over on Instagram, Calty decided to show the world what it wanted the interior of the latest Land Cruiser to look like. Although the interior of the production version is probably much cheaper to make, there’s something about this concept that is deeply appealing to the little kid in me.