Best New Cars at the Tokyo Motor Show 2025 | Japan’s Resurgence!

[Music] Welcome to one of the most important motor shows on the global calendar. We’re here in Tokyo to look at all the new and upcoming metal that could be in Aussie showrooms in the next few years. That’s right. If you want to see all the important cars from Toyota, Mazda, Lexus, Honda, and everyone else, come with us and we’ll show you around. Toyota has an entire hall to itself here at the motor show and this is one of the more talked about cars. This is the new Land Cruiser FJ. Effectively a smaller cousin to the Praa or the 300 series. It is a proper ladder frame car. So locking rear diff, proper off-road capability, wheel articulation equivalent to a 70 series. But there’s a catch. We’re not going to get this car here in Australia. We think this engine under the bonnet, a 2.7 L petrol. It’s about a 20-y old engine. won’t meet the next generation of Aussie emission rules, which means we won’t get this car in our market. And what a shame cuz this thing looks awesome. I love the retro look. Got a choice of C-shape or circular headlights up front. It’s about the size of a RAV 4, even though it does look like a Jimny size in photos. I’m such a shame that we miss this car in Australia. Really wish we had it. Let us know what you think down below. This is obviously the new Toyota RAV 4. This one here is what we’ll get in Australia as the edge grade uh with a sort of rugged front bumper. Behind me is sort of the normal version. This is kind of like a cruiser spec. Again, don’t know full details yet. Expecting those hopefully in the coming months before it launches next year. We can see tougher design than before. New sort of hammerhead face you’re seeing on a lot of the new Toyota cars as well as this one. This is probably the more interesting one in the range. The new GR Sport. It’s fully plug-in hybrid allwheel drive. 227 kW of power 0 to 100 as quick as something like a Volkswagen Golf GTI. So, it’s definitely no slouch. I got to say it does look pretty interesting for a RAV 4. There’s actually been quite a bit of interest, at least anecdotally, in this car so far. Let’s have a quick look inside here in this new RAV 4. There has been quite a change for this new generation model. You can see big new screen in the center of the dash here. Not that many climate control buttons, which is a bit of a shame. You do have a volume dial as well as controls for temperature there. New center console, new sort of uh toggle switch shifter on certain model grades, as well as this cool center console you can pop out and flip over and then turn uh into bit of a table with quite a lot of banging and whacking. good for, I don’t know, like a burrito or a taco or something, uh, when you’re parked up on the side of the road. Otherwise, quite a modern and new cabin, and this J Sport one has these cool suede and leather-like seats. This is one of the stars of the show here. This is the Toyota Corolla concept. It is exactly what you think it is. It’s a preview of the next generation of the bestselling car in the world. Quite a sleek look, quite a sharp look, quite a change for the Corolla, which is otherwise, you know, a sportly style car these days, but is still uh associated with generic transportation. Futuristic design inside and out. Obviously, this is a concept, so not everything you see here will make it to showrooms. But it’s a look at where this name plate is heading. And there’s a choice of petrol, hybrid, plug-in hybrid, or full battery electric power, no matter how you want to drive your car and what lifestyle you lead. Now, when Jono’s got a preview of this car before the show, this was called a Japanese name that I won’t try and pronounce on camera. I’ll put it on screen for you here, but it’s here on display as the highest concept. Now, obviously, this is a preview of where Australia’s bestselling van is headed in its next generation. This one is obviously futuristic cabin with big screens. I love these wheels on this one, by the way. And this is the larger of the two sizes. There’s actually a smaller high-end concept on display here at the show. And yeah, bit of a futuristic look at where uh Australia’s top selling delivery van is headed for its next iteration. Maybe with fully electric power, maybe with diesel, who knows? Toyota is open to every type of powertrain. Here on the Lexus stand, and this is one of a number of cars the brand has on display. This is the Lexus Sport concept. It is exactly what it looks like, a flagship Lexus sports car that could come into production hopefully in the next few years at least. Fingers crossed there. Now, this looks like it’s electric car, but it’s actually powered by a twin turbo V8, according to some of the brands execs that we’ve spoken to here. Super sleek styling, super cool look. And this is a different car to what we’ve seen as a Toyota GR GT, which is this new GT3 racing special that’s coming to production in the next couple of months. Sedans are dying and Lexus knows it. So, this car could be the next step for the Lexus LS name plate. Currently, a flagship limousine, but this one here is a six- wheeled people mover concept. business class seating inside, a focus on space being luxury rather than sort of super nice trimmings and stuff. Obviously, it is very wellappointed inside, futuristic dash, and a futuristic style overall. This car could be the future of the luxury sedan, both for Lexus and perhaps other brands if this concept catches on. This is the other LS concept here at the show. And let’s be honest, the way the brand is more likely to go with this car. It is a flagship SUV. Yep, you guessed it. Even though it’s called a coupe, obviously has a bit of a sportier roof line at the back, which is how it earns that name. being a concept, there are things like rear hinge doors at the back there and some cool things like a pretty stripped out interior. But for showrooms, expect this to be a proper luxury SUV to go up against the best that BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi have to offer. This is what you get when Toyota pulls out all the stops. It’s the Century Coupe concept, and it’s designed to compete against the absolute top tier luxury brands around the world like Bentley and Rolls-Royce. Toyota are also positioning this new Century brand as a bit of a resurgence to the Japanese car market to try to compete against threats from around the world including China. Now, we don’t get Datu anymore in Australia, but I wish we got this car here. This is a preview of the next Dhatu Copen. As you can see, it’s a small roadster fits within Japan’s Kar rules. So, it is a really small car with front engine, rear wheel drive, and a proper sports car layout. This one is still a concept, but it is a preview of the next gen of this one here, which is a current copen, but in sort of a prototype form is going to form the basis of that next generation car. Again, 660cc uh turbo engine up front as with all or most K cars under these regulations. And it is cool to see that Japan is still investing in little sports cars like these, even if Australia can’t have them. Here in the Honda stand, undoubtedly the headline car is the new Super 1. It’s an allect electric K-sized car. It’s going to be Australia’s smallest and possibly one of the cheapest EVs on offer when it lands in showrooms in 2026. The Super 1 isn’t the only EV on the Honda show stand. You’ve also got the Honda Zero Saloon. There’s the new Honda Zero Alpha and of course the Honda Zero SUV. These cars are still a ways away from being production ready, but expect to see some of these at least in Australian showrooms sometime in the near future. The most exciting new product from Honda for petrol heads, though, might be the new Prelude. Yes, we know it’s an automatic. Yes, we know it’s got the Civic hybrid powertrain, but it promises to be a pretty good drive. It’s not just cars that are on the Honda stand, though. They’ve also got a giant rocket. And they’re also showcasing their private jet, which is pretty baller here on the Maza stand. This is the Vision Cross Coupe concept. It’s sort of an SUV sedan. Bit of a mix of both body styles. It’s quite a big car, 5 m long, so kind of like a Tesla Model S size of vehicle. And it’s powered by a plug-in hybrid rotary drivetrain. Now, no word on this if this will come to showrooms. Obviously, we hope it will and hope it we see more rotary cars in Mazda showrooms globally, but let’s see. Not a lot of the brand’s concepts that it’s shown over the past decade have actually come to fruition. Behind all those people is the Vision Cross Compact Concept, the other show car here from Mazda at this show. Sort of a small Mazda 2iz car. That’s actually a bit smaller than a Mazda 2, but it shows where the brand’s smaller cars are heading in the next few years. Super cool interior that this cool like speedo pod uh behind the steering wheel. Love the look overall, and I do prefer the way this one looks compared to the other concept here. But what do you think? Let us know down below. But there are some production cars here to see on this stand. This is one of the more hotly anticipated cars here at the show. It’s a new Mazda CX-5 family SUV coming to Australia in the back half of next year. It’s a bigger car than before, more interior space. That’s one of the criticisms of the current car. Whole new interior, not many buttons, which is a bit of bad thing, but also new technology, which is definitely a good thing. Only one engine at launch, but it will be a hybrid coming a little bit further down the track. What do you think of the look? It’s obviously very similar to the current CX-5, which I suppose is a good thing and a bad thing. But let us know your thoughts down below. On the Suzuki stand, there’s a lot less that’s relevant to the Aussie market as some of the other stands we’ve seen here, but this one is coming to Australia. The Evitara small electric SUV. This is the company’s first battery electric car in Australia. No word on price yet, but we think it’s going to start with a four and it needs to given how competitive this part of the market is. Also got a Jimny 5 door back there as we get in Australia, as well as a bunch of other K cars and motorcycles that this brand specializes here in Japan. Here on the Subaru stand, this is the performance econ. It’s a preview of what the STI brand could do in the electric era. Sort of a big midsize wagon, I suppose, with obviously a lot of STI bits on it. Big wing at the back. Cool gold wheels with big brakes behind them as well. No word on spec or what’s actually powering this car, but obviously it is fully electric and it shows where this brand can go when cars and its performance cars need to be fully battery electric. But if you prefer petrol cars, then this might be up your alley. It’s the performance B concept here from Subaru. It is what it looks like. It’s an Empreza with ax STI flavored makeover. You can see wide flares, his cool dual exit exhaust, massive wing on the back, as well as a bonnet scoop up there on the front with proud of boxer written on it there. This is a manual. We can only speculate on what powers it. And of course, Subaru doesn’t have any plans to put this car into production, nor does it that electric vehicle, as with a lot of cars it’s shown over the past 10 years, but be honest, we really hope it does put this into showrooms as an alternative to the WX sedan we’ve got at the moment. If you don’t want a fast on-road Subaru, then this could be more up your alley. It’s the new generation of the Outback lifted wagon that’s been quite popular in Australia over the past few decades. Obviously all new model here, similar platform, but still all new body on the outside. Much squarer, much tougher, more SUV- like than the current car. Now, this one is obviously still lefthand drive, but it’s a preview of what we’re going to get in Australia, we think in the next 12 months or so. Turbo engine under the bonnet as well as this cool wilderness kit here with some cool off-road tires, different details. Yeah, make it a bit more capable on the rough stuff. How’s this for a flex? China’s BYD is trying to stick it to Japan car makers on their own home turf by building their very own K car that’s called the Racko. It’s got rear sliding doors and an all electric powertrain. Is it going to be a hit here in Japan? Well, we’re going to have to wait and see. But what I want to know is when can I import one of these into Australia? It’s pretty hard to build a brand here in Japan when you’re competing against the likes of Toyota, Honda, Mazda, and others. And for BYD, well, it’s been a bit of a slow start in Japan. So, they’ve brought this, the Yang Wang U9 here at the 2025 Japan Mobility Show just to show what it can do. It’s got four electric motors that drive each of the individual wheels. It can dance, it can jump, and it’s fast as hell. Not every brand at this show is Japanese, as you’ve seen with BYD, but also here with Hyundai and Kia. These brands are pretty small here in Japan, but there’s still quite a broad range of cars here to show at the motor show. You can see things like the small Insta City car over there, the Nexo hydrogen car, as well as over on the Kia stand, you got the new PV5 electric van that’s coming to Australia next year, while a number of the other cars here are either on the way or already sold in Australia. These brands aren’t big in Japan like they are at home, but they definitely are growing and you can see quite a range of compelling product, but they want to target Japanese customers with Mitsubishi’s gone big at the 2025 Tokyo Motor Show cuz behind me is the Elevance Concept. Hard word to say, I know, but it’s got a quad motor plug-in hybrid electric powertrain. It’s got three rows of seating for six passengers. And while you might think it’s big enough and bold enough to preview the new generation Pajgerro, I think it’s actually hinting at the new generation Outlander. Off-roading seems to be a bit of a theme here at the Mitsubishi stand cuz behind me is the Delica equipped with all-wheel drive, so it can kind of climb up that hill. This generation, it’s not going to come to Australia. But hopefully the next generation of Mitsubishi’s infamous people mover will make it down under. We’ve seen it before, but it’s always exciting to see again. This is the new generation Nissen Patrol. It’s coming to Australia sometime next year, and it loses its V8 in favor of a twin turbocharged petrol V6 derived from the Nissan GTR. Can’t wait to see if it’s any good. If style is your thing, the third generation Nissan Leaf has you covered. Just look at this color. This blue really stands out amongst the sea of whites, blacks, and other car colors on this motor show stand. Expect to see this car arrive in Australian showroom sometime in 2026. But as an all electric model in the small SUV class, it’s going to be facing some pretty stiff competition from Chinese rivals. My favorite part of the Tokyo Motor Show, though, has to be this. It’s the kids section, weirdly enough, where you’re going to see some heavily modified vehicles. There’s some supercars over there in the background as well as a whole bunch of kids toys including a huge selection of Tomica model cars. So, there you have it. That’s a tour of the Japan Mobility Show. Tong, what was your favorite car of the show? I reckon that Honda Super One uh all electric K car. It’s going to be cheap. It’s going to be fun. Can’t wait to drive it in Australia. I love that Century, the Century Coupe. It’s concept for now and obviously TBC whether we get it in Australia. But it’s good to see Japan back and there’s some pretty passionate words from Ako Toyota when that car was shown about how the Japanese car industry is trying to make a comeback. It’s been a little bit down in the last couple years which is good to see in terms of its comeback. So yeah, that was the show. Let us know what your favorite car was down below. And of course for all the news of this show and everything that we’re going to drive in the follow-up to this show, head to drive.com.au. [Music]

Japanese car makers such as Toyota, Mazda, Honda and Subaru are mounting a fight-back against the rise of China, and the Japan Mobility Show – better known as the Tokyo motor show – is proof.

Check out the new Toyota RAV4, Mazda CX-5, Subaru Outback, BYD Racco, and more in this tour!

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00:00 Introduction
00:25 Toyota
03:31 Lexus
04:53 Century
05:12 Daihatsu
05:50 Honda
06:43 Mazda
08:03 Suzuki
08:28 Subaru
9:58 BYD
10:37 Hyundai & Kia
11:10 Mitsubishi
11:46 Nissan
12:22 Kid Section
12:37 Summary

#TokyoMotorShow #TokyoMobilityShow
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