EVs manufactured so far failed to become low-end cars because they were so inferior to gasoline cars in efficiency and pricey that they did not catch much attention. It was totally inconceivable to develop electric butteries to enable EVs to match gasoline cars traveling 500 kilometers on a tank of gas. However, technological advances have made it feasible. The catalyst was the lithium-eon battery. Its power is twice as strong as the lead battery. It still cannot be equated to gas engine, but has reached a practical level with run of 150 kilometers on full charge, and with no emission of carbon dioxide.

    Mitsubishi Motors Corp. got a head start with "i-MiEV" in this new challenge. It is an EV model developed based on Mitsubish's "i"-type minivehicle. The company started to sell this new product for corporate use last year and is selling it for personal use as well since spring this year. Its body design goes well with the EV concept with battery-packs put in place beneath the floor, making the inner room as spacious as that of a normal car. When you drive the car, you feel such mighty driving force of motor that you will almost forget that you are in the minivehicle. It can go as far as 120 kilometers with one full charge, and the smooth drivability is quite comfortable. With no noise of engine, you would inexplicably be filled with a sense of being in a high-quality car.

     Another EV that is to be put to market this year is Nissan Motor Co.'s "LEAF." Unlike the four-seater minivehicle i-MiEV, this is a normal-size passenger car for five people. It is an EV that Nissan is going to introduce to the world market, putting the future of the company at stake. Loaded with lithium-eon batteries, the car has a cruising range of 160 kilometers on full charge.

    EV is considered as means of urban transport and its advantage is in extremely low cost of charge (nearly one tenth of gas) by using household late-night electricity. It takes seven hours at 200V household power source for full charge, but if you drive i-MiEV to a downtown quick-charge station and ask the staff for charge, they can electrify 80 percent of the batteries' capacity in 30 minutes. It takes many more minutes than to fill a gasoline car, but you will soon get used to it.

    As for the car price, i-MiEV and LEAF cost nearly three million yen each with an aid of the government's grant money. They are still costly compared with gasoline cars in the same categories, but are expected to become less expensive when they come into wide use. It is a matter of time.

    What pleases EV users is that power-supply infrastructure is being built up at high speed. In the metropolitan areas like Tokyo and Yokohama, the quick chargers have been installed at nearly 100 locations such as rest areas of expressway, gas stations, and car dealership. At most of these places, drivers can charge the batteries for free for the time being. The equipment will be installed at convenience stores and supermarkets in an accelerated pace from now. Even if the mileage per charge is relatively short, the range of activities can be broadened as much as that of a gasoline car once the power-supply facilities become available near at hand. EV's cost performance is so much tempting.

The minivehicle is so popular in Japan that it now comprises 35 percent of all the cars owned across the nation. The leading passenger car of such small size is "ALTO" made by Suzuki Motor Corporation. It has taken root in the market over 30 years since its debut in 1979 and undergone several model changes up to the latest seventh generation, keeping pace with the times. In a move to enhance performance and safety, Suzuki has stepped up engine capacity and enlarged the body size over the past 10 years.

The new ALTO in its seventh generation ensures smoother and more comfortable motoring with wheelbase extended to 2,400 millimeters like a normal passenger car, yet providing stress-free drivability which is characteristic of a small car. Some time ago, minivehicle was obviously inferior to normal car in steering and other drivability; however, its recent models, including ALTO, have almost paralleled in this regard. The technological achievements on minivehicle are really awesome.

The most popular model in Japan is represented by a tall wagon-type car that came into fashion with a boom of "Suzuki Wagon R." ALTO inherits in shape the traditional mainstream of sedan and van. The seventh- generation ALTO is so refined in style that it was nominated to the Good Design Award for 2009.

The interior is simple and well-designed to the optimum. Ingenious storage space is put in place tastefully at several locations. Driver's space is made functional as the seat, adjustable in height, can be slid back and forth in 24 notches by one centimeter for user's comfort. The vehicle is outfitted with tilt steering wheel so that the driver can adjust its height to an appropriate position. Thus, every detail is perfect despite the compact dimensions. This is the big appeal of Japanese minivehicle makers.

When you have a test ride, you will be impressed by the spaciousness of the cabin. It is probably because the wheelbase is that of the normal passenger car. With the 660cc three-cylinder engine without turbocharger, the initial speed may be a bit slow, but once you get going, you would feel quite at home with driving through the city roads. The driving performance is so good that you would almost forget you are running the minivehicle.

Note that it goes 24.5 kilometers per liter (according to the automaker's literature). When you take a ride, you will realize it is almost equal in performance to Honda's hybrid car "Insight." The secret for the good gas mileage is the new technology called Continuous Variable Transmission (CVT). It has a mechanism by which the transmission geared to D-range at standstill, like waiting for stoplights, shifts to neutral automatically, and that contributes to good mileage as it releases loads on the engine. In product lineup of ALTO, there are orthodox four-speed automatic transmission and five-speed manual transmission available, but look at the technological advance achieved on CVT!

Minivehicle is in a car category unique to Japan. Eco-car is booming all over the world. Compact and high-efficient car is the trend of today. You cannot take your eyes off from the development of the Japanese minivehicle.

    The new FUGA, the second generation evolved from its initial model, comes in an upgraded luxury sedan of sports car style with long-nosed hood, bulged tire fenders, and tires and wheels of large diameter. It gives a sort of wild look compared to the first generation. Acclaimed V-engine of 3.7 liters provides sporty and sophisticated drivability. The original model had a conservative and composed image but the new model has distinctive attributes in many ways to surpass its rivals.

    The development team appealed at the presentation the harmonization of three key concepts of the car, namely, "performance, beauty, and comfort." In other words, FUGA is a high-quality vehicle featuring excellent drivability and run, attractive styling, and comfortable cabin with superb interior. These are the qualities that people will seek for any premium car, but Nissan has accomplished them on FUGA at the highest possible levels.

    In light of drivability, there are a number of world-first devices installed on the car, the devices that signify high standard of technologies the Japanese car industries have attained. "Eco-pedal" is one of them. When the driver overly steps on the accelerator and uses more fuel than necessary, this system alerts the driver by activating counter push-back mechanism to ensure eco-driving. The pedal becomes a little heavier but can save the fuel consumption by five to 10 percent in this way.

    Another striking feature of this car is interior quality and superior trim. Customers may choose from two types of specifications of Standard and Premium. Standard-type interior is composed of plated curve lines and woodgrain panels, symbolizing the essence of Japanese culture in the form of vigor and mellowness. In the premium-type interior, seats are covered with semi-aniline authentic leather while the woodgrain panels are applied with silver powder finish wrought by exquisite craftsmanship. The silver powder application onto the grain texture requires special technique and gives varied impression depending on the angle viewed due to interference of light. It sure will startle Mercedes and Toyota.

    Forest Air-conditioning is one more world-first appurtenances for the cabin comfort. As the name implies, the equipment serves to produce forest atmosphere in the cabin. Once it detects filthy air or cigarette odor, it ventilates automatically and creates fresh air with high-density plasma-cluster ion to make you feel soaked in the air of the woods.

    There are some other features to note. Intelligent Pedal or Distance Control Assist is a device which, synchronized with car navigation system, brings the vehicle to slow down when it detects a sharp curve ahead. Intelligent Cruise Control is a system that helps to keep the appropriate distance from preceding cars in accordance with the cruising speed the moment the sensor detects them. Thus, the new car is equipped with the most advanced technologies aspiring toward future full-automatic navigation system.

    The second generation of FUGA, having satisfied the needs for driving pleasure and user-friendly ambience to the highest degree, is a pioneer car that meets the requirements of the coming age.

Motor show is an exciting event for most of car manias. The highly noted overseas motor shows are those held in Detroit (the United States), Geneva (Switzerland), Paris (France), and Frankfurt (Germany), but no less famous is the Tokyo Motor Show held in autumn of every two years. This year, it took place at Makuhari Messe in Chiba from October 23 to November 4.

    The Tokyo Motor Show looked a bit different this year. Notwithstanding the high-profile show for car manufacturers the world over, few of them exhibited their new models. The reason is that they have not recovered from the global economic crisis that happened a year ago. Car sales have slumped in Japan, the United States, and Europe, while China, India, and other emerging countries have become promising markets.

    The Tokyo Show was somewhat a disappointing event for car-loving people, but Japanese auto makers were full of vigor as the host country's exhibitors. Concerns over global warming are mounting these days with relation to car driving. Ecology-friendly cars are very much sought for protection of the global environment and reduction of CO2 exhausts. The motor show, therefore, became an important scene for the Japanese car manufacturers, the world leaders in the environmental technology, to show their presence.

    Observation of the show from such perspective overwhelmed you with a dazzling lineup of cutting-edge eco-cars from Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Subaru, Mazda, and Suzuki, which makes you feel like driving away from the very spot.

                                                           Let's pick up some highlighted models, starting with Toyota, the best- selling auto maker in the world. It is the pioneer company in the eco-car development that sent the world's first hybrid car "Prius" to the market 10 years ago. The up-and-coming car to watch this time was "Prius Plug-in Hybrid." This is a kind of electric vehicle (EV) outfitted with lithium-ion battery on the existing Prius model and is designed so as to run as EV for a short distance and as a hybrid car for a long distance in use of gasoline engine. It racks up 20km on a full charge of battery, and the mileage is as long as 55km per liter.

       What drew attention as Toyota's new super sports car was the model "LF-A," developed from its premium brand car "Lexus," which has specifications and a style that almost surpass Ferrari. It will be put on sale in 2010 at the stunning price of 3,750 yen for the limited number of 500 units.

    Next, let's take a look at Honda. Its pullout from the Formula One disappointed many fans but the company's aspiration has proved to be going toward the research and development of eco-cars. One of the most coveted stylish cars is the model "CR-Z" which will appear in the market next year. This is a sports car evolved from the hybrid technology of Honda's "Insight." It is a merit of the company that even an eco-car has a sports taste.

    Another eye-catching exhibit was a one-man vehicle "U3-X." It is a unicycle invented based upon the control technology applied to the Honda's bipedal robot ASIMO. The shape looks strange and uncomfortable for sitting, but its operation is quite simple. After mounting on it and sandwiching it between the inner thighs, you incline your body to shift your weight, then the vehicle moves back and forth, sideways, and obliquely just like you walk.

    Nissan is the eco-car manufacturer that is likely to attract attention next year as "LEAF" is going to make a debut in the world marketplace next autumn as the first EV car in commercial production. It is a five-seater hatchback car with an equipment of lithium-ion battery and runs about 160km with one-time full charge. Assuming that an average driver travels 50km to 100km daily, it is no doubt a car for practical use that satisfies the driver's need. The battery can be charged from zero to full in eight hours at the 200V household power supply. When a fast charger is employed, it takes only 10 minutes to charge the battery enough to run 50km. When it comes to the car price, you would be amazed to know that it costs only as much as the same type of a gasoline car.

    At the Tokyo Motor Show, nearly 20 original EVs and hybrid cars were exhibited from other manufacturers to herald a new age when power source shifts from gasoline to electricity. Visitors to the show must have realized the turn of the tide in the automobile history.