Japan Mobility Show 2025: Hometown brands shine as rivals step up

The first Century sedan launched in 1963 but has never been its own brand. That changed at the Japan Mobility Show 2025. Instead of being one or two vehicles offered through the Toyota channel, Century becomes a standalone brand with at least three vehicles.

The Century Coupe Concept will eventually join the stately sedan and SUV on offer today and demonstrates the future design direction and attitude of the new brand. Future Century owners will be able to tailor interior and exterior colors and finishes. The sensational concept, in a brilliant orange and with an exquisitely detailed interior, explored design though Toyota held back details like launch timing and propulsion system. Toyota sees the Century brand as a bespoke, cultured vehicle that will take on Rolls-Royce and Bentley. Century will occupy a higher luxury tier than Lexus.  

Lexus took bold steps at the Tokyo motor show, revealing four concept vehicles meant as future explorations and brand design statements, with no details on when or if they will be produced. Each of the concepts was purposeful toward describing Lexus’s future.

The vehicles included a six-wheeled luxury people mover (the LS Concept); a fresh take on a four-door, two-row family utility (the Coupe Concept); an exploration of the next Lexus sports car called the Sport Concept; and a three-wheeled electric pod meant for urban use (the Micro Concept). 

Lexus also shifts the letters LS from signifying Luxury Sedan, as they have since the first LS was introduced in 1989, to Luxury Space. Chief branding officer Simon Humphries said, “Space is freedom. And space is privacy. Two commodities that are simply priceless. In a frenetic world, what greater luxury is there than that?”

Each concept reinterprets the Lexus spindle grille with a more dramatic look, using light rather than chrome to define its shape, even as the vehicles themselves differ greatly in form and surfacing. 

The Lexus concepts also explored more simplified interiors with less prominent screens, offering a cleaner and elegant look. For some, this included passenger-side screens that slip out of the way when not in use. 

In contrast to automakers leaning into mixed propulsion solutions, Honda focused on electric vehicles (EVs). 

The Honda 0 α (alpha) is meant to see production in 2027. Production will be in India, with sales primarily in India and Japan. Other markets will include the UK and other Asian markets. Honda did not provide any details on range, cost or battery chemistry. 

The vehicle is designed for Indian road conditions and the lower range needs for both Indian and Japanese markets. It is aimed at first-time EV buyers, including first-time car buyers. Honda calls the Honda 0 α a “gateway” to the 0 Series EVs, which are being produced in the US in late 2026 and planned go on sale in Japan later. 

The Honda 0 α uses a low vehicle height without affecting ground clearance, with a thin cabin and a promise of plenty of interior space. The exterior boasts screens in front and rear. In the rear, the screen is highlighted by U-shaped lighting that combines taillamps, backup lights, and turn signal indicators. In the front, components that are typically separated are integrated into the screen. The interior is still under wraps.

The Honda Super One is a prototype compact EV primarily for the Japanese market. Honda aims for this car to “transform everyday mobility into an exciting and uplifting experience.” The e: Dash BOOSTER mode increases power output (though Honda did not provide specifications). A simulated 7-speed transmission and active sound control mimic engine noise.

Mazda showed the Vision X-Coupe and Vision X-Compact concept vehicles, with the “X” in the name to be pronounced “cross.” Mazda’s theme for the year was “The joy of driving fuels a sustainable tomorrow” as the brand remains true to its spirit for delivering the joy of driving.

The concepts continue Mazda’s successful Kodo design philosophy. The midsize X-Coupe gets a two-rotor rotary-engine plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) system. The company claims overall output of 510 PS, with driving range of 160km in EV-only mode and up to 800km in hybrid mode. 

The PHEV has a system called Mazda Mobile Carbon Capture, which captures carbon from renewable fuels the engine uses. The system sequesters carbon emissions from the tailpipe and doesn’t release them. 

The Vision X-Compact model, a small city car, is Mazda’s AI vehicle, “designed to deepen the bond between people and cars through the fusion of human sensory digital model and empathetic AI.”  Mazda did not share powertrain information for the smaller X-Compact.

BYD, Hyundai and Kia are pushing for a foothold in the Japan auto market, and their auto show stands showed how. 

• BYD signaled it is taking on the Japanese Kei car market. Kei cars are a Japan-specific segment, designed for urban use, and limited in size and power. While BYD displayed a full model line, including its U9 super car, the Racco kei car is intriguing as an effort to gain ground in a uniquely Japanese segment. BYD offers the Atto 3, Dolphin, Seal and Sealion 7 in Japan currently, due to add the Sealion 6 and this new Racco. 

• Hyundai returned to the Japanese market in 2022, after a four-year hiatus caused by slow sales. The automaker showed the next-generation Nexo fuel-cell electric vehicle (a propulsion solution which enjoys a stronger infrastructure and more potential in Japan than most markets). Along with the Nexo, due for sales in Japan in the first half of 2026, Hyundai unveiled the Inster Cross and the Insteroid concept. The Inster Cross is a beefier version of the Inster EV already sold in Japan, while the Insteroid is a life-size version of a concept in the drift racing game JDM: Japanese Drift Master. 

• Kia is aiming at the EV market and showed cargo, passenger and wellness versions of the PV5 electric van, set to launch in Japan in 2026.