Laurance Yap

Special to the Star

TOKYO–The Tokyo Motor Show is notable for the sheer number of concept cars it unveils – and for the sheer wackiness of some of them.

Only in Japan, for instance, would you find a concept car that looks like a Tylenol Gelcap whose interior is designed to please you like your favourite pet.

Only in Japan would you find an auto whose single seat reclines the faster you go.

While foreign carmakers show concept cars here – often important ones – it’s the Japanese companies that go over the top, re-imagining the automobile in ways that truly put the emphasis on the word “concept.”

MAZDA TAIKI

The latest in a string of concept cars showing off Mazda’s new, flowing design theme – complete with strakes down the sides à la 1980s Ferrari Testarossa – the Taiki is a long-hood, short-deck coupe that may hint at a future RX-7. With a rotary engine up front, driven wheels (under partial cover) at the rear and a compact two-seat cabin in between, this is one of the sportiest-looking cars at the show – and one that suggests it’s terrific to drive as well. The rear view, with the body curving down and around the wheels like a manta ray, is particularly attractive.