Toyota Transforms Its Vintage Cars Into New Clean-Energy Models

Toyota is looking to future-proof itself one vintage car at a time. Its latest venture is taking old beloved models of its vehicles and retrofitting them with a new clean energy chassis.
 
The company is no stranger to electric vehicles and hybrids—after all, it was the firm to give fans the Prius—and the positive effects on the environment. Unfortunately, electric vehicles still have a barrier to entry as most come at a premium cost. So the solution to that? Just chuck out the old gas-guzzling engine and swap it for zero emissions one instead.

At the Toyota Gazoo Racing event in Chiba, Japan, the automakers unveiled clean-and-green versions of its famous AE86 cars. One was fitted with a battery, and the other hosted a hydrogen engine.
 
According to Toyota, the battery-powered automobile “also makes maximum use of the electrification technology of existing commercially sold vehicles, employing a Tundra HEV electric motor, a Prius PHEV battery, and others.”

On the other hand, the hydrogen engine car still keeps the appeal of driving with a combustion engine while saving the environment at the same time.
 
In a report from The Washington Post, the Japanese market only has one in 20 cars that are new. Akio Toyoda, president of Toyota, posits that a complete transition to electric or hydrogen-powered vehicles will take a long time, especially with many older models. 

This new initiative can provide drivers with a way to keep the model they love while making it pollution-free.
 
The move also aims to show consumers that driving with an alternative power source can be just as satisfying as cars that use gas.

In other areas of the motor world, Honda has also come up with a way to combat emissions itself by creating new electric bikes that honors the design of its classic motorcycles.
 
 
 
[via Technology.org and The Washington Post, images via Toyota]