Initial D‘s iconic Toyota AE86 is a cultural mainstay in Japan, although the popular 1980s car model has a retro look and feel today. Takumi Fujiwara’s beloved car has gotten technical upgrades before, but in keeping with the goal for a carbon neutral society, the Tokyo Auto Salon 2023 event last weekend showed off two models with an eco-friendly overhaul.
The cars on display represented two visions for eco-friendly conversion: one with electric batteries (“AE86 BEV Concept”) and the other with hydrogen combustion (“AE86 H2 Concept”). The electric model swaps out the original powertrain for a motor while keeping the shift stick, clutch, and aesthetic details. The hydrogen model goes a step further by keeping the original car’s 4AG block and simply using a hydrogen combustion…
