Toyota Offers New Function and Future Fantasy at the Chicago Auto Show
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 TOYOTA POD - Toyota's "Personalization On Demand" concept vehicle was jointly developed by Toyota and Sony Corp., and explores the potential for communications between vehicles and their drivers. Much like forming a friendship, the pod listens to the driver, monitors driving habits, and records a wide variety of personal preferences. By expanding its intelligence, pod can create an enhanced driving experience |
CHICAGO,IL Feb. 6... Greeting reporters with a warm glow and a wagging tail, Toyota and Sony's "Pod" concept car brought the future to the Chicago Auto Show's media preview today. Pod, an acronym for "Personalization on demand," creates two-way communication between car and driver.
"We're not sure whether it's coming or going, but the longer it stays, the more attached everyone seems to get to it," said Don Esmond, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Toyota Division.
What sets Pod apart from normal cars is its ability to detect a driver's emotional state and react accordingly. Pod can also express its own emotions; for example, when it is washed or refueled, it wags its tail and glows a bright orange. Pod offers advice, praise and warnings by comparing the drivers' acceleration, braking and steering performance to that of an expert driver. If the driver conveys obvious signals of road rage, Pod will slow to a stop offering the driver a "time-out."
"Pod is a wonderful what-if vehicle," Esmond said. "Although it's purely conceptual, there is every reason to think and to hope that some of its wide-range or personalized technologies will be offered in Toyota and Lexus vehicles in the near future."
On a more realistic note, Toyota staged the world debut of the Tundra Sidestep, due out this fall. Built exclusively in the United States, The Tundra Sidestep adds variety to the award winning line of Tundra Trucks.
"The Tundra Sidestep concept explores the possibilities of broadening the Tundra product line by showing consumers that ruggedness and utility can go hand in hand with style and image," Esmond said.
Boasting a deeper bed and stylish features like color-keyed overfenders, the Tundra offers buyers another option in the Toyota truck line, and Toyota hopes it will encourage long-term owner loyalty.
