Some delightful oddities of the 2023 Japan Mobility Show

Japan is great, and the Japan Mobility Show (formerly Tokyo Motor Show) is no different. In addition to all the cool, new sheet metal on display from mainstream brands, there is no shortage of forbidden fruit ... and plenty of downright whimsy. It's hard to know what to expect to see in the vast halls of Tokyo Big Sight. I can attest, your feet will hurt trying to see it all.

So save your soles, as we've sacrificed ours to bring you a taste of some of the many interesting treasures to be found at the Japan Mobility Show. Kick your feet up, click through the gallery, and enjoy.

I saw this off-roady van before Joel covered the reveal of the Mitsubishi D:X concept, and I got pretty excited. I'd really love to see something like this in the U.S. I'd live in it.

Based on the Toyota Hilux Z GR Sport, this rugged camper might be a little cramped inside, but it'll get you off the beaten path. It sleeps three, has a fridge and sink, as well as a pop-up roof and a 200-watt solar panel.

This little guy is the Nuts RV Pixis Van Camper Altopiano Mini. It only sleeps two, and doesn't have the amenities of that Hilux camper, but you could sleep in the tiniest of campsites.

I'm not entirely sure what's going on here, but this electric motorcycle looks comfortable (if goofy), and appears to have the ability to power accessories at your destination. 

FOMM stands for First One Mile Mobility. I don't read Japanese, so it's hard to make sense of the specs. It's electric, though, and looks like a hoot to drive.

Another cool, obscure EV sports car. The EV Sport 01 from AIM NEV Project is a little two-seater good for 489 horsepower and 545 pound-feet of torque. Don't take "NEV" to stand for "Neighborhood Electric Vehicle"; in this case it stands for "New Energy Vehicle." With dual rear electric motors and those output figures, this will definitely exceed your typical around-the-retirement-community speed limits.

This stately one-seat EV is uses fiber-reinforced plastic to keep weight down. The long-range version is good for a claimed 74 miles, and has a top speed of 34 miles per hour. I imagine that feels faster than it is. That weird, Hoover-looking car in the background is called the E-Lizard, which is a sweet name, but I know which I prefer.

This form of this electric crossover coupe is starting to look familiar after walking the show floor. It uses a pair of 93-kW in-wheel motors in the front, plus a 220-kW motor in the rear.

There's a digital dash all the way across, and lounge-like seats behind the rear-hinged rear doors. There's even a metal champagne flute, Maybach-style.

Meant to navigate autonomously using artificial intelligence and, importantly, input and preferences from the driver, I was mostly taken by how cute this thing is.

What's more odd: a hydrogen-powered luxury UTV, or the dead stares of the models hovering so near to it?

I don't know what Yamaha is up to here, but I didn't get too close. I don't want to get ... extruded?

News Editor Joel Stocksdale also spotted these Yamaha rocking horses, which the company describes as a child's "First encounter with a musical instrument and vehicle." This is cute and approachable, Yamaha. That last thing was not.

We've seen this electric crossover before, but seeing it in person makes me think this design could be better received in North America than the Kizashi. One can dream.

Cool name.

Grey on brown? I don't know why, but I like it. It certainly works a little better than Mercedes-Maybach's two-tone exteriors.

Toyota showed up to the show with these giant novelty seats meant to make you feel like a tiny child again, insecurities and all.

What's not to like about a boxy, three-row van with swiveling seats?

Daihatsu previewed the me:MO earlier in the month (along with the cool Vision Copen roadster), but we really like the styling on this example on the show floor.

This bad boy could set up shop slinging fresh coffee and pastries pretty far off the beaten path.

"So Long!! So Happy!!" And they come in six classic American flavors: Himalayan Rock Salt, Double Cheese, Spicy Roe and Mayonnaise, Spicy Chili, Chocolate, and Salty Caramel.

This one's not all that odd, but it truly is a delight. In fact, it's quite a popular kei EV here in Japan.

This is another adorable, affordable production kei car from the show. Kei cars are one of my favorite things about Japan's automotive landscape, and they're in ample supply at JMS.

News Editor Joel Stocksdale spotted this miniaturized version of the MX-5. Not entirely sure what's going on here. Might be part of some driving sim, on account of the screen in front of it. Either way, it's cool.

The entrance to the Tokyo Future Tour exhibit was pretty unsettling.

I watched some folks play for a while, and the learning curve seemed a little steep. But this is one of the weird things you can catch at the Japan Mobility Show.

Handsome.

If you're not down with down, you can still make quite the fashion statement.

Who knew electrolysis could be so fun? At least I think that's what's going on. I don't speak Japanese. I wonder how long you'd have to swing to power your commute in your Toyota Mirai.

This exhibit depicted some dramatic emergency mission where the guy in the robotic exoskeleton suit was moving rubble to help free the group from an earthquake or something. I could be wrong though — again, I don't understand the Japanese language. The Skeletonics website is a thing of nightmares, though.

On one of the roofs of Tokyo Big Sight was the Japan Meat Show. It was a bunch of different food carts with many, many available meats.

There was one hall at the show that was half supercars, and half toys. Of course, the toys were more popular.

This exhibition was called "Out of KidZania." They had a few actual children in factory getup doing tasks and getting some sort of training, stuff that felt just a tad too weird to photograph. If it's just fun activities to get kids excited about cars and engineering, though, that's a great idea for an auto show activity.