Toyota will do its bit to fight weight gain - in cars - with the FT-Bh concept, which will be unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show. The initials stand for 'Future Toyota B-segment hybrid' and it is designed to be light without resorting to exotic materials.
By taking a 'total vehicle' approach to reduce fuel consumption and emissions the engineers focused on five areas of car design. Along with weight reduction, aerodynamics, powertrain efficiency, thermal energy management and electricity usage have all been optimised.
The FT-Bh is claimed to emit 50% less CO2 than current cars of its size and it weighs just 800kg. That makes the FT-Bh 90kg lighter than a three-door Aygo, but with the interior space of a five-door supermini according to Toyota. Reducing mass has not come from using expensive materials, as one of the design's objectives was to use economically viable production methods.
We will get our first proper look at the Toyota FT-Bh on 6th March.