Welcome to the Daily 5 report for Thursday, Oct. 30.
Japan's revitalized auto show, now called the Japan Mobility Show, gave Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co., Nissan Motor Co. and others a chance to capitalize on the show's new prominence.
Given Toyota's influence over the Japanese auto industry, it was expected to make the biggest splash. And the automaker delivered on several fronts, as Luca Ciferri reported today in his review.
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Perhaps Toyota's biggest hit came from its Century ultraluxury subbrand, which is expanding first to China before coming to Europe and the U.S. to compete with Bentley and Rolls-Royce, Ciferri wrote. The first concept under this new plan is an enormous two-door coupe with vertical sides, eight groups of LEDs as headlights and no rear window, the story said.
Toyota also had a winner with the bold design revealed in the Corolla Concept, which foreshadows the 13th generation of the compact model. Toyota said the concept will be used to test global consumer reactions in 2026, ahead of a decision on the final production design, Ciferri wrote. The automaker confirmed that, in addition to gasoline and full-hybrid variants, the new model will also have battery-electric and plug-in hybrid versions, the story said.
The Lexus LS Coupe Concept also earned applause for Toyota. The coupe definition is used for two-door cars, so the name is probably misplaced for this four-door midsize sporty crossover that heralds a new design language for Lexus, Ciferri wrote.
The Toyota FJ Cruiser, however, was a miss. "The miss for this cute baby Land Cruiser is not for the vehicle itself, but the fact that it will not be sold in Europe or in the U.S.," Ciferri's review said.
In other topics today, Reuters reported that President Donald Trump won a reprieve on rare-earth exports from China during his meeting with President Xi Jinping, but not a full rollback on earlier restrictions on the minerals crucial for automotive production. Trump said China had agreed to keep rare earth exports flowing and the issue was "settled," Reuters reported, but it wasn't that simple.
Meanwhile, several more stories broke about the emerging chip crisis stemming from the Dutch/China chaos at supplier Nexperia. We are keeping tabs on the situation in this live blog.
That's it for now. Have a great rest of your day. If you want to view this story in your browser, click here.
— Philip Nussel, online editor
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