What's happening? Toyota just released a video of Akio Toyoda giving thumbs up to a Honda HR-V Hybrid
Hans · Sep 7, 2023 08:35 PM
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There’s no context to the video below, and we are just as confused as you. About two hours ago, Toyota’s official Japanese language channel on X, as Twitter is now called, released a 13 seconds video of Chairman Akio Toyoda driving a Honda HR-V.
The video opens with a white Honda HR-V e:HEV hybrid, a model that is sold in Japan as the Honda Vezel, coming into frame. It was quickly revealed that Morizo was driving the car. Sitting next to him is four-time WRC champion Juha Kankkunen, who used to race for Toyota.
The person behind the camera seemed to have asked Morizo, “What car is this?” (at least that's what we we guessed, based on our zero knowledge of Japanese), to which Morizo replied “It’s a Honda!” while giving it a thumbs up and slowly driving away.
If you don’t already know, Morizo is Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda’s race car driver alter ego. When Toyoda-san is in a business suit, he is Mr. Akio Toyoda, the former President and current Chairman of Toyota Motor, who also serves as President of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA).
When he is wearing a racing suit, he is Morizo, Toyota’s Master driver. Akio Toyoda is also the only car company boss of this level to actively participate in motor racing, from the 24 Hours of Nurburgring to the Super Taikyu Fuji 24 Hours; to Idemitsu 25 Hours Super Endurance in Buriram, Thailand, and the All Japan Rally Championship. Morizo also did some test runs in the Dakar Rally and demonstration runs at the World Rally Championship.
Morizo also owns Rookie Racing team, a semi-skunk works team operating independent of the company’s official Toyota Gazoo Racing team, with the objective of racing not to win points, but to break car parts as it trials new solutions, like compact hydrogen transportation and the associated high speed refueling in race conditions, to support a hydrogen-burning Toyota GR Corolla that is reliable enough to withstand 24 hours of intense racing.
Back to the video, Toyota doesn’t have any commercial product development cooperation with Honda, but the two companies share a cordial relationship.
Both companies are also working together in the Japan-only, motorsports-only cooperation in the NEXT50 project to revive dwindling viewership of the Super Formula open-wheel racing series. More on that later.
In 2022, Akio Toyoda relayed a video message to Honda, for the 60th anniversary of its Suzuka circuit
Last year, at the 60th anniversary of Suzuka Circuit, which is owned by Honda, then President Toyoda relayed a video message to Honda fans gathered at the circuit. Toyoda-san said his love for cars can be traced back to Suzuka circuit, when his father Shoichiro Toyoda took the seven years old Akio to watch the first-ever Japanese Grand Prix. Akio credited the experience for sending him down his current path as a petrolhead.
“Suzuka is a really challenging course. Nowhere else am I so afraid to step on the gas.
“It feels as though the course’s creator, Soichiro Honda, is telling me, “You’ve still got a long way to go’,” said Akio, expressing reverence to the engineer-founder of Honda Motor.
The Honda corner at the Toyota Motorsports Museum in Fuji
At the Toyota Motorsports Museum in Fuji Speedway, there is a Honda corner where Toyota paid tribute to the late Soichiro Honda.
While both companies are fierce rivals in the new car space, Toyota and Honda engineers have experience cooperating with each other to build race cars.
Honda Racing and Toyota Gazoo Racing are partners in the Super Formula NEXT50 (SF NEXT50) project.
In Japan's Super Formula series, Toyota and Honda teams already carry each other's logo on their cars
Sometime in 2020, then President Akio Toyoda called then Honda CEO Takahiro Hachigo, whose company is supplying engines to the Super Formula series.
“Super Formula is important for the automotive industry,” said Akio. “Let’s work together to make these races more exciting.”
And that was it. Toyota and Honda engineers are now working together to make the race more exciting and reduce cost for participating teams. Both teams race cars carry each other’s logos.
The bi-annual Japan Mobility Show, as the Tokyo Motor Show is now called, will open next month on 26-October. Perhaps Chairman Akio Toyoda is hinting to an important joint-announcement soon? We can only speculate.
Remember that at the last 2019 Tokyo Motor Show, before Covid, the gentle giant Toyota moved its then newly launched TNGA Toyota Yaris away from the main motor show grounds, to allow the Honda Jazz (Fit) to have the limelight, even though both the Yaris and Jazz were launched in the same month.
The reason? The the surrounding grounds outside the motor show's main area are basically giant displays of Toyota's all-encompassing mobility solutions for the post-car world. Toyota was being a respectful giant, giving friendly rivals, all of whom share a common fate, enough space to do their own thing.
After skipping the 2021 event due to Covid, perhaps the Toyota and Honda will want to once again express their mutual respect at this year's event.
Over 15 years of experience in automotive, from product planning, to market research, to print and digital media. Garages a 6-cylinder manual RWD but buses to work.
