Japanese minicar manufacturer Takeoka Jidosha Kogei's Milieu R is the perfect car for anti-social folks, featuring only one seat and a range of 50km that's just enough to make your commute while being limited enough to get you out of going to the bar afterward. Thus far those who socialize only with (very) small animals have been left out of the company's offerings, but that all changes with this new prototype, the T10. It's ever so slightly larger, gaining 90mm in length and 40mm in width, making room for a shelf to the left of the driver's seat intended for some sort of pet (we're guessing hamster, possibly a petite guinea pig). The other specs, including that 50 km range and top speed of 55 km/h, stay the same, meaning there'd still be no concerns about getting to work early or having to socialize afterward, but we're not sure its charming looks make up for a price tag set to be somewhere north of ¥856,000 (about $9,520); awfully close to that of a "real" car. At least it looks a little safer than the
HUVO.
posted February 1st 2009 12:33AM
I would never drive this anywhere but on a go kart track. Aside from weird looks on the road, you would get demolished if you were hit.
I'm surprised you'd drive this on a go kart track, to be honest.
You dont know japan. Here the roads are small and all the cars are conveniently small and very careful with people walking the streets everywhere. That kind of small car make lots of sens.
Do you also believe that motorcycles and bicycles should be banned from the roads? Or should everybody be driving vehicles the size of semi-trucks?
If you were hit by a bicycle, you'd get demolished! But a gnat would only crack the windshield.
I think it's awesome. as a NYC dweller, it would be amazing to use in bad weather (although I fear how it would perform in snow). Also, parking would be a dream.
I do question whether it would be comfortable for anyone larger than the standard japanese person.
I'd be up for a car like this. It is ridiculously efficient. I also bike in traffic so I wouldn't be all that bothered about the fact that this vehicle wouldn't do so well in an accident with a large truck.
This is the direction we need to go anyway. People need to get over their egos and stop buying these huge, stupid SUVs that they drive to work alone in.
@algibson
Did he say he would ban this car?
He probably wouldn't cycle either.
1980's called...
They said HI
Yeah, they said this is an ancient-looking piece of crap...
Japan is full of small objects. Small snacks. Small homes. Small dicks. This is so befitting.
you sound jealous, are you an angry lover, who was wrong by his man?
Yeah, but, from where you're from, you're just chock-full of small minds.
ooh he got you good XD
Didn't Urkel drive this?
His was a two seater BMW constructed of metal, and a couple of hooligans were able to tip it over
This is a one seater constructed of fibreglass, the wind is going to knock this thing over
It was an Isetta.
No, This is is Proff Laytons car
thats cars not even half as "cute" as the micro car Clarkson drove in the BBC
Some say that he sleeps inside out and that he once had full sex with Russell Brand's answering machine.
all we know is... he is called the Stig
The real question is: how many clowns can it fit???
I want to see the crash test videos for this thing.
Am I the only one or does this look like one of those cars in James Bond films that the guards drive around the factory in?
I was thinking the same thing....
and i noticed how do you get in the car, dont see a door on the left of the vehicle
Hal an Isetta
Half*
This reads "FAST FOOD DELIVERY" all over it.
This reads best contraceptive for teenagers..."ensuring your virginity for the rest of your life'
I think this reads "SLOW FOOD DELIVERY" all over it.
Have you ever driven a tiny car? I can assure you it gets more girls coming up to you asking you about your car, than a tricked out ricer.
I think I've seen those tires before... on a hand truck? Or a little red wagon?
Haha, I dont think that I have ever seen something more pointless. 50 km range? 55 kmh top speed? and at the same time managing to be ugly as sin, and a death trap in an accident... for 10k you can get a lot of Used car... this is just retarded, I would rather take a golf cart, at least that way it can serve some real purpose. hahaha
So I'm assuming you're American living in the land of highways and zero density. This makes absolute perfect sense for a country like Japan that is highly congested and is obviously trying to cope with increased congestion on city streets. Imagine if Tokyo were full of American cars... Also considering that on average a car in North America only has 1.2 occupants, it starts to make even more sense...
A 50km range is plenty to get you back and forth from work, and 55km/h is easily fast enough for dense city driving. An ecologically friendly commuter vehicle that minimizes the volume of car on the road and is designed for the habits and needs of actual users seems like a pretty good idea to me. But then again, I guess to a lot of Americans the American automotive industry has also been producing some good ideas...
@grigz, yes, Cole lives in the United States, and his expectations for transportation reflect that. However, not everywhere in the US is zero density. Here in the Bay Area, for example, we have serious traffic congestion issues, particularly at rush hour.
Unfortunately, due to the fact that every mom, dad, grandma, and pet chihuahua wants to own their own Hummer H2 (single occupancy, of course!), who can't park between the lines to save their lives, and who equally have sh!t for local visibility (the "it gives me better visibility" claim is a f*cking myth; sure you can see a wee bit farther, but only at the expense of seeing things that are CLOSER to you!), this Japanese car still would be ill-appropriate for the streets here.
Also, remember that here in the US, you're trying to get your car from your driveway to the parking lot at work. In the suburbs and city of Tokyo, at least, many people are just trying to get from home to the least-congested nearby rail station without breaking a sweat or getting rained on. Even bicycle riders are accustomed to renting a parking space at the train station. As a minimalist solution to that problem, and one with a steel rollcage at that, this looks like a winner.
When they can make these (or any other car for that matter) robotically- or remotely- driven for part of their trip, then we'll have a real revolution for the Japanese market -- even if it wouldn't catch on yet here. Log on and have the car meet you at a certain place and time for a one-way trip (during which you would be the driver), or have it show up with food in the driver's seat; It'd certainly be cheaper and more resource-effective than having the delivery guy haul his own body plus a 2,500 pound car down to your house to deliver 2 pounds of food.
this is a "car" ?
"even more cute"?! Why is it not "even cuter"?
Anyway, that vehicle reminds me of some of those vehicles in the original Dragonball manga.
This price is sooo Japanese. Awwwhh!... Wwwooo!... eehh!!. (-_-);;
They took the mini cooper and mutilated.
Which is cool because the mini SUCKS.
Did they?
hahaha, $9,520 :D
there are some "real" cars that are cheaper than that
Electric?
idiot.
There are *NO* "real" cars that cheap *ANYWHERE* off the lot. To approach that price, you're looking at a used ... err, no, I take that back. You're looking at an ABused car, something where you purchase it only because you're desperate, and you rack up double that price in chronic maintenance over its ownership period.
this is look like the car that hated by Mr Bean
can three people sit in that car ? i wonder!
Reminds me of a Volkswagen beetle. 1 seater, light, cheap, study, good enough in japan if your a only commuting around town, going to and from work.
I am annoyed by the people talking crap about these kind of cars and comparing them to mini-vans, SUVs, and full sized cars. I would think this would be a great alternative where as a bike or electric scooter wouldnt work, but the same range as a car but less comsuming.
The beetle is a five seater.
And it was designed by Hitler.
If it looked a little slicker, and had a lower price, this would actually be an ideal vehicle for city driving. In Australia too, most commuter cars only have 1 occupant, and the distance of the commute is probably 25km or less for most of the inner suburbs. A car like this would significantly decrease congestion, pollution, and most interestingly, hugely increase parking capacity in the city. But then again, Australia is rather too much like America when it comes to cars...
Can I get some Bacon and Toast with my Egg?
Welcome to the 21'st. cemetary.