A STELLAR SHOW: Part 2 of 2; Tokyo 2003 has many highlights.

Byline: DUTCH MANDEL, BOB GRITZINGER, MARK VAUGHN, MIKE FLOYD

Honda IMAS concept

]]]] For that wind-in-your-hair driving experience, Honda proposes the IMAS, a lightweight hybrid sports car concept designed to "cut through the wind like a bicycle.'' Using the proven Integrated Motor Assist powertrain of the Insight/Civic Hybrid, Honda builds on the sleek aerodynamic styling of the Insight to create a vehicle with an aluminum frame and carbon fiber body weighing just 1540 pounds, and with only a 0.20 drag coefficient. Honda engineers estimate about a 94-mpg fuel economy average from IMAS.

Daihatsu Ai concept

]]]] We don't get these 660-cc microcars in our country for good reason: We don't get them. That is, we don't understand their fascination in the market. You might find this lil' box cute (hey, it has a tiny, 3.4-meter or 11.2-foot turning radius), but in space-constricted Japan, it's Social Darwinism. Dimensionally, it's about a 12EEE, and it gets a six-valve three-banger to move its 1257-pound weight. No, they don't get much smaller than this.

Subaru B9 Scrambler concept

]]]] This may well be the world's first boxer-engine hybrid, combining a traditional H4 Subaru engine making 131 hp with an electric motor producing another 130 hp. But unlike most hybrid systems that rely primarily on the gasoline engine and to a lesser extent on electric-motor assist, Subaru's Sequential Series Hybrid Electric Vehicle drives the all-wheel drivetrain first with its electric motor up to 50 mph before the gasoline engine fires up and assists in propulsion. The internal-combustion engine takes over completely at high speeds where the gasoline engine is most efficient.