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Toyota F3R concept
Toyota says minivans have become boring and conventional, and aren't attracting younger buyers who are starting families. So it created a new people mover from the inside out. The result: The F3R concept, a large, square van with six doors and three rows of seats that can be reconfigured into a large couch. The F3R can seat up to eight passengers. The driver's seat swivels to face the back. The front passenger seat reclines.
The center and right seats of the second row stow into the floor. The left seat in that row reclines to form the couch along the left side of the interior. Each side of the van has a pair of center-opening doors to create a wide opening to the second and third rows of seating. Two flat-panel monitors are mounted on tracks to be moved around the interior, and the instrument panel holds a detachable remote control. Toyota says the concept has a hybrid powertrain.
Type of vehicle: Minivan
What's cool: Front passenger seat reclines into a chaise lounge. Second- and third-row seats fold to create an "avant garde sofa." Center console detaches to become remote control for audio and video systems. DVD screens slide fore and aft on tracks that run the length of the headliner. Floor is made from recycled rubber.
Production possibility: Some of the aggressive front fascia may appear in the next Sienna. Seating flexibility ideas may be used in some form. Pushing wheels to the corners may be new direction in minivan packaging.
Designers: Ian Cartabiano, exterior; Alan Schneider, interior.
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