From a nightclub on wheels to a car shaped like a hat, many of the whacky vehicles unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show over the years have been consigned to the annals of auto history.
When Toyota wheeled out a futuristic Prius prototype in 1995 powered by a combination of petrol and electricity, many believed it would go the same way.
Twelve years later, its rivals are still trying to catch up and the hybrid will remain centre stage when the show gets under way again this week.
But the hybrid is not the only contender in the fuel efficiency race, with a host of environmentally-friendly technologies snapping at its heels.
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