I'm always looking for a better mousetrap. Whether that's a better loadout for my hunting endeavors, a great pocket knife that can do it all, a perfect motorcycle setup, or whatever I'm using that doesn't quite meet my needs in all the situations I use that particular thing in. I want something that just works and works well for my hard-earned money.
That applies to how I get my powersport toys around, too, as while I can load motorcycles into the back of my truck, or use a trailer to haul my UTV or snowmobile around, they don't quite always work as I envision. There's always a feeling of that "there's something better out there for this specific task." Lo and behold, Toyota might've created that perfect mousetrap with the IMV Origin concept.
And I don't think that's what the company was going for when it created this perfect flat-pack, DIY truck. But, hot damn, does it look awesome without adding anything or even finishing the build.
First off, Toyota states that the IMV Origin makes use of the concept of "deliberate incompleteness," which is a phrase that I'm now totally and utterly in love with, as I, too, am deliberately incomplete. Or at least that's what I'll pretend I am going forward. But the concept is that the IMV Origin can adopt whatever shell and capabilities that the end user would require.
Speaking at the Japan Mobility Show, Toyota's President and CEO, Koji Sato, stated, "When planning this vehicle, the 'you' that we had in mind were people living in rural villages in Africa. With 'you' in such places in mind, we incorporated two key ideas into the vehicle. The first idea was: 'We will ship this vehicle from our production plant unfinished.' This vehicle leaves its plant before it is ready to be driven. It is the local people who assemble and complete it. This brings new local jobs in the form of assembly work."
He added, "The second idea was that customers would define the vehicle on their own terms, even after it's assembled. Will it carry people or cargo? Will the cargo be boxes or something else? We just build the base. From there, each customer completes the vehicle to fit their needs. As a carmaker, not finishing this vehicle was frustrating. However, not finishing it is what makes it a 'for you' car, because people have different needs in their daily life and work."
But the size of the IMV Origin, basically the size of a Kei truck, makes it absolutely perfect for someone like me who wants to maybe throw on some doors and then use it to haul powersports machines around, as the deck isn't too far off the ground, and those adorable little off-road wheels would make backcountry expenditions awesome.
No, it's not an F-250 Super Duty, but for most people, you don't need that. Most of the time, I don't even need that. But I do know what I need right now, and that's the IMV Origin.
