Honda Tomo: student-designed city car pick-up shown at Geneva

Honda has teamed up with students to create the Tomo, an electric concept car that merges a city car with a mini pick-up and which is on display at the Geneva motor show.

The machine was developed by students taking a masters in international design at the Institute Europeo de Design (IED) in Turin, Italy. They worked to a brief set by Honda engineers to develop a ‘fun’ car reflecting the ideal means of transport for young people in 2025.

The Tomo – which means 'friend' in Japanese – was conceived to work as both a small machine for daily commuting in cities and urban areas, while also being suitable for leisure activities in rural areas.

The concept is 3997mm long, 1893mm wide and 1556mm high with a wheelbase of 2960mm and retro-modem styling that echoes Honda’s e prototype. According to the IED, the Tomo is styled to resemble a wearable tech device. The exterior design was based on a design from student Ricardo Alejandro Campos Ortega.

While the Tomo is a university concept that will not lead to a production model, the brief set by Honda reflects both the firm's plans to electrify its entire line-up and the fresh design language seen with the e-protoype city car, which will spawn a family of small EVs.

The Tomo is the 15th concept machine that has been presented at Geneva by IED students.