► Toyota FT-Me concept could be made real
► UK plant in Derby leading feasibility study
► Potential production car to fit L6e class rules
Toyota has announced that its UK plant in Burnaston, Derby is leading a new feasibility study to make a production car based off the FT-Me concept revealed in early 2025.
The brand says it is ‘leading a consortium of partners to evaluate the feasibility of a lightweight battery electric prototype, confirming to the L6e light quadricycle category.’ Said consortium has secured funding from the UK Government via its Advanced Propulsion Centre and Drive35 plans – and it’ll all be based at the TMUK plant in the East Midlands.
As well as generally looking into seeing how such a vehicle is feasible, the study will also investigate adding tech like a solar roof and new recycled materials for the potential new production model.
In case you need a memory jogger, the FT-Me concept was unveiled in March 2025, and its name stands for ‘future Toyota mobility experience.’ The fact that this car is designed to fit L6e requirements means it puts it in line with fellow microcars like Citroen’s Ami and the Fiat Topolino, Renault Group’s Mobilize Duo and Bento (depending on spec) as well as other quadricycles from the likes of Aixam and Ligier. ‘But I don’t think that terminology does our concept justice,’ says Toyota Europe chief corporate officer, Matt Harrison. ‘We prefer to think about this vehicle as a sophisticated microcar.’
It’s an entirely Toyota-developed product, despite the brand working with Stellantis in other sectors of the automotive market. And the way Stijn Peeters, Toyota’s head of new mobility talks about the FT-Me, this is very much a when, not if in terms of it making it production. He says that the concept is ‘a great interpretation’ of what the end result will be, and that ‘besides the camera mirrors, I believe we can make it possible.’
Given the FT-Me is designed to fit L6e quadricycle standards, it means those as young as 14 can drive it in certain European markets like France, but Toyota wants the resulting production car to appeal to all.
‘Our cities are rapidly changing into places we’d like to live,’ says Peeters, ‘and we want everyone to be attracted to this car.’ Peeters and Harrison both mention this car potentially becoming a second car for short journeys, for example.
The design of the concept shows off the aim to feature as few body panels as possible, reducing costs and making it easier to replace them if they’re damaged. Toyota wants to encourage customisation options, showing us images of different graphics being applied to the FT-Me’s bodywork. A solar roof has also been proposed, designed to add range directly to the car’s battery, and recycled materials have been used in the car’s flexible interior.
Speeds would be limited to 45km/h (28mph) given the quadricycle rules, and Toyota is targeting a minimum 62-mile range – more than an Ami or Topolino. But Peeters is keen for the resulting production car to be a little more modern, refined and better equipped than Stellantis’ effort; ‘it’s not just Gen Z that are hyper-connected, we all are,’ he says, holding out his smartphone.
The aim, then, is for the FT-Me to have a digital key that resides on someone’s phone, which can be shared to others if needed – and opens up possibilities for fleet use.
There’s no official production date yet but, given the new consortium in the UK and the feasibility study that’s now in place, it feels closer than ever.
Jake has been an automotive journalist since 2015, joining CAR as Staff Writer in 2017. With a decade of car news and reviews writing under his belt, he became CAR's Deputy News Editor in 2020 and then News Editor in 2025. Jake's day-to-day role includes co-ordinating CAR's news content across its print, digital and social media channels. When he's not out interviewing an executive, driving a new car for review or on a photoshoot for a CAR feature, he's usually found geeking out on the latest video game, buying yet another pair of wildly-coloured trainers or figuring out where he can put another car-shaped Lego set in his already-full house.
By Jake Groves
CAR's news editor; gamer, trainer freak and serial Lego-ist