Suzuki e-Survivor EV concept heading to Tokyo Motor Show

Suzuki is expected to slip the covers off its next-generation Jimny at next month’s Tokyo Motor Show, but even if it doesn’t we’re still going to get a glimpse of another eye-catching off-roader at the Suzuki stand – the e-Survivor concept.

And boy is it wild. The e-Survivor concept is a jacked-up, plastic-bodied reimagining of the Suzuki X-90 of the 1990s, a bubble-shaped offroader that bucked convention by being a 2-seat coupe with a boot rather than a conventional hatch or wagon.

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The e-Survivor’s profile bears more than a passing resemblance to the X-90, but that’s where the similarities start and end. The e-Survivor is a 4WD, yes, but it produces power via four direct-drive in-wheel electric motors.

The doors are replaced with transparent panels, there are no conventional fenders to speak of, and there’s no roof either – just a targa bar connecting the windscreen frame to a pair of buttresses behind each seat

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Overhangs are short and ground clearance is massive, which should give the e-Survivor excellent off-road credentials – were it not a concept, that is.

Inside, it’s a boundary-pushing vision of the future with a dashboard-spanning infotainment screen, what appears to be a central holographic display, a rugged hard plastic floor, another screen embedding into the steering wheel and climate control mini-screens located between the thighs of each occupant.

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It’s as exciting as it is unrealistic, and while it’s obviously not intended for a production future it nevertheless demonstrates that Suzuki’s designers are capable of dreaming big.

We’ll have our first good look at it at the Tokyo Motor Show on October 23.