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Nissan's Ultimate Smart BBQ e-NV200 is crowd-funded fun in Japan

When the weather starts warming up, expect the grills to start heating up. A Japanese company is trying to get a jump on the higher temperatures with a crowdfunding campaign for a Nissan e-NV200 with a full kitchenette and many more bizarre features hidden inside. The company calls it the Ultimate Smart BBQ Vehicle. More than just a rather bizarre video, a crowdfunding site is hosting a project to actually hold parties around Japan with this Nissan. The goal is to raise 1 million yen (about $8,500 at current rates), and it has about 180,000 yen ($1,500), as of this writing. A pledge of at least 30,000 yen ($250) gets you and a friend invited to one of these events. However, if you really need the Ultimate Smart BBQ Vehicle, then 25 million yen ($208,500) buys it outright. This van is designed to be an emissions-free party machine. Sliding out of the rear is a 1,500-watt electric grill complete with a rotisserie, and there's even a sink for washing dishes. A full disposal system even helps with cleanup afterwards. Beyond just a place to do some outdoor cooking, this e-NV200 is outfitted with practically everything necessary to host some festivities. An ultrasonic mosquito barrier should keep the bugs away, and a water mister also helps keep guests cool. When it starts getting dark, there's a smartphone-linked screen on the side to display pictures or movies, and the setup even doubles as a karaoke machine. Likely the weirdest feature, though, is a deployable drone that can take pictures of your shindig. Our Japanese language skills are limited to counting from one to ten and asking what time it is in Tokyo right now, so it's hard to really suss out all the details. But from a Q&A at the bottom of the page (translated by our friends at Google Translate), it appears you have to be a Japanese resident to donate. And the site doesn't take American Express. If anyone knows how to read Japanese and wants to tell us more, please comment below. Because now we're hungry and want some yakitori.

Green self-driving cars take center stage in Tokyo

Visions of cars that drive themselves without emitting a bit of pollution while entertaining passengers with online movies and social media are what's taking center stage at the Tokyo Motor Show. Japan, home to the world's top-selling automaker, has a younger generation disinterested in owning or driving cars. The show is about wooing them back. It's also about pushing an ambitious government-backed plan that paints Japan as a leader in automated driving technology. Reporters got a preview look at the exhibition Wednesday, ahead of its opening to the public Oct. 30. Nissan Motor Co. showed a concept vehicle loaded with laser scanners, a 360 degree camera setup, a radar and computer chips so the car can "think" to deliver autonomous driving. The Japanese automaker called it IDS, which stands for "intelligent driving system." Nissan, based in Yokohama, Japan, said it will offer some autonomous driving features by the end of next year in Japan. By 2018, it said vehicles with the technology will be able to conduct lane changes on highways. By 2020, such vehicles will be able to make their way through intersections on regular urban roads. Nissan officials said they were working hard to make the car smart enough to recognize the difference between a red traffic light and a tail light, learn how to turn on intersections where white lane indicators might be missing and anticipate from body language when a pedestrian might cross a street. Nissan's IDS vehicle is also electric, with a new battery that's more powerful than the one currently in the automaker's Leaf electric vehicle. Although production and sales plans were still undecided, it can travel a longer distance on a single charge and recharge more quickly. A major challenge for cars that drive themselves is winning social acceptance. They would have to share the roads with normal cars with drivers as well as with pedestrians, animals and unexpected objects. That's why some automakers at the show are packing the technology into what looks more like a golf cart or scooter than a car, such as Honda Motor Co.'s cubicle-like Wander Stand and Wander Walker scooter. Instead of trying to venture on freeways and other public roads, these are designed for controlled environments, restricted to shuttling people to pre-determined destinations. At a special section of the show, visitors can try out some of the so-called "smart mobility" devices such as Honda's seat on a single-wheel as well as small electric vehicles.

Nissan GT-R LM Nismo claws its way into Jay Leno's Garage

Nissan has taken a radical approach to its Le Mans entry, giving the GT-R LM Nismo an unusual front-engine, front-drive layout to challenge the mid-engine prototypes put forth by the likes of Audi, Porsche and Toyota. It's so unusual that Jay Leno just had to have it in his garage to get a good look at it – and fortunately he had the cameras rolling when he did. Nissan's LMP1 design will attempt to take advantage of the regulations that are more restrictive on the rear aerodynamics than they are on the front. So the Japanese automaker moved everything up front, including the engine, the driven wheels, and the bulk of the downforce. Whether it will pay off remains to be seen, but we'll be watching closely to see how it fares against the mainstream competition. In the meantime, you can scope out this special 24-minute episode of Jay Leno's Garage to see what Nissan is up to.