INNOVATING THE ENERGY GRID HONDA AND TOYOTA ARE REIMAGINING THE FUTURE OF ENERGY T BY SCOTT SOWERS AIADA Contributing Editor oyota and Honda are supplementing their day jobs by helping to reimagine the Japanese energy indus- try. The country is still feeling the effects of the Great East Japan Earthquake that happened on March 11, 2011. The failed nuclear reactor in Fukushima is still leaking contaminated water and reactors across the country remain shut down as the nation aggressively moves toward the devel- opment of non-nuclear energy solutions. In order to ensure their ability to build cars in case of another disaster while also exploring energy production, the big names of Asian manufacturing are putting their engineering know- how to work on smart electrical grids and completely out-of- the-box approaches to powering private homes and the vehicles that park there. continued on page 12 WINTER 2015 | AutoDealer 11