SHERIDAN, WYOMING – December 19, 2025 – Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda—known affectionately as “Aki-chan”—just did something you don’t see every day: he walked into a high school classroom in Japan and taught a special lesson about cars, life, and what he hopes the next generation carries forward.
A New Kind of School Day in Ehime
The setting wasn’t a lecture hall or a boardroom. It was FC Imabari High School Satoyama in Ehime Prefecture, a private school that opened in April 2024 and is intentionally built around the idea that learning shouldn’t stay trapped inside a classroom.
One of the school’s defining features is a curriculum that blends studies with real-world projects, including corporate activities and engagement with the local community. In other words: students don’t just learn about life—they practice it, in public.
“A Time to Encounter Powerful Life Stories”
The school regularly hosts special classes called “A Time to Encounter Powerful Life Stories,” inviting professionals from business, sports, and other fields to share what they’ve learned the hard way. That’s where Aki-chan steps in.
In September 2025, Toyoda returned to the lectern for a second visit, answering student questions with what the source describes as genuine sincerity. And the questions weren’t small talk. They went straight for meaning, purpose, and the emotional core of ambition.
“What are cars to you?”
“What do you want to leave for the next generation?”
“What were the most enjoyable and most challenging moments in your life?”
If you’re a lifestyle reader, this is the part that hits: it’s not “Toyota content” as much as it is a reminder that the people shaping huge brands are still, at some level, wrestling with the same questions everyone else does.
Why Toyoda Showing Up Actually Matters
It’s easy to roll your eyes at celebrity-style guest talks. But this one has a different flavor, because it’s rooted in education—not promotion. The idea for the class came from Toyoda resonating deeply with the school’s principal, Takeshi Okada, and his views on how young people should be prepared for the real world.
For students, it’s the rare chance to ask a powerful adult direct questions without the usual layers of PR and distance. For the rest of us, it’s a quiet cultural signal: in Japan’s next-generation schools, “leadership” is treated like a skill you build—through exposure, conversation, and a little bit of discomfort.
When the Lesson Turns Into a Rally Ride
Then the day took a turn that honestly feels like a movie scene. After the classroom session, Toyoda changed into his racing suit and switched from Aki-chan into “Morizo,” giving students rally car rides on the school grounds.
That detail matters because it turns the message into something physical. It’s one thing to talk about courage, fear, and growth. It’s another thing to strap in, hear the engine, and feel your stomach drop as someone pushes the car harder than you thought they would.
The source puts it simply and perfectly: “The students’ delighted screams from the passenger seat say it all.” That’s not just fun—it’s memory-making. And for teenagers, the memories that stick are often the ones that quietly shape confidence later.
The Moment Everyone Will Remember: “What is love?”
The class brought Toyoda face to face with 110 students—the “leaders of tomorrow,” as the story frames them—and one student asked the question that can stop any adult in their tracks: “What is love?”
That’s the heartbeat of this whole moment. Not the title. Not the famous guest. Not even the rally ride. It’s the fact that young people—surrounded by pressure, algorithms, and constant performance—still want an answer that sounds human.
And maybe the point isn’t getting the “correct” definition. Maybe it’s seeing a grown-up take the question seriously, in public, with no escape hatch.
What This Says About Toyota’s Culture
Even if you don’t care about cars, this story hints at something bigger: Toyota is a company that’s unusually comfortable mixing seriousness with play, discipline with joy, and tradition with hands-on experience.
Aki-chan in the classroom and Morizo in the rally car are basically two sides of the same message: build people, not just products. Teach, don’t just tell. And leave the next generation with something they can actually carry.
Questions Readers Might Still Have
Q: Who is “Aki-chan”?
A: It’s the nickname used here for Chairman Akio Toyoda when he taught the special class.
Q: What is FC Imabari High School Satoyama trying to do differently?
A: The school aims to nurture leaders of a new era, with learning that includes corporate activities and engagement with the local community.
Q: What made this visit special beyond the talk?
A: After the class, Toyoda changed into his racing suit and, as “Morizo,” gave students rally car rides on the school grounds.
Q: What’s the one question that sums up the whole story?
A: A student asked, “What is love?”
Learn more at https://toyotatimes.jp/en/newscast/162.html.