You may have noticed an unusual number of “Back to the Future” references in your social media; that’s because 10/21/2015 is the date shown on Doc Brown’s DeLorean time machine in “Back to the Future 2.” In the plot of the movie, this is the day that Marty McFly arrives in the future to try and fix the things that have gone wrong in the timeline.

Though the DeLorean is the automotive star of the franchise, there’s a Toyota->ke88 connection as well. Marty’s dream car is a black 1985 Toyota Xtracab 4x4 pickup, and Toyota’s taken the opportunity to play it up a little bit. (DeLorean probably would too, if it was still in business.) In addition to creating a “Back to the Future” edition of the all-new 2016 Tacoma, complete with 1980s-style KC light bar and nerf bumpers, the brand has brought its Mirai fuel-cell vehicle into the loop with a short video->ke278 called “Fueled by the Future.” The video features the aforementioned Tacoma->ke1042 concept along with Christopher Lloyd, Michael J. Fox and other familiar faces.

Why it matters

The hook is that the Mirai’s hydrogen fuel cell powertrain makes it similar to the “Mr. Fusion” device that enabled Doc Brown to power the DeLorean using garbage, once it had been modified in the “future” of 2015. The video backs the comparison up with an interesting look at the use of landfill trash to produce biogas that can be used to power other things.

To keep things entertaining, there are numerous references to the movies, for the benefit of trivia buffs. Whether the Mirai is truly the wave of the future in fuel-cell vehicles remains to be seen; the car goes on sale next year.

Toyota Mirai

Read more about Toyota Mirai here.