BMW’s centenary party celebrations have just kicked off with the unveiling of a self-driving concept car called Vision Next 100. With the threat of Apple and Google hovering like the alien spacecraft in Independence Day, it’s further proof that the traditional car industry isn’t just refusing to cede the technological high ground to Silicon Valley, it’s squaring up for a blood-thirsty battle.
"BMW will turn data into intelligence and enhance life," BMW’s chairman Harald Kruger says. "The Vision Next 100 offers a clear picture of future mobility, and demonstrates how the car will enrich our lives with personal services."
BMW coined the tagline "the ultimate driving machine" in 1974, but it’s taking on a radical new meaning here. Says BMW design boss Adrian van Hooydonk, "BMW has always been about driving. On the Vision Next 100 we want to create the ultimate driving companion." Although it’s approximately the size of today’s 5 series saloon, the concept has the same interior space as the 7 series limo. But rather than painting a bleakly dystopian picture of faceless boxes locked into an autonomous groove on a congested M25, the Vision Next 100 posits a future in which the driver can still really drive.
In Boost mode, there’s a slim-line steering wheel, which slides into view for the driver. He or she is also supported by a "Companion", and the car’s ability to see around corners or sense potential hazards is telegraphed to the frail human in charge. Select Ease mode, and the wheel disappears, and the windscreen turns into a display screen. The whole top surface of the dashboard glows red if the car spots a pedestrian, or other obstacle. BMW is also pioneering a technology called Active Geometry, which uses 800 inter-locking triangles to communicate with the occupants.
"Apart from the fact that no-one here today is going to be around in 100 years time to check, I can’t really say whether we’ll get it right. But we want to shape the future rather than wait for it to arrive."
In the midst of all this innovation, van Hooydonk concedes that the Vision Next 100 has the basic stance and form of a BMW saloon because "from the 2002 to the 3 series, that’s how BMW became known as a sporty brand."
