This week marks the 100-year anniversary of BMW’s founding in 1916. To celebrate, the iconic German car manufacturer this week unveiled a new concept car called the Vision Next 100 that is absolutely wild.
While it’s very unlikely that we’ll see this car on the road anytime soon, it does show that there’s a lot of untapped potential innovations out there when it comes to car designs.
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BMW says that the Vision Next 100 “combines coupé-type sportiness with the dynamic elegance of a sedan,” although that description doesn’t come close to conveying just how strange this car looks. Here’s another photo of the car that reminds me a little bit of the Batmobile in Tim Burton’s Batman movies after it had switched on its protective armor:
Some of the features in the car include:
- Both autonomous and manual driving capabilities
- A special “boost mode” in which “the entire vehicle focuses on the driver, offering the support needed to maximise the driving experience – for instance by indicating the ideal driving line, steering point and speed.” This feature relies on augmented reality to give the driver alerts and indicators. So for example, if there’s a bicyclist who’s merging out into the street, you’ll see a flashing warning alerting you to their presence on your windshield.
- An “ease mode” that “sees the interior transform: the steering wheel and center console retract; the headrests turn to the side, and the seats and door trim merge to form a single unit so that the driver and front-seat passenger can turn towards each other.”
This experimental concept car made its debut this week at the Munich Olympic Hall as part of BMW’s centenary celebration. Check out a video showing off all the car’s key features below.
