BMW Geneva Concept Designed to Keep Driver, Passenger Connected

Special Coverage

Geneva
Auto Show

TURIN – With its Vision Efficient Dynamic concept unveiled at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show and set to enter limited production at the end of 2013, BMW designers focused on fuel efficiency through an attractive, lightweight and compact 4-seat supercar with a high-performance hybrid powertrain.

At the Geneva auto show next month, BMW will repeat the exercise with a new show car called the Vision Connected Drive, this time concentrating the design concept on keeping driver and passenger connected to their environment.

The 2-seat roadster takes the BMW design language to the next level, with its long wheelbase, setback seating position and long hood, combining solid surfaces with flowing lines in a dynamic sculpture.

The sliding doors, inspired by those on the BMW Z1, disappear into the body of the car and add an exotic flair. The headlights and tail lights work as sensors monitoring the traffic and the environment around the car.

The interior focuses on comfort, infotainment and safety, using a combination of color, shapes, motion, texture and transparent surfaces to trace the path information flows around the cockpit via a complex web of fiber-optic lighting.

A red flow is used to provide safety-specific information to the driver. A ribbon of blue light extends to the passenger cell, delivering on infotainment data and connecting the driver and passenger.

The third area, highlighted in green, provides details on the car’s surrounding environment, with information gathered and fed by two antennas that replace the conventional sideview mirrors.

In addition to an advanced, 3-dimensional head-up display, the BMW Vision Connected Drive is equipped with a fully programmable instrument cluster that allows the driver to determine information presented and projected onto the windshield.

Passengers get their own information display, kept out of the driver’s field of vision, allowing them to see vehicle-operating information, navigation details and infotainment functions and transfer data to the driver with a simple touch of a finger.

BMW’s Vision Connected Drive concept.