If you like to drive and get your hands dirty, stop reading this article. The Mercedes-Benz F 015 Luxury in Motion provides a glimpse into what the car's future will be like, and it's not at all friendly to driving enthusiasts.
In 2030 the equivalent of the current S-class could look like this futuristic concept. A rolling object aware of its surroundings, which does not require human intervention to move in the vast mega-cities of the future. It is the brand itself that says that in the next 15 years the number of cities with more than 10 million inhabitants will increase from the current 30 to 40.
Autonomous cars should be the answer, among many, to the time wasted in urban travel and endless traffic jams. With this technology, the driver will leave this tedious task exclusively to his car. The cabin will become an extension of the living room or office. All that's left is to hang a picture on the "wall".
During travel, occupants can gather, access the net or read a newspaper, all in theoretically perfect safety conditions. Presented at the CES (Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas, USA, the F 015 Luxury in Motion allows you to witness the evolution of the automobile from self-propelled to self-sufficient.
In this scenario of mega-cities and autonomous vehicles, our use of the car must change radically. As Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche said at the F 015 presentation that “the car is growing beyond its role as a mere means of transport and will ultimately be a mobile living space”. Breaking away from the cheap look of the self-contained and recently introduced Google Car, the F 015 Luxury in Motion adds a dimension of sophistication and luxury to the car's autonomous future.
As such, it will force the emergence of new approaches and solutions. The F 015 frees itself from all the conventions that we currently associate with a top of the range or even the car. With a narrow focus on the space dedicated to its occupants, and using electric propulsion, the packaging is perfectly different from what we can currently find in an equivalent S-Class.
Dimensions approximate the current long S class. The F 015 is 5.22 m long, 2.01 m wide and 1.52 m high. Slightly shorter and taller, and about 11.9 cm wider than the S-Class, it's the wheelbase that really stands out. It is about 44.5 cm more, settling at 3.61 m, with the huge wheels being pushed into the corners of the bodywork. Something that is only possible due to electric propulsion.
Traction (rear) is made by two electric motors, one per wheel, totaling 272 hp and 400 Nm. The autonomy of 1100 km is guaranteed by a set of lithium batteries, capable of up to 200km of autonomy and a fuel cell to hydrogen, adding the remaining 900km, with 5.4kg deposits and pressurized to 700 bar. The entire system is integrated into the platform floor, eliminating the front compartment where a conventional internal combustion engine would be found.
With these premises, a set of unique proportions is generated. The typical 3-pack silhouette gives way to a minivan line, unprecedented in vehicles in this segment. With the wheels closer to the bodywork limits to maximize the living space.
As predictably the car will move autonomously in most situations, aspects such as visibility are no longer relevant, justifying the massive A-pillars of the F 015. Visually, as expected from a concept that opens up horizons for a hypothetical nirvana of mobility, the aesthetic is clean, elegant and devoid of unnecessary details.
As there is no need to cool a V6 or V8 at the front, the places traditionally reserved for the cooling grid and optics are merged into a single element, consisting of a series of LEDs that not only take on the lighting functions, but also allow communication with the exterior, with the LED's forming different combinations, revealing the most diverse messages, even creating words.
On the rear panel equivalent, as a required “STOP”. But the possibilities do not stop there, there is the possibility of projecting the most varied type of information onto the asphalt, even creating virtual crossings, warning pedestrians of a safe passage.
But the real star is the interior. Starting with the access, with “suicidal” rear doors, which can open at 90º, and an absent B-pillar replaced by a series of locks on the doors, which connect the sill and the roof together, allowing the necessary protection in the event of a collision side. As the doors open, the seats turn 30º towards the outside for easy access.
Presented with four individual seats, and since the need to drive it will be secondary, the front seats can rotate 180º, making it possible to transform the cabin into an authentic moving room. Mercedes defines the interior of the F 015 Luxury in Motion as a digital active space that allows the interaction of its occupants, through gestures, touch or even eye tracking with 6 screens – one at the front, four at the sides and one at the rear.
Yes, we can still find steering wheel and pedals inside the F 015. The driver will still have this option and it is most likely that the presence of these controls is mandatory, considering some of the laws that have already been passed, in the US and beyond, to regulate the autonomous vehicles.
Inside, we find a luxurious interior covered with natural materials, such as walnut wood and white nappa leather, in combination with glazed openings and exposed metal. The solutions presented reflect what Mercedes envisions what consumers will look for in luxury cars for decades to come – a private and comfortable retreat in congested mega-cities.
Closer to us should be the solutions applied to the construction of the F 015. A mixture of CFRP (carbon fiber reinforced plastic), aluminum and high-strength steel, allows for a weight reduction of up to 40% when compared to high-strength steel structures. strength and conventional aluminum used today by the brand.
In August 2013, a modified Mercedes S-Class made a 100km journey between Mannheim and Pforzheim, Germany without any human being involved in its relocation. The route chosen was a tribute to recreating the route that Bertha Benz took in 1888 to demonstrate to her husband, Karl Benz, the feasibility as a means of transport of the invention of the first patented automobile. This is the future predicted by Daimler and the F 015 Luxury in Motion is a decisive step in this direction.
One that is shared by a number of brands like Audi or Nissan, and even new players like Google. The technology for autonomous vehicles already exists and only regulatory and legal issues prevent 100% autonomous cars from being available for sale. It is estimated that by the end of the decade and the beginning of the next, the first of this new species will appear. Until then, we will see models with semi-autonomous characteristics appear in rapid cadence.
