The Tokyo Motor Show is taking place at the very end of this month, running into the beginning of November. Therefore, where better for Mercedes-Benz to unveil a concept car that's called the Vision Tokyo?
Kyoto, if you're a fan of anagrams?
Get out.
OK, OK! I'll stop now. So what's the Vision Tokyo all about?
A hydrogen fuel cell-powered electric vehicle, the futuristic Vision Tokyo is supposed to be a 'hip living space, a chill-out zone in the midst of megacity traffic mayhem'. It can drive itself and has an interior that features 3D holographic infotainment displays that hover in the middle of the cabin.
I'm sorry... but, what the hell?
An evolution of the F 015 that Mercedes showed in San Francisco earlier this year, the Vision Tokyo has a 613-mile range; 119 miles on the high-voltage battery alone, with 494 more miles courtesy of the fuel cell generating more electricity. Clever systems and plenty of technology mean it's meant to be an autonomous car, although someone can drive it if they wish - in which instance, a steering wheel pops out the dashboard and a 'jump seat' folds out of bits of the interior.
Right. And what's that funky lounge set-up all about?
Mercedes is targeting this car at 'Generation Z', made up of tech-savvy kids born after 1995 who are totally au fait with gadgets. Thus, the semi-circular sofa in the back allows these people (normally to be found with their faces buried in a smartphone) to, er... interact and have face-to-face time. Yes, of course. The perforated seats are back-lit, there are wraparound LED screens running behind the occupants, and all apps, maps and displays from the infotainment are beamed to the centre of the 'lounge' in 3D holographic format. Due to Deep Machine Learning and an Intelligent Predictive Engine, this Mercedes adapts to its regular occupants, logging their likes and preferences on each and every journey, in order to make itself more pleasant to travel in. Lordy be!
How about the outside?
Sitting on a discreet set of 26s (!), the Alubeam metallic body colour is continued onto the side glass of the car - where the hue is screen-printed onto the windows. While this looks like it might present a few visibility issues, it actually allows full views out but no prying glances in. At 4.8 metres long, 2.1 metres wide and 1.6 metres high, it's no shrinking violet - a fact exacerbated by displays at the front and rear of the car that can illuminate according to what's going on within the Vision Tokyo or what it's thinking of doing in terms of manoeuvring.
And how about getting into it?
You'll notice the one massive gullwing door into the cabin is on the left-hand side; deliberately placed there for the safe ingress/egress of passengers in a right-hand drive market like Japan. Final thought here: bits of the car glow blue, such as the wheels, side sills and the antenna on the roof. Because blue is clearly the signature colour of hybrids and, well... it's all futuristic-looking and shizzle, isn't it?
Crikey. And is this due for production?
Are you insane? No. Although, as Tokyo has more than four times the population of Paris squashed into less physical space (389 square miles) than the French capital, this sort of autonomous, relaxing conveyance would look damn fine in a near-future version of the megacity. One, perhaps, involving an urban vista not dissimilar to that seen in Blade Runner...
