2016 marked my first visit to CES, and it was also the first time Swiss innovator/imagineer/concept-car genius Frank Markus Rinderknecht made the trip. He was even awarded my press pass! We got together to compare first impressions and to get a personal walk-around of his BMW i8-based but comprehensively restyled—and refitted—Etos concept (stylized by the company as Σtos; say “EE-tos”), which features full autonomy and 2015’s hottest Christmas gift, an onboard drone.
The car was conceived especially for CES as a showcase of all the fast-changing technologies that are redefining the automotive landscape. With autonomy chief among them, the name is suggestive of “ethos,” the Greek word for ethics, and it’s meant to ask the rhetorical question: Can a machine be ethical? The overall design was primarily intended to anonymize the donor car’s BMWness because the Etos will spend the next year touring the globe demonstrating the many technologies, all developed by an impressive roster of automotive suppliers, to potential customers who prefer to see them demonstrated on a neutral Swiss car than on a Bavarian one. The Rinspeed concept was displayed in partner Harman’s large offsite venue to showcase Harman’s new Life-Enhancing Intelligent Vehicle Solution (LIVS), an end-to-end system to provide drivers intelligent, adaptable, and personal connected-car products and services.
Innovation abounds inside. For starters, when autonomous mode is engaged, the steering wheel folds and disappears into the dash (like a David Copperfield act) via a mechanism devised by ZF-TRW. The two curved ultra-high-def screens that provide instrument readouts and infotainment when the driver is in control move together into a single, wide screen that displays content via Harman Connected Car technologies. That system, by the way, is interactive and designed to learn its users’ habits and anticipate their needs, potentially reducing the number of manual inputs required to infotainment, climate, and navigation systems. When inputs are necessary, the car is able to respond to voice commands, gestures, touch or controller inputs, or the press of a button.
Twelve HD cameras provide 360-degree views, eliminating the need for conventional rearview mirrors. They also provide views tailored to various situations—close-up curb views of the wheels when parking, for example. Interior cameras track the driver’s point of focus so that vital information can be delivered to the nearest screen when needed, and side mirror displays only show an image when they’re looked at. Being totally connected to the infrastructure, an e-Horizon system alerts the driver to upcoming traffic lights, accidents, emergency vehicles, and the like.
The seats are tanned using an environmentally sustainable process devised by supplier Stahl called “EasyWhite.” There’s even a glow-in-the-dark component, and the seats are adorned with the skyline of San Francisco. No Swiss superconcept would be complete without a trick timepiece, and this one is a mechanical Patravi TravelTec clock from Swiss manufacturer Carl F. Bucherer. It includes a mechanism to lift it and gyrate it for self-winding purposes. The clock also incorporates a camera that focuses on whichever passenger is speaking during a video call.
Outside, the paintwork is the sparkliest yellow this reporter has encountered, using deep layers of clear coat. The paint itself reportedly costs $5,000 a gallon. The trim around the windows is ceramic-coated, and the argent panel in the front is painted using a special magnetic process that aligns metal flecks to appear as closely spaced three-dimensional metallic grille bars. The wheels are cast of ordinary aluminum, which is a relatively soft metal when the wheel touches a curb. But these Borbet wheels feature a titanium face to better resist such scratching.
Finally, that DJI drone in the back is pretty much just for fun. Its 15-minute flying time and 20-mph top speed mean it wouldn’t be much good at following the Etos and providing L.A.-copter-grade video coverage of your very own O.J. car chase. Its landing pad is fun and cool, though, made of Corning Gorilla Glass (like the roof) under which lie 12,000 LEDs that can provide a dance-floor light show. Fess up: Wouldn’t you love to own a hybrid sports car that drove itself and had a mini dance floor on the back?
The post Rinspeed Etos Concept First Look appeared first on Motor Trend.
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