Again, this idea has been out in the ether for a bit. Models such as the GLE Coupe already offer “energizing comfort” settings that run through light mindfulness exercises to help promote circulation, breathing, and inner calm. Their 10-or-so-minute routines encourage deep breathing, meditation, and gentle stretching. Meanwhile, six-figure luxury vehicles like the Rolls-Royce Cullinan and Bentley Bentayga already offer nearly instant Wi-Fi and audio settings, and recording-studio levels of quiet to help consumers feel safe, protected, and in-touch—all technologies that help busy and anxious consumers remain sane.
But mental health during and after the psychic trauma of an historic pandemic will mean a whole new level of concern. Future drivers will expect total efficiency and total isolation—for their own safety, says Alister Whelan, the creative director for interior design at Jaguar Land Rover.
“My young designers keep reminding me that safety isn’t always about size—people will want privacy,” Whelan says. That means unremarkable, discreet, and even forgettable exteriors (like, say, the indecipherable and ubiquitous Tesla Model S), which are all the better for staying under the radar. It also means superior alarm and security systems that can detect potential nefarious movement even before it happens. (The market for armored vehicles, by the way, has recently reached sky-high proportions.)
It could even mean an invisibility cloak. If that sounds far-fetched, it’s not. Mercedes was experimenting with one made from LEDs and a camera back in 2012; Toyota patented a cloaking device in 2017 as a way to help drivers see through those pesky A-pillars that can hamper visibility. (Toyota at the time said the device would use mirrors to bend visible light around the A-pillars to allow the driver to “see” through them. This would give drivers a wider view of the road and their surroundings.) This time, though, the application could be way more serious. It could hide the car from governmental officials or thugs, during security breaches on public roads, or help avoid an outright attack.
The folks at Rolls-Royce talk like they’re already working on it.
“The word ‘invisibility cloak’ comes to mind, certainly,” Kilbertus says. “It’s a car that could move so quietly, so discreetly, that it would go undetected from outside threat.”
Even, one would suspect, the threat of incoming waffles.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.