Do not invest more money than you can afford to lose.
Nissan is one of the front runners in this department and has already started testing autonomous cars on Japanese streets. For now, Google, Tesla, and the like are promoting self-driving vehicles as safer and more efficient. When it is on automatic drive mode, the steering wheel will recede so the driver can relax.
The car’s interior adapts depending on whether the driver or the computer is in control, with the steering wheel receding and replaced by a large touchscreen display. Borrowing some of the design cues seen on the IDS concept would help the next Leaf sell as much for style as it does for any zero emission feel-good factor.
Even in manual mode the intelligent drive system is poised to assist if needed, providing more driving choices and greater control in braking and cornering. When pedestrians or cyclists are nearby, the strip shines white, signaling that the auto is aware of them.
The concept borrows some elements that can be seen on the new Nissan Leaf and includes a 60 kW/h electric unit.
The brand goes further by suggesting that by the end of the next decade, Nissan’s autonomous tech would be deployed in cars globally. The rendering of the vehicle is in line with Nissan’s latest design language as well as the wild Gripz concept which the company unveiled in Frankfurt in September.
More importantly, the interior becomes illuminated by soft light, with all four seats rotating slightly inward “facilitating easier conversation”.
If we are indeed looking at a future Nissan Leaf, we’ve heard to expect an improved driving range thanks to new battery technology.
Although it features an autonomous mode dubbed Piloted Drive, Nissan is keen to emphasize the choice between “the excitement of driving” and “freeing yourself from driving to enjoy your time in the car”.
The next step, Piloted Drive 2.0 is in the works, but no date for its introduction was given. “But the Nissan IDS Concept promises a very different vision of tomorrow”. If it detects an impending accident, the auto can still take evasive action even if it is in Manual Drive.
If you’re wary of a future in which electric cars such as the IDS whiz you through traffic silently as a captive, have no fear: Nissan says it committed to making cars that people enjoy driving – and can still control when desired.
