A combination of Art Decoinspired lines and details with technology that’s ahead of its time. The unusual Vision Iconic concept from Mercedes-Benz imagines the car of tomorrow, transforming the most distant, visionary future into today’s reality
The bodywork is treated with a special, futuristic solar paint. In essence, it creates a wafer-thin coating designed to embody a radical rethink of the concept of solar modules, making it possible to develop an active photovoltaic film that can adapt itself to fit any support like a second skin. It creates a finish that can produce energy at any time and under any conditions, rendering an electric vehicle autonomous, giving an extra boost of charge when needed. The on-board electronic/digital ecosystem – including Level 4 automatic driving – is managed by a kind of artificial neural network, which through the unusual approach of neuromorphic computing thinks like a human brain, learning and developing methods that can make the calculation processes of AI applied to the safety system more efficient and most of all less energy-thirty. It’s the future for the automotive industry – or at least, the future as imagined by Mercedes-Benz, given form in the present through the innovative shapes and solutions displayed at the debut of the Vision Iconic concept. The sleek external profile features LED light strips and an imposing grille inspired by the
Below, the profile of the Mercedes-Benz concept. Opposite page, the hood ends with the vertical grille (a stylistic cue that for over 100 years has identified models by the Stuttgart-based company) re-imagined in smoked glass lit by LEDs. Opening pages, the interiors of the Vision Iconic, a mix of futurism and Art Deco
radiator that has graced Mercedes cars for a century. Here, it given a high-tech reinterpretation with smoked glass and illuminated elements. Inside, an advanced, torpedo-shaped floating glass body, given the name Zeppelin, creates a full-width dashboard that complements the velvet of the upholstery and fan-pattern straw marquetry of the floor, an authentic Art Deco touch. Everything in the Vision Concept reflects an unusual stylistic approach, from the sumptuous front bench seat to the brass ring door handles, the radial, iridescent mother-of-pearl finish of
From top, clockwise: the vehicle’s clean, vertical front. The retracting sensors for the Level 4 driving system. The streamlined rear harks back to 1930s automotive aesthetics
the side panels and the brand logo presented as a hologram within a glass sphere set in the four-spoke steering wheel. It’s an assembly of style and science fantasy applied to the automotive world, developed not to amaze but rather to anticipate how the design of the future will look. mercedes-benz.com