Look at what the future holds
CONCEPTS: Automakers not keen to divulge details, but at least four will be on display
Ever since GM unveiled the world’s first concept car eight decades ago, the four-wheeled flights of fancy have captured the motoring public’s imagination.
The 1938 Buick Y-Job set the tone of peering into the future with a whole host of technological features, including power windows, flush-mounted door handles, disappearing headlamps and a concealed convertible top. All would eventually find their way into production vehicles, which really is the point of concept cars: to give designers and engineers a blank canvas to imagine the cars of tomorrow.
Auto shows are the coming-out party for concept cars and this year’s Vancouver International Auto Show will have at least four. None are wildly futuristic, but they do point the way for future designs from their respective brands.
This year’s concepts will include:
Buick Avenir Concept
Winner of the Best Concept Vehicle at the North American International Auto Show, the Avenir heralds a new era of Buick design and intuitive technologies. With a nod to the marque’s past — the grille design is based on the 1954 Wildcat Concept II — it has dramatic body lines, full LED lighting and 21-inch wheels. Inside, it’s all about connectivity, with driver-recognition features that automatically sync infotainment preferences, mobile device wireless charging and OnStar 4G LTE with Wi-Fi hot spot. Powering the slippery sedan is a next-generation V-6 engine with active fuel management and stop/start technology.
Kia Niro
The Kia Niro is a dramatic new urban-lifestyle concept featuring hybrid technology, butterfly doors and the ability to see and record pictures from the video cameras mounted at the front and rear, in the door mirrors and elsewhere in the car. A variant of Kia’s turbocharged 1.6-litre Gamma engine, capable of 160 horsepower, and a seven-speed, dual-clutch transmission serve the front wheels, while an electric hybrid system powered by regenerative braking can deliver up to 45 h.p. to the rear wheels.
Lexus LF-C2 and LF-SA
Like the Avenir, the LF-C2 looks ready for a showroom near you. Unveiled at the L.A. Auto Show, the 2+2 concept is a head-turner in the finest Hollywood tradition.
With its radical body lines, very shiny paint and a clean and modern interior, the LF-C2 is believed to serve as the inspiration for the nextgeneration Lexus RC coupe. Let’s hope so.
The nose is drastically cut and twisted backwards right on the grille, and the grille itself has a different mesh, while headlights have been recycled from RC coupe.
As for performance, this concept car should be able to achieve a zeroto-100 km/h acceleration time of less than 5.5 seconds.
The Lexus LF-SA was designed at the Nice, France-based design studio ED2*2. This cool CUV concept is a Lexus-first, 2+2 ultracompact vehicle that incorporates bold and exhilarating cutting-edge design trends and embodies the ultimate luxury that Lexus seeks.
It was first unveiled just a few weeks ago in Geneva.
LF-SA stands for Lexus Future Small Adventurer, and the vehicle features a robust, urbanized exterior and driver-focused interior.
The avant-garde sculpted body surface casts various different shadows, depending on the viewing angle and the time of day. The futuristic feel continues with the crystalline instrument panel, which features a black-bevelled hologram display, a head-up display and a touch pad in the centre console.