We’ve all heard rumors and news swirling of self-driving cars in our not too distant future, but if they were here today, what form would they take? If optimized for enjoying leisure time during fully autonomous driving mode, what would the interior look like? That’s the question “idea factory” Rinspeed attempts to answer in its new Rinspeed XchangE Concept, based on the Tesla Model S EV and coming to this year’s Geneva Motor Show next month.
With 20 possible different seating positions in a versatile interior, the XchangE features front chairs that swivel rearward for better watching of a 32-inch 4K ultra-HD screen in the rear. There’s also four screens in the dash for all manner of driving and productivity tasks, and the drive-by-wire steering wheel is placed at the center, ready to be slid toward the driver should manual control be needed (see below).
There’s even the world’s most expensive watch winder on board, Rinspeed says, which uses an electric motor to wind a special Carl F. Bucherer Patravi TravelTec watch that’s mounted in the steering column. Why, you ask? Well, why not? After all, this is one over-the-top concept car.
Rinspeed XchangE Model S Concept InteriorRinspeed XchangE Model S Interior Swiveling WheelAs for nuts and bolts, making use of an LTE high-speed data network from Deutsche Telecom for an always-on connection, the XchangE uses a data network created by linking multiple cars together for the greatest possible safety during autonomous driving on the road. If all cars were linked in this fashion, first on special “self-driving car-only lanes”, for example, the system would allow the vehicles to interact with each other to keep things in line as well as the network being instantly aware of changing road conditions. The more vehicles connected to the network; the better the network works. At least that’s the plan, Rinspeed says.