► Jaguar’s vision for personal transport in 2040
► Detachable steering wheel summons the car
► On display at the 2017 Frankfurt show
Remember the steering wheel of the future Jaguar showed off not so long ago? Here’s the rest of the concept car it’s attached to.
This is the Jaguar Future-Type, revealed at an event in London appropriately titled Tech Fest, created to showcase the technology the company’s currently beavering away on. It’s Jaguar’s idea of how the concept of car ownership – whether sole or shared – could evolve by the year 2040.
Own it or borrow it
The Future-Type is designed with the intention of being summoned on demand. It’s capable of fully autonomous driving, although occupants will still be able to take the wheel themselves – because, in Jaguar’s words, ‘you may still want to enjoy the thrill of driving yourself.’
Take the wheel is a literal term here – the internet-connected wheel is removable, and is used to summon the car remotely. Essentially it’s the ticket to the Jaguar club; because the Future-Type is designed for either sole or shared ownership, you wouldn’t actually have to buy the car – just the steering wheel. As long as you have that, you can summon the car to your location.
Tell me more about this mad steering wheel
Called the Sayer (after the celebrated Jaguar aerodynamicist Malcolm Sayer), it’s designed to stay in your home and travel with you. Its AI functions are activated by voice control, it’s able to display newsfeeds and social media streams, and because it’s a part of the internet of things, it can order more milk when your connected fridge senses you’re running low.
Jaguar’s theoretical scenario suggest you might, for example, need to be at a meeting two hours from home by 8am the next day – in which case you’d ask Sayer to work out what time you should get up, when the car will arrive for you, and advise which bits of the journey might be most enjoyable to drive yourself.
I see… The Future-Type looks quite narrow?
Its tandem-esque 2+1 seating layout allows a slimline shape, the better for parking and navigating crowded urban streets. This being an autonomous concept, the interior’s configured for face-to-face seating.
The official line from Jaguar:
Jaguar’s design director Ian Callum says:
‘Future-Type offers an insight into the potential for driving and car ownership in the future. It’s part of our vision for how a luxury car brand could continue to be desirable, in a more digital and autonomous age. Our Future-Type Concept is an advanced research project looking at how we can ensure an on-demand Jaguar will appeal to customers in 2040 and beyond. Whether it’s commuting to work, autonomously collecting children from school or enjoying driving yourself on the weekend in the countryside, if there’s a choice of on-demand cars driving around city streets, we need to ensure customers desire our 24/7 service over our competitors.
‘Customers tell us that their Jaguar makes them feel special. With the Future-Type we’ve been investigating how we can keep this emotional connection in a future world where people may choose not to own a car, or when a Jaguar is an autonomous, on-demand vehicle.’
Also on display at the TechFest event is the Jaguar E-type Zero, a classic E-type fitted with a battery-electric motor drivetrain – click here to read more.