This is the future of driving: Autonomous Tesla car is a lounge on four wheels

At the upcoming Geneva Auto Show, Rinspeed — a self-described think tank for the automotive industry — will debut a concept sedan called “XchangE,” which sees an autonomous Tesla vehicle stripped of its normal interior and redesigned as a lounge on four wheels. 

The point behind Rinspeed doing this was to give an idea of what they think the future autonomous car would be like. They used a stock Tesla Model S sedan to work out their vision, which largely focused on reimagining how people would spend their time in their cars should autonomous driving reach a point where human control is no longer necessary. 

Frank M. Rinderknecht reflects on the company’s approach:

So far hardly anyone has taken this to its logical conclusion from the perspective of the driver. After all, traveling in a driverless car will no longer require me to stare at the road, but will let me spend my time in a more meaningful way. How will the interior of a vehicle have to be designed to let the now largely unburdened driver make optimal use of the gain in time?

The company used an existing form of passive travel experience — business-class flying — as their source of inspiration for the car. Partnering with an impressive roster of who’s-who in manufacturing and technology, the group was able to see all of their far-fetched concepts turned into actual reality.

Perhaps the most important part of the XchangE is its seats, which were designed by Otto Bock Mobility Solutions, a company well-known for manufacturing medical prosthetics. Inspired by business-class airline seats, they are capable of more than 20 different seating arrangements, thereby allowing passengers the ability to sit or rest in any position they want. 

And while the seats are the most important when it comes to the passenger’s ability to fully use the car’s interior, most impressive is the XchangE’s infotainment system, designed by Harman. Located behind the movable steering wheel, there’s a full-width display strip dashboard that provides the driver with all sorts of trip information, ranging from location to vehicle speed to hazard alerts and more.

There are also four separate screens for entertainment, including a 32-inch 4K monitor in the back of the car that operates via gesture control, and can be used for video calls, Internet browsing, and movie watching.

The 2014 Geneva Motor Show will take place March 6 to 16, 2014. According to the company’s website, this is the twentieth concept vehicle Rinspeed has produced.

What do you think though? Will you ever purchase a car like this in your lifetime, or do you think the concept is far too futuristic? Comment below!

Story via rinspeed.com