Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
Rolls-Royce has unveiled its vision of the future codenamed 103EX which its makers say it is the marque’s first pure ‘Vision Vehicle’, along with a virtual personal assistant cum-chauffeur called Eleanor.
The Rolls-Royce VISION NEXT 100 initiative aims to anticipate the mobility demands of the luxury customer in decades to come and has been brought to life after many months of study and consultation with current patrons of the brand.
In the spirit of the great coach-built cars of the past, Rolls-Royce will create the chassis of the future, hand-built from the most advanced materials.
Getting in will be cool too. Hinged on the left of the vehicle, a glass canopy lifts to allow the occupant to stand whilst providing shelter from above and behind. Then, in one effortless movement, the single coach door sweeps open and a step emerges from below the running board. As a final flourish, a red light is projected, carpet-like, from the underside of the step as a welcome.
Digitally-connected to every aspect of her owners’ lives and her surrounding environment, Eleanor will free them of all effort and encumbrance. Imbued with her own artificial intelligence, she works intuitively to advise her owners on itineraries, schedules and options before they leave their residence, reminding about appointments and tasks and making suggestions to ease any anticipated impediments.
As a V12 combustion engine is most unlikely to exist in the future, one can only surmise how this Rolls-Royce will be powered, but the ‘zero-emission drivetrain’ and advanced suspension will allow the vehicle to almost ‘skim across the road surface’.
We’ll wait and see …
