MINI has revealed a new concept car, the Vision Urbanaut, designed to explore how an electric and autonomous MINI of the future could look and operate. It was revealed as part of the BMW Group's #NEXTGen presentation.
Inside-out design
According to its creator, the MINI Urbanaut was designed from the inside out, starting with the interior space and resulting in a vehicle that is considerably taller than any production MINI. At 4.46 metres in length, the concept car is also longer than both the MINI Countryman and MINI Clubman, and it looks much more spacious inside.
The Urbanaut is a four-seat car, with a sofa-like rear seat and two front seats that can swivel around. Remember, it's designed for a time when fully autonomous cars are in use. That explains the design of the 'dashboard', too, as the steering wheel, pedals and minimal instrumentation are hidden away unless in use by a human driver. Otherwise there's a daybed. Yes, really. MINI used knitted textile and even cork inside, in a bid for sustainability and social responsibility, and you may have spotted the plant growing through what appears to be a side table.
MINI moments
Look closer at that table and you'll see three recesses. They might appear to be cupholders at first, but in fact they take the 'MINI Token' to activate one of the three 'MINI moments'. The MINI Token, by the way, seems to replace the traditional key fob and MINI likens it to a worry stone. Anyway, depending on where it is inserted into the table, a different mode for the vehicle is chosen.
The first MINI moment is called Chill and it's designed to turn the cabin into a relaxing and private space that has nothing at all to do with driving. The circular instrument panel found on the side of the car folds down to create a table lamp, the backlit 'Loop' above the rear seating takes on a forest canopy appearance and the seat positions can be altered for maximum lounging around.
Once you've had your power nap, it's time to switch the Urbanaut into the Vibe moment, bringing with it more vibrant colours inside and a focus on music to share with others. The sliding side door (the only door in the car) stays open and the windscreen pivots up as well, while graphic equaliser animations are displayed throughout. According to MINI, "the car could even begin to resemble a boombox."
Neither Chill nor Vibe 'moments' are for driving, we should add; that's taken care of by the Wanderlust setting, whether you're taking the wheel yourself or letting the car do all the work. That Loop feature takes on a blurred graphic and the occupants are told about places of interest along the way.
Ditching the retro face
The profile of the MINI Urbanaut is a simple mono-box, for maximum space efficiency, with the wheels pushed out to the corners. The wheels, incidentally, were inspired by those on a skateboard, and they light up, depending on the 'moment'. The almost seamless transition from bodywork to the largely glass upper body is further softened by applying the paint colour in a gradient to the windows. This doubles up as privacy glass, apparently, without having to darken the windows.
Gone are the retro styling cues of all MINIs since BMW reinvented the brand. Up front on the Urbanaut, the traditional grille is replaced by a new shape that hides the various radar and sensor systems needed for autonomous driving. The outline of the non-grille is mimicked in the style of the rear window. Front and back lights are hidden behind milled aluminium panels and, thanks to their 'multicolour dynamic matrix design', can change their appearance to suit everything else that's going on in the car.
Translation
The MINI Vision Urbanaut is packed with loads of seemingly fanciful ideas that we don't expect in a production car any time soon. But, going on the BMW Group's previous form with its 'Vision' vehicles, you can be sure that future MINIs will be inspired by some of the thinking in this car. Leaving aside the aspects that come with full driving autonomy (as nobody really knows when/if this will be a reality), it makes sense for MINI to create a space-efficient city car built on an all-electric platform.