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IAA Cars 2017 highlights - Part 2

In our last post from the IAA Cars Frankfurt Motorshow, we highlighted the key hypercars and high-performance machines on show, but now it’s time to move on to the concepts for the race track and everyday life, as well as the elegant machinery of the past.

Future race winners

Potential future championship winners come in all different shapes and sizes. First we have the MINI John Cooper Works GP Concept that ditches the cute city car perception and comes in a glossy blackish grey with red accents. The concept has the interior stripped down and filled with a roll cage, fixed-back seats with five-point racing harnesses and even an extinguisher, implying a set up for the track. Meanwhile BMW has officially launched the M8 GTE which was last seen in camouflage. Its huge kidney grilles and unique design for the mirrors set it apart from the M6 that it is replacing. The M8 GTE will make its racing debut next January in the Daytona 24 Hours. Last but not least we cannot ignore Robocar, the fully electric autonomous race car that is due to race among themselves at all Formula E rounds in the near future. While Roborace has tested its vehicles in numerous locations, this is the first time Robocar is shown “up close” in front of the public.

A new generation of day-to-day concepts

Judging from the concepts shown in Frankfurt, most people will soon be driving electric cars. Most concepts come with a fully electric powertrain, while plenty of them are also equipped with autonomous driving. Size-wise they tend to be compact, allowing them to move swiftly in the urban environment. Among those we have seen so far, the autonomous Smart Vision EQ ForTwo stands out with its signature Smart appearance and sharing ability. The network behind the cars can allocate users to share their ride with another user going to the same destination.

Digital display panels on the exterior, particularly in place of the grille, seems to be a trend going forward. Smart Vision EQ ForTwo uses it to communicate with other road users and display the journey status. The Honda Urban EV Concept, a throwback to the 1970s Civic in signature white paint, also offers similar displays in the same spot, and the messages can be interactive and multilingual. Mercedes-Benz’s Concept EQA makes sure the world knows the driving program you are using. The black panel serves as the virtual grille of the three-door hatchback and it changes its look according to the drive program: horizontal flaming wing for “Sport” and Panamericana-style vertical struts for “Sport Plus”.

Renault, on the contrary, is taking the autonomous electric concept in another direction. The 15 feet long Symbioz is literally a living space with rotatable armchairs. It also comes with a platform that can elevate the car to a rooftop for turning it into an extra room on top of the house. Borgward’s Isabella concept also focuses on the luxe level. A modern take of the 1950s Isabella sedan, the concept features high profile metallic blue exterior, while the interior is adorned with interesting angular lines.

MINI Electric Concept may be one of the simplest examples on show, but its eye catching grey and yellow colour scheme makes it stand out. The aerodynamic inlays of the wheels and the air intakes were created using 3D printing. Michelin also showcases its airless Vision Concept tyres created by 3D printing. While it is still in initial stages and materials have yet to be confirmed, Michelin envisions that car owners could specify the exact size, width and stiffness of the tyres they need and get them printed out directly in Michelin outlets, thereby minimising the amount of deadstock or wastage. Speaking of tyres, premium tyre maker Hankook has brought us a few innovative tyre concepts: “Flexup” can climb up the stairs, “Autobine” attaches and detaches  automatically onto the car according to the number of passengers and “Shiftrac” offers quick lane change and wide cornering angle.

Beauties from Brabus Classic

Brabus has been tuning Mercedes-Benz vehicles for 40 years. While it used to focus its energy in bringing out the even wilder side in new Mercedes, the company set up the classic division in 2011 for vintage restoration. Being the biggest Mercedes tuner, Brabus has formed a relationship with the automaker, so much so that they have exclusive access to the every little detail of vintage Mercedes, from technical parts down to the exact same shade of paint used on the body. No wonder the masterpieces restored by Brabus Classic just as they did when they rolled off the production line decades ago.