Named the 1/X (pronounced 1-x'th) after the fraction of its carbon footprint compared to other vehicles, the hybrid is greener than others not only because of it gas mileage: Compared to standard petroleum-based plastic, bioplastic allegedly produces up to 60 percent less carbon dioxide and uses about 30 percent less energy as well.

Toyota plans on presenting their 1/X concept car at the Melbourne Motor Show on Feb. 28, even though it could be another 15 years until this seaweed car actually makes it to production. Here's hoping that when it comes into fruition, Jason gets one to review just so we could joyride it into a lake of Miso. Yummy. [Wired]

The ASC built McLaren Diamondback Viper is now up for grabs on DodgeVipersForSale.com. Originally built for the 2006 Detroit Auto Show, the Diamondback Viper was a one-off concept based on the 2006 Dodge Viper SRT-10 Coupe that showcased lighter weight components and a McLaren tuned 8.0-liter V10 good for 615 horsepower. It was originally rumored that the Diamondback was the precursor to the 2008 model, but unfortunately it was shelved to live its life as a concept study only.

The Diamondback Viper featured custom carbon fiber body panels, a special stainless steel quad outlet exhaust, a custom carbon fiber racing stripe with "Mclaren Orange" and "Viper Blue" accents as well as a custom in-hood trumpeted air intake system with individual port throttles.

It's estimated that it cost ASC and Dodge $750,000 to build the one-off Diamondback Viper, but it can be yours for the much lower price of $295,000. This may seem expensive to you and me, but considering the collectability of concept cars, this is one's a steal.

Diamondback Viper Startup

Original ASC Press Release:

THIS IS NOT YOUR AVERAGE VIPER
ASC (American Specialty Cars) has a long history of developing vehicle prototypes with innovations designed to showcase the company’s expertise in vehicle design and performance materials. ASC showed its expertise at the 2006 North American International Auto Show by unveiling a supercar made even more super by the addition of a mostly carbon-fiber body. A ‘snake’ with an all-new skin, the ASC Viper Diamondback is super-light and super-fast. It’s fitting that ASC, which helped the Chrysler Group bring the new Dodge Viper SRT10 coupe to life, would, with the aid of McLaren Performance Technologies, show how the Viper coupe might be taken to an all-new level of ‘extreme’.

The 2006 615-horsepower Diamandback Viper features a carbon fiber roof, deck lid, rockers, fascia inserts and body trim. It also sports a massive OmniCarbon™ hood that shows off ten unique trumpeted air intakes, with individual port throttles peeking through. This is a McLaren Performance Technologies feature, reminiscent of McLaren Can-Am engines of the past.

The hood is comprised of compression-molded carbon fiber, both painted and woven. It’s displayed beautifully, with a broad, clearcoated racing stripe down the Arctic White painted expanse, subtly outlined by “Viper Blue” and “McLaren Orange” pinstripes. In all, ASC removed about 85 lbs. from the vehicle — the hood alone weighs about half of the standard production model. Taken together with the performance modifications by McLaren, the resulting power-to-weight ratio is estimated to yield an incredible 0-60 time — in just 3.5 seconds!

ASC MODIFICATIONS:

* Custom McLaren Performance Technologies engine tuning, resulting in 615 Horsepower

* Exterior racing-type kill switch

* Custom ASC OmniCarbon™ hood, with carbon-fiber roof, hatch, front chin spoiler, rear fascia, side rockers, deck spoiler, side venting gills and interior accents

* Custom in-hood tumpeted air intakes,
with individual port throttles

* 1.25" lowered suspension

* 4-point racing harness

* Custom stainless-steel, quad outlet exhaust

* Custom carbon-fiber racing stripe, with "McLaren Orange" and "Viper Blue" accents

* "Arctic Ice Pearl" paint

* Custom 3-piece forged and painted 19" aluminum wheels

[Dodge Vipers For Sale via Motor Authority]

Seriously, if you're going to design a concept for a Ferrari sedan, it'd be best to first take a long hard look at the handsome Pinin. Sure it was designed back in 1980, but that's back when sedans were still proud of having four doors, and didn't pretend to be coupe-shaped. You really can't improve much on it.
[cardesign.ru via MotorAuthority]

Another name registered for copyright by Jaguar was "C-XJ," which we can only presume to be a concept version of the upcoming new 2010 Jaguar XJ. Looks like Jaguar really is serious about re-inventing themselves. [autoblog.it, MotorAuthority]

Mazda Kiyora Concept to Make its Global Debut at the 2008 Paris Motor Show
HIROSHIMA, Japan—Mazda Kiyora, a lightweight, next generation, urban compact concept car, will be revealed at the 2008 Paris International Motor Show to be held from Thursday, October 2 through Sunday, October 19, 2008.

Mazda Kiyora (meaning ‘clean and pure’ in Japanese) represents the harmony between driving pleasure and environmental and safety features aspired to in Mazda’s long-term technology development vision, “Sustainable Zoom-Zoom.”

The concept of “Kiyora” helped the designers to imagine a city car cutting cleanly through an urban landscape, with water as the design theme. Equipped with Mazda’s next generation 4 cylinder direct injection engine and featuring the company’s unique Smart Idle Stop System, the car achieves excellent fuel economy and low CO2 emissions. The improved aerodynamic performance of Nagare design also contributes to this. The new Mazda concept car is based on an all-new platform designed to maximize weight reduction and a high level of safety, in pursuit of enhanced driving pleasure. It also features an interior design and new functions that support a youthful lifestyle.

Joining the Mazda Kiyora concept car on Mazda’s stand at the Paris show, the Mazda MX-5 facelift will make its world debut, together with the Mazda6 equipped with Mazda’s newly developed MZR-CD 2.2-liter turbo diesel engine, and the Mazda2 powered by a MZ-CD 1.6-liter diesel.

[Mazda]

The inspiration behind the Honda Racer came from a combination of "Honda's racing heritage with Hot Wheels' reputation for speed, power, performance and attitude," according to Guillermo Gonzalez, a senior designer at Honda R&D Americas.

The motor in this racer is a ridiculous 20-Liter VTEC V10 (that's a two-liter of Pepsi per cylinder) inspired by the 1967 Honda F1. This only makes us ponder what would happen if Honda put this kind of imagination into its real conceptual car design. [Nihon Car]

The RoboTrac is programmed remotely with a computer navigation system that can make the machine do any of the standard tractor tasks: planting, plowing, tiling, spraying, playing chicken with other tractors. The 58 gallon fuel tank allows you to kick your feet up and continue horsing around on the Internet while your tractor slave robot does all the work. Of course, if you're in the farming game and don't have the will or the wherewithal to invest in an autonomous tractor, you could always just get busy with your farming spouse this Valentine's Day and have some kids, always the best source of free labor. [Gizmag]

Sure, it copes with a parent's struggle to get a child seated, and it also supposedly provides a unique aesthetic to compliment the a futuristic car interior. But quit pep-talking yourself, Nestt. You're an egg! An egg that I'm expected to sit in when driving. Negative, Batman. [Tuvie]

Definition of relaxed refinement

In the words of Professor Dr. Herbert Kohler, responsible for Group Research & Advanced Engineering Vehicle and Powertrain at DaimlerChrysler AG, "With the F 700, Mercedes-Benz shows what the big touring sedan of the future will look like. It offers environmentally compatible mobility combined with utmost comfort and an effortlessly superior drive."

With that, the F 700 meets the growing demands on luxury-class automobiles. The focus is on conserving resources and protecting the environment: low consumption, low CO2 emissions, low pollution levels. For in future there will continue to be considerable demand for the comfortable mobility provided by large sedans.

Making this kind of mobility sustainable is a major responsibility which Mercedes-Benz faces up to in an all-out way. The F 700 is an unmistakable sign of this: as a research car it demonstrates with innovative approaches and technologies not only how resources can be conserved and the environment protected, but also how driver and passengers can be relieved of stress and can travel completely at ease.

"Sustainable mobility only can be realized by intensive research and development. Technological progress is decisive for creating suitable products for an increasingly more critical world," says Professor Dr. Herbert Kohler.
DIESOTTO provides a glimpse of the future of the spark-ignition engine

The F 700 research car shows new ways to achieve resource-conserving mobility. The heart of the car is the novel drive system which combines the advantages of the low-emission spark-ignition engine with the consumption advantages of the diesel drive.

The diesel engine's crucial advances to its current combination of dynamic performance and low fuel consumption were made possible by turbocharging and common-rail direct injection - both pioneering achievements of Mercedes-Benz. The "DIESOTTO" drive takes this some decisive steps further: consistent downsizing through reduction of displacement and the number of cylinders makes for improved efficiency, and a hybrid module assists the internal combustion engine mainly in stop-and-go operation. Moreover, the diesel principle with controlled auto ignition (CAI) makes its debut in the spark-ignition engine.
Forward-looking concept - economical, clean and simultaneously powerful

On starting and at full load, the air-fuel mixture is not ignited by a sparkplug as in a conventional gasoline engine. The controlled auto ignition (homogeneous combustion) to which the DIESOTTO automatically reverts within its working cycle occurs under partial load conditions, i.e. at low and medium engine speeds.

As a result of homogeneous combustion at reduced reaction temperatures, very low emissions of nitrogen oxides are produced. The rest of the emission control work in the DIESOTTO drive is handled by a standard three-way catalytic converter. In addition, in order to combine the individual subsystems into one drive concept, a highly efficient engine management and control system has been implemented.

The drive unit of the F 700 is a compact four-cylinder with a displacement of 1.8 liters, and yet it ensures that feeling of effortless, superior power afforded by a luxury sedan: a two-stage turbocharger system ensures good response and torquey pulling power. In addition, when the car moves off the internal combustion engine is assisted by the electric motor of the hybrid module. The maximum output is 175 kW (238 hp), the electric motor pitches in another 15 kW (20 hp), and the system's maximum torque is

about 400 Newton meters. The 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) sprint time of 7.5 seconds attests to the dynamics of the F 700, whose top speed is limited to 200 km/h. Despite these outstanding performance figures, the consumption of the F 700 in the standard cycle is only about 5.3 liters, equivalent to CO2 emissions of 127 grams per kilometer - extremely low for an automobile of this category.
Anticipatory intelligence packed into the suspension

Similar advances are made by the F 700 in the area of ride comfort. Mercedes-Benz has always been a leader in the area of road roar/tire vibration characteristics and suspension comfort: the Active Body Control suspension system in the CL-Class, S- and SL-Class sets the standard worldwide with its unrivaled combination of comfort, handling safety and dynamics. This system is now surpassed by the new technology of the F 700.

For here, once again, the new research car takes an important step to the future: thanks to its active PRE-SCAN suspension, the vehicle not only responds with great sensitivity to roadway unevenness; more than that, it acts with foresight.

PRE-SCAN uses two laser sensors in the front headlamp units as "eyes". They deliver a precise image of the condition of the roadway. Based on the image supplied by the laser sensors and the information on the vehicle state, the control unit figures out a specific strategy which the high-pressure hydraulics translate into precisely calculated fluid flows and pressures for each single wheel.
"Aqua Dynamic" as new design idiom

The exceptional efficiency of the overall concept of the F 700 is evident at first sight: its design is distinguished by soft, flowing forms. "Aqua Dynamic" is the name the designers have given to this design idiom with which they translated the flow dynamics of a fish into the design of an exceptional automobile. Besides, the design provides an immediately indication that much room has been given to the passengers. With an overall exterior length of 5.18 meters the F 700 is a little shorter than the current long-wheelbase version of the S-Class, but with its generously sized wheelbase of 3.45 meters the research car excels the production model by impressive 28.5 centimeters.

The side view of the F 700 is marked by the tense curves of the roof contour and shoulder line. This sedan puts a new interpretation on a design theme of Mercedes-Benz, for the current CLS also displays such tense lateral lines. The distinctively shaped front wheel arches likewise are inspired by a current model - the S Class. After all, even a research car is always a Mercedes-Benz and stands on the foundation of the automobile brand with the richest tradition in the world.
The eyes of the F 700

The headlamps of the F 700 are a futuristic interpretation of the Mercedes-typical twin-headlamp face. Two vertical rows of linear LED arrays with superposed lens have the function of driving lights. A third vertical row of single high-performance LEDs are the daytime driving lights. Together with the continuous contour lights they give the F 700 an unmistakable appearance even by night. The "eyes" of the F 700 are integrated into the headlamps: these laser scanners gather the roadway data for the active PRE-SCAN suspension. Unlike any conventional automobile this sedan "sees" the surface profile of the road ahead of it.

The driver's door also "observes" its surroundings attentively. In the base of the mirror of this PRE-SCAN door there is a very compact laser scanner which examines the area in which the door swings open for any obstacles. If collisions threaten, the door is arrested by a controllable hydraulic cylinder.
Elegance and lightness: the interior

The extremely spacious and flexible interior concept is manifested outwardly not only by the long wheelbase. Two large glazed areas in the roof also emphasize the spacious design. Owing to the use of natural materials like leather and cork and to a harmonious brown and beige color scheme, the interior makes an elegant and light impression and appears very up-scale.

The right rear door of the F 700 is hinged at the rear. Reversing the direction in which the door opens makes it easier to get into the REVERSE seat - another innovation in the new Mercedes-Benz research car. The REVERSE seat is the heart of the new seating concept, a completely new design thought out for the right rear seat. It breaks up the firmly established seating arrangement of a sedan and instead permits individual seat and rest positions, both facing the direction of travel and in the opposite direction.

Relax position and cinema atmosphere

This provides the opportunity for very different kinds of use depending on the purpose and duration of travel. Four persons sit in the conventional way facing the direction of travel. If the front passenger seat is unoccupied, at the push of a button the right rear seat can be moved to a relax position. To do this one moves the front passenger seat forward and folds the backrest towards the dashboard. Another use is made possible by the special functionality of the REVERSE seat (right rear seat). A new type of mechanism allows the passenger to sit in reverse direction and look out the back. He can chat face to face with his neighbor, work, rest, or enjoy the audiovisual entertainment. A monitor with an overall diagonal display measurement of 51 centimeters and a surround sound system create a cinema atmosphere. More than anything else though, the monitor delivers fascinatingly deep images with its 3D technology.

The innovative operating concept conduces greatly to the clear, generous spatial impression: the displays of the information and control system are visible at the point farthest forward in the interior, but, optically, appear a bit further away, because at the bottom edge of the windshield there is a mirror; the display itself is horizontally retracted into the cockpit. This technology not only makes for a very clear and tidily arranged instrument panel. Owing to the bigger distance between the driver's eyes and the display as compared with a conventional cockpit, the need for the eyes to adapt their range for far and near vision is appreciably smaller. This reduces eye fatigue and makes a scientifically verified contribution to greater stress-relieving safety.
Dialogue with your personal assistant

The SERVO-HMI of the F 700 presents itself in an appreciably improved version complemented by a special assistant. Operation of the navigation system, the communication systems and the telephone as well as the audio and entertainment systems is by means of the proven COMAND rotary/pushbutton controller, to which a slide function has been added. Preselections in the operating menu are made in three positions. The air conditioning system is operated by an additional touch-sensitive control.

For more complex input operations, for innovative support there is an individual input assistant in the form of a virtual person, called an avatar in computerese. Such avatars are familiar from the internet world or computer games as electronic images representing real persons.

In the F 700 the avatar takes the shape of a young woman. She enters into verbal dialogue with the driver, asking for the desired destination in the navigation menu, for example, and confirming the voice input. It works the same way when you select someone to call from the phonebook or a desired radio station.

This form of dialogue simplifies voice control for the driver and improves the system's voice recognition performance. Moreover, the scope of possible dialogue assistance functions can be enlarged almost without limit. For instance, the avatar as virtual assistant could access online databases from the vehicle via internet link, add items to the driver's appointments book, or read aloud important e-mails. Operation by voice dialogue minimizes distraction - after all, driving safety is always the most important concern at Mercedes-Benz.
Successful transfer from research to production

Since the beginning of the 1980s Mercedes-Benz has introduced twelve research cars. This series of exciting and pioneering automobiles - from Auto 2000 in 1981 to the current F 700 - documents the resolution and foresight with which the Mercedes-Benz engineers delve into central topics of research and technology and develop innovative solutions for the future.

Many systems in research cars that were considered revolutionary years ago are in use in Mercedes-Benz production cars today. They include, for example, the DISTRONIC proximity control. It was implemented for the first time in 1991 in the F 100 and premiered in series production in 1998 in the S-Class. The Active Body Control suspension system employed today in the CL-, S- and SL-Class is an example of successful technology transfer from research to production car, as are the windowbag and the active light function. The F 500 Mind provided the inspiration for further hybrid development. It combined the V8 diesel engine of an S Class with an electric motor. At the time this duo was the most powerful, torquiest hybrid drive for a rear-wheel drive passenger car. The F 700 will continue down this path and show the way to series production for significant innovations in drive and comfort technology.
Technical data

The most important data and performance figures:

F 700

Gasoline-powered

Length (mm)

5180

Width (mm)

1960

Height (mm)

1438

Wheelbase (mm)

3450

Inertia weight class (kg)

1700

Tires

195/50 R21

Displacement (l)

1.8l

Rated power DIESOTTO

+ electric motor

175 kW/238 hp

+ 15 kW/20 hp

Max. torque

400 Nm

Acceleration 0-100 km/h

7.5 sec

Top speed, governed

200 km/h

Consumption*

5.3 l/100 km

CO2 emissions

127 g/km

Emission rating

EU6

Definition of relaxed refinement

In the words of Professor Dr. Herbert Kohler, responsible for Group Research & Advanced Engineering Vehicle and Powertrain at DaimlerChrysler AG, "With the F 700, Mercedes-Benz shows what the big touring sedan of the future will look like. It offers environmentally compatible mobility combined with utmost comfort and an effortlessly superior drive."

With that, the F 700 meets the growing demands on luxury-class automobiles. The focus is on conserving resources and protecting the environment: low consumption, low CO2 emissions, low pollution levels. For in future there will continue to be considerable demand for the comfortable mobility provided by large sedans.

Making this kind of mobility sustainable is a major responsibility which Mercedes-Benz faces up to in an all-out way. The F 700 is an unmistakable sign of this: as a research car it demonstrates with innovative approaches and technologies not only how resources can be conserved and the environment protected, but also how driver and passengers can be relieved of stress and can travel completely at ease.

"Sustainable mobility only can be realized by intensive research and development. Technological progress is decisive for creating suitable products for an increasingly more critical world," says Professor Dr. Herbert Kohler.
DIESOTTO provides a glimpse of the future of the spark-ignition engine

The F 700 research car shows new ways to achieve resource-conserving mobility. The heart of the car is the novel drive system which combines the advantages of the low-emission spark-ignition engine with the consumption advantages of the diesel drive.

The diesel engine's crucial advances to its current combination of dynamic performance and low fuel consumption were made possible by turbocharging and common-rail direct injection - both pioneering achievements of Mercedes-Benz. The "DIESOTTO" drive takes this some decisive steps further: consistent downsizing through reduction of displacement and the number of cylinders makes for improved efficiency, and a hybrid module assists the internal combustion engine mainly in stop-and-go operation. Moreover, the diesel principle with controlled auto ignition (CAI) makes its debut in the spark-ignition engine.
Forward-looking concept - economical, clean and simultaneously powerful

On starting and at full load, the air-fuel mixture is not ignited by a sparkplug as in a conventional gasoline engine. The controlled auto ignition (homogeneous combustion) to which the DIESOTTO automatically reverts within its working cycle occurs under partial load conditions, i.e. at low and medium engine speeds.

As a result of homogeneous combustion at reduced reaction temperatures, very low emissions of nitrogen oxides are produced. The rest of the emission control work in the DIESOTTO drive is handled by a standard three-way catalytic converter. In addition, in order to combine the individual subsystems into one drive concept, a highly efficient engine management and control system has been implemented.

The drive unit of the F 700 is a compact four-cylinder with a displacement of 1.8 liters, and yet it ensures that feeling of effortless, superior power afforded by a luxury sedan: a two-stage turbocharger system ensures good response and torquey pulling power. In addition, when the car moves off the internal combustion engine is assisted by the electric motor of the hybrid module. The maximum output is 175 kW (238 hp), the electric motor pitches in another 15 kW (20 hp), and the system's maximum torque is

about 400 Newton meters. The 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) sprint time of 7.5 seconds attests to the dynamics of the F 700, whose top speed is limited to 200 km/h. Despite these outstanding performance figures, the consumption of the F 700 in the standard cycle is only about 5.3 liters, equivalent to CO2 emissions of 127 grams per kilometer - extremely low for an automobile of this category.
Anticipatory intelligence packed into the suspension

Similar advances are made by the F 700 in the area of ride comfort. Mercedes-Benz has always been a leader in the area of road roar/tire vibration characteristics and suspension comfort: the Active Body Control suspension system in the CL-Class, S- and SL-Class sets the standard worldwide with its unrivaled combination of comfort, handling safety and dynamics. This system is now surpassed by the new technology of the F 700.

For here, once again, the new research car takes an important step to the future: thanks to its active PRE-SCAN suspension, the vehicle not only responds with great sensitivity to roadway unevenness; more than that, it acts with foresight.

PRE-SCAN uses two laser sensors in the front headlamp units as "eyes". They deliver a precise image of the condition of the roadway. Based on the image supplied by the laser sensors and the information on the vehicle state, the control unit figures out a specific strategy which the high-pressure hydraulics translate into precisely calculated fluid flows and pressures for each single wheel.
"Aqua Dynamic" as new design idiom

The exceptional efficiency of the overall concept of the F 700 is evident at first sight: its design is distinguished by soft, flowing forms. "Aqua Dynamic" is the name the designers have given to this design idiom with which they translated the flow dynamics of a fish into the design of an exceptional automobile. Besides, the design provides an immediately indication that much room has been given to the passengers. With an overall exterior length of 5.18 meters the F 700 is a little shorter than the current long-wheelbase version of the S-Class, but with its generously sized wheelbase of 3.45 meters the research car excels the production model by impressive 28.5 centimeters.

The side view of the F 700 is marked by the tense curves of the roof contour and shoulder line. This sedan puts a new interpretation on a design theme of Mercedes-Benz, for the current CLS also displays such tense lateral lines. The distinctively shaped front wheel arches likewise are inspired by a current model - the S Class. After all, even a research car is always a Mercedes-Benz and stands on the foundation of the automobile brand with the richest tradition in the world.
The eyes of the F 700

The headlamps of the F 700 are a futuristic interpretation of the Mercedes-typical twin-headlamp face. Two vertical rows of linear LED arrays with superposed lens have the function of driving lights. A third vertical row of single high-performance LEDs are the daytime driving lights. Together with the continuous contour lights they give the F 700 an unmistakable appearance even by night. The "eyes" of the F 700 are integrated into the headlamps: these laser scanners gather the roadway data for the active PRE-SCAN suspension. Unlike any conventional automobile this sedan "sees" the surface profile of the road ahead of it.

The driver's door also "observes" its surroundings attentively. In the base of the mirror of this PRE-SCAN door there is a very compact laser scanner which examines the area in which the door swings open for any obstacles. If collisions threaten, the door is arrested by a controllable hydraulic cylinder.
Elegance and lightness: the interior

The extremely spacious and flexible interior concept is manifested outwardly not only by the long wheelbase. Two large glazed areas in the roof also emphasize the spacious design. Owing to the use of natural materials like leather and cork and to a harmonious brown and beige color scheme, the interior makes an elegant and light impression and appears very up-scale.

The right rear door of the F 700 is hinged at the rear. Reversing the direction in which the door opens makes it easier to get into the REVERSE seat - another innovation in the new Mercedes-Benz research car. The REVERSE seat is the heart of the new seating concept, a completely new design thought out for the right rear seat. It breaks up the firmly established seating arrangement of a sedan and instead permits individual seat and rest positions, both facing the direction of travel and in the opposite direction.

Relax position and cinema atmosphere

This provides the opportunity for very different kinds of use depending on the purpose and duration of travel. Four persons sit in the conventional way facing the direction of travel. If the front passenger seat is unoccupied, at the push of a button the right rear seat can be moved to a relax position. To do this one moves the front passenger seat forward and folds the backrest towards the dashboard. Another use is made possible by the special functionality of the REVERSE seat (right rear seat). A new type of mechanism allows the passenger to sit in reverse direction and look out the back. He can chat face to face with his neighbor, work, rest, or enjoy the audiovisual entertainment. A monitor with an overall diagonal display measurement of 51 centimeters and a surround sound system create a cinema atmosphere. More than anything else though, the monitor delivers fascinatingly deep images with its 3D technology.

The innovative operating concept conduces greatly to the clear, generous spatial impression: the displays of the information and control system are visible at the point farthest forward in the interior, but, optically, appear a bit further away, because at the bottom edge of the windshield there is a mirror; the display itself is horizontally retracted into the cockpit. This technology not only makes for a very clear and tidily arranged instrument panel. Owing to the bigger distance between the driver's eyes and the display as compared with a conventional cockpit, the need for the eyes to adapt their range for far and near vision is appreciably smaller. This reduces eye fatigue and makes a scientifically verified contribution to greater stress-relieving safety.
Dialogue with your personal assistant

The SERVO-HMI of the F 700 presents itself in an appreciably improved version complemented by a special assistant. Operation of the navigation system, the communication systems and the telephone as well as the audio and entertainment systems is by means of the proven COMAND rotary/pushbutton controller, to which a slide function has been added. Preselections in the operating menu are made in three positions. The air conditioning system is operated by an additional touch-sensitive control.

For more complex input operations, for innovative support there is an individual input assistant in the form of a virtual person, called an avatar in computerese. Such avatars are familiar from the internet world or computer games as electronic images representing real persons.

In the F 700 the avatar takes the shape of a young woman. She enters into verbal dialogue with the driver, asking for the desired destination in the navigation menu, for example, and confirming the voice input. It works the same way when you select someone to call from the phonebook or a desired radio station.

This form of dialogue simplifies voice control for the driver and improves the system's voice recognition performance. Moreover, the scope of possible dialogue assistance functions can be enlarged almost without limit. For instance, the avatar as virtual assistant could access online databases from the vehicle via internet link, add items to the driver's appointments book, or read aloud important e-mails. Operation by voice dialogue minimizes distraction - after all, driving safety is always the most important concern at Mercedes-Benz.
Successful transfer from research to production

Since the beginning of the 1980s Mercedes-Benz has introduced twelve research cars. This series of exciting and pioneering automobiles - from Auto 2000 in 1981 to the current F 700 - documents the resolution and foresight with which the Mercedes-Benz engineers delve into central topics of research and technology and develop innovative solutions for the future.

Many systems in research cars that were considered revolutionary years ago are in use in Mercedes-Benz production cars today. They include, for example, the DISTRONIC proximity control. It was implemented for the first time in 1991 in the F 100 and premiered in series production in 1998 in the S-Class. The Active Body Control suspension system employed today in the CL-, S- and SL-Class is an example of successful technology transfer from research to production car, as are the windowbag and the active light function. The F 500 Mind provided the inspiration for further hybrid development. It combined the V8 diesel engine of an S Class with an electric motor. At the time this duo was the most powerful, torquiest hybrid drive for a rear-wheel drive passenger car. The F 700 will continue down this path and show the way to series production for significant innovations in drive and comfort technology.
Technical data

The most important data and performance figures:

F 700

Gasoline-powered

Length (mm)

5180

Width (mm)

1960

Height (mm)

1438

Wheelbase (mm)

3450

Inertia weight class (kg)

1700

Tires

195/50 R21

Displacement (l)

1.8l

Rated power DIESOTTO

+ electric motor

175 kW/238 hp

+ 15 kW/20 hp

Max. torque

400 Nm

Acceleration 0-100 km/h

7.5 sec

Top speed, governed

200 km/h

Consumption*

5.3 l/100 km

CO2 emissions

127 g/km

Emission rating

EU6

That's a microcar with suicide doors. Johnson's goose cooking suicide doors. But just two, as the driver's side features a Tjorven-style slider. That combo is... well, it's unique. And Dutch/Italian is way cooler than plain old French. Predicting a near-future where traffic snarls and general congestion would make life in the city (or at least parking) miserable, the Dutch rubber band mad men of DAF teamed up with the slick Italian coachbuilder OSI to produce the City Car concept. Why suicide doors? Why the hell not? Fine, they are supposed to make the car more practical. We also love the white vinyl-look interior. Especially the door padding. A few more dangerous pics after the jump. – Jonny Lieberman

Related:
DAF vs. FAF Insanity; More: The Most Beautiful Ford in the World: 1967-68 Ford OSI 20m TS [Internal]

While nowhere near the triage conditions of the Paris Media Center, we still dislike press days at auto shows. Our ass hurts, the coffee's cold, we missed lunch, we missed the picture of the really fat journalist loading a plate of food while bitching about the quality and the pole-to-hole ratio is worse than you could possibly imagine. And another thing: where is all this video going? Why are there ten thousand men in lousy suits shooting so much footage of stationary objects? And why are they such jerks? Why does [CENSORED] from [Censored] smell so awfull? Ten million carmakers and not a single Camino concept? Why have we been up since 5:30 am? Why don't we just read about this on autoblog? What's that? The Audi booth is handing out highly precise mimosas? We love our job.