7 September 2017

Jaguar peers into the future


If it looks like an arrival through a time warp from the future, that's because it is a future concept, writes Brian Byrne.

The Jaguar Future-Type concept was revealed today in London and is the luxury brand's image of a possible on-demand shared car that drives itself.

It will also have a 'smart' steering wheel, which is the only bit a driver will buy. They're calling that 'Sayer', and you'll keep it with you at home to summon the rest of the car, or book it for a later time. The name comes from the man who designed the iconic E-Type.

The Future-Type is in the compact size category, and features face to face seating.

Though autonomous, it will be possible, in Jaguar's thinking, to take over the driving if the operator wants to.

And we now have a new theme in motoring, 'orbits' of our world. The Sayer wheel will be able to access information in an owner's different 'orbits'. It can, for instance, instruct a car to autonomously collect children from school and other chores.

They're talking 2040 here …