Visteon’s Tim Yerdon: guided me around the C-Beyond and its wonderful new technologies
Business Car Manager: Editor’s Blog
LAST Friday I was ushered into an infinity photographic studio. It seemed appropriate somehow, as there, in the studio, was a vision of the future – Visteon’s C-Beyond. White car against infinite white background.
The C-Beyond is a concept car designed to showcase future technologies that Visteon is developing for car makers. An image of the future and what might be in the future.
Some of these technologies are already in production; some are on the road to production status; and others are just forward thinking ‘what-ifs’.
Those with long memories might recall Visteon as one of the sponsors of Audi’s Le Mans sports racer. Since then the company had something of a financial meltdown but is now reconstituted as an automotive supplier concentrating on concepts in climate systems, infotainment and connectivity, interior and exterior lighting technologies.
Two of Visteon’s major customers are Ford and Hyundai, says Tim Yerdon the company’s director of global innovation and design. But Visteon works across all car makers.
“The C-Beyond concept encourages vehicle manufacturers to ‘see beyond’ the conventional role of the vehicle to create an innovative user experience enabled by Visteon’s technology and advanced development,” Tim explained to me. “We intend to use the vehicle as a centrepiece in discussions with vehicle manufacturers and partners about developing technology that addresses future consumer trends and needs.”
What was really interesting about the car was how it envisaged more connected, sustainable mobility. For example, the air conditioning system.
This has been removed from the front of the car – allowing a storage area between the driver and passenger footwells for briefcases, handbags and so on – and has been relocated to the base of the car beneath the seats. Cool air is then fed up through ducts and dissipates cooled air above each passenger’s head.
“The reason for doing it this way,” says Tim, “is not only does it liberate useful space, but it allows only those areas of the car to be cooled that need it. What’s the point of cooling 100% of a car interior, when only the driver is at the wheel? In this way we can conserve energy. It also allows individual ‘heat cells’, too.”
There’s lots of thoughtful touches like this. Already we’re seeing innovative use of ambient lighting. On my Audi A6 at night, when you unlock the car pools of light are thrown downwards from the door mirrors and at the base of the door; the footwells are illuminated and the headlights go on. The effect is very welcoming; so personal.
Visteon has been working on such technologies too. Place your hand in the door bin, and it illuminates so you can more easily find what you are looking for. A warning triangle illuminates on the door when it is open, so it can more easily be seen for greater safety. The interior lighting can be changed to suit the driver’s personality; or mood. It’s about making the car more personal, rather than just metal.
And yet, among all the high tech wizardry was something appealingly old-fashioned: three analogue dials in the centre console. What, I asked Tim, were these?
“They show the time, direction of travel and estimated time of arrival,” Tim explained. “It’s not only an attractive design feature, but a different way to display information. Digital readouts are very precise; analogue much less so. It’s designed to take away the stress from the driver. The arrival destination time becomes less precise, because you can’t see the exact minutes. All of our technology is designed to reduce the stress on the driver.”
If the Visteon C-Beyond is the future for our cars, I for one can’t wait. It’s an intriguing vision that blends technology with sustainable mobility and real driver benefits. Let’s hope, then, that reality measures up to the vision.
