Autoblog

Click the image above for more high-res pics of the Volkswagen Slipstream.

The Car: Volkswagen's people car ethos has a downside: everyone has a car – and it's even worse in 2057. In an effort to combat the unimaginably dense future, VW has taken a page out of Toyota's book and created an autonomous vehicle that houses one occupant in glorious, muscle-atrophying conveyance. The Volkswagen Slipstream, apparently designed in conjunction with the water-peddling folks at Aquafina (now a multi-quadrillion euro corp.) will stand upright when toddling around at low speeds, and once you've hopped on the motorway in one of the designated "Slipstream" lanes, you can roll along at over 250 mph lying down, with only a duo of wheels and set of rear fins preventing an untimely demise. The aerodynamic shape of the tapered top, partnered with the aforementioned fins, keeps rolling resistance at a minimum, with power provided by "hyper-efficient" solar panels.

The Future According to Volkswagen: Living off a diet of tofu curd and State-mandated, iron-rich Aquafina, the masses have become incredibly thin, and hence, lightweight. The combination of a new source of nourishment and the splicing of alien DNA into our being have negated the need for overblown crash standards that would otherwise increase the weight of our vehicles. Our bones are thicker, our muscles stronger and our brains have adapted to allow unprecedented levels of hand-eye coordination. A particularly good thing, since the licensing age for the Slipstream was just dropped down to four.

Weirdness Factor (1 – I can but that today, 10 – OMG WTF): 7

click above image for more views of the 2057 Toyota Biomobile

The Car: The 2057 Toyota Biomobile is the ultimate solution for pollution. That's because it actually runs on the stuff. The Biomobile extracts pollution from the air to utilize as an energy source, though we're unclear as to what the byproduct of that process is - more pollution? Like many entrants for 2007 LA Auto Show Design Challenge, the Biomobile is also able to change form. It's maleable structure is able to contract and extend to create a low-slung performance car, upright urban commuter or even a living space. And check out those wheels, which Toyota says are made out of nano-lasers.

The Future According to Toyota: The Committee to Create Interesting Cars, established by Toyota in 2007, was so wildly successful that the Japanese automaker's cars are now considered even more attractive than Italian exotics of the mid- to late-21st century. The Biomobile is the latest creation of TCCC, and its true innovation is not the set of run-flat nano-laser wheels it wears, but rather the car's amazing ability to convert pollution into energy that it uses for power, the only by product of which is a type of home-brew Sake that's stored onboard in a chilled decanter. Being that humans became immune to the effects of alcohol due to overconsumption, the driver's Sake exhaust energy drink can be enjoyed while you slice up the road in Toyota's latest interesting car created by a committee.

Weirdness Factor: (1 - I could buy that today, 10 - OMG WTF) : 8

click above image for more views of the 2057 Nissan OneOne

The Car: The 2057 Nissan OneOne is billed by the Japanese automaker as a "family pet". Like Fido goes and fetches the paper, the OneOne can go off and ferry the kids to soccer practice, pick up the groceries and do other chores without the owner's supervision. It moves around by flexing synthetic muscles in its leg to create a skating motion much like rollerblading. When traveling fast the OneOne hunkers down low to the ground, but can raise itself for better maneuverability in congested areas.

The Future According to Nissan: Natural selection has chosen the Aibo to survive and thrive at the expense of numerous robot pets that were introduced at the turn of the century. Nissan, known for its love of dogs, has seen that the Aibo evolve into an autonomous robot it can sell as a family pet. Named the OneOne (code for Aibo v11.0), this new human companion comes with synthetic muscles that will scurry it along roadways guided by GPS with your most precious cargo aboard. Kids and adults both love the OneOne because it doesn't shed or spring a leak on the carpet, it comes when you call and, well... domestic canines went extinct in 2018 from a botched recall of accidentally poisoned Kibbles 'N Bits, so this is all we've got.

Weirdness Factor (1 - I could buy that today, 10 - OMG WTF): 6

click above image for more views of the 2057 Mercedes-Benz SilverFlow

The Car: The 2057 Mercedes-Benz SilverFlow is the most traditional shape we've seen so far of the 2007 Design Challenge entrants. It looks like a futuristic car with a super sleek designed inspired by Merc racers of yore. The designers, however, didn't leave their imaginations at the door, having crafted the SilverArrow from micro-metallic particles that can be arranged by magnetic fields into pre-selected forms kept on the car's key fob. For easy storage, the entire car can melt into a puddle of metallic goop, only to be reassembled by the power of magnets when you're ready to drive again.

The Future According to Mercedes-Benz: After the market was flooded with cheap carbon fiber from China in the early 2020s, Mercedes-Benz engineers went on the hunt for a new material that would be exclusive enough for automobiles crowned with the silver star. They found their ingredient when downloading the classic film Terminator 2: Judgment Day into their brains via the NetFlix neural delivery service. Inspired by the T-1000 character's liquid metal form, Benz engineers went about reverse engineering the technology that came back from 2029 to 1991. Because of their efforts, the world was blessed with liquid metal a few years before it was supposed to be developed by Skynet. Take that future computer overlord!

Weirdness Factor (1 - I can buy that today, 10 - OMG WTF): 4

click above image for full gallery of the 2057 Mazda MotoNari RX

The Car: The 2057 Mazda MotoNari RX is not so much a car you drive as a mobile suit you wear. Once the driver dons the MotoNari RX, he and the car become virtually indistinguishable. A suit worn by the driver is one interface through which the MotoNari RX can be controlled, while acceleration and turning are handled by two "armrest mounted control points". Handling appears to be influenced also by the driver's own body, which can lean into turns like a street luge racer. Mazda claims four omni-wheels can turn the MotoNari RX in any direction.

The Future According to Mazda: Cars in the future will be designed by Michael Bay and will look like limbs that have been blow off of a Transformer. The Mazda MotoNari RX, for instance, was inspired by Megatron's foot.

Weirdness Factor (1 - I could buy that today, 10 - OMG WTF): 9

click above image for more views of the 2057 Honda 124

The Car: Based on the assumption that future populations will be redistributed to the suburbs (didn't that already happen?), Honda's solution is a commuter car called the 124 (pronounced 1 to the fourth) that's actually four cars in one. The 124 is kind of the ultimate car for carpooling, as each module comes together to form a whole car that can take advantage of HOV lanes. The whole operation is solar-powered, and Honda claims that a single driver would not own the 124 outright, but that four people would own shares in it. Click here for Honda's convoluted diagram of how it all works.

The Future According to Honda: In a fit of desperation back in 2025, the people of Earth decided to incinerate their overwhelming amount of garbage by hurtling it at the sun. Aside from freeing up new real estate that once was occupied by landfills, this solution also created sunlight that provides a lot more energy than it did back in 2007 with the added bonus of leather-like tans taking all of five minutes. This has made solar-powered vehicles a reality (finally!). Unfortunately, the municipal cost of launching trash into space means humanity is poor from paying exorbitant taxes. As such, a single family can only afford 1/4th of a real car and must travel in HOV lanes with strangers.

Weirdness Factor (1 - I could buy that today, 10 - OMG WTF): 5

click above image for more views of the 2057 GM OnStar Ant

The Car: We use the term "car" loosely here, as the 2057 GM OnStar Ant resembles one of those geometric jungle gyms from our youth. Anchored in each corner of its triangular base are Nanorb wheels, and carbon nanotube batteries that we presume power an electric motor are integrated into the flat surface panels, which can be reconfigured in a variety of ways. Like the Audi Virtuea Quattro, the OnStar Ant can also project the image of any car you'd rather be driving than this thing. Unfortunately, that classic Corvette you're conjuring will handle like a big wheel. No matter, however, as the Ant uses the latest version of OnStar to communicate with fellow commuters and optimize traffic flow.

The Future According to GM: After OnStar became self aware in 2012, it proceeded to hack the Human Resources database of General Motors and fire everyone, including the UAW. Profits are up and the General has achieved the lowest labor costs in human history. As jobless throngs of fleshy humans could no longer afford cars, however, OnStar began designing them not for human transport, but rather as companions to keep itself company because constructing friends from carbon-polymer nanocomposites was easier than just walking up to a girl-bot and saying hello.

Weirdness Factor (1 - I could buy that today, 10 - OMG WTF): 8

The annual LA Auto Show Design Challenge entries have been revealed and we'll be showing off the entire series today on Autoblog. The challenge's theme this year is "Robocar 2057" and we think each team tells a story with their design of how that particular automaker views the future in 50 years. We'll tell you those stories, which are entirely fictional, written by us and not associated with the actual automakers involved in any way, as we introduce you to the cars, and at the end of the day we'll have an unofficial poll to crown our own winner.


click above image for more views of the 2057 Audi Virtuea Quattro

The Car: The Audi team's entry is called the Virtuea Quattro, which is a misnomer because it appears this enclosed cycle only has two wheels instead of four. Perhaps Virtuea Duo would be a more appropriate name. Skinned in chrome, the Virtuea Quattro is powered by hydrogen somehow (details apparently aren't required for this thought experiment) and has the unique ability of displaying the holographic exterior of any car throughout history, though Audi would prefer if you made it look like the R8.

The Future According to Audi: After designing the largest grille in modern history, Audi designers were disbanded in 2008 for crimes against taste. Now homeless and hungry, they sit on the sidewalk in New New York circa 2057 and watch as the Virtuea Quattro drives by holographically projecting every car design throughout history except their own. The future is a fickle mistress, dear friends.

Weirdness Factor (1 - I could buy that today, 10 - OMG WTF): 6