The Frankfurt Motor Show as it has been known is being challenged by participants, protesters, and media. Many major automakers and suppliers were absent, and several exhibitors reduced their investment.
But there’s a lot of real estate between absence and excess; BMW and Opel, for example, showed that a more frugal display gets the job done. IAA is still a great opportunity to see new cars and to meet colleagues; social media coverage extends the reach to an unprecedented 250 million sets of eyes, while traditional media coverage is no longer as enthusiastic as it once was—this year, there was a lot of “this was the last IAA” messaging. All traditional motor shows must reinvent themselves, at least as professional events, not forgetting that to create buzz and media coverage, you need events!
In any event, IAA confirmed that EVs aren’t a curiosity or an emerging trend any more—they are the central mainstay of the market. Every exhibitor presented EVs or components and systems for EVs. From an interior perspective, electric vehicle power is not (yet?) a key discriminant, except as whole-vehicle reconfiguration for electric motivation (battery and motor instead of fuel tank, engine, exhaust system, etc) alters the spaces available for the interior. New open body architecture on modular platforms could create much more opportunities for interior architecture, along with the tunnel-free underbody.
As usual, show cars are sketching the future, and that’s where we see a lot of potential for new interior concepts: much roomier, slimmer seats, interior lighting is everywhere, B-pillars are absent. As the new automotive reality takes shape, there are always traditional elements kept for their enduring value—see the VW ID.3 and Honda e, as good examples.
The centrality of the interior to today’s vehicle topography is confirmed by prominent interior demonstrators presented by many exhibitors. It’s obviously a way to emphasize HMI without being encapsulated into a body. Our in-depth article this week reviews the most interesting ones we saw, and the Design Lounge more extensively covers concept cars and new vehicle introductions. And we’re not done, either; watch for more coverage coming in the next Newsletter.
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