The recent wave of electrification in the modern automobile scenario has brought in a lot a practical models that seem plausible for everyday use and along with it, we also get to see some incredible concepts that provide a glimpse into the future of motoring. One such neat concept comes from Lexus which has taken the wraps off its first battery electric vehicle. Car manufacturers revealing battery EVs is now, in fact, not much of an eyebrow-raiser but then Lexus continues to talk about innovative technology up the LF-30’s sleeves.
Recently unveiled at the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show, Lexus LF-30 looks straight out of a sci-fi film. Lexus designers seem to have made use of the fact that the bonnet doesn’t have to be filled with a combustion engine and hence the design can be quite radical. So, the LF-30 doesn’t exactly have a bonnet at all and it looks as sleek and sharp as you’d expect a space-age car to be.
Design highlights definitely include the window glass which continually stretches from the front to rear, the muscular fenders, and the wing-shaped headlights. In addition, the sharpness of the rear lights and side air intakes combine to aerodynamics and cooling performance.
The opacity of the side windows can be adjusted, providing occupants with expansive views of the surroundings or a high level of privacy at night. The colour of the front face of the vehicle and luminescence patterns help identify from the outside whether the vehicle is being operated in its normal mode or in its autonomous driving mode.
The LF-30 Electrified also carries the ‘Lexus Airporter’ drone-technology support vehicle. Using autonomous control, the Lexus Airporter is capable of such tasks as independently transporting baggage from a household doorstep to the vehicle’s luggage area.
Based on the latest autonomous driving technology concept of ‘Lexus Teammate’, the LF-30 Electrified features advanced driving support functions in the form of a Chauffeur mode and a Guardian mode. Furthermore, a self-parking function and a front-door pickup function in which the LF-30 Electrified autonomously moves from driveway to doorstep.
The rear seats use artificial muscle technology to mold to their occupants and can support various modes such as reclining, relaxation, and alert functions. It gets a Mark Levinson audio system and has speakers built into the headrests that also provide a noise-cancelling feature.
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A glass roof above the rear seats features voice control and a gesture-controlled “SkyGate” display window that uses AR to display various types of information, such as a realistic star-filled sky, user-favourite videos, and even navigation.
Lexus LF-30 Electrified is powered by a 110-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack that zaps four in-wheel electric motors delivering 536 hp, a claimed driving range of 496 km, and a 0-100 km/h sprint time of 3.8 seconds.
