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Reflections of past glories are being used by Mercedes-Benz to guide its new vehicle technology into the electric era, with its Vision EQ Silver Arrow show car honouring the land-speed record car of 1937.
The Vision EQ Silver Arrow, shown at this week’s Monterey Car Week in Pebble Beach, California, is the latest battery-electric show car from Mercedes-Benz and continues on from the first EQ concept shown at the Paris motor show in 2016.
Mercedes-Benz has subsequently shown the EQA compact car and Smart-based EQ fortwo at the 2017 Frankfurt motor show. It has announced the EQC SUV will be its first production battery-electric vehicle to be launched next year in Australia.
Pebble Beach’s Vision EQ Silver Arrow show car is definitely not for production though and follows the theme of Rudolf Caracciola’s W125 race-car that ran 432.7km/h on Germany’s autobahn in 1937 – a speed that was not broken on public roads until November last year.
The single-seat Vision EQ has design elements of Caracciola’s car, extending inside to a period cockpit with traditional, high-quality materials such as saddle-brown leather, polished aluminium and solid walnut.
Mixed with this is a digital cockpit that includes a curved panoramic screen with back projection and a touchscreen integrated into the steering wheel.
Mercedes-Benz said that as a pointer to future possible charging technologies, the lane of the roadway on which inductive charging is implemented is superimposed onto the screen.
However, the set-up can also be used as a way to race historic vehicles, much like a video game.
“With the help of artificial intelligence it is possible to engage in a virtual race against historic or present Silver Arrow racing cars,” Mercedes-Benz claims.
“For this a virtual racetrack is superimposed onto the real roadway on the panoramic screen and the driver sees their opponent either ahead of them or behind them as a ‘ghost’. The 'Virtual Race Coach' assistance function helps you become a better driver by giving instructions during the race.”
Mercedes-Benz said the melding of new and old is characterised by the company’s 'Progressive Luxury' idiom.
The wheels – measuring 24 inches up front and 26 inches in the rear – each have 168 spokes and are made of lightweight aluminium.
The streamlined silhouette of the EQ Vision is 5.3m long and one metre high, with bulbous wheelarches and a glass bubble canopy for the single occupant.
It is made of carbon-fibre with multiple layers of paint in 'alubeam silver' to make it look like liquid metal to represent the polar opposites of hot and cold.
The front trim has a continuous lighting strip that is carried to the side skirts, while the large, recessed EQ lettering in front of the rear wheels is illuminated blue as is characteristic of the brand.
Other highlights include the driver's cockpit, which can be folded forwards, and the partially free-standing multi-spoke wheels with non-rotating hubcaps.
The wheels – measuring 24 inches up front and 26 inches in the rear – each have 168 spokes and are made of lightweight aluminium and painted a rose gold colour. They wear slick 255/25 and 305/25 tyres front and rear respectively.
The rear diffuser reflects the car’s motorsport heritage, with two extendible rear spoilers designed to act as air brakes by increasing the wind resistance.
The heart of the Vision EQ Silver Arrow is an electric drivetrain rated at 550kW. It has a thin rechargeable battery in the underbody and a useable capacity of about 80kWh that allows the car to travel up to a 400km range, according to the new WLTP economy testing.
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