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Mini Vision Next 100 Concept: It's the autonomy, stupid

The concepts that Mini and Rolls-Royce showed off today – the Vision Next 100 Concept and 103EX, respectively – are all about autonomy. The Rolls-Royce doesn't even have a place for a "driver." And even though both are very much blue sky concepts, corporate parent BMW thinks it will make fully-autonomous cars within the next five years. That's according to Peter Schwarzenbauer, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, MINI, BMW Motorrad, Rolls-Royce, and Aftersales BMW Group, who also told us that both cars, at least in concept, are fully electric. The Rolls-Royce has dual-drive, 250kw motors mounted fore-and aft, on front and rear axles. While the Rolls is clearly a luxury concept for the monied few, the Mini is very much focused on a shared economy. Holger Hampf, Head of User Experience, BMW Group, said the chief design challenge of a car-sharing world is producing a car that could in theory mean different things to different borrowers. You get exclusivity because each car would morph according to the borrower's desires. BMW/Mini already have a car-sharing program in London called DriveNow, and a pilot program in Seattle called ReachNow, focused on the idea of shared exclusivity. ReachNow, which allows Mini/BMW owners to lend their cars out in an AirBnB-type scheme or to borrow "fleet-style cars," are immutable – however the car that was ordered is what the borrower or the owner will get. That's great if you're the owner, but it's also challenging for both anyone who'd buy that car used or for anyone borrowing the car. And if the future of most cars is a shared model (Ford is now offering multi-person leases among up to six buyers in a pilot program in Austin, Texas), customization is impossible. The result is what Schwarzenbauer derogatorily calls "normed." He says carmakers have to relearn to brand for a world where ownership is devalued but customization is key. To that end the MINI VISION NEXT 100 is "skinned." We've seen this before with the BMW NEXT concept that was revealed at the NY Auto Show this past spring, and the idea is to use the exterior of the car as a canvass that changes according to setting. Indeed Mini envisions that in a multi-driver household, the vehicle's customization could easily include changing colors according to driver preference – automatically. Dr.

Giles Taylor succeeds Ian Cameron as head of Rolls-Royce design

Back in the day, a Rolls-Royce looked pretty much the same as a Bentley, but with a different grille. Once BMW took over Rolls-Royce, however, it was faced with the challenge of visually separating itself from its former sister brand. And most would agree that it did so pretty well. But its cars have looked pretty much the same ever since. What Rolls-Royce needs, then, is a bit of a design shake-up. And that's just what this latest appointment could bring.
After a baker's dozen years as design director at Rolls-Royce (and twenty years designing for the BMW Group altogether), Ian Cameron is retiring from his post. In his place, Rolls-Royce has named Giles Taylor as its new director of design. In his new capacity, Taylor will report directly to BMW Group chief designer Adrian van Hooydonk, and be responsible for all design matters related to the Rolls-Royce brand and its products.
Taylor was promoted to the role from his previous position as head of exterior design for the marque, a position he's held for barely more than a year. We'll be eagerly watching to see what the veteran British car designer has in store for the future of Rolls-Royce. In the meantime you can read the full announcement below.

BMW X5 driver repeatedly fails to understand big rig braking distances

Nobody should be shocked that a big, heavy vehicle like a semi truck takes a longer distance to stop than the average passenger car; it's just basic physics. However, this BMW X5 driver seemingly has a major problem grasping the concept, and it results in some serious damage to the back of his SUV.
The whole incident is very confusing to watch. The BMW doesn't even seem to have a reason to slow down before the semi slams into the back of it at fairly high speed. But to make the situation even weirder, the crashes just keep happening again and again.
To give the BMW driver a little credit, he appears amazingly calm when surveying the damage afterward. But you have to wonder what this guy was thinking when trying a harebrained move like this. Check out the video to watch the carnage unfold.