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NEWS
BMW unveils radical concept
Vision Next 100 previews the BMW of 2046Naked bikes will offer wind protection, electronically adjustable tyres will take care of damping and protective riding gear will be defunct, according to BMW's latest two-wheel concept unveiled in Los Angeles recently.
Dubbed the Vision Next 100, it's the German brand's take on what motorcycling might look like in 30 years' time based on what BMW said to be, "the assumption that mobility is set to become increasingly multi-faceted and connected."
Boasting plenty of the styling hallmarks we've become accustomed to from the brand since its early 1920s inception, like the visually imposing boxer engine and the frame's black triangle design lines, the Vision Next 100 also features extremely futuristic elements, both styling wise and in terms of mechanical and electronic functionality.
According to the brand, "the clever arrangement of surfaces protects the rider from wind and weather as effectively as a full fairing." Helped, in part, by the boxer-looking engine (it's a zero-emission affair, of course) physically expanding at a rate dependent on the bike's speed.
The concept also imagines a one-piece flexible frame that starts at the front wheel and finishes at the rear axle. It, too, reacts to the speeds and riding conditions and actively adjusts the level of rigidity accordingly.
The connectivity then goes a step further with the idea of active tyres boasting variable tread, which would look after the job that the suspension does on today's bikes. As well as the oversized, presumably pneumatic tyres looking after the bike's damping, the tread pattern on the tyres will have the ability to morph into something best suited to the prevailing conditions.
In what could be seen as a movement towards autonomous motorcycle control, the concept also has the ability to predict an oncoming situation and alert the rider – a system so good, the brand says, that it will, "consign the helmets and body protectors of today to the history books."
It's got an automatic balance feature – sidestands have no place in three decades' time, it seems – and all of the electrickery (or the Digital Companion, as the firm calls it) is programmed to remain undetected to ensure the "digital presence doesn't undermine the analogue riding experience".
All we can say is, 'Wow!'
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Written byBikesales Staff
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