The Frankfurt Motor Show (or International Motor Show, IAA) is one of the world’s largest automotive shows with manufacturers throughout Europe and the world showing off their latest. Most of the vehicles are Europe-bound, but many end up in the United States and Asia as well.
Electrification has long been a big part of the IAA, but this year automation was also a huge talking point as manufacturer’s showcased their latest designs and trends. Here’s a roundup of the electrified and self-driving showcases at the Frankfurt show this year.
Audi
Audi introduced the Aicon concept car (above) at the Frankfurt show. The car is electric, of course, but the real focus for the concept is its artificial intelligence systems and its advanced fully-automated driving system design. The car’s interior is fully open and the doors open opposing one another with a pillar-less design for a completely open entryway. Read more about it here.
Alongside the Aicon was the Elaine concept car, a more near-future automated vehicle that hits the more realistic level 4 mark. The exterior is the Audi e-tron Sportback introduced in May of this year in China, but the Elaine includes three electric motors (one up front, two on the rear) in an all-wheel drive setup with emphasis on the rear axle. Audi says this will be their design going forward for all fully electric vehicles. Read more about the Elaine here.
BMW
The BMW i Vision Dynamics (above) is a gran coupe design concept that envisions the future of BMW’s electrified fleet. It has a range of 600 km (373 miles) per charge and a top speed of over 200 km/h (120 mph). Read more about this beautiful concept in my writeup at NewAtlas.
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-AMG showed off their Project ONE supercar which brings a lot of Formula 1 hybrid technologies to a really beautiful-looking supercar. This is a hybrid car that produces 1,000 horsepower and that will be a production vehicle through the Mercedes-Benz performance house, AMG. Read about it here.
The Concept EQA showcar (above) is a Mercedes-Benz conceptual design as a compact coupe-style crossover with an all-wheel drive powertrain driven by two electric motors. With a range of up to 400 km (249 miles) per charge and a semi-modular battery system, the EQA is quite striking. Read what I had to say about it on NewAtlas.
Volkswagen
VW introduced an electric crossover concept, the I.D. Crozz, as a revamp of the original crossover-SUV electric shown in China. The electric powertrain shown in China remains, but the interior is much different and the exterior sees a few tweaks as well. The I.D. Crozz will sit atop the same platform as several of Volkswagen’s planned production models in the I.D. range. Find out more about this concept here.
Aaron is an automotive journalist living in Wyoming, USA. His background includes technology, mechanics, commercial vehicles, and new vehicle evaluations. Aaron is a member of several automotive media groups and writes for many well-known publications.