Sony said it created the prototype to showcase its technology to automakers. However, it appears that the company is interested in doing more with the car.
The Vision-S has dual 200kW motors, one at the front and one at the rear. It can go from 0 to 62 MPH in 4.8 seconds and has a top speed of 149 MPH. At the time Sony unveiled the car, it had Tier 2 autonomous driving capabilities, meaning it can handle the steering, acceleration, and brakes, but a driver must be in place to take control if necessary. The company told Engadget at CES that it was interested in achieving higher levels of autonomy, but that is not necessarily a pressing problem.
The Vision-S is equipped with 33 sensors to enable autonomous driving and other functions, such as recognition of people and elements both inside and outside. You can adjust the car settings to match whoever is inside. And since it’s about Sony, there’s a focus on in-car entertainment. The Vision-S has 360 Reality Audio, with speakers in each of the four-seat headrests. It also had a sleek user interface, including a panoramic touchscreen.
The Vision-S certainly caught our attention in January, but now there is a chance that someday we may be able to handle it, too.
