BERLIN–Ford chief Alan Mulally showed off a concept car here at IFA on Friday, which is - eventually - intended to produce a smarter and safer driving experience.
The Ford S-Max Concept sport activity vehicle (SAV) actually made its debut in Germany late last month, but Mulally brought it with him to his IFA keynote as well to underscore that Ford is now a car and technology company.
Jim Buczkowski, Ford's director of electrics and electronics, ran through a few scenarios that the S-Max could possibly execute, including automatic parking - parallel and vertical - and backing out (below), as well as using Wi-Fi to communicate with other cars on the road about potential problems ahead.
Tapping into Ford Sync, meanwhile, this vehicle could monitor a driver's heart rate and contact 911 or a doctor if something is awry. Similarly, it could connect to a glucose monitor and signal the driver if a child in the back seat suffered a diabetic episode.
The S-Max has been around in Europe since 2006. With the S-Max concept, Ford said it sought to develop a vehicle with "cutting-edge design, convenience, connectivity, flexibility, and craftsmanship."
"S-Max drivers are passionate and bring high expectations – they see their S-Max as a one-of-a-kind vehicle," Martin Smith, executive design director of Ford of Europe, said last month. "Our mission was to exceed their expectations in every area while respecting the core of what they love about the S-Max."
As it is a concept car, we probably won't see the concept S-Max on the road anytime soon, but it provides some insight on what the future of driving might look like. When asked what he thought about self-driving cars, Mulally said he was intrigued by the technology behind it but said it was "hard to predict" when it might be ready and affordable enough for the masses.
"We've got to get the technology pieces and the volume and the cost down," Mulally said.
There were reports recently that Google was looking into making its own self-driving cars after it failed to secure a deal with a major automaker. Mulally, however, brushed off concerns about Google as a rival, arguing that Ford works with Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Cisco on a variety of technology. At the end of the day, it's about whether consumers can get what they want in a "safe and efficient way."
To that end, car development in the years to come will be as much about operating systems and apps as horsepower and fuel efficiency, Mulally said. Ford's commitment is to "lead a new era of motoring" that produces more intuitive and connected cars. That will require the help of the developer community, which Mulally asked to submit their best ideas.
Mulally's appearance at IFA comes after Reuters reported that he might step down earlier than his planned late 2014 retirement date, but he shot down those rumors today.