Autonomous

Ford will invest US$22 billion (AU$28 billion) in electric vehicle development by 2025, the US manufacturer has announced. In a statement following the release of the brand's fourth-quarter 2020 earnings report, it was also confirmed that a further US$7 billion (AU$9.2 billion) would be spent on expanding autonomous vehicle technologies.

A video of the Sony Vision-S electric vehicle testing on roads around Austria has been released by the Japanese technology company. One year after Sony surprised the world by unveiling its Vision-S concept, the electric vehicle (EV) appears to be edging ever-closer to become a production reality. Sony says the Vision-S uses 40 sensors to provide active safety systems surrounding the car, with a handful of semi-autonomous safety features expected.

The automobile has long been a home away from home, a personal and private space detached from the noise and frustrations of the world around us – and that's the theme Mini is leaning on with its new Urbanaut concept. There's history in the design, though. While the German-owned British brand has worked to develop a concept that make the most of a hands- and attention-free driving future, the result is both predictably van-like – and a subtle nod to the Spiritual Too concept revealed in 1997.

An innovative active suspension system – capable of adjusting wheel alignment while driving – has been developed by Victorian-based company Doftek. The active wheel alignment system (AWAS) is designed to be retrofitted to a car's existing suspension. The vehicle's standard suspension mounts and tie rods are replaced with electromechanical components that, via a control unit, can adjust the angle of the wheels (camber, toe-in, and caster) to suit road conditions and driver preferences.

German carmaker Volkswagen is developing a software-based operating system for new vehicles that it believes could result in no accidents involving its cars by 2050, as reported by Reuters. Utilising sensors and processors, the next-generation cars will be able to calculate and pre-empt a potential collision, according to Volkswagen’s brand strategy chief, Michael Jost.