Combining its expertise in engineering plastics and coatings to cathode materials, fuels and lubricants and more, BASF Automotive Solutions has launched a virtual car. Presented in the form of an interactive tool, the virtual car offers varied automotive solutions to help customers continue innovating and driving the mobility industry forward. With this, the automotive OEMs, engineers, designers and developers can explore by specific materials or material properties, across vehicle segments, by different powertrains or by industry topic to determine which BASF solutions will best address their needs.
Alex Horisberger, Senior Specialist Design Consultant at BASF, has lead the development of the virtual car. With a background in product design and experience working with engineers, he coordinated across BASF’s global teams to ensure that the virtual car is a functional, technical and aesthetically pleasing tool.
According to Horisberger, the virtual car is designed to show automakers how BASF materials can help solve the industry’s challenges. Beyond its technical function, the elegant design is intended to motivate and inspire designers and engineers to explore new ways to leverage our material know-how against their most demanding challenges.
“We know that the current pace of change in automotive is intense. That’s why you won’t see any fleeting or trendy elements found in cars today. It was important to create a balance to show which BASF solutions can help answer the question, ‘what now?’ while also providing a glimpse into how they can help answer the question, ‘what’s next?’ It’s also intentionally not a real vehicle that can be built but more of a long-term proxy. We already know OEMs are experts in making cars, and our competency lies with material and chemical solutions. Our virtual car is like a playground for automakers to explore and realise all the possibilities to innovate using our products,” he said.
On the challenges faced while developing the virtual car, Horisberger said, one of the biggest challenges was to make a vehicle that is not related to any specific brand or market, but one that is truly a ‘world’s car.’ There is no branding to ensure the car is a blank slate for customers to draw inspiration from.
“We consulted with markets in North America, Europe and Asia, and the overall feedback was that a subcompact SUV is the preferred model. With customer demands for certain types of vehicles or components, we can show - through the virtual car - that BASF can deliver broad solutions to meet their needs. The modular shape is also intentionally part of the design concept to offer customers a variety of entry points into the car. Customers can look at the car holistically or filter through the different segments for solutions to meet their requirements in a targeted way. For example, if a customer is looking at the gas tank or battery packs, the virtual car can easily be switched from an internal combustion engine to an electric vehicle or filtered by solutions for e-mobility,” he said.
Industry influence
When designing this virtual car, the team took automotive industry trends and challenges into consideration. “For example, we understand that the interior of a vehicle is becoming increasingly important as consumers are looking for a more comfortable and customisable cabin. The virtual car shows how BASF can support transforming interior spaces, such as providing cushioning material to create softer passenger seats or NVH solutions to reduce unwanted sound interference in the cabin. We also like to show how our materials can be used in unusual applications, like the backrest of the seat, to help generate ideas for future products. To encompass the entire mobility ecosystem, you’ll see there is an equal weight given to the exterior and interior of the vehicle, as well as the powertrain and chassis,” he added.