Lately, almost all premium manufacturers are excelling in the exterior design of their cars. Most of the newer models are remarkable pieces of design that showcase how far has vehicle design come in the last decade. Certainly some design techniques inspire others, but imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
In a world where the market size and financials drive every decision made, it pushes the bean counters to impact the design teams. Engineers and safety regulations also have an important impact on the final design, so it is uncommon for a concept car to end up looking significantly different than the production model.
So while the exterior design might sometimes “play safe”, the cockpits have been taken to a whole new level. With the advent of in-car entertainment systems and the introduction of LCD technology, the playing field got bigger and more exciting for interior designers. While minimalism is what many designers strive for, there are also plenty of examples where awkwardly placed screens, randomly added air ventilation openings and flashy lights have created strange-looking and tiring cabins.
This has become more apparent with the reveal of some recent vehicles that are more focus on being flashy than being usable.
In the end, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and customers now can’t be more different than ever, so choosing the best interior design language is sometimes a matter of personal style. Since we focus mostly on BMWs, we can say a thing or two about the recent design changes made by Munich inside the cockpit.
The interior design continues to be understated, yet purposeful and fully catering to the driver. The design and its elements are not intruding the passengers’ personal space, yet they are simply accessible when needed. But one of the biggest upgrades to the BMW cabins comes certainly from the level of luxury now the new BMWs sport. The cockpits look sleek, stylish and premium.
With this in mind, we compared several BMW, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen interiors, all in different vehicle model ranges and we’ll let you decide who makes the best cockpits
Mercedes-Benz GLE, BMW X6 M, Audi Q8
Mercedes-Benz CLS, BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe, Audi A7
Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG, BMW M4, Audi RS5
