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It hasn’t been a great last few years for Mercedes-Benz in the design department, with many of its products looking like blobs on wheels. That changes today—sorta—with the reveal of the Vision Iconic concept car, which to a 38-year-old like me, looks straight out of the Batman animated series from the ’90s.
As you can see below, the resemblance is uncanny. I’d bet that at least one person in the design team noticed this throughout the creative process but kept quiet. The extra-long hood, the cabin pushed all the way to the back, how the canopy rises ahead of the rear wheels and flows to a tapered, pointy end at the back. But perhaps the biggest giveaway is the grille. It’s nearly identical to the Batmobile’s, though Mercedes claims it harks back to the design of the W108, W111, and the Mercedes-Benz 600 Pullman.
Okay, enough about Batman.
Mercedes claims the design is inspired by “the brand’s rich heritage” and the golden era of design of the 1930s, yet is “designed for its future.” Perhaps that’s why it looks super retro, but it also boasts futuristic and giggle-inducing features like solar paint and something called “neuromorphic computing.” Luckily, it’s not designed to drive itself—at least, all the time. It features Level 4 self-driving capabilities, but at least according to the press release, it’s a functionality and not a full-time thing. It appears that this car is meant to be driven—if it could be driven—but it could also drive itself if so desired.
“Neuromorphic computing mimics the functioning of the human brain,” said Mercedes in its press release. “This could make AI calculations significantly more energy-efficient and faster. Safety systems, for example, could better recognize traffic signs, lanes, and other road users and react faster, even in poor visibility conditions – and would be 10 times more efficient than current systems.”
A wafer-thin paste that acts as the Vision Iconic’s paint turns the sleek coupe into a photovoltaic-active machine, meaning it can acquire additional range simply by exposing itself to the sun. Per Mercedes, the surface of a mid-size SUV (about 11 square meters) of this paint could generate enough energy to drive an additional 7,500 miles per year “under ideal conditions.”
Like all concept cars, this one boasts its fair share of far-fetched technologies, but what truly matters is the design. A concept car can represent the best an automaker has to offer, but if it’s ugly, no one will care. Likewise, it can have the wackiest features and half the press release doesn’t make any sense, but if it’s stunning, people will love it. Whichever bucket you put the Vision Iconic in, we can all agree that it’s absolutely stunning—just like that animated Batmobile.
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As deputy editor, Jerry draws on a decade of industry experience and a lifelong passion for motorsports to guide The Drive’s short- and long-term coverage.
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