Mercedes’ 1996 F 200 Imagination complete with ‘Hyperscreen’
The hyperscreen in the new electric Mercedes EQS may seem cutting edge, but it first arrived in the Mercedes F 200 Imagination 25 years ago.
Go back as far as 1959, and Mercedes introduced crumple zones to a production car for the first time, in the 1970s the S-Class got electronic ABS and in the 1980s electronic stability control, all of which – along with other stuff like disc brakes and dual-circuit braking – are now commonplace on even the most basic of cars.
So with the arrival of the new Mercedes S-class – and perhaps, even more, the new electric Mercedes EQS – we’re seeing stuff that will eventually filter down to the cheap seats. Like the UBX Hyperscreen on the EQS.
With a massive span of Gorilla glass covering a screen that extends right across the cockpit, the Hyperscreen is a new innovation borne out of advances in technology and will, eventually, be commonplace. Except the idea is far from a new one.
In fact, the Hyperscreen in the EQS can trace its roots back to the 1996 Mercedes F 200 Imagination Concept (below), a car that led to the Mercedes CL and previewed a number of innovations for the future like drive by wire, window airbags, headlights with variable light distribution – and a ‘Hyperscreen’.
Yes, 25 years ago the F 200 Imagination came with a display stretching from one side of the cabin to the other (image above), featuring instruments, navigation, electronic rear-view camera, telephone and more. Just like the Hypercreen in the EQS.
Not all the futuristic goodies on the F 200 have come to pass though, with the idea of replacing the steering wheel with ‘sidesticks’ – one for left and one for right, and even one for the ‘passenger’ to take over – haven’t, thankfully, made production, although its Drive by Wire, Window Airbags, Active Body Control, electronic parking brake and panoramic roof are all now commonplace.
The 1996 Mercedes F 200 Imagination Concept
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