Blog of RENAULT NISSAN Alliance

Finding and talking to people at the TED Global conference is not hard- we even carry on our giant name tags suggested topics for ‘ice-breaking’ conversations. Finding and talking to someone you really want to at a particular time is harder; a lot harder…

After two days of near-misses I finally cornered uber-elusive (through being much in demand) Wired UK magazine editor David Rowan and enticed him into the Nissan LEAF to get his thoughts on the car and the future of motoring.

Being urban-savvy, during an introductory chat on the Alliance approach to electric vehicles, David picked up on the Renault battery swap technology as a potential winner among charging infrastructure options. Our chat followed very closely the pattern of most general media first drives (lots of questions on cost of use and battery longevity) but with some distinct near-future ‘techy’ observations.
Firstly it was the start up procedure / sound;
‘I like the one-button start…. (start-up sound plays…) someone’s been watching Steve Jobs!’
And then David spotted the connectivity features;
‘You’ve got a sim card in over here… what else do you get from the Internet?’

Nissan LEAF driver Kevin Leadbitter then introduced the ‘killer app’ in the car and selected the Nissan Carwings function on the touchscreen;
‘You can find out your (eco-driving) ranking in the world… nearly always against the Japanese!’ Kevin chuckled.

I could sense David was now warming to the LEAF’s charms.
‘The game psychology’s quite compelling isn’t it? I quite like the game….’ Maybe our passenger was getting more engaged as the connectivity potential of the car was revealed.
And then a very interesting comment;
‘You won’t be able to sell a car that isn’t Internet-connected soon…’
The Carwings app cycled through its data sets, a crooning female voice gently dispensing praise….
‘It’s got regional rankings too!’ …. ‘That’s very clever. ‘Game-ification’ is a win.’

So what was the overall conclusion from the drive? ‘Very smooth ride, elegant design and a simple user interface. Quite a simple, normal car- there’s nothing in the way.’

What do you see coming up in the future- what can we expect from motoring?

‘ I think the Internet is going to be key, and I think that the driver will want to be part of a community where they’re getting benefits from sharing data. So there’s a service, a start-up in Israel called ‘Wayz’- which uses your mobile device to track movement, and then  synchs it with a map so anybody who’s a part of it gets those real-time traffic maps and people warn about radar, speed traps and stuff. I just think the idea that you’re online, you’re getting feedback on your driving, you’re getting tips on places to go nearby- you can see the car as a more emotional connection with the outside world. This is your iPhone. The way you see your iPhone, with apps, I think you’re going to see your car. It’s not just a vehicle, it’s an expression of identity, and an expression of connectivity.  The car will just be the gateway to entertainment and information online.’

Will you need governments to help to develop the ITS infrastructure for this?

‘I don’t think so… people will opt in. If there are benefits people will opt in. I think you’ll have a community of drivers and owners who are quite obsessed with this, who will want to reach out to other people in the community, they want to be connected in the car- sharing data that’s helpful to all of them.’