BMW released official prototype images of its upcoming luxury electric SUV and according to the company, the interior is completely vegan.
The German car manufacturer first unveiled the concept for its electric SUV – called the iNEXT – last September at the LA Auto Show.
Images of the cabin prototype show a combination of open-pore wood detailing and floors, soft pink textile cloth in the front, and deep teal rear seating with an asymmetrical design. All of the interior is constructed from vegan materials, as reported by Auto Express.
Other special features include a touchscreen that sits on the dashboard and touch-responsive sensors are hidden underneath the wood on the central console. Drivers will be able to pinch and swipe, like you would with a smartphone, to control minor features such as music volume.
Electric vehicles have come a long way from the oft-ridiculed cars of the 1990s as the threat of carbon emissions becomes more apparent to companies, consumers, and world leaders alike.
Tesla has become a leader in the electric car market – and CEO Elon Musk welcomes competition from others in the name of reducing carbon emissions.
In a 2014 post titled “All Our Patents Are Belong to You,” Musk announced that all Tesla patents would be made public. He reasoned that holding onto patents as intellectual property is counterintuitive to the company’s sustainable mission.
He wrote, “Our true competition is not the small trickle of non-Tesla electric cars being produced, but rather the enormous flood of gasoline cars pouring out of the world’s factories every day.”
Tesla and BMW are not alone in providing vegan interiors. Last January, electric car manufacturer Fisker Inc. unveiled a luxury vehicle with a vegan leather option. At the LA Auto Show last September, Audi unveiled the e-tron GT, an electric car with a vegan interior made from recycled fabric and floor mats made from reclaimed ocean fishing nets.
The BMW iNEXT is currently undergoing test drives under real world conditions in the polar circle. Production of the vegan-friendly electric SUV is expected to begin at the company’s plant in Dingolfing, Germany, from 2021.
Image credit: BMW
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