Could wellness be the next frontier in automotive luxury?
From massage seats and scent systems to soundscapes and air purification, carmakers are turning the cabin into a more sensory, restorative space.
The BMW Neue Klasse iX3 reflects a broader move in automotive luxury, as carmakers look beyond horsepower to digital cabin experiences designed around comfort, focus and wellbeing. (Photo: BMW)
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As carmakers race towards a more digital, electric future, the battle for luxury is moving beyond horsepower. Increasingly, brands are turning to in-cabin technology – from scent and soundscapes to air purification and responsive seats – to create cars that do more than simply transport their occupants.
Electric cars are, after all, the perfect platform for digital experimentation. Their underlying architecture – and even their etymology – almost dictates it.
Amid all the marketing spin about “electrifying your experience” and “supercharging your journey”, consumers increasingly expect a constant stream of novel features. The more futuristic they seem, the better – even if some verge on gimmickry.
The trouble with technology is that what feels cutting-edge today can quickly become obsolete.
One category least likely to outpace its utility is probably the in-cabin wellness technology that promises tangible benefits for both mind and body.
STEERING TOWARDS WELLNESS
According to the Global Wellness Institute, the broader wellness economy – estimated to be worth about US$6.8 trillion (S$8.79 trillion) – is projected to grow up to US$9.8 trillion by 2028.
As awareness of health and wellbeing expands, so has the attention to wellness in the automotive sector. In fact, the wellness theme now appears to be a key design principle around which new cars, especially EVs, are developed, and we’re seeing this phenomenon fast unfolding in the topmost tiers of luxury.
As luxury evolves beyond comfort, safety, performance and even aesthetics, differentiation increasingly lies in the intangible. Creating a sensory-led experience that nurtures and restores both driver and passenger has become the next expression of aspirational luxury.
Whether it’s the Rolls-Royce Scent – a patented fragrance system that perfumes the cabin of the Phantom in “delicate doses” – to Range Rover’s cabin air purification technology, which has been tested against bacteria and viruses including SARS-CoV-2, luxury carmakers are increasingly appealing to the senses.
Others, such as Polestar, use driver monitoring systems that detect fatigue and recommend taking a break. Together, these innovations point to a future where the in-car experience is increasingly defined by wellbeing.
GOOD VIBES
Massage seats, for instance, are already de rigueur in the upper echelons of automotive luxury. But Bentley took it up a notch with its Bentley Airline Seat specification introduced with the Bentayga EWB (extended wheelbase) several years ago.
At launch, Bentley described it as the most advanced seat ever fitted to a car, with a world-first auto climate-sensing system, 22-way adjustment and postural adjustment technology that can make 177 individual pressure changes.
More recently, Range Rover upped the ante with its revolutionary Body and Soul Seat that integrates vibroacoustic therapy, a form of sound therapy that converts low frequency bass tones into vibrations that are designed to help occupants relax and stay alert.
The seats, developed by Canada-based tactile audio system company SUBPAC, are fitted with four tactile transducers built into the seat back. Together, they work with a haptic amplifier and AI optimising software that takes in audio signals from the 29-speaker Meridian sound system to synchronise the music with the in-seat haptic vibrations, which can be amped up for greater intensity.
The British carmaker also worked with Coventry University to develop six pre-set soundtracks – Relax”, “Calm”, “Balance”, “Focus”, “Energise” and “Wake Up” – designed to help occupants relax or remain alert during a journey.
And that’s not all. Range Rover also introduced the world’s first Sensory Floor, extending the same concept beneath passengers’ feet. Here, the transducers integrated into the floor vibrate in time with the music or wellness soundtracks, allowing passengers to physically “feel sound” through the luxurious deep pile carpets.
“While individual preferences and habits vary, we’re seeing a clear trend: Drivers appreciate technology that supports stress reduction and overall comfort. These features are part of a broader shift toward more holistic, human-centred vehicle design,” said a spokesperson for Jaguar Land Rover.
CARING CABINS
As cars get smarter, we can expect cockpits and cabins to arrive with more and more intelligent tech aimed at transforming the interior of a vehicle into a sanctuary to recharge mind, body and spirit.
BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi all offer mood-enhancing features that speak to the various senses in the form of ambient lighting, built-in scent diffusers, soothing soundscapes and immersive meditation programmes, and more.
Mercedes-Benz has a dedicated Energising Comfort programme in its electric fleet, known as Mercedes-EQ models where the EQ stands for electric intelligence – but could as easily mean emotional quotient, if you ask us.
Of the many settings designed to soothe, we especially like the Power Nap function that automatically reclines the seat and closes the window shades while a starry night sky scene dances across the screen and a relaxing soundtrack lulls you into a 15 to 20-minute snooze. After which, you’re awakened by a pleasant melody and ready for a more alert drive ahead.
Mercedes-Benz has also worked with Emmy Award-winning acoustic ecologist Gordon Hempton to create a series of relaxing soundscapes for its top-ranging EQS model.
In similar fashion, BMW has also enlisted the expertise of Hollywood composer Hans Zimmer. Working with Italian pianist and composer Renzo Vitale, the duo began developing key sonic elements for BMW’s series of engineless EVs in 2019.
Vitale, BMW Group’s creative director of sound design, has since worked on HypersonX, the soundscape created for BMW’s all-electric Neue Klasse models. The first of these, the new iX3, recently went on sale in Singapore.
The objective, Vitale said, was to create a multidimensional acoustic spectrum with more “colour and depth” and “a direct emotional connection between the driver and their vehicle”.
The complex process drew on sounds from nature and inspiration from the worlds of art and science with vocals recorded by a choir of BMW Design Studio employees.
More than nine million sound bytes were generated using a new algorithm, and these were then filtered into a “brand-typical essence” focusing on precision, warmth and lightness, to bridge the emotional distance between driver and vehicle.
Now as many of these carmakers envision the future of automotive wellness, next-gen innovations are already being imagined: Steering wheels and seats embedded with sensors that can measure heart rate, track real-time stress levels and even analyse posture, seat belts woven with minuscule heating elements to provide instant warmth in cold climates, and more.
Yet one question remains: How many drivers actually use features such as guided meditation programmes that require manual activation? And how many will become digital white elephants?
Even if these wellness technologies ultimately prove to be little more than the latest luxury flex – another way for premium carmakers to differentiate themselves in an increasingly homogeneous market – the future of in-car wellness appears destined to feature even more sensors, scents and soundscapes.
Source: CNA/bt
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