General Motors (GM) recently showcased several upcoming and future projects during its CES 2021 keynote. One major highlight during its presentation is a Cadillac-branded VTOL (vertical take off and landing) vehicle concept, which runs on a fully electric system and could achieve 90km/h in speed. The vehicle itself was only depicted in a 3D rendered footage, unfortunately.
The airborne Cadillac is described to be a single seater craft, equipped with quad-rotors and a 90kW battery. The vehicle has the makings of what many would consider as a flying car but interestingly, GM did not use the term even once during its presentation.
Company design chief Mike Simco explains that the VTOL vehicle concept is “a glimpse of what autonomy and Cadillac luxury might look like in the not too distant future”. He added that this air mobility approach is key to GM’s vision for a multimodal future. Simco also said that the company will be introducing new concepts, including a “luxurious two-seater” version of the airborne Cadillac sometime soon.
Alongside the VTOL craft, GM also introduced the Cadillac shuttle – a fully autonomous van-like vehicle that features a wraparound lounge-like seating. Simcoe says that the shuttle includes various functionalities to provide passengers with a sense of luxury and comfort such as biometric sensors, voice control and hand gesture control.
These two futuristic Cadillac-branded vehicles are merely concepts for now and may change in terms of design and features during final production. That being said, the General Motors design chief mentioned that the shuttle is expected to arrive earlier than the VTOL craft. However, no expected launch dates were revealed at this time.
(Source: Reuters)
