Mercedes-Benz F 700 Research Car: In Depth

Press Release

New forms for an exceptionally comfortable and efficient automobile

• Flowing lines as expression of dynamics and efficiency
• Long wheelbase determines the proportions
• Interior enhances personal freedom in a completely new way

Advanced Design means giving shape to the future at Mercedes-Benz. Technically, every research car is a laboratory on wheels which, with new concepts, gives initial answers to the question of the further development of mobility. Parallel to this, Advanced Design as part of the Design unit of the Mercedes Car Group pursues research into the styling of the future: What trends in technology and society will change our perceptions of the automobile in the next years and decades? What messages should cars send out through their design to the world around them in future? And with what stylistic devices can the design idiom of Mercedes-Benz be refined and supplemented? “The research cars might be called the free program of the Design unit. The impact of formal elements can be tested in them without having a direct bearing on a coming production vehicle,” says Professor Peter Pfeiffer, Senior Vice President Design, Mercedes Car Group.

But one aspiration always is the focus of attention: a research car should embody all brand values of a Mercedes-Benz. The preview of things to come always must be designed against the backdrop and with the awareness of being the most tradition-steeped automobile brand in the world. This applies to the F 700 even more so than to its predecessors in the line of research cars: the F 700 does, after all, represent classic core competencies of the brand Mercedes-Benz as a superior touring sedan – comfortable transportation in an unperturbed style especially over long distances, and at the same time a befitting and altogether status-conscious manner.

The exterior design: Inspired by nature

The F 700 is a futuristic interpretation of the classic sedan theme. It combines generous spaciousness and outstanding comfort with a claim to particular environmental friendliness and intelligent communication through the innovative control and display concept. In its design, inspirations from nature join together with consciously displayed technical innovations. Flowing, smooth surfaces and precise, tense lines merge into a harmonious overall shape – the embodiment of an automobile which is as efficient as it is luxurious.

The styling of the F 700 took shape in the Mercedes-Benz Advanced Design Studio in Irvine, California . The basic form of the F 700 unmistakably is inspired by nature. As already had been practiced in the Mercedes-Benz bionic car, a 2005 concept car, ideas and construction principles from nature were adopted.

“Aqua Dynamic” is what the designers term this design idiom. As direct quote a “back fin” adorns the roof; it is used for antennas, the reversing camera and the third brake light.

The very first glimpse of the F 700 shows that an extraordinary amount of space has been given to the occupants here – technology takes a back seat as it were. The silhouette is dominated by the unusually long wheelbase: with overall length being 5.18 meters, the distance between axles attains the imposing length of 3.45 meters. For comparison: the overall length of the F 700 makes it shorter than the long-wheelbase version of the current S-Class, but the F 700 wheelbase exceeds that of the current model by impressive 28.5 centimeters. The front end is correspondingly short – the particularly compact DIESOTTO drive makes this possible.

Tense lines create stretched elegance

The side view is defined by highly tense curves. This is true of the roof contour, but especially of the concise shoulder line: it starts out by continuing the line created by the front wheel arch a short way, and then carries over in a sweeping curve to the rear end. This tense line gives the F 700, painted in ALU-BEAM technique in the color gold, its dynamism and elegance.

The distinctive front fenders likewise are inspired by a current production model, the S-Class. But here again the theme has been taken further and the fenders have been very distinctly sculpted. The side skirts are gently integrated into the flowing forms. The door handles are recessed and the exterior mirrors are little works of art – nothing should unnecessarily resist the flow of air. The 21-inch wheels are designed like turbine blades. Luminescent strips on the wheel arches emphasize the contours and size of the tires. The transparent cover over the rear wheels enhances aerodynamic efficiency.

It is not only the long wheelbase which provides an indication of the unusual, extremely spacious and flexible interior concept – before one even sees the inside. The two large glazed areas in the roof, as a transparent link between inside and out, are suggestive of the inside breadth which the interior conveys. A special feature is the right rear door: whereas the three other doors open conventionally (hinges at the forward edge, handles at the rear), the fourth door is hinged at the rear. This facilitates boarding and leaving for the passenger when the REVERSE seat is positioned opposite the direction of travel.

Despite the futuristic design idiom, the F 700 definitely is a Mercedes-Benz. An essential element of the brand identity is the clear-cut radiator grille, which emphasizes elegance and status. No other manufacturer has refined the radiator grille over the decades with such consistency as Mercedes-Benz.

The headlamp units also clearly follow the styling tradition of Mercedes-Benz. Despite highly innovative elements like laser scanners or LED driving lights they take up the twin-headlamp motif and interpret it in a vertical form with sophisticated stylistic devices. The laser scanners that gather roadway data for the active PRE-SCAN suspension are positioned on the outside. They make the light units veritable eyes of the vehicle: different from any conventional automobile the F 700 “sees” and reads the condition of the road ahead.

Looks that reveal a strong character, by day or night

Visually separated from the laser scanner by a painted rib is the driving light function employing all LED technology. The light units consisting of linear LED arrays are arranged in two vertical rows. Each linear LED array has a lens superposed. A third vertical row of individual high-performance LEDs functions as daytime driving light. Together with the wraparound contour lights they give the F 700 an unmistakable appearance even by night.

The rear end completes the flowing silhouette of the F 700. The C-pillars are drawn far back and the backlight is inserted at a shallow angle. The lightly formed wheel arches and the gently molded trunk lid in turn bridge the gap between the rich history of the Mercedes-Benz brand and its future. The rear end is inspired by the vehicles of the 1940s and 1950s, but is reinterpreted with stylistic devices of the present and future: the tail lights take up the vertical LED light strips of the headlamps, the integral spoiler lip is aerodynamically optimized, and finally the diffusor in the rear apron permits the efficient treatment of air flow.