World News for Students of English

23-06-2016 15:00

The BMW Group has marked its centenary by looking ahead to its next 100 years, and unveiling two new vision vehicles.

The German group unveiled its new Rolls-Royce at a centenary event in London. The car will be fully autonomous and comes complete with an artificial intelligence system called Eleanor, who speaks and takes commands from passengers.

And in case you’re wondering how to get your hands on one, this beauty won’t be available until 2040, but it will be completely bespoke and emission free, paving the way for the first green luxury cars from the British brand.

“We’re entering a phase now where zero emissions are going to be more the norm. We’re entering a phase where digitise or digitalisation and connectivity are part of everyday life. It’s likely in the big urban areas to be a shared environment, and this whole step in technology of autonomous driving is going to play a significant role, as well.”

MINI’s vision of the future car was also unveiled. It too will drive autonomously, is highly personalised and recognises a driver.

Carmakers are hoping shorter charge times, greater ranges, more charging points and the fallout from Volkswagen’s diesel emissions scandal will all help to convert customers from conventional cars to the newer models.

Difficult words: centenary (the hundredth anniversary), unveil (to show people something for the first time), autonomous (automatic, intelligent, self-driving), artificial (made by people), bespoke (specialised), range (the distance that you can travel with the batteries), fallout (the bad result of a situation).

Source: www.ondemandnews.com