MBUX Sound Drive introduced
Mercedes approached musician will.i.am, with whom they were currently working on several car-related projects, with a request for a radical reimagining of car audio called MBUX Sound Drive.
This feature, unveiled at CES, means that Mercedes electric vehicles will soon be equipped with special looping audio tracks that will uniquely respond to the way the car is driven.
As a result, the driver acts as a DJ for a specific song, he can control its playback using the steering wheel and pedals while the car is moving on the highway, country road, streets or stuck in traffic jams.
Journalists who have already tried the system at work were satisfied. The resulting melodies are not at all similar to a simple hum or imitation of the operation of an internal combustion engine, as in other cars with electric motors. The music played by the system can range from upbeat pop tunes to more subdued tunes, depending on the driver's driving style. Driving vigorously speeds up the tempo, while stopping slows the tempo and reduces the intensity of the vocals.
Sound Drive will be available on Mercedes-AMG and Mercedes-Benz vehicles starting in mid-2024 and will be available via an over-the-air update for models equipped with the second-generation MBUX platform.