The EN-V: the 'car of the future' that talks to other cars

Is this the future of the car in our increasingly crowded cities? The EN-V, unveiled in China yesterday, is the latest concept car from General Motors - and the idea is that the cars would talk to each other in order to avoid crashes.

GM's EN-V: sensors would enable it to avoid hitting pedestrians' even if they are performing some kind of umbrella dance routine in the background

It might look a little strange, but the EN-V (or 'Electric Networked-Vehicle') is GM's idea for how to adapt the car to the emergence of heavily crowded but data-rich networked cities. A two-seater electric car, each vehicle would be networked with other vehicles around it - allowing them to communicate to avoid hitting each other. By combining GPS positioning with car-to-car communication and a range of sensors and cameras, the EN-V could even drive itself.

Developed with GM's partner, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp., the EN-V can be charged from a standard wall outlet - and it can communicate with the electricity grid to determine the best time to recharge.

A GM staff member steps out of an EN-V: doors that open upwards are the way forwards

At less than 5ft long, and weighing less than 500kg, its small size makes it energy efficient in more than one way - GM say that 30% of fuel used by cars in urban areas is expended while looking for somewhere to park. The EN-V's size allows five of them to park in the space of one standard-sized car - and once you do find a parking space, drive-by-wire systems will even let the car park itself.

But if you're hoping to buy one, you might have a bit of a wait on your hands - the EN-V (or whatever it eventually evolves into) isn't expected to come to market for another 10 to 20 years

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