Cars with the ultimate ‘cockpit’ experience

We’ve come a long way from traditional sliders and push buttons inside cars and now have endless touchscreens that are practically a mixed bag — but some ideas are brimming with creativity, and its designers aim to provide a true ‘cockpit’ experience.

By that, we mean closed spaces with tons of controls and information that make you feel you’re flying — well, more like driving an airplane.

However, to achieve the ultimate cockpit experience, automakers and designers need to make sure of several things.

You see — cramming up controls and burying essential settings inside a car’s touchscreens isn’t enough.

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What is a true cockpit experience?

What defines a cockpit?

Put simply, it’s a blend of having all the information in one place and having complete control of the vehicle.

With time, airplane cockpits, too, have evolved and feature world-class tech — and they look pretty futuristic, too.

It also means that things could start looking overwhelming because you don’t want all that clutter while driving.

Plus, the faster the car, the better it is suited to fully utilize its tech.

Anyhow, most cars don’t need as many controls as an airplane, even with the added garland of features,

Similarly, concept cars have interiors that may seem ‘futuristic’ by modern standards, but that doesn’t mean existing cars don’t offer a great cockpit experience.

From Bugattis to concept cars, there are a bunch of models that stand out.

Here are some cars that offer a feeling of ‘driving an airplane.’

Bugatti Bolide: The next era of futuristic interior

The Bugatti Bolide is the French automaker’s most powerful production car yet, and it probably has the most unconventional interior among all hypercars.

It’s a track-only car, and it shows because of its cockpit.

We call it a track car because the interior features a Formula One-like steering with a lot of buttons — including a huge one that says ‘Engine.’

Behind the wheel, you get three small screens that make up an instrument cluster.

There are no fancy animations or aesthetics — just the information that you need displayed precisely.

Apart from this, there’s also a center console with a minimalistic layout and many more buttons.

BMW i7: A cockpit for the passenger

German automaker, BMW, unveiled the i7 a while ago, and it comes with ‘innovative’ insides, to say the least.

This car is all about offering a great experience for its passengers.

Instead of a fighter jet, it would make relatively more sense to compare it to a luxurious business jet like the Gulfstream G700.

There’s enough legroom for the passengers sitting at the back to completely recline their seats and relish a 31-inch theater screen.

There are also touch sensors everywhere for your regular controls.

Although it’s a driver-focused car, the cockpit experience is also concerned with the passenger experience.

Mercedes AVTR: a cockpit like no other

The Mercedes AVTR is something that wouldn’t normally compete with most hypercars, and that’s because it’s one-of-a-kind.

Its interior isn’t the only thing that stands out, but it’s the concept car’s entire design that makes you wonder if it’s even a car.

There are absolutely no buttons whatsoever, only a lot of flashy lights, translucent materials, and an absurd design.

It certainly looks like someone transported this piece of tech through time — or it came out of a sci-fi movie.

Regardless, you control the car using a huge ‘knob’ because there’s no steering wheel or pedals.

Although it’s a concept, the cockpit energy here is off the charts.

Bugatti Tourbillon: the no-nonsense experience

The Bugatti Tourbillon is the automaker’s latest production supercar, and its interior is all about being pro-enthusiast.

There’s a minimalistic vibe going here and, while being a modern car, it only has one screen.

Bugatti doesn’t like screens, and all of its previous production cars, except the Tourbillon, didn’t have a screen.

You only get analog controls, physical buttons, and not much else.

This car focuses on going fast, and the analog controls exist because ‘if it works, it works.’

Most modern cars technically provide a cockpit experience

Even the interior inside everyday cars like Toyotas and Teslas, as controversial as it is, is technically a cockpit.

It’s because the experience is all about providing control to the driver, and with the advances in tech that we have today, most modern vehicles’ interiors are lightyears beyond the cars of five to ten years ago.