The re3 Concept Car

Johnson Controls unveils a concept car that showcases the innovations available to automakers

With growing energy and environmental efficiency, cars are becoming “smarter” all the time.

One of Johnson Controls’ most recent innovations, which models the company’s new technology available to auto manufacturers, may just motor up to the head of that class.

With the debut of its re3 concept vehicle at the 2009 North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January, Johnson Controls demonstrated its latest innovations in product and process technologies—specifically targeting the growing small-car segment that is more and more important to automakers.

In terms of the name, re3 stands for:
Rethink … the interior through innovative engineering.
Renew … with sustainable solutions.
Respond … by generating consumer appeal.

More Room in Less Space

The re3 reflects an awareness of fundamental changes in the small-vehicle market. Designers and engineers at Johnson Controls understand that consumers today demand smaller cars, which are more fuel-efficient and eco-friendly by design. But, by the same token, car buyers want numerous features and functions without giving up a premium feel to the interior.

The re3 concept offers more room in less space, more amenities in a value-priced segment and more fuel efficiency in a vehicle with an appealing personality. It features a wide range of innovations developed by Johnson Controls, including:

A plug-in hybrid battery system that allows generous seating for five adults.
New, class-leading storage capacity in the instrument panel, enabled by the company’s Ecospace technology.
An “extended cluster,” which includes a traditional gauge cluster, along with a 7-inch, color, touch-panel display.
A seat-wing armrest and controller on the driver’s seat, enabling some of the controls to be moved from the center stack to the seat.
A conversational seating arrangement, offering new ways to interact in the interior, as well as Slim Seating and rear, stadium-style folding seats.
Eco-friendly and renewable, exposed natural materials throughout the interior.
Significant weight reductions of up to 30 percent in the instrument panel, door panel, seats and overhead system zones.

The re3 also represents a fresh approach to the thinking behind small-car design and construction. To “rethink” the small car, Johnson Controls’ designers used a process that provides a systematic approach for optimizing value while increasing the availability of features not usually found inside a small model. The end result: an economy car that doesn’t feel or perform like an economy car.