Bosch, Harman, Mercedes, VW Nab Interior Design Awards

The Mercedes-Benz E-Class and Volkswagen Budd-e won Interior Design of the Year honors for a production and concept vehicle, respectively, at this year’s Automotive Interiors Expo in Stuttgart.

The 2017 E-Class sedan (pictured) features a high-resolution dual display and touch-sensitive control buttons on the steering wheel. The car’s steering wheel controls, which operate like a smartphone with swipe and pinch functions, also was named interior innovation of the year for a production vehicle.

The Budd-e battery-powered minivan concept, which was unveiled in January at the CES electronics show in Las Vegas, has a lounge-like interior with reconfigurable seats, integrated dashboard and several video screens.

Bosch’s haptic touchscreen, which also was unveiled at CES, was deemed the concept interior innovation of the year. The technology simulates the feel of different surface textures to help users differentiate between various buttons and functions.

Stamford, Conn.-based Harman International Industries Inc. was named Supplier of the Year. Judges cited the company’s pupil-based driver monitoring system, a connected car infotainment system for the Rinspeed Etos autonomous vehicle and several high-end audio systems.

Hartmut Sinkwitz, head of interior design for Mercedes, was selected as the Interior Designer of the Year. In addition to the new E-Class, Sinkwitz oversaw the interiors of the GLE SUV, Smart ForTwo and ForFour small cars and futuristic Concept IAA sedan in the last year.

The judging panel included 17 international motor and design journalists. It’s the fifth year for the awards.