Comfortable car interior for the driver and passengers

The interior of the car provides a comfortable, cozy trip to passengers and the driver. At the same time, the modern interior should be functional and safe, that is why designers and engineers are developing a vehicle interior that would meet all these requirements, irrespective of the class of the car. 

The equipment of the interior must be calibrated and thoroughly thought out. Comfort safety and style — three basic ideas that underlie the design of the interior. 

• Covering and insulation;  
• Car seat;  
• Dashboard;  
• Steering;  
• Controllers (climate and cruise control);  
• Clutches, mechanisms, mirrors;  
• Multimedia. 

All of the above has nuances in operation and unique characteristics depending on the brand, model, type and class of car, so in this article, these criteria will be considered in general. 

COVERING & INSULATION 

The inside lining consists of several parts that bury all the metal parts and mechanisms of the car. It consists of: panels of medium density fibreboard or any other firm synthetic material, then polyurethane lay and perforated sheet are placed, which is covered by a certain material. Often car owners carry out car tuning and replace the top cover. 

Popular materials for interior covering and styling of parts are:  

• Leatherette or ECO leather;  
• Genuine leather;  
• Fabric;  
• Flock;  
• Alcantra (non-woven material like suede);  
• Tree styling;  
• Chromium plating;  
• Carboniferous. 

All these materials have their advantages and disadvantages and can be implemented as an initiative by the manufacturer in depends on the class of car, or it can be tuned at the request of the owner of the vehicle. For example, leather, alcantara, wood and chrome parts styling  — more typical of high-end cars and luxury. Carbon, flock and artificial leather are more widely used (A-D class). 

Alcantra, for instance, is an incredibly elastic and non-combustible material. Flok, in its turn, is the cloth which absorbs sound in the best way. 

The floor covering the car in addition to heat and noise insulation should also extinguish vibration while driving and keep moisture, so it is very strong and sturdy. 

CAR SEAT 

The shape, depth, padding and distance of the seats from the steering wheel — greatly influence the comfort and confidence of the driver skills. As in the previous block, safety remains an important point to reduce injuries during road accidents. 

There is a frame at the core of the driver's seat, often made of plastic or steel pipes. The pillow holders are attached to this frame. Car seats shouldn’t be too hard or too soft, while they are adjustable in height, width and allow you to choose the most optimal seat back tilt. 

The back passenger seats are removable but firmly fixed. They are designed in such a way, those they couldn’t take up space in the trunk and even strengthen it due to its rear profiled steel wall, which serves as a partition or load-bearing floor of a large trunk. For the front seats, the "tough" type design is not suitable, because in the event of a car collision it may trigger an additional danger to the passengers sitting behind. 

DASHBOARD 

The more complex and functional the car is, the wider and more informative the dashboard becomes. In this case, the main requirement is — the clarity of the data. All signs should be clearly displayed, the backlight should be visible, but not distract the driver. 

The panel contains the following devices:  

• Speedometer (counts total and daily mileage) and odometer; 
• Turn signals; 
• The controllers of headlights (hazard lights on, fog lights on etc.); 
• Low fuel indicator; 
• Cruise control on;  
• Cooling system alarm;  
• ABS Brake ; 
• Check battery;  
• Tire pressure alarm;  
• Door Open alarm; 
• Brake system alarm; 
• Seatbelt reminder; 
• Glass-washing liquid level indicator; 
• Oil pressure; 
• Check engine; 

In fact, the dashboard is equipped with a much larger number of indicators, which should be paid special attention. If you light up some of the sensors, you can find out the cause of the fault and fix it only with the help of the phone and the inCarDoc application. 

STEERING  

The steering wheel of modern cars is also equipped with a variety of buttons. Depending on the brand and class of car, their number and their purpose may vary, but, in particular, on the steering wheel of any car, there are: turn signals, headlights, beep, receiving and rejecting a call, turning on wipers with/without wiper and turning on GPS. 

CONTROLLERS  

The heating and cooling system of the car interior, which "consists" of the air conditioner, heating system and filtration system; by means of special sensors it produces a total assessment of the temperature overboard and in the car cabin, and the operation of this system is provided by the ECU controller (electric climate control unit). In vehicles of high E-S classes, climate control is able to assess the incidence of sunlight in the car and provide different temperature conditions for each person in the car. The system at the simultaneous operation of heating and air conditioning does not allow passengers to freeze in the cabin and doesn’t allow windows to be covered with fog, when the temperature outside is low. Therefore, at any time of the year, climate control maintains the optimum temperature in the cabin. 

Cruise control and adaptive cruise control — two systems that affect the control of the car. The first allows you to maintain the same type of speed. Especially justified in long trips and makes it easy to drive novice drivers when it is difficult to keep the gas pedal in one position. The second is responsible for adjusting the distance between the car in front and is able to automatically turn on the brake system in case of a risk of collision. 

CLUTCHES, MECHANISMS and MIRRORS  

This block focus on the mechanisms of doors, window regulators, sun visors and mirrors. All these details also have certain requirements and standards. All mechanisms are hidden in the door or under the armrests, not so much for aesthetic appearance, but for safety and to prevent impact on them in the event of an accident. A feature of the mechanisms in the vehicle is also that in the event of an accident, they are deformed, but not broken. 

The location of the ignition switch also has a matter. The driver must have the freest access to it, and in the case of an accident, shouldn’t hit his knees on it. All of the above requirements are carried out on the basis of crash tests and on the basis of production requirements. 

The placement of indoor and outdoor mirrors takes the equally important part in safety and comfort. For instance, the rear-view mirror should not vibrate while driving, and thus should come off in the case of a collision with a certain force, which is mentioned in the EU standards. 

Sun visors are usually upholstered with soft material to reduce the risk of injury, and their width should provide protection from the sun, but it doesn't cover the required review of the road to the driver. 

MULTIMEDIA  

Modern cars are equipped with multimedia devices: video, radio, autoacoustics, parking video system, multimedia screens for passengers, etc. All of these devices provide a comfortable and safe journey.