????當(dāng)一輛梅塞德斯奔馳公司出品的自動(dòng)駕駛汽車(chē)載著我和其他幾個(gè)乘客繞著一座廢棄的空軍機(jī)場(chǎng)疾馳時(shí)，我的心里還是直打鼓。沒(méi)有人在盯著路況。

????一臺(tái)電腦靈活地操縱著汽車(chē)行駛上平坦的環(huán)道上。我猜想，如果有另一輛車(chē)斜插到我們前面的話，它大概會(huì)自動(dòng)減速停車(chē)。事實(shí)上，這條路已經(jīng)被封閉了。但我還是覺(jué)得很緊張，尤其是當(dāng)這輛奔馳的司機(jī)和我一起，干了一件坐在普通汽車(chē)時(shí)根本無(wú)法想象的事——我們把座椅轉(zhuǎn)了個(gè)方向，面向車(chē)尾。

????我還是禁不住偶爾回頭望望，觀察一下前面的路況。

????歡迎來(lái)到未來(lái)——至少在奔馳公司和它充滿未來(lái)氣質(zhì)的技術(shù)團(tuán)隊(duì)看來(lái)，這樣一輛頗具科幻色彩的汽車(chē)應(yīng)該代表了2030年的汽車(chē)應(yīng)有的樣子。這款汽車(chē)的駕駛艙非常豪華，配備了各種觸摸屏，以及一臺(tái)永不疲倦的自動(dòng)駕駛儀。

????奔馳試圖通過(guò)這款汽車(chē)來(lái)顯示，該公司擁有在未來(lái)取得成功所需的技術(shù)實(shí)力。除了奔馳之外，奧迪、日產(chǎn)、福特等老牌汽車(chē)廠商，乃至谷歌和特斯拉等新進(jìn)者，都在全力開(kāi)發(fā)新一代的自動(dòng)駕駛汽車(chē)，有些車(chē)型甚至與傳統(tǒng)車(chē)輛有著完全不同的設(shè)計(jì)。

????本周二，奔馳公司邀請(qǐng)20余名記者試乘電動(dòng)版原型車(chē)F 015。今年早些時(shí)候，奔馳已經(jīng)在拉斯維加斯CES消費(fèi)電子展上公開(kāi)了它的外觀設(shè)計(jì)。但到目前為止，能夠有幸乘坐這款車(chē)型的外人仍屈指可數(shù)。當(dāng)然，這款車(chē)型具有令人難以置信的圓潤(rùn)和金屬感，這些顯然都是科幻作品中不可缺少的汽車(chē)設(shè)計(jì)元素。車(chē)身瘦長(zhǎng)，再加上長(zhǎng)度異乎尋常的軸距，為車(chē)子內(nèi)部營(yíng)造了更大的乘坐空間。

????負(fù)責(zé)設(shè)計(jì)制造這款車(chē)型的奔馳工程師彼得?萊曼啟動(dòng)了本次試駕活動(dòng)。他通過(guò)一個(gè)智能手機(jī)應(yīng)用將車(chē)子從附近一座模擬車(chē)庫(kù)中“召喚”出來(lái)——這個(gè)假車(chē)庫(kù)是為本次活動(dòng)而在前阿拉梅達(dá)海軍航空兵基地（位于舊金山灣區(qū)對(duì)面）專門(mén)搭建的。當(dāng)我們湊上前去時(shí)，汽車(chē)中傳來(lái)一個(gè)女性聲音：“請(qǐng)您繼續(xù)走?！边@表示，此時(shí)繼續(xù)從車(chē)頭前方穿行是安全的。

????通過(guò)傳感器，車(chē)子探測(cè)到了我們的存在，然后緩緩地自動(dòng)打開(kāi)了四扇門(mén)。很快我就坐進(jìn)了奢華舒適的白色皮革座椅中，它的設(shè)計(jì)讓我想起了飛機(jī)的頭等艙。（看來(lái)錢(qián)在未來(lái)應(yīng)該不是個(gè)問(wèn)題——至少奔馳公司是這樣想的。）

????隨著雷曼坐進(jìn)“引導(dǎo)員”的座位，我在精神上已經(jīng)做好了試乘準(zhǔn)備。結(jié)果會(huì)不會(huì)變得很尷尬？我甚至做好了可能撞車(chē)的準(zhǔn)備。不過(guò)他們此前肯定已經(jīng)嚴(yán)格地測(cè)試過(guò)這套系統(tǒng)了，對(duì)吧？

????I felt a bit uneasy as a Mercedes-Benz self-driving car chauffeured me and my fellow passengers around an abandoned military airfield. No one was watching the road.

????A computer ably steered the car around in gentle loops and, presumably, would have stopped if another car careened in our path. (In fact, the tarmac was closed to traffic.) But I felt unnerved, particularly after the Mercedes “driver” and I did what would be unthinkable in a normal car: We swiveled our seats to face backwards.

????I couldn’t help myself from occasionally looking over my shoulder to check what lay ahead.

????Welcome to the future, at least as envisioned by Mercedes and its team of futurists who have built a sci-fi car that is intended to reflect what driving will be like in 2030. What they came up with was a plush cabin filled with touch screens and an autopilot who never tires.

????Mercedes is trying to show that it has the tech know-how to succeed in the future. Rival automakers like Audi, Nissan, and Ford, along with interlopers like Google and Tesla, are all pushing the envelope as they experiment with a new generation of vehicles that operate autonomously and, in some cases, have radically different designs.

????On Tuesday, Mercedes invited a couple dozen other journalists to ride in its electric prototype, the F 015. The German automaker had premiered the design at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year, but had yet to let more than a just handful of outsiders hitch a ride. The car, of course, is impossibly sleek and metallic, an apparent requirement for visionary car designs. The body is elongated with the wheels spaced unusually far apart to allow for more room inside the cabin.

????The ride started with Peter Lehmann, the Mercedes engineer who helped create the car, tapping a smartphone app to summon the vehicle from a pseudo-garage nearby that was built for the occasion at the former Alameda Naval Air Station, located across the bay from San Francisco. The car woke from its nap and made a slow arc to where we were waiting. As we approached, a female’s voice rang out from the car to say “Please go ahead,” a signal that it was safe to pass in front.

????Using sensors, the car had detected that we were nearby and automatically started slowly opening the car’s four bay doors. I soon found myself sitting in a luxurious and comfortable white leather seat reminiscent of the style found in airline cockpits. (Money will be of no object in the future, at least in Mercedes’ vision.)

????With Lehmann in the “conductor’s” chair, I prepared mentally for the ride. Would it feel odd? Of course, I considered the possibility of a crash. But they’ve rigorously tested the system, right?