BMW M Experience as the ultimate selling machine

I am wearing a virtual-reality (VR) headset and immersed in a Mario Kart-like game in which I navigate a car around a virtual track.

- Edric Pan

ABU DHABI - I am wearing a virtual-reality (VR) headset and immersed in a Mario Kart-like game in which I navigate a car around a virtual track. I steer into floating tokens to earn points while trying to avoid or overtake other (virtual) cars.

The plot twist is that I am seated in, and actually piloting, a real-life, 503bhp BMW M4. The howling exhaust note under full-bore acceleration and the tyres' tortured squeals through every turn are all for real.

Granted, I am chucking the car around a vast, obstacle-free open area, but it is still surreal to be charging about effectively blind in an actual vehicle, trusting fully in VR technology to keep me out of the barriers.

It is all part of the fun at the BMW M Experience held in March at Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina Circuit. The two-day extravaganza is curated by BMW to showcase the latest products and technology from its specialist M division.

The event includes giving participants a preview of innovations such as the aforementioned "mixed-reality" technology, which incorporates VR into the real-world driving experience.