In simpler times, the best thing to come out of a vending machine was the bonus pack of M&Ms that accidentally fell out with the pack you purchased.
But it’s 2017. There ain’t nothing simple about these times, and vending machines have evolved to match – at least in Singapore, where used car seller Autobahn Motors has opened a supercar vending machine filled with 15 levels of high-end automobiles.
The high-tech showroom may look like a box of Hot Wheels, but make no mistake: those are very real Bentleys, Porsches, Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and McLarens, displayed in all their sleek and splashy glory.
Customers on the ground floor are welcomed into a viewing gallery, where they’re invited to kick back on a sofa and use a touchscreen tablet to select the vehicle they wish to see. The car arrives in one to two minutes via a sophisticated delivery system that runs throughout the building. In the meantime, the lights in the gallery dim and a promotional video for the car is played.
When the video is complete, the car is bathed in lights and presented on a large turntable that rotates towards the buyer. A chorus of angels sings (just guessing there).
The supercar vending machine is flashy, yes, and great at grabbing headlines – but it actually serves a practical purpose. Land is scarce in Singapore, and the system allows Autobahn Motors to make the most of limited space.
“We needed to meet our requirement of storing a lot of cars. At the same time, we wanted to be creative and innovative,” said Gary Hong, general manager at Autobahn Motors, in an interview with Reuters.
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