Future Tech in Cars

[Ares]

matt-ITR said:

More connected options, like being able to get weather forecast/updates.

Already get this as part of BMW Connected, plus loads features when iPhone paired to the car - most useful of which is 'last mile' sat nav feature where route is beamed to phone to allow for last part of any journey on foot.

[Nickbrapp]

A interface so if wipers are put on anything above single wipe, lights come on too. and all cars to have auto lights, i saw a stupid bint in a toyota iq very nearly have a crash because she had no lights on and someone pulled out on her in the dark today. (no drls on those either)

[Dr Gitlin]

CrutyRammers said:

A line-in socket standard on radios so I can plug my mp3 player or phone in without having to use the piss-poor interface built into the car, which inevitably only has two buttons to do everything because of cost-cutting. Seriously, stop trying to write your own user interfaces, you're st at it, just let me plug one in.

Almost every rental car and press car I've had this year has had both USB ports and an aux-in port. And why wouldn't you use USB? That way you charge, too. If you have an iPhone you should be able to still control the music on your phone instead of through the car's infotainment system. Although the horrific Toyota system in the Camry rental car I had two weeks ago managed to screw up playing over USB and bluetooth.

V8A*ndy said:

An advancement in collision avoidance systems that will eventually to be integrated with cars communicating with each other whilst on the road and with the road itself.

This is coming, but V2V and V2X will probably only start showing up in 2017 here in the US. It'll be mandated pretty quickly IMO.

said:

Google maps to replace most nav systems transmitted from your phone to a dumb terminal in the car dash.

Audi are already doing this: http://arstechnica.com/cars/2015/11/a-retina-displ... Also, Android Auto: http://arstechnica.com/cars/2015/07/android-auto-r... (CarPlay only lets you use Apple Maps).

Wireless charging for your mobile is coming from a number of OEMs (Cadillac have built the unit into the climate control hardware in the dash so it cools your phone too). BMW it in the new 7-series, along with NFC and gesture control. Also, The latest versions of BMW, Audi, and Volvo's infotaiment systems (iDrive, MMI, Sensus) are actually all really quite good now.

[jonwm]

Nickbrapp said:

A interface so if wipers are put on anything above single wipe, lights come on too. and all cars to have auto lights, i saw a stupid bint in a toyota iq very nearly have a crash because she had no lights on and someone pulled out on her in the dark today. (no drls on those either)

My Leon and Audi do this, thought it was some sort of standard thing if the car was fitted with auto lights / wipers.

[fatboy b]

Nickbrapp said:

A interface so if wipers are put on anything above single wipe, lights come on too.

This has been around for years

[RizzoTheRat]

Heated windscreens on cars other than Fords.

[Conscript]

This: https://youtu.be/iib8F0XSg18

Made mandatory on every vehicle, and tested as part of the MOT, please

Edited by Conscript on Wednesday 2nd December 08:41

[Etretat]

Would be simple if unpopular to arrange circuitry so that if a headlight bulb fails the audio system turns off and displays a message to replace the bulb. Might encourage the numpties to stop driving all winter with one headlight. Maybe do something similar linked to tyre pressure sensors.

[cptsideways]

Etretat said:

Would be simple if unpopular to arrange circuitry so that if a headlight bulb fails the audio system turns off and displays a message to replace the bulb. Might encourage the numpties to stop driving all winter with one headlight. Maybe do something similar linked to tyre pressure sensors.

This is genius

[SuperVM]

SteellFJ said:

swisstoni said:

I don't know why makers don't offer built in dashcams. Seems obvious.

This is more like it, something we could all benefit from and one that had crossed my mind.

These could also be fitted to motorbikes, however my one draw back to this is more witnesses' to silly driving of people just having fun and who can actually drive - if they offered them on all cars the police/insurance companies would use the footage for speeding etc no doubt.

Doesn't the latest Corvette already have one?

[Tinkshusband]

Nickbrapp said:

A interface so if wipers are put on anything above single wipe, lights come on too. and all cars to have auto lights, i saw a stupid bint in a toyota iq very nearly have a crash because she had no lights on and someone pulled out on her in the dark today. (no drls on those either)

some cars in the states are wired to come on that that way i think. i know the law ( in florida at least ) is wipers on, lights on.

[Catatafish]

There would just be many cars randomly flashing their lights after a few swipes to clean off after random puddles, other cars washing screens ahead etc. They aren't just used in rain and darkness.

When it rains in the day and you can't see other cars without lights on, you need to hand in your keys and take public transport.

[SonicShadow]

Catatafish said:

There would just be many cars randomly flashing their lights after a few swipes to clean off after random puddles, other cars washing screens ahead etc. They aren't just used in rain and darkness.

When it rains in the day and you can't see other cars without lights on, you need to hand in your keys and take public transport.

There's a simple solution to that - the lights only come on if the wipers are switched on for more than say, 5 seconds.

[R39S1]

RizzoTheRat said:

Heated windscreens on cars other than Fords.

VW have it as an option. Admittedly Ford have been fitting them on the most basic spec cars for years.

[CrutyRammers]

Dr Gitlin said:

CrutyRammers said:

A line-in socket standard on radios so I can plug my mp3 player or phone in without having to use the piss-poor interface built into the car, which inevitably only has two buttons to do everything because of cost-cutting. Seriously, stop trying to write your own user interfaces, you're st at it, just let me plug one in.

Almost every rental car and press car I've had this year has had both USB ports and an aux-in port. And why wouldn't you use USB? That way you charge, too.

The ones I've used have just mounted the device as a mass storage drive on usb, and run it from the car's interface. And often they don't seem to work, though in fairness it's only a couple of cars. Mine works with our MP3 player, as long as it's turned off, but not my phone at all, for example.

Dr Gitlin said:

If you have an iPhone you should be able to still control the music on your phone instead of through the car's infotainment system.

And if you don't have an iphone? If it's an android phone or mp3 player?

Dr Gitlin said:

Although the horrific Toyota system in the Camry rental car I had two weeks ago managed to screw up playing over USB and bluetooth.

You illustrate my point perfectly Line in will always work, on every device, in every car, because it's SIMPLE.
Too much tech for tech's sake, rather than practical solutions.

[Jimmy Recard]

RizzoTheRat said:

Heated windscreens on cars other than Fords.

Like the entire Vauxhall range for the last few years? And BMW and Volkswagen amongst many others.

[RizzoTheRat]

Jimmy Recard said:

RizzoTheRat said:

Heated windscreens on cars other than Fords.

Like the entire Vauxhall range? And BMW and Volkswagen amongst many others.

I know it was an option some top of the range cars but didn't know Vauxhall were doing them now. Ford have had it on even low spec cars for years so I always assumed they owned a patent nobody else wanted to pay for.

[Jimmy Recard]

I think (could easily be mistaken) that it's standard on all Vauxhalls now. There was a promotion about it last year or the year before.

It could've been time limited but I imagine it's a selling point and a way of standardising production lines more

[832ark]

R8Steve said:

fatboy b said:

Electric shocks applied through the steering wheel if you change lane without indicating.
Speed limit of 30 mph if you put the fog lights on.

Not sure i understand these ones. It is not always a requirement to indicate while changing lane and there's no need to go as slow as 30mph in fog.

I'm glad you don't design cars.

If you consider front fogs only then this makes perfect sense. If the fog is thick enough for them to actually benefit you then you will be travelling well below 30mph. If the fog is such that you can travel above 30mph then you have no need for front fogs!

[Nickbrapp]

Catatafish said:

There would just be many cars randomly flashing their lights after a few swipes to clean off after random puddles, other cars washing screens ahead etc. They aren't just used in rain and darkness.
Sj
When it rains in the day and you can't see other cars without lights on, you need to hand in your keys and take public transport.

No there wouldn't be, anything above intermittent, I.e the first push up of
The stalk, not the pull foward for washer jets or a tap down for a single wipe,


So you can see a silver car on a motorway in heavy rain with heavy spray just fine without lights can you?