Car manufacturers are integrating smart functions for the tech-savvy market
Technological advances are providing owners with fast electric cars, access to cloud systems, self-driving vehicles and more
Cars have always flaunted new technology. Headlights were largely oil-powered until 1912, when Cadillac introduced a must-have electric system. And road trips became more fun in 1930, when the “Motorola” car radio taught drivers to tune in to the news and dance with their wheels. There was similar excitement at last month’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, where satellite-aided driving technology, hand-gesture controls and constantly updated cloud-based maps took centre stage.
At the show, bloggers talked up Faraday Future’s FFZERO1 Concept racer, and revved for Volkswagen’s emissions-free BUDD-e minivan and e-Golf Touch concepts. Green technology is clearly as popular as ever, and the event’s highlight was General Motors’ plug-in Chevy Bolt compact, which could cost about US$30,000 after tax subsidies, and run for 320km, or five round trips from Central to Tai Po, on one home charge, its website map says.
Marques approach new technology at their own pace, fulfilling government emissions and safety requirements, and then ordering new tech to suit “core values”. Tesla rolled out its 7.1software update on January 18, with the claim that it “makes the only cars on the road that improve with time, thanks to free, over-the-air software updates and the ability to anonymously gather and learn from fleet driving”.
Self-driving vehicles have been a hot topic. Tesla’s Autopilot driving aid has made headlines for its Model S, but Mercedes-Benz perfected its autonomous driving technology in an S Class and a truck in 2013-14, and the BMW i8 and Chevy Volt won major Green Car of the Year awards in 2015.
Audi is also close to enabling drivers to take their eyes off the road, but questions remain over safety and accident liability in autonomous-driven cars, especially in crowded Hong Kong, where the Transport Department says that in October, there were about 344 licensed vehicles per kilometre on the city’s 2,099km of public road.
The latest proven automotive innovations are arguably here. The trend-setting spending power of our city’s rich led Lamborghini to hold the Huracán Spyder LP 610-4’s Asian launch in Repulse Bay last October, less then a month after its Frankfurt unveiling. A few weeks later, BMW whisked its new sixth-generation 7 Series to Wan Chai, where 300 socialites experimented with the Bavarian marque’s latest gesture control, a car-parking key fob, and laser lights that extend night range from 300 to 600 metres.
The Bentley Bentayga could be the talk of the town by the end of March. Laden with the Volkswagen Group’s best technology, “the fastest, most powerful, most luxurious and most exclusive SUV in the world” can use navigation data, sensors and cameras to predict upcoming corners and speed-limit changes, and then change its speed. Its dashboard clock technology reaffirms brand alliances, with a bespoke gold mechanical Mulliner Tourbillon by Breitling, and its own on-board high-precision winding mechanism.