When many people think about the kinds of vehicles that will be available in the future, they might see images of the hovering cars like those in the cartoon The Jetsons. However, while hovering vehicles are not in the near future, there are some amazing changes coming for the new cars of today. Most technological advancements being made in the automotive world today are geared towards greater road safety and smaller environmental footprints.

Vehicle To Vehicle (V2) Communication For Fewer Crashes

Drivers can look forward to their cars having the ability to communicate with other cars on the road, a trending technology in the works that car manufacturers and the government feel will greatly decrease traffic accidents. For example, if you are driving towards a four-way intersection and another car is coming through without stopping, that car will alert your car it is doing so. In response, your car will begin to brake and stop, preventing a possible crash that could produce fatal injuries. If you are on an interstate and another car is getting close to you during passing, it can relay the information to your car so it will steer out of the way. V2V technology is also going on step further by giving your car wireless technology that allows it to communicate with objects like street signs and signals light stoplights.

Driving Becomes Less Stressful And Safer With Augmented Reality Dashboards

Augmented reality dashboard, AR, is a new technology that is already being used in some vehicles. AR is a technology that allows information to display on the windshield so it is more visible to drivers without interfering with a safe field of vision for driving. AR provides vital traveling data that includes alerting drivers to upcoming turns and other typical GPS information. AR technology of the future will include data about upcoming objects, like a car in front of you, and let you know how close you are to it and a way to steer around it if a rear-end crash is imminent. Some car manufacturers are already producing vehicles that have AR technology as a standard feature.

Hybrids Will Run Longer With Energy-Storing Panels

Many hybrid vehicles are already on the roads, making a much smaller impact on the environment because they run using batteries as well as fuel. However, the batteries used in hybrids can be cumbersome, causing them to need frequent recharging. To combat this problem, some major hybrid manufacturers are working on energy-storing panels that are lightweight, strong and can store the battery energy necessary for reducing recharging stops. Some panels may even draw energy using solar technology, a huge way to not only lower your hybrid's impact on the environment, but to also save money for electricity used for charging.

Vehicles have certainly changed a lot since the first Model-T's that used a manual crank to get the engine started. While technology does make things a lot easier, it also has a greater potential for increasing safety on the roadways.