Autoblog

Both Honda and Toyota have been toying with laser-based Active Cruise Control systems for over a decade now, while the German luxury car makers have offered more expensive radar-based gizmos for almost as long. The premise of both is that an electronic copilot keeps an eye on the road ahead maintaining a safe distance from the car in front, even slamming the brakes at the last moment in an emergency should the driver fail to react.

Ford's new SYNC system is already helping the automaker sell cars, and the Microsoft-sourced technology is primed to deliver even more bang for the buck this fall. Sync 2.0 is set to drop on Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury vehicles this November, but our friends over at Engadget got an early peek of the updates to come.

First on the list of improvements is 911 Assist, which enables your SYNC'd Bluetooth phone to call 911 automatically in the event of an airbag-deployed accident. SYNC also interacts with the vehicle's PCM and can send vehicle health reports to an owner's email address using the signal from your own phone. We're looking forward to getting our hands on a Ford vehicle with SYNC 2.0, and although we have no intention of testing 911 Assist, the Vehicle Health Report tool sounds like an interesting and useful application of the service.

Engadget also got the scoop on some items that may appear in SYNC 3.0, which should debut sometime in 2009. Some of the enhancements could include access to sports, weather, traffic and news, all without the need for an expensive nav system. If you do have a navigation system, you can already get Sirius Travel Link for a monthly fee of $7, which comes with live traffic info, movie times, gas station listings by price and sports scores.

UPDATE: Ford has made no official announcements regarding SYNC 3.0, and the above features are only possibilities.

[Source: Engadget]

If you've ever had the need to raise one side of your car, truck, RV or trailer a couple feet off the ground, the Titan Exhaust Air Jack is there to give you a lift. Quite simply, the jack is nothing more than a heavy-duty balloon inflated by the exhaust gas of your own vehicle. Once the deflated bag is placed under the vehicle, the Air Jack's inflation hose is connected to the vehicle's exhaust pipe. The engine is started and hot gasses are forced into the bag until the woven PVC-coated polyester bag lifts a vehicle a full 30 inches off the ground, which is plenty of height to get the wheels off the ground for most vehicles. With prices starting around $120, the device offers several advantages over traditional jacks. First, it can be used on soft surfaces (mud, sand, or snow) where other jacks just don't work. Second, it easily lifts one whole side of the vehicle at once, saving tons of time. Best of all, the low pressure bag doesn't require placement on normal jacking points so you more freedom to lift where you want and then place jack stands exactly where you need them. The military and emergency services have apparently been using jacks of this type for years, so the idea isn't just full of hot air.

[Source: CNET News via Crave Asia, Photo by Crave Asia]

Looks like the biggest gadget convention on Earth is becoming the place for big automotive announcements. You'll remember that two years ago at the Consumer Electronics Show, Ford and Microsoft announced their partnership on Ford's SYNC system, and last January General Motor's CEO Rick Wagoner chose Las Vegas to unveil the all-electric Cadillac Provoq concept. It was the first time in the convention's 40-year history an automaker had revealed a concept car to the world there.

This year it's Ford's turn again at CES, with CEO Alan Mulally taking the keynote spot. CES runs January 8-11 next year, but there's no word yet on what day Mulally will make his appearance. There's also no word on what he'll be saying or revealing to the thousands of people gathered in that Vegas ballroom. New SYNC features are a given, but will Ford also choose CES to roll out its plug-in hybrid project? Stay tuned for full coverage from the Autoblog team.


[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd, Photo by GEOFF ROBINS/AFP/Getty]

This is the kind of computerized world we can get behind -- not the kind that drives for you whether you like it or not, but the one that allows you to do your human thing even better. Futuremark has created a concept instrument and dash cluster for Audi that is rendered entirely in 3D graphics. In the Nissan GT-R, you can change the center console screen to show or highlight the gauges you want. With Futuremark's dashboard, you can create any kind of dashboard layout, color scheme, gauge look... you name it... that you want.

Using its Open GL ES engine (that's Open Graphics Library for Embedded Systems) for the API (that's Application Program Interface), Futuremark wants to show what's coming -- or at least, what's possible -- for in-car information and entertainment systems. We're not really worried about the acronyms; as far as we're concerned, we're talking about the tweakability of video games brought to life in hot cars. Amen to that. The system will be on display at the NVISION in San Jose. Follow the jump for the full press release, and a word for Audi: yes.

[Source: Crunchgear]

Audi feels that its customer base is smart, sophisticated and tech-savvy, which is why it should love a well designed game for the iPhone that features the 2009 Audi A4. Note the well-designed bit, because that's key. Audi had Denver's Factory Design Labs whip up a driving game that uses the iPhone's accelerometer as a way to steer the new 2009 A4 through slalom courses. The German automaker boasts that development took just two weeks, though after trying the free download ourselves, we think Audi might want to keep that quiet. Game development normally takes much longer - think years - so the two-week gestation of the "Audi A4 Challenge" is rather apparent. In a word: craptacular.

The top-down graphics are boring, and controlling the vehicle might unintentionally accelerate the iPhone right out of your hands. Adding further frustration is speed control that's got two extremes; the scale equivalent of 35 mph, or stopped. While the game is free, it's not worth the time you'll waste. Perhaps they should let the MMI guys have a crack at it? Press release after the jump


[Source: Audi]

If someone has enough cash on hand to commission an entirely rebodied Rolls-Royce from one of Italy's most famous coachbuilders, you can bet he's not going to be wearing an off-the-rack watch, either. That's why Girard-Perregaux crafted the special timepiece you see here.

As we reported with the initial news of the Pininfarina Hyperion, this one-of-a-kind tourbillon is specially designed to be removed from its ivory leather wristband and mounted into the dashboard of the unique Rolls-Royce. Its meticulously-hand-crafted 30-jewel movement has 72 components but weighs less than a third of a gram, encased in 18-karat white gold with a face colored the same light blue as the Hyperion it was made to accompany. Like the one-off Hyperion is based on the Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe, the watch is based on the Girard-Perregaux Vintage 1945 Tourbillon. But again, like the car, there was only one built.

[Source: Girard-Perregaux via TimeZone]

Click above for high-res gallery of GM's reconfigurable performance display

As of 1996, the United States requires all new vehicles to come equipped with the OBD II on-board vehicle diagnostics system. The system utilizes an array of sensors to provide feedback on engine performance in order to aid mechanics with troubleshooting as well as maintain sufficient emissions levels. The large expense of readers and loggers has kept access to the system out of range for the majority of consumers, that is until more recently. These days electronics, such as small touch screen lcds, have become a reasonable option for data displays. The aftermarket industry has already taken the jump in releasing software that integrates OBDII output to visual digital displays. Nissan even includes a fine example of the technology in the GT-R. Now GM has developed its own performance display intended for use with ECOtec engines, specifically those of the turbocharged variety, and it will be a $295 dealer installed option beginning in 2009.

GM's Reconfigurable Performance Display can illustrate a wide range of data in gauge form, such as boost, battery voltage, air fuel ratio, cam phase angle, timing, barometric pressure and even torque and horsepower (the later two likely calculated based on other parameters). The device even includes a g-sensor, so no need for hacking your Wiimote to do the job. Traction control can also be enabled and disabled through the screen, along with shift lights for individual gears. Check out the gallery below for various screen shots. While it is apparent that the display is marketed towards Chevrolet Cobalt SS and HHR SS owners, we also presume that Saturn Sky Redline and Solstice GXP owners will get the option. Unfortunately, there is no word yet on the performance display being available for the Chevy Camaro.

[Source: GM Tuner Source]

Click above to view video after the jump

We truly do appreciate the custom-car scene, in all of its various guises. There is, however, a problem with the custom Prius you see above and in the video embedded after the break. Generally speaking, the goal of modifying a car is to either A) make it go faster or B) make it look better.

When Classe Gustafson, Elvis Häggbom and Kenny Kyrk from Sweden had finished spending $184,000 customizing a Toyota Prius, they had accomplished neither. This Prius-trocity, which was modified for a television show, is anything but subtle. It lost two doors during its transformation from mild-mannered hybrid eco-mobile to whacked out sport compact that just happens to get good fuel economy, though it did get scissor-style portals that are nearly impossible to open in the process. And it also gained a huge honkin' stereo and the body-kit from a Volvo SUV. The over-the-top paint-job is the final touch. The Hybrid Synergy Drive powertrain, however, went untouched save for the obligatory fart-can exhaust. Nice.

[Source: Wired]

Automotive-themed cell phones are nothing new. We've reported on mobiles branded by Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche... even Fiat and HUMMER. But some phones don't need a licensing agreement and a flashy little badge to appeal to automotive enthusiasts.

Take, for example, the new Nokia 8800 Carbon Arte. Based on the already-slick-in-its-own-right 8800 series, the Carbon Arte edition is constructed of the same stuff you're likely to find in the most desirable of supercars: carbon fiber, titanium, stainless steel and polished glass. The sleek mobile packs 3G connectivity, a 3.2-megapixel camera, 4 gigs of memory and a new "turn to mute" feature that automatically kills the ringer when the phone is placed upside down on a table. At $1,600, it ain't cheap, but it looks like a relative bargain next to the $6,400 limited-edition racing-themed cell phones from Nokia's upscale brand Vertu.

[Source: acquire]