How Smart Car Technology Is Making Traveling Easier

(SPONSORED CONTENT)

Road trips have always been a good time, but they’ve gotten a lot better in the past decade. New technologies are emerging every year to make travel easier and more pleasant than ever before.

So let’s take a moment to review how smart car technology makes traveling easier.

Adaptive cruise control

Let’s start with the smart technology that is probably most helpful on a road trip: Adaptive cruise control. We all know what it’s like to drive long distances with standard cruise control. It’s great when you’re driving on an open road without any traffic. It’s not as great when someone cuts you off, or there’s a fair amount of cars on the road. Not everyone is going to drive at the same speed, so you’ll find yourself needing to control your speed more often than you’d like. But adaptive cruise control takes the work out of it for you, putting the control back into cruise control. This smart tech feature will automatically slow your car down if a car ahead of you is moving at a reduced speed.

Electronic stability control

If you’re on a cross-country trip, you should expect to drive over various road conditions, including rain and snow. And when you’re driving on slick roads, you run the risk of losing traction and skidding. In the worst case, you could lose control over the car and find yourself in an auto accident. But electronic stability control takes the risk out of it for you. If your car is equipped with electronic stability control, it will detect the instability and take measures to steady your car automatically. You’ll still need to remain alert, but this smart feature takes some of the stress away.

A smart trunk

While a smart trunk may not seem essential, you’ll find this smart feature to be indispensable when your hands are tied up with luggage or packages that you need to get into the trunk. This is a time and energy saver that you never knew you needed. Plus, it can help save time when you’re in a hurry to your next destination and don’t want to fiddle around to find your keys.

Smart wipers

You’re driving along with your adaptive cruise control, and it starts to rain. Do you really have to lift your arm to turn on the wipers? Not if you have smart wipers. This sounds like a trivial thing, but it’s actually a matter of safety. The smart wipers will engage whenever there’s enough water on the windshield, and they’ll operate at an appropriate speed to give you maximum visibility. One less thing to worry about is always good when you’re driving — especially on long trips.

Smart headlights

Much like the smart wipers will turn on when it rains, smart headlights engage when it starts getting dark enough. This is helpful in the dusk hours when you wouldn’t think to turn on your headlights, but it’s also beneficial in dark parking lots or inclement weather.

Autonomous driving features

More and more cars on the road today are equipped with some level of autonomous driving. There are even fully autonomous vehicles on the roads in some states. These vehicles take all the work out of driving. All you really need to do is hop in and set your destination. But there are other levels of autonomous driving, including cars that park themselves.

If you have a newer vehicle, you might be excited at the prospect of traveling across the country. Not only are newer cars safer overall, but they take a lot of the driving work off of you, so you can really enjoy a scenic drive.

With this new smart car technology, you can enjoy the drive and enhanced peace of mind.