Your Next Ride

Executive on the Go
His car takes the place of an office, and it's just as comfortable and well-wired.

Say goodbye to the days of long, lonely drives-the kind where you rely on the radio and a cup of Joe to keep you awake. In fact, future cars will have so many communications choices, mostly designed for business travelers, that driver distraction becomes more of a concern.

This tech trend is starting-where else?-with luxury cars. One example is the 2002 BMW 745i, which features so many techno-gadgets that the company had to re-engineer the basic driving controls. The gearshift lever looks more like a turn signal, while the center console sports a kind of aluminum mushroom joystick that operates the heating, cooling, and audio systems. It also controls a data screen that's on the instrument panel. It's a radical idea that takes some getting used to, but it does consolidate the usual controls so there are fewer buttons to push. The 745i also has an exotic new powerplant with no actual throttle; this setup significantly improves power and fuel economy.

The road to the wired car has been a long and windy one. The major issue: By the time automakers produce a new model,
the communications technology inside is basically obsolete. (Used-car buyers would end up with an electronic junkyard on the dashboard.) One way to overcome this is to build cars on rolling platforms that can be upgraded at any time. A second is a technology like Bluetooth, the wireless communications protocol that would add capability without more wires. And rather than creating what's essentially a mobile PC, some automakers are looking to develop communications links that operate via the Internet.

And considering the ongoing debate about driver distraction, particularly related to cellphones, voice recognition systems will play a big role in the future. Several vehicles, including a few new Jaguars and the Infiniti Q45, already respond to verbal commands to, say, turn on the radio or the air conditioning.

And there's even a technology in development that monitors your eyes, alerting you if it senses that you're falling asleep. It could be the end of Starbucks.