Twelve car gadgets you can't live without

By Rory Reid on 26 March 2009, 5:59pm

6Pages

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Cars were designed to make life easier for us bipedals. But the mere act of sitting on your bum while being transported between locations is actually more complicated than it sounds. Parking, especially, can be an utter nightmare -- just ask the nearest woman. Then ask the nearest man how difficult it is to do something as simple as read a map. Here, we've picked three of the coolest car gadgets that make those everyday tasks easier to achieve.

Auto parking system
Prius: Parks better than your girlfriend, navigates better than your bloke. The Toyota Prius does for cool what Hitler did for race relations. That said, its Advanced Parking Guidance System -- also found on the Lexus RX400h -- is utterly superb. Simply find a space, pull up slightly ahead of it, engage reverse gear and marvel as the car parallel parks itself in the gap. Okay, so it's not as quick as a proper driver can be, but it's worth using just to see the look on your passengers' face when the steering wheel starts moving by itself.
See it in action here: Toyota Prius

Intelligent keyless entry
Intelligent keyless entry is possible with standard keyfobs as well as some watches. Back in the dark ages, car doors were opened by sliding fiddly metal sticks into fiddly little holes. In the slightly lighter ages, somebody invented key fobs, which were great, except they required the user to press a button -- potentially causing RSI in the process. We're too lazy to use any of that nonsense, so thank goodness for intelligent keyless entry. Pioneered by Mercedes-Benz in 1999, it uses key fobs that emit a radio frequency identification pulse to a proximity sensor in the car door. As soon as the driver gets to within 1.5m of the car, the unlocking process is authorised -- turning you into some kind of automotive door-unlocking god. The system is also being installed in watches.
Available on: Jaguar XKR

Voice control
Forget buttons -- just shout commands at the car. We all like buttons. Hell, one of our favourite Crave articles is about the top 10 off switches. Switches, however -- no matter how cool they are -- aren't much fun in a moving vehicle. Not unless your idea of fun is taking your eye off the road and crashing into a tree. Thankfully, many cars can be controlled by voice. The 2007 Ford Focus CC, for example, lets you adjust the cabin temperature and fan speed, and even tune the radio by voice. The 2008 Fiat 500 lets you select songs by genre, artist or folder by speaking it out loud, and will even read out your text messages from a Bluetooth-enabled mobile phone.
See it action here: Ford Focus CC-3, Fiat 500