Carmakers Push Transparent Technology

08/15/96

Reuters reported that carmakers are putting more and more computer technology into cars, but that most consumers will never be aware of it. Car buyers are more likely to reap immediate benefit from computer systems they never know about than from new, high-tech apparati like night vision systems and crash avoidance radar.

Some gadgets--like satellite navigation systems and side air bags--are being tested, however.

Neil Ressler, Ford Motor Co. vice president of advanced vehicle technology said that the only high-tech features that will be widely added to vehicles over the next few years will offer a tangible benefit that consumers deem to be worth the higher cost. Air bags and anti-lock brakes were hits in the past, but more recently consumers seem to want low-tech items like extra doors on minivans and pickup trucks.

Paul Dever -- The Auto Channel