New technologies are set to revolutionise the way people drive. The team at online car classifieds platform Carmudi have picked out five "exciting" vehicle innovations that will hit the market in the next few years.
1. Autonomous cars:
Target group: Lazy drivers.
Proposition: Save energy and relax while travelling.
Fitted with cameras, sensors, radar and lasers, self-driven cars will bring a new dimension to drivers' etiquette on roads. Although Google's self-driven cars are already in operation, it is still in the decision-making process of whether to manufacture the cars or sell the technology to already well-established car manufacturers.
2. Flying cars:
Target group: Those with cash to splash.
Proposition: Just fly over the traffic jams.
The idea is nothing new and was first seen in 1917. It was the Curtiss Autoplane, a vehicle that hopped rather than flew. These types of vehicles were initially used for emergency services, law enforcement and the super-rich. Mass-produced flying cars are years off but some companies are working on exactly this, with Terrafugia being a leader in this research.
3. Networked cars
Target group: City dwellers.
Proposition: No need for a driving licence.
Aimed at those who live in crowded urban areas, these cars will attempt to solve the problems associated with travelling in such locations. It is a system where one calls a networked car via a smartphone app and the vehicle (pod) arrives at that destination and picks up a maximum of two people. The pod calculates the best route based on real-time traffic information. It may sound like an idea too far in the future, but those at General Motors plan to run tests on this system in large cities around the world by 2020.
4. Cheaper high range electric cars
Target group: Stewards of the earth.
Proposition: No greenhouse gas emissions.
Electric cars have long been thought to be the solution to CO2 emissions from gas-guzzling motors and yet they are not so widely used because they are expensive. The reason behind the high price is the high production cost of Li-ion batteries used to power them. However, professors at the University Wollongong, Australia, have had a breakthrough. An element found abundantly in the earth's crust (germanium) has the ability, when incorporated into the battery, to increase the energy storage of Li-ion batteries by five times, which will cut down the price.
5. Fuel cell cars
Target group: Those who get dehydrated while driving.
Proposition: Produces water as waste.
These types of cars are seen as the solution to the environmentally damaging combustion-engine vehicles and expensive electricity-powered cars. These vehicles produce water as a by-product and are said to be capable of long range driving, according to Samuelsen. However, there is a lack of readily-available charging stations and the large batteries take up trunk space. Modifications are under way so these issues are no longer a problem.
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