vehicle

A prototype car offers self-driving technology with a twist: valet-style parking. The Nissan vehicle, which is codenamed NSC-2015, can also foil thieves by streaming live footage of a potential break-in. This new model was recently shown off by ... Nissan at a tech conference in Tokyo. Several companies are already working on driverless cars. However, in the few locations where their use is or will be allowed, laws say a driver must be inside the vehicle to take over in case of a malfunction. Nissan could circumvent these laws if the feature is used only on private land, such as driveways and ... (view more)

At most major automotive shows, the "star" attraction tends to be a really hot, really expensive sports car, or more recently an incredibly fuel-efficient hybrid. But at the 2012 New York International Auto Show, what's stealing the spotlight is a ... flying car. Early glimpses of the "Transition ," a unique flying car from Massachusetts-based Terrafugia, were first seen back in 2010. At that time, the fledgling firm hoped it could start selling its ground-breaking dual-use vehicle by the end of 2011. That timeline never quite panned out. But Terrafugia and its Transition flying ... (view more)

Do you have an on-board computer system in your vehicle that's connected to the Internet? If so, then you might be at risk for a potentially devastating cyber attack by hackers, says a recent scientific study. "We demonstrate the ability to ... adversarially [sic] control a wide range of automotive functions and completely ignore driver input -- including disabling the brakes, selectively braking individual wheels on demand, stopping the engine, and so on," says a new report by scientists from the University of Washington and the University of California, San Diego. (Source: nytimes.com ) Vehicle ... (view more)

Hoping to turn their sagging fortunes around, Ford is set to debut a highly-anticipated technology allowing cars to parallel park themselves without driver assistance. Better yet, the entire self-parking experience is promised to be ... scratch-and-dent-free. The technology relies on ultrasonic sensors on the front and rear of the automobile, combined with electric power steering to angle and guide the vehicle into tight parking spaces. (Source: siliconvalley.com ) While the process sounds complicated, all a driver has to do is push one button and the system takes over from there. A visual or ... (view more)

While none of us look forward to growing another year older, there are some birthdays that are better than others. Among the most prolific is our "sweet sixteen" where for many of us, the dream of being able to operate a vehicle on our own terms ... becomes a reality. The first few years are all the same: the constant begging to use the family car on any given weekend is matched with stressed warnings by our parents to reduce our driving speed, turn down the radio and buckle up for safety. While we always practice "safe driving" when our parents are riding with us, the rules all change when we ... (view more)

We have all heard the horror stories. A person spends what seems like an eternity walking around a crowded parking lot in search of their vehicle only to discover that their keys have been locked inside. A new mobile phone developed by Sharp will ... not only give owners access to their vehicles without the use of a key, but also create the ability to start a car engine without having to put a key in the ignition. Of course, there is one catch: The actual key must still remain in the vicinity of the vehicle prior to activation. The new phone will use technology similar to the "Intelligent Key" ... (view more)