The sky has fallen in on the auto industry and dark clouds are still lingering. For auto makers the message is clear: innovate or face imminent extinction.

Happily for the industry, according to consultancy AutoPacific, drivers will gladly pay for extra technological features. AutoPacific found that 57% of the people it interviewed in a recent survey said that technological advancement in a new vehicle is extremely important, while only 27% listed it as very important and 15% said it was not important. In general, 85% of new drivers say they are in the market for technical advances.

“Upmarket brands such as BMW, Mercedes, Lexus, and Cadillac must keep the bar high to satisfy their demanding customers, and to maintain their reputation for advanced engineering,” says Stephanie Brinley, tech trend analyst at AutoPacific. “However, brands such as Ford, Chrysler, Chevrolet or Honda, also need to add tech features that are affordable and enhance a busy family life.”

Where engine size and alloy wheels were once sufficient to win over buyers, carmakers are now banking on the likes of voice-activation systems and rear-mounted cameras to drive punters to the forecourts.

Mercedes
S400 Hybrid

Mercedes rarely stands still in terms of technical advancements. The company was an early inventor of adaptive cruise control, where the car adjusts speed according to vehicles in front of you, and lane departure warning, where the car can read lane markings and warn you when you veer into the next lane. Two recent innovations set this German automaker apart from other brands, such as Lexus and Acura.

One new feature is called SplitView. On the S400 Hybrid, the navigation screen has a thin coating that makes it possible for the driver to see navigation markers while the passenger can watch a movie or control the temperature and audio system. Since TV viewing from the driver’s side of the vehicle is illegal in many countries, this dual-screen mode solves the problem.

A second innovation, called Mbrace, is one of the best examples of how a car can communicate with the world around you. The communication system helps you obtain roadside assistance and make emergency calls, but goes much further.

“The Mbrace system replaces prior telematics systems, and also allows you to find the car in the parking lot; it will display the car’s location on a map on your phone and allow you to lock and unlock it remotely,” says AutoPacific’s Brinley.

In the coming years, a new infrastructure will emerge in Europe and elsewhere such that these communication systems become even more important – say, for informing the car about an open parking space or an accident that occurred just moments ago.

Volvo
S60

Modern automobiles aid the driver by processing information at a much faster rate.

The Volvo S60, new for this year, is one excellent example. As you are driving at speeds around 35km/h and below, the car scans your surroundings in real-time and can track several objects – humans, animals, other cars – and their proximity.

“We are first at detecting pedestrians but warn if a collision is imminent,” says Thomas Broberg, the Volvo senior safety engineer. “If the driver does not respond, the car will brake to a full halt. The car can sense what the driver is doing or not doing. We use a radar scans in front and on sides where pedestrians appear. The camera identifies typical shapes of a human – arms, legs, and head.”

The algorithm in the S60 actually calculates how you drive – did you swerve too fast, are you paying attention, is your speed shifting too often? All of these calculations are taken into account before an emergency situation – and then the car is prepared to react to the specific circumstances, such as around a bend.

BMW
740Li

A luxury carmaker, BMW has steadily added unique technical features to their vehicles as differentiators. On the BMW 740Li, for example, there’s a button to activate a speedometer that hovers in space just above the bonnet – a laser-like reflection from the dashboard.

The vehicle also has two front-mounted cameras for a front and side view of the car – helpful when parking or when pulling out from a garage.

BMW spokesperson Dave Buchko says the 7 Series has refined the quality of the 750’s optics. With the speedometer in the windshield, the fidelity has improved from other car makers, while BMW has also moved the speed indicator to the tip of the car so it is directly in the driver’s field of vision.

“The most advanced high volume vehicle on the road today is the BMW 7 Series,” says Susie Inouye, a research director and principal analyst at market research company Databeans. “This vehicle includes the highest number of added electronic integration, including automated engine start/stop, battery recharge during braking, night vision, speed limit info, lane change and departure warnings, active cruise control, and cameras. Other makes and models also have many of these features, but the 7 Series has the most.”

Dodge
Grand Caravan

The most technically advanced vehicle from Chrysler, the 2010 Grand Caravan has three TVs and push-button controls for folding seats in the rear into a storage compartment. However, the standout feature is FLO TV, a multi-point TV broadcast system that sends a live television feed from cell phone towers.

Interestingly, Chrysler has found a niche with this in-car technology. According to Brinley, the general market for in-car television is slim – only 7% of new car buyers say it’s important. Yet, for minivan drivers who already have a live television system (such as previous generation satellite-based systems), more than 14% say the feature is important.

The Grand Caravan also has some of the same safety features found in luxury cars: collision sensors, a rear-mounted camera for reversing, and blind-spot detection.

There is no reason Chrysler could not expand the concept of FLO TV to Europe and beyond, providing the same kind of rich, three-screen technology in vehicles positioned for younger drivers with small children. However, Inouye says FLO TV may have one major challenge: bucking the trend in the auto industry that is now downplaying in-car entertainment in favour of safety features and fuel economy.

Lincoln
MKZ

The Lincoln MKZ was the first Ford vehicle to offer blind-spot detection, which notifies the driver when a car passes, a rear camera, for aiding the driver when backing into a tight parking spot, and Cross Traffic Alert, a system that scans around the vehicle to warn about an imminent collision.

JD Shanahan, chief nameplate engineer for the MKZ, says Ford has the edge as it emphasised quality and technical advancements before competitors. Ford is regarded as a recent success story, mostly due to the fact that it did not seek additional corporate financing before or during the financial crisis of 2008-2009.

Inouye says hybrids from Ford-Lincoln, including the 2011 MKZ Hybrid and the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid, provide more details to the driver than even the Toyota Prius. On the Fusion electronic dash, for example, there are leaves that grow if the driver brakes more efficiently and doesn’t rev the engine as much.

Ford is now taking their innovations on the road, so to speak. Next year, the company will introduce SYNC, the well-regarded voice-activation system, in its European version of the Ford Focus. By 2013, the company will include blind-spot monitoring in the C-MAX, Focus, and several other models in Europe and China.