Open up your mind and say, ahh...

Photo: Daimler

You may talk to your car, and some in cases it may even talk back. And you’ve probably thrown a few choice words at other drivers in a impromptu bout of rage. But cars are silently communicating with each other and with transportation infrastructure in two field trials that kicked off this month near Frankfurt, Germany, and in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Mercedes-Benz parent company Daimler is spearheading what it’s calling the “first ‘social network’ for automobiles.” But instead of sharing lolcat pics and mundane musings, the 120 vehicles in the project will be communicating with one another as well as with infrastructure to avoid accidents and traffic jams, along with a range of other applications. Daimler claims it’s the largest ever field trial of vehicle-to-X communication (V2X) – a combination of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication – to show how the technology can be used to decrease accidents and increase driving efficiency. But in sheer number of vehicles it pales in comparison to a similar V2V field trial that the National Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) is conducting in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

The European trial is part of the sim^TD (Safe Intelligent Mobility – test field Germany) research project spearheaded by Daimler Research and Advance Development and sponsored by the German government. Other participants include automakers Opel, Audi, BMW/Mini, Ford and Volkswagen, along with automotive suppliers Bosch and Continental, Deutsche Telekom and several research institutes. The trial consists of 120 vehicles that will be hitting the roads of the Frankfurt Rhine-Main region until the end of the year. According to Car and Driver, the fleet includes specially equipped Audi A4s, BMW X1s, Ford S-Maxes, Mercedes-Benz C-Classes, Opel Insignias and Volkswagen Passats.

Vehicles will be connected to each other and to infrastructure via a form of Wi-Fi that has a range of just over 300 yards, according to Mike Shulman who is directing Ford’s participation in both trials and is the automaker’s technical leader of Active Safety Research and Innovation. The vehicles in the European trial will constantly keep each other posted on road hazards and traffic, much the same way an annoying acquaintance keeps you updated on his status by posting to Facebook every few seconds.

One beneficial scenario provided by Daimler: If there’s a traffic jam on the autobahn and it’s concealed behind the crest of a hill, vehicles barreling down the road at 100 mph-plus would be alerted to avoid rear-ending the last car. The company also points to possible environmental and convenience benefits of V2X systems, such as coordinating traffic lights according to traffic density to make driving more fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly, and even being able to seek out and suggest routes to the nearest available parking spots.

By comparison, the NHTSA Ann Arbor trial will last an entire year and include 3,000 vehicles driven by ordinary people, but equipped with Wi-Fi communications and other technology such as radar and cameras. The reason the U.S. trial requires a lot more vehicles and a lot more time is to gauge how a large pool of vehicles interact with each other over a longer period to gather enough data to determine the effectiveness of V2V communication to reduce accidents, says Ford’s Shulman.

One group will drive the cars for the first six months and then a second group will drive the vehicles for the last six months of the trial. “They’ll drive them to work, go shopping and wherever they want to go,” Shulman told Wired. “The drivers were carefully selected so that they work in the same area, drop their kids off at school in the same area and have the same shift time. The idea is that, over this year-long period, we could see how well these cars really perform. Are they getting the timely warnings? Are they getting a lot of false warnings? What’s really happening that we haven’t seen on a track but under real-world conditions?”

In addition to the number of cars and duration, the big difference between the two trials is that the U.S. version is solely focused on reducing accidents. “NHTSA has done a study that says that more than 80 percent of the crashes could be impacted by V2V technology,” Shulman says. He adds that the federal agency is conducting the trial to determine whether V2V technology can be deployed to effectively prevent injuries and fatalities – and whether to mandate it on new cars. “They’re going to look at whether to apply this to new vehicles and other modes of transportation like trucks, buses and motorcycle, and even pedestrians and in aftermarket devices,” he adds.

“The Europeans are not looking at regulation; they’re looking at this as a voluntary deployment, at least for now,” Shulman says. “They’re looking at it more as a mobility application, using vehicles as a probe to show travel history and congestion over routes and determine the best routes to take based on real-time congestion. It can warn of traffic and construction up ahead, but it’s not for that last second before a crash. It’s more for information to the driver or information from the vehicle back to the traffic management center.”

Shulman says that the European trials should be thought of as, “not the first step, but a long-term step, and there’s other benefits that driver could enjoy as we get this technology deployed. We’re trying to learn from both and bringing harmonization where we can, and move toward the concept on the connected vehicle. How we’re approaching it is it will go on different paths to different places.”

Image: Volvo Cars

The Highway Loss Data Institute, a division within the automaker-supported Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), released findings on how active safety systems help drivers when their vehicles are fitted with crash avoidance technology and adaptive headlamps. But interestingly, lane departure warning systems aren’t living up to their claimed potential. And in some cases, the tech may be increasing the number of crashes.

The study examines property damage liability (PDL) claims, meaning claims filed by a driver who’s been involved in a collision with another vehicle.

Unsurprisingly, vehicles fitted with collision avoidance systems that automatically alert the driver of an impending crash – and in the case of the Acura, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo vehicles involved in the study, automatically brake to avoid a collision – saw declines of up to 14 percent. The Acura and Mercedes vehicles lead the list, with Volvo’s autonomous braking system reducing crashes by 10 percent. However, the Volvo system the Institute tested also included lane departure and fatigue warning systems, and the IIHS hedges its findings by saying the inclusion of those systems could have an effect on the results.

Adaptive headlamps, which change direction based on the angle of the steering wheel, also reduce PDL claims by as much as 10 percent.

What wasn’t expected in the study were findings that lane departure warning systems, which alert the driver when they begin to veer outside their lane, increased the PDL claims, although the IIHS would only say “the increases were not statistically significant and the results suggest these particular systems aren’t reducing overall crashes.”

The IIHS points out that the two vehicles it tested with the lane departure warning system – one Buick and another Mercedes-Benz – faired the worst in the study, with the Volvo tester doing slightly better, although that system also came bundled with the auto-braking feature and fatigue warning system, which could negate some of the issues.

Early IIHS research indicated that lane departure warning systems would prevent over 7,000 fatal crashes each year, but those estimates were strictly theoretical, and this recent study puts those claims into question.

“Lane departure warning may end up saving lives down the road, but so far these particular versions aren’t preventing insurance claims,” says Matt Moore, vice president of HLDI. “It may be that drivers are getting too many false alarms, which could make them tune out the warnings or turn them off completely. Of course, that doesn’t explain why the systems seem to increase claim rates, but we need to gather more data to see if that’s truly happening.”

Photo: General Motors

As automakers continue to load vehicles with the features and functionality people expect from their portable devices, the in-dash user interface has become a branding battleground – and the Achilles’ heel of the increasingly connected car. While giving a smartphone or tablet undivided attention is common – if not considered rude, depending on your circle of friends – calling up a Pandora station on your iPhone while driving has the potential to put your life, and others on the road, at risk.

Automakers have to strike a balance between providing drivers the smartphone-enabled applications they desire, while making them safe to access on the fly. But that poses its own issues, including liability concerns and a fear that the feds – fired up about distracted driving – could mandate or outright ban these newest technologies in the car. U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood has personally called out automakers for putting tech prowess and profit before public safety, and has singled out Ford’s Sync system in particular.

But as automakers have pushed smartphone integration as a way to bring connectivity to the car – and attempted to emulate the slick touch screens of the devices – the most cutting-edge automotive UIs have largely been a series of failures. After soaring from the success of Sync, for example, the follow-up MyFord Touch system brought the Dearborn-based automaker down a few pegs. In a test of the Ford Edge last year, Consumer Reports called MyFord Touch “frustrating” and “a complicated distraction when driving.” A few months later, Ford dropped to 23rd from fifth place the previous year in J.D. Power & Associates’ 2011 Initial Quality Study, largely based on customer’s complaints with the largely capacitive touch-based system.

Ford declined to comment for this story, but claims an 80 percent “take rate” on MyFord Touch in the Edge and Explorer. The automaker also took the unprecedented step earlier this year of sending software upgrades to all owners of vehicles with the system. But one owner we spoke with doesn’t feel it saves the system.

Greg Gill of San Juan Capistrano, California, is a self-described “diehard Ford owner” who purchased his 2011 Edge about a year ago. “Before that, I owned two Expeditions and an Explorer,” said the VP of marketing for the National Auto Sport Association. Gill considers himself tech savvy and knew about the issues with MyFord Touch. “But I still bought it,” he said. “I thought, ‘That’s everybody else. I’m not going to have any problem with it.’ And what a nightmare it’s been.”

“The touchscreen is very clunky,” he told Wired. “I’m constantly tapping it multiple times and looking at it. There are so many things that have not been done well – even after the upgrade. And when I took it in for service, the dealer said, ‘Everybody’s coming in with these issues. Nobody’s happy with their MyFord Touch.’” Gill contends that he’s “still a satisfied Edge owner, but I could not recommend the vehicle overall because of MyFord Touch.”

Automakers are learning from the Blue Oval’s stumble

While Ford had a huge head start with the initial Sync system, other automakers are learning from the Blue Oval’s stumble with its latest high-tech release – and if not designing radically different systems, then at least pouring resources into consumer education. For the launch of Cadillac’s CUE system – which, from our early experiences with it, looks and functions similar to MyFord Touch – that will debut on the new XTS sedan, the GM luxury brand is taking a blitzkrieg approach to tech support, including giving everyone who purchases the XTS in its first year an iPad preloaded with an app that simulates the CUE user interface.

Cadillac is also dispatching 25 “connected consumer specialists” to dealerships to ensure that salespeople become familiar with CUE, and dealers are required to staff stores with two “certified technology experts” trained by the CUE specialists. Additionally, Cadillac is setting up a dedicated call center to handle questions on CUE, will have representatives scouring Internet forums and social media sites to spot concerns and is even prepared to send specialists to XTS owners’ homes who have still unresolved issues with the system.

“We’re trying to think of every way that a customer might ask for help,” said Scott Fosgard, a General Motors spokesperson. “If you’re a CUE owner and having problems, we’ll meet you at your place of work or home, whatever’s convenient.”

To coincide with the launch of the new 2013 GS, Lexus is creating two new tech positions at each of its dealerships: a vehicle delivery specialist to go over the features of a vehicle with new owners, and a vehicle technology specialist to serve as a contact for customers who have questions on how to use their vehicle’s electronics. “We need to provide a standardized method to get information to a wide variety of audiences, and owners’ manuals allow us to achieve that,” said Kevin Pratt, product education manager for Lexus. “However, we recognize that the best way for people to understand and get the full benefit of the features in their car is to be shown how to use them.”

Lexus is also employing an iPad app designed specifically for the GS to educate customers on the car’s features. Owners can even use the Facetime to contact a dealer and get remote personal tutorials on the tech in their vehicles.

But if the UI is properly designed in the first place, it should be intuitive enough that you don’t need a tech expert to make house calls or even an owner’s manual (see: Apple). “I think a lot of people have gotten used to Apple devices,” said Mark C. Boyadjis, an analyst who covers automotive electronics at IHS Global. “And when Apple owners have a question, there’s the Genius Bar.”

But Boyadjis points out that, unlike a smartphone, people typically own a car for years. And he notes that the recent rate of change in automotive infotainment may leave many new car buyers lagging in terms of tech. “I think people still to this day are familiar with the two-knob car radio,” he said. “That was the user interface for last 40 or 50 years. People who bought their last car in 2005 and upgrade to a 2012 model are going to see a completely different Human Machine Interface,” Boyadjis added. “They’re going to be introduced to touch screens. Many of them are going to be introduced to voice recognition for the first time. It’s not always something you can read in your user manual; you need to sit down and use it.”

As with any technology, pioneers are often punished for being first out the gate.

And while it’s economically feasible for a luxury brand to sink significant resources into owner education, consumers of lesser means could be left in the lurch as tech trickles down to more mass-market vehicles. “For the smaller automakers, there could be some issues,” Boyadjis tells Wired. “The GMs, Fords and Toyotas of the world have developed this because they’re the bigger players. But when it comes to Mazda or Mitsubishi or Subaru, they’re pushing to put some of this stuff in their cars. But even their newer systems are not super HMI focused, and they don’t have the R&D budget to spend.”

According to Cadillac CUE program manager Jeff Massimilla, while UI issues were addressed in the design phase, the lead up to the launch of the XTS is the first time GM has developed such as extensive tech support program. “The goal was to design a system that’s easy to use and that’s similar to Apple devices, Android devices or other device on the market that are intuitive.”

And then prepare for any potential tech-fail fallout by pumping money into training and support.

As with any technology, pioneers are often punished for being first out the gate. (We’re looking at you, Apple Newton.) Consider the clunky, pre-smartphone, first-generation BMW iDrive, which was pilloried by the automotive press when it debuted in 2001. Since its introduction, iDrive has become one of the more intuitive systems available as BMW refined and iterated on the original concept of a single knob and a handful of buttons to control a multitude of complex functions. Many luxury automakers later copied the concept, and it’s easy to envision similar evolutions with touch screens, capacitive buttons and haptic feedback. But the growing pains of new technology and unrefined UI paradigms are a tough sell for consumers holding onto vehicles for years or even decades, particularly when compared to the monthly and yearly upgrades of smartphones and tablets. It’s a brave new world for automakers, and it’s one that needs constant attention and an unwavering pursuit of usability before an iPhone-like revolution takes place inside the car.

After a hard day’s driving, a sauna is the ideal place to relax and take away the strain on the muscles – which is why one Russian decided to create a rolling hot box he can take with him wherever he goes.

Embedded in Russian tradition, saunas sit alongside vodka as the staple means of keeping warm in the sub-zero winters most typically experienced by the inhabitants of this giant nation.

The majority are permanent structures with giant fires feeding individual wooden cabins, but on a snowy lay-by next to the main road into Moscow we came across a rather more mobile one, built neatly into the back of a 1976 Zil army truck.

This is a very different type of truck stop.

Parked in a forested outcrop, the solid green metal machine sat atop the snow on large tundra tires, hiding its dark military history under a fresh new look with a giant side sticker depicting the wooden slats of a traditional sauna and a telltale rough steel opening that emitted a flickering glow.

Since the truck chugged its way out of Moscow, this onboard fire has been slowly building up the heat inside, puffing smoke from the twee little chimney in its roof.

Beckoned over by a man wearing a heavyweight winter jacket topped with a bizarre beige Tyrolean-style hat, we were ushered to a door where another gentleman with significantly fewer clothes and an altogether steamier look welcomed us in.

But while it may have seemed like we were in a bizarre slapstick comedy sketch, this was a very serious piece of physical conditioning, Russian style.

Inside, there was very strict protocol. First came the initial sweating to get the body acclimatized to the heat. Once boiled to within an inch of our lives, we then cooled down in the sauna-truck’s ‘chill out room’ before braving the heat once more.

Then came the oak branches. Bunched and brandished by Nikolai, the sauna’s owner, creator and operator, we were beaten with these to boost circulation. With the sauna’s coals repeatedly watered and bunched leaves wafting the fast-soaring heat through the tiny space by the fire, we were soon cooked to perfection.

We thought we were done, but Nikolai had other plans. With a yell of “Russia extreme!” he urged us to the sauna door and out into the frozen snow beyond, where he proceeded to cover us in snow.

And as we finally slipped back into our vehicles’ soft leather seats to continue our journey, the whip-lashed sores began to soften. They don’t do things by halves, these Russians.

Jeremy was travelling on Land Rover’s Journey of Discovery.