A new car is always an exciting prospect. You’ve done the homework on the car you want; found a great value monthly lease rental from Intelligent Car Leasing; had your credit line approved; and now you’re waiting for the car to arrive for a new car and a new you in 2021.
But did you know that some cars give you a bit more? Where the designers have built ‘surprise and delight’ elements into the design; or where the services on offer are simply compelling.
Sometimes these can be just amusing; sometimes hugely helpful; but all will make you thank the designer for their thoughtfulness. Or playfulness. Such as the puddle light on the Jaguar E-Pace SUV that projects the image of a Jaguar being stalked by a cute little Jaguar cub.
So here’s our pick of seven new car tech features to surprise, delight and generally offer more for your lease:
There are some things all drivers take for granted – like wing mirrors. Every car has them, right? Well actually, no. The new Honda e doesn’t have any at all. Instead, it has little aerodynamic cameras on either side of the car which are married to corner-mounted digital displays on either side of the dash.
The ‘Side Camera Mirror System’ as Honda is calling it, replaces conventional door mirrors with compact cameras, providing live images to two six-inch screens inside the vehicle. Located at either end of the dashboard, these screens are in an ergonomic position – ensuring a natural feel and vision for the driver.
Drivers even have the option of ‘Normal view’ and ‘Wide view’ settings, further extending the field of vision and reducing blind spots. Now that’s cool!
Looking for a nippy EV that chock-full of cool tech? Speak to Intelligent Car Leasing about Honda e leases.
Introduced on the all-new Peugeot 208, Peugeot’s 3D i-Cockpit technology is really impressive. Information presented in the instrument binnacle is projected onto multiple layers presenting driving data as if it was a hologram.
Fully animated information appears to move forwards and backwards towards the driver depending on importance. Peugeot says it can help improve driver reaction time to critical information, but we think it’s just really cool. Who doesn’t want a hologram in their car?
Embrace the future – lease the all-new Peugeot 208
We’re all becoming more used to the idea of digital assistants offering us help around the home, whether it’s Amazon’s Alexa or Google’s Home. Just ask and the digital assistant comes up with the answer or plays the music you requested.
Well, car makers are doing the same thing; providing digital assistants you can speak to. Such as Laura. Laura is Skoda’s digital assistant you’ll find in the new Kamiq, which is the company’s compact SUV in the range.
Available with the Amundsen Infotainment System, you can ask Laura to navigate you to a specific location; dictate text messages to Laura who will type them out; and play the music you want. Just say ‘Hey Laura’ and start the conversation.
What’s more, Skoda Connect links your home Alexa with the car, and will respond with information about the current mileage, the fuel level, dates for changing the oil, whether the doors and windows are closed, whether the car is locked and even where it is parked (should your partner forget where they have left it!).
Ask Intelligent Car Leasing about Kamiq leases if you want to speak to Laura.
The ‘Dutch reach’ may be familiar to you. You might practice this method of getting out of your car every day. However, if you are not familiar with it, the ‘Dutch reach’ essentially involves not using the hand nearest the door handle to exit but the one furthest away. This requires your torso to swivel and for you to look over your shoulder and open the door more slowly: all of which is designed to protect the safety of cyclists that might be passing.
The new Mercedes GLA compact SUV has its own electronic ‘Dutch reach’.
Using the car’s blind spot assist function, it will warn with a flash in the door mirror or an audible warning if you go to open the door if a cyclist is approaching. It works even if the car has been stationary with the engine switched off for up to three minutes.
Keep cyclists safe – lease a new Mercedes-Benz GLA
According to a survey of ex-robbers by Co-Op Insurance, CCTV and barking dogs were the key deterrents for would-be thieves. And connected cars were an absolute no-no, too. While the all-electric Tesla Model 3 won’t give you barking dogs it will give you your own CCTV footage, an alarm and will alert you remotely that your car may be subject to unwelcome attention.
Called Sentry Mode, the Tesla’s external cameras are used to monitor the car’s surroundings. If ‘alert’ threat is triggered, the central display lights up with a message that cameras are recording; if Sentry Mode assesses more than passing interest in your Tesla, it goes to ‘Alarm’, which starts the car alarm, plays your music at full volume and steps up the central display to maximum brightness. In addition it sends an alert to your smartphone.
Apart from cuffing the would-be thief, that’s not a bad roster of theft-defence.
Go for Sentry Mode with your next car – lease a Tesla Model 3. Stay secure.
Parking spaces are becoming more of a squeeze as the width of cars continues to expand. Unlike parking spaces.
The average size of a parking space is 2.4m wide. With many cars now close to 2m wide, that doesn’t leave much room for exiting the car without damaging the leading edge of your door against another car and leaving an annoying ding in their paintwork.
But Ford has thought of this with its latest Focus model.
It has in-built protectors that automatically pop out (watch the video above). Not only is this brilliantly clever, but if you are worried about the return condition of your car at the end of its car lease, then this should help to ease some of your concerns.
If you – or maybe your children – are impulsive about getting out of the car, then leasing a Ford Focus could be the answer for you.
Until self-cleaning cars are invented, keeping your motor all shiny and new is a chore. But not for Volvo owners. The company has launched an app in conjunction with GoWashMyCar that does it all for you.
While there is a cost to the service, it is ultra-convenient. You choose the date, time and location you prefer, and then leave it to the car valet experts. You don’t even have to be present thanks to Volvo On Call’s remote car unlocking and locking facility. Initially, the service is only available to Volvo owners with access to Volvo On Call who are located within the M25. But Volvo says it plans to roll out the service to other areas of the UK in due course.
Keep your car clean without having to do the work – lease a Volvo in 2021.
This entry was posted in Fun Car Stuff on by Marc Murphy
Categories : Fun Car Stuff
