Want to talk emissions? Check your tires!
Pollution from tire wear can be a thousand times worse than what comes out of a car’s exhaust, according to Oxford, England-based research firm Emissions Analytics. Harmful particle matter from tires – and also brakes – is a growing environmental problem, one that is being exacerbated by the increasing popularity of large, heavy vehicles such as SUVs, and growing demand for electric vehicles, which are heavier than standard cars because of their batteries. What’s more, vehicle tire wear pollution is completely unregulated, unlike exhaust emission, according to the firm. Non-exhaust emissions (NEE) are particles released into the air from brake wear, tire wear, road surface wear and resuspension of road dust during on-road vehicle usage. Last year, the UK Government’s Air Quality Expert Group recommended that NEE be immediately recognized as a source of ambient concentrations of airborne particulate matter, even for vehicles with zero exhaust emissions of particles, such as electric vehicles.
In case your vehicle is used as a getaway car …
Carmakers, smartphone designers and chip suppliers have been developing “digital car keys” for some time, reports EE Times. A key factor about the keys is that while they don’t make traditional keys obsolete, they can make other mobile devices, such as smartphones or key fobs, serve as car keys. Even if you’ve lost or left behind your car key, you could still enter and start the car with your smartphone. You could also share the key with others. Now that the key is digital, there is no need for multiple physical car keys for family members or friends. The digital car key can ensure that the car is used only by those authorized to drive it. Perhaps more important is that the car owner or car OEM services can remotely terminate or suspend the digital key, when the car is stolen or used for unanticipated purposes, like a getaway car after a bank heist.
Not for your reading pleasure
You can personalize a lot of settings in your new car. For example, you can make the mirrors automatically fold when you park, or direct your rear wiper to make a sweep when you shift into reverse. You can activate a “welcome light” display of the car’s logo that is beamed on the ground when you unlock the car, and you can mute annoying functions, like a cruise control that adjusts based on reading speed limit signs. The thing is, you’re probably better off just exploring the settings options on your own rather than reading the owner’s manual, says a recent New York Times article. That’s because owner’s manuals are getting bigger all the time. The book for the new Cadillac ST6, for example, is 384 pages.
Solar cars
Adding solar panels to a car roof is not a new concept, with some manufacturers (e.g., Hyundai) already offering them on vehicles. AppleInsider reports that in a patent granted to Apple by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office titled “Systems with photovoltaic cells,” a thin-film photovoltaic cell could plausibly be placed all over a vehicle, and as depicted in one image, even covering a window, suggesting it may be transparent or sufficiently translucent enough for that purpose. Apple might not stop there, potentially applying the film to the Apple Watch, iPhone and other device cases.