Exciting car trends to watch out for this year
JUST how old is that clunker in your driveway?
The average vehicle on American roads is nearly 12 years old, market research shows, as drivers hold on to their old, reliable wheels for longer stretches of time.
That has held true even as more people than ever bought new cars last year - 17.5 million of them.
In the past two weeks, the CES technology conference in Las Vegas and the North American International Auto Show in Detroit offered tremendous insight into where automotive trends stand today and where they appear to be headed in the years to come.
Below are seven trends every driver should have on his or her radar, whether looking to make a trade-in or just gawking at what’s on the road. Autonomous driving Google’s self- driving spinoff, Waymo, announced at the auto show that it has built sensors for self- driving and will put minivans with the technology on the road this month. At CES, Ford revealed the latest iteration of a self- driving vehicle that it hopes will be ready for the road come 2021.
That doesn’t mean a vehicle you buy this year won’t assist you with the driving. What’s here today are a litany of driverassist technologies that could put you one step closer to a handsfree future. Crossovers If it looks like an SUV, but drives like a car, then it’s probably a crossover. That’s the name given to vehicles built on a car frame with the design features and functionality commonly associated with sport-utility vehicles - think the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4. They’re more popular than ever. Americans bought 5.6 million of them last year, which translates to nearly a third of all new car sales.
If the auto show is any indication, you’ll soon see even more models in dealerships. Nissan debuted the Rogue Sport, the slimmer sibling to its topselling Rogue.
Mazda displayed the all-new CX- 5 and Ford the EcoSport, both of which were fi rst seen at the L.A. Auto Show in November. Before the show even officially started, GMC lifted the cover on a smaller version of the Terrain.
Michelle Krebs, a senior analyst at industry research fi rm Autotrader, attributes the popularity of crossovers to their versatility. Even more electric vehicles Carmakers are producing more all- electric and hybrid vehicle models than ever, with more slated to come down the pike.
Ford announced plans recently to produce 13 electrified models by 2020. Mercedes will make 10 by 2025. Volkswagen, which is out to prove its environmental fortitude after the diesel emissions scandal, has 30 of them in the works. The Chevy Bolt EV was named the North American Car of the Year. — Washington Post