Back in August of 2011, Toyota and Ford set up a deal in which they would begin working together on future in-car telematics. Today, Toyota announced more details about its collaboration with the Dearborn automaker.
Actually, Toyota will be working with one of Ford’s subsidiaries, Livio, to implement something called SmartDeviceLink technology in future Toyota and Lexus models.
SmartDeviceLink, or SDL tech, is an open source platform that allows smartphone applications, such as those for entertainment, traffic, and parking, to be used in automotive infotainment systems. Those apps can be accessed through voice commands, screens, and dashboard controls.
SDL also makes it easy for developers to design an app once, then plug it into multiple infotainment systems. That means apps can be developed and introduced to wider audiences more quickly.
This market is not just for auto manufacturers, though – and Toyota and Ford know that. According to Automotive News, by making today’s announcement, both companies are “showing caution against letting Apple’s CarPlay and Google’s Android Auto dictate the future of in-car entertainment and navigation systems.” However, Apple’s website states CarPlay will be making its way into vehicles from Toyota and Ford, among many others. Toyota is notably absent from Google’s list of Android Auto partners.
Given how many manufacturers are shown as being on-board for CarPlay and/or Android Auto, it’s easy to believe IHS Automotive’s statement that automakers could potentially sell approximately 31 million vehicles with the former system and 37 million with the latter by 2020.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
Where do you go for answers when you have a Lexus with a gorgeous leather interior but are not sure about how to maintain that luxurious look? The "Club Lexus" forums, of course.
