oh i agree it's awesome! a car like a rolls is all about "over the top" anyway. plus, since the brits probably still have a hand in the rolls, an umbrella would be high on their priorities.

 

I still think the sensor in the front door handles of the 3IS are neat. Don't have to use the fob to lock or unlock doors, just grab the door handle to unlock (assuming fob is on your person) and press down on top of door handle to lock it. Make some clueless people watching think my car has biometrics or something haha.

 

One of the most interesting automotive features is the Expresso coffee machine that Fiat offers in some Euro-market models. But, for some reason (my guess is because Americans already do too much multi-tasking in their cars with texting/cell phones), they won't offer that feature here in America.

 

For parents, I liked the feature that Chrysler-designed minivans used to have that incorporated a built-in, DOT-approved child-safety seat. You simply pulled it down out of a fold-up hole in the back of the adult seat with a strap, sat Junior down, strapped him or her in with a couple of built-in straps, and presto...you were ready to go. No struggling with having to lift the seats in and out of the car, attaching/detaching them, and then having to put Junior in and out of the seat on top of that. A nifty idea....but they were discontinued in 2010, and Chrysler has not given a good explanation why, since they were DOT-approved..

 

I really like the idea of the "brolly" in the door. My super-sized golf umbrella takes up most of the back seat - unless I snake it down between the driver's seat and the door. It's the one single advantage of the minivan's 3-door configuration that allows me to store the Bag Boy alongside the seat without blocking the door behind. The downside of this is fiddling a wet umbrella across my lap and into that narrow space . . . without drying it on my clothes. The alternative is to furl and stow the 'chute while standing outside in a pouring rain.

 

what we've compiled so far. What else?!

- key Pads / digital key pads
- oscillating dash vents
- air scarf
- champagne cooler
- door umbrellas
- integrated vaccum
- motion controlled lift gate
- ventilated seats
- downwards tilting mirrors
- phone keypad on dash
- espresso coffee machine in car
- built in child seats

 

Wireless charging pads are starting to show up in cars, and for people with compatible phones, it's pretty nice!!

Active lane keep assist - varies by implementation. But the system I just tested in the new Cherokee was pretty effective.

Active Cruise Control with full speed control - Also tested in the new Cherokee, can bring the vehicle to a complete stop and re-start on its own. Basically will drive for you in stop and go traffic.

Self Parking - varies by implementation - Again, in the new Cherokee, very simple to use, just tap a button and it'll start scanning and tell you when a spot is available. Not like the older system in the LS460 where you had to map out the spot on the screen yourself, etc.

 

I can describe a few rather surprising features that I had on various cars.

1) LS400 (first gen) had seatbelt tension relief feature. If I remember correctly, it had a motor/mechanism that relieve tension on the seat belt as soon as you buckled up - and when you unbuckled that mechanism would turn off, allowing for the belt to retract. That car had by far the most comfortable seatbelts I've ever driven. In all other cars I constantly find myself adjusting the seatbelt every once a while to relieve tension. American cars are the worst when it comes to uncomfortable seatbelts.

2) BMW X5 (2012) has LED lights recessed in the overhead console, pointed at the center console. You don't really notice them at all since they are recessed, but they nicely illuminate the content of the center console when you open it at night. Very clever!

3) LS430 seats had two clever features. First, they had small storage compartments in the lower section of the seat - perfect if you had to keep valuables in the car. Not many thieves would know about these compartments, so your stuff was relatively safe. I kept my Garmin GPS in there. Also, the passenger seat had a secondary set of controls on the upper left portion of the seat, so that the driver could easily adjust it. Very convenient feature!