Stuart Scott | July 06, 2008
WANT to browse the internet, update your Facebook profile, answer emails, do some eBay shopping and add to your MySpace blog from your car?
Technology to bring the information superhighway to our real highways is on the way, though not all car makers see eye to eye and the risk of driver distraction is already raising safety concerns.
Car makers in the US and Europe are racing to be first to release models with unrestricted internet access this year, but Australian motorists will be waiting some time.
In the US, Chrysler has announced that wireless internet will appear as an option in its new cars from September; meant to be used only by passengers, if the car is moving.
Chrysler Australia spokesman Jerry Stamoulis said: "We're very interested in looking at it. With all types of new technology, we always push for them to come here."
But he said it was not yet known whether the UConnect Web system would be applicable in Australia.
"It's the sort of thing which not everyone wants but it's a must-have for some people," Mr Stamoulis said.
In Europe, BMW is the car brand claiming a world first with an expanded version of its existing ConnectedDrive system, allowing full access to the internet via a dashboard screen and a mouse-like controller on the central console, to be operated by the driver or front passenger, but only when the car is stopped.
BMW Australia spokesman Alexander Corne said the service would not be available here because of "technical complexities and likely low demand".
And the existing BMW Online system, which allows emailing and limited internet access, is to end after a three-year trial in Australia.
"The take-up rate was close to zero, and it's being phased out," Mr Corne said.
Mercedes-Benz Australia spokesman David McCarthy said he expected internet access would come to their cars "but there's no timetable as yet".
The next step in that direction, he said, would be a kit to fully integrate the Apple iPhone into Mercedes cars.
Last week's release of the new-generation iPhone in Australia is expected to take mobile communications to a new level, with many car companies doing last-minute checks to determine which iPhone functions will be available while driving.
Brands such as Audi are advising that cars using the Bluetooth connection will be compatible with the iPhone for calls, but drivers will not be able to surf the net through the car's system.
The arrival of in-car internet has US law makers scrambling to see whether safety legislation needs to be revised to include computers as well as mobile phones.
And the RACQ already is voicing its concern. Spokesman Jim Kershaw said: "The number of gadgets in cars already is considerable, and this will be another one.
You're in a car to drive the car. Even someone else using it while you're driving could be a distraction.
"We know that driver inattention contributes to a quarter of fatal crashes, and a third of all crashes."
The Sunday Mail