{"id":28507,"date":"2021-12-29T15:28:04","date_gmt":"2021-12-29T19:28:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=28507"},"modified":"2021-12-29T15:28:04","modified_gmt":"2021-12-29T19:28:04","slug":"payne-these-are-the-top-10-new-car-features-of-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2021\/12\/payne-these-are-the-top-10-new-car-features-of-2021","title":{"rendered":"Payne: These are the Top 10 new car features of 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"

Combine SUV demand, electric motors\u00a0and an electronics revolution, and you had a recipe for innovation in 2021. Auto workshop elves were busy hammering together new treats for us.<\/p>\n

Showrooms offered pickup trucks from $20,000 entry-level models to $140,000 electric monsters. Electric sports sedans boasted acceleration numbers quicker than super sports cars. Jeep inspired a new generation of overland SUVs. Look inside, and they were full of goodies. So capable is the modern vehicle that it was hard to find enough chips to operate them \u2014 condolences if you\u2019re having to wait for these toys to appear in your driveway.<\/p>\n

Here are the Top 10 new features of 2021.<\/p>\n

\"Detroit<\/p>\n
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Backseat living rooms.<\/strong>\u00a0Americans live in their cars and they are looking more and more like our domiciles. The Jeep Grand Cherokee and Nissan Pathfinder got third-row seating so roomy that 6\u20195\u201d basketball players like me could comfortably lounge back there. The second-row seat in the Kia Carnival is literally a lounge with a par of reclining Barcaloungers. And Jeep’s Grand Cherokee and Grand Wagoneer allow you to hook up your phone to backseat screens and binge-watch your favorite Netflix series. Ah, home away from home.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
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Thirty-fives.\u00a0<\/strong>33s once were a reference to vinyl records. In the auto world, 33s designate the biggest diameter off-road tires offered on the Jeep Wrangler Rubicon \u2014 at least until this year, when the Ford Bronco Sasquatch package offered 35s. Those were immediately matched by Wrangler\u2019s\u00a0Xtreme Recon Package. Not only do they look awesome, they are invincible over rough terrain.<\/p>\n

\"Using<\/p>\n
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Phone apps.\u00a0<\/strong>This was the year phone apps became a common commodity. Pioneered by (who else?) Tesla as a way to, say, preheat your car or check its charging state, the feature can now be found on many vehicles from Hyundais to BMWs. Naturally, Tesla is taking the app a step further with Summon, so your car will come to your phone like a sort of mechanical dog.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
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Curved screens.\u00a0<\/strong>Go ahead, ooh and aah at the curved screens behind the steering wheel of the Porsche Taycan, Lucid Air EVs (extending 34 inches)\u00a0and Cadillac Escalade (38 inches). They aren\u2019t easy to make, but expect more of them from luxury makers.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
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Hoodless displays.\u00a0<\/strong>Speaking of screens, Hyundai Tucson, Hyundai Ioniq 5\u00a0and Ford Mustang Mach-E introduced bright, hoodless instrument screens \u2014 continuing the trend of autos becoming rolling smartphones. The Hyundai screens also allow for a more symmetrical interior\u00a0with clean\u00a0horizontal lines\u00a0 around the cabin.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
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Cabinet doors.<\/strong>\u00a0Mazda\u2019s first EV, the MX-30, disappointed with its 100-mile range. But the stylish ute wowed with cabinet doors \u2014 the sort of thing we\u2019re used to seeing on show cars. The 2019 Lincoln Continental Coach Door Edition, for example, wowed at the Detroit Auto Show with a limited, 80th Lincoln anniversary, 80-car run. Not only do the MX-30 doors differentiate the EV from its gas cousin CX-30\u00a0\u2014 they also enable easy entry and egress.<\/p>\n

\"Owners<\/p>\n
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Unibody pickups.\u00a0<\/strong>Based on SUV platforms, the Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Fe broke the pickup mold, offering smooth-riding affordable pickups for less than $30k. With their smaller size came cool new bed features like a sliding tonneau cover on the back of the Santa Cruz. The Maverick appealed to pickup owners’ Do-It-Yourself ethic with multiple options. There\u2019s a QR code in its bed, for example. Scan the code with your phone and Ford takes you to a website with helpful tips on how to, for example, hack 12-volt bed wiring to configure your favorite accessories. A pair of 110-volt outlets are also back there to power tailgate parties.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
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GOAT mode.<\/strong>\u00a0At the center of the popular Ford Bronco is an electronic GOAT (Goes On Any Terrain) dial that drivers can simply spin to access the off-road bruiser\u2019s variety of drive modes. Combined with electronic buttons atop the dash for complementary functions like swaybar disconnect or Trail Turn Assist, the Bronco\u2019s electronics advance the cause of trailblazing.<\/p>\n

\"CrabWalk<\/p>\n
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Crab walk.<\/strong>\u00a0Teased for an early 2023 launch, the Hummer EV is the industry\u2019s most outrageous vehicle with 9,000-pound curb weight, 3.0-second zero-60 mph capability, and crab walk. Hummers were spotted testing on public roads moving in a coordinated\u00a0shuffle dance. Thanks to all-wheel-steer, the dance has practical applications off-road when the Hummer gets into a tight spot and can move sideways to get out of trouble.<\/p>\n

\"2022<\/p>\n
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Mega-frunk.\u00a0<\/strong>Mid-engine sports cars pioneered the \u201cfrunk\u201d (front trunk). EVs made it popular. Electric pickup trucks have supersized it. I\u2019m cheating a bit here since the Ford F-150 Lightning won\u2019t be out until next spring, but I got an eyeful this year. Freed of a front engine, the pickup\u00a0 Ford revealed in May boasts the world\u2019s biggest frunk, with 14 cubic feet of cargo room that can fit two golf bags and 400 pounds of payload. Expect more mega-frunks as EV pickups battle it out.<\/p>\n

More:<\/strong>\u00a0Tiny shifters, lane nannies top list of most annoying car technology<\/a><\/p>\n

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Combine SUV demand, electric motors\u00a0and an electronics revolution, and you had a recipe for innovation in 2021. Auto workshop elves were busy hammering together new treats for us. Showrooms offered pickup trucks from $20,000 entry-level models to $140,000 electric monsters. Electric sports sedans boasted acceleration numbers quicker than super sports cars. Jeep inspired a new […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28507"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28507"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28507\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28508,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28507\/revisions\/28508"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}