SANDY — If you’re a car person, this weekend will be a little bit of heaven.
The annual Utah International Auto Expo got underway Friday and runs through Monday with the latest in automobile technology and styling from manufacturers foreign and domestic.
The interactive show takes place at Mountain America Expo Center in Sandy. This year will feature over 300 vehicles, including cars, crossovers, sport utility vehicles and trucks.
Charlie Vogelheim, auto journalist and spokesman for the Utah International Auto Expo, said among the trends people can look for will be the numerous technological advances that so many carmakers are installing in every class of vehicle from top of the line models to affordable compacts. Using the term ACES, an acronym for autonomous, connected, electric and shared, he said more and more vehicles on the road are becoming “smart” cars.
“We’re starting to see all the sensors and some of these capabilities (from autonomous concept vehicles) being rolled out in these cars that we see on display here at the expo,” he said.
“The more expensive the luxury cars are where most features begin,” he said. “We’re starting to see this trickle down into entry level vehicles where you’ll see some pretty affordable cars that have advanced driver assist systems, such as the sensors.”
A basic feature is the lane changing sensor that keeps cars in their lane. Some will just identify when the vehicle is leaving its lane, while some will keep the vehicle within certain parameters, he explained. Some sensors will measure the distance between lanes and keep the vehicle centered in the lane. There is also blind spot sensoring, he added.
“Still, even though the car may be doing most of the work, we as operators still have to pay attention,” Vogelheim said. “It’s not fully autonomous drive, it’s not full auto-pilot.”
He said one day a few years down the road, the legitimate autonomous vehicle may actually become a reality, but for now cars still need an attentive human driver to operate most effectively. He said high-tech safety features are becoming more ubiquitous, even on lower cost vehicles, which makes driving newer cars safer and safer.
Vehicles are also being equipped with technology that connects the driver’s Apple or Android mobile device to the car so the driver screen experience is similar to what they are familiar with on their mobile phone, he said.
Vogelheim said manufacturers are also developing more electric and hybrid vehicles to complement their traditional internal combustion engine lineup. Those vehicles will help mitigate environmental impacts such as air quality and lower operational costs for vehicle owners, he added.
The auto expo offers enthusiasts and consumers the chance to have a hands-on experience with the newest, most technologically advanced vehicles on the market under one roof, he said.
“This is a great opportunity for anybody shopping for car (that has) done the research hopefully, online, (in a) magazine or talked to friends and neighbors — to come and sit and try the car on,” Vogelheim said.
