The annual Washington Auto Show opened its doors to the general public Tuesday, after a three-day delay caused by a snowstorm that hit the U.S. East Coast. More than 30 world-class auto makers exhibited their latest models, placing special emphasis on connectivity.
Coming on the heels of the larger shows in Los Angeles and Detroit, the Washington Auto Show has carved out a niche as the one that emphasizes new technologies, especially those that cause less damage to the environment.
But with falling oil prices, the promotion of thriftier hybrid or all-electric vehicles was somewhat muted, shifting the auto show's focus to connectivity and automatization.
Automotive engineering professor, Zoran Filipi, says the technology in this Mercedes S-class model shows that we are at the dawn of cars that almost drive themselves.
“It has lane-keeping ability, it has advanced radar-based system to keep the vehicle’s speed also in sync with other vehicles and this can completely alleviate your effort, driving effort, in stop-and-go situations too, and finally the collision avoidance," said Filipi.
Very soon we will see these technologies trickling-down to more affordable models as car makers work to develop fully autonomous-driving cars.
In the meantime, says Filipi, fuel efficiency has improved 20 percent over the last 10 years.
“This has mostly been achieved with advanced engine technologies – direct injection, turbo-charging, coupled to very modern transmissions, eight, nine, ten speeds that keep the engine running in the best possible region," he said.
Almost all new models have built-in display screens that connect the vehicle to the driver’s smartphone and the Internet, helping in navigation, taking voice commands, and sending and receiving messages.
“Therefore you can use all the applications you are used to, everything that is tailored to your needs in your car and it’s very seamless," said Filipi.
Larger manufacturers, such as Toyota, say their all-electric fuel-cell cars are ready for the market and the only obstacle is the lack of charging stations.
Others promote their hybrid gas-electric models, saying that the number of charging stations is constantly rising while the price of home chargers is dropping.
South Korean carmaker Hyundai even offers a lifetime warranty for the battery in its top-of-the-line model, hoping to make the hybrid car more attractive to customers.
Vocabulary
world-class: 世界级的
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 6第二课作业本1答案
上教版四年级上册英语期中测试知识与能力训练答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 9第三课作业本1答案
上教版三年级上册英语期中测试知识与能力训练答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 9第二课作业本2答案
上教版四年级上册英语Unit 10知识与能力训练答案
上教版三年级上册英语Unit 9知识与能力训练答案
上教版三年级上册英语Unit 4知识与能力训练答案
上教版三年级上册英语期末测试知识与能力训练答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 7第三课作业本1答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 8第四课作业本1答案
上教版三年级上册英语Unit 11知识与能力训练答案
上教版三年级上册英语Unit 10知识与能力训练答案
上教版四年级上册英语Unit 12知识与能力训练答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 6第五课作业本2答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 9第四课作业本2答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 6第一课作业本2答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 8第五课作业本2答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 6第四课作业本1答案
上教版四年级上册英语Unit 4知识与能力训练答案
上教版三年级上册英语Unit 5知识与能力训练答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 9第一课作业本1答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 7第一课作业本1答案
上教版四年级上册英语Unit 6知识与能力训练答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 8第一课作业本2答案
上教版四年级上册英语期末测试知识与能力训练答案
上教版四年级上册英语Unit 5知识与能力训练答案
上教版四年级上册英语Unit 8知识与能力训练答案
上教版三年级上册英语Unit 2知识与能力训练答案
人教版七年级上册英语Unit 9第五课作业本1答案
不限 |
英语教案 |
英语课件 |
英语试题 |
不限 |
不限 |
上册 |
下册 |
不限 |