The Most Important Technological Developments of 2017

Spiked tyres have been a thing for a while now. Designed for those that live in Arctic conditions, metal spikes can grip and penetrate icy surfaces far better than rubber. The Hakkapeliitta tyre takes that to another level, though. This tyre uses triangular studs across the central pattern, which are optimal for braking and accelerating, whereas, on the edges of the tyres, the studs are Y-shaped which are better for grabbing and holding onto slippery terrain in the corners. Very clever, let’s hope we don’t need to invest in a set this winter…

The CabinWatch system is pretty self explanatory, really. It’s basically a roof mounted camera which gives the driver surveillance of what is going on in the back seats. The CabinWatch system is featured in the new Honda Odyssey (not on sale in the UK) and is designed to prevent the driver taking their eyes off the road to check on the little ones. 

Active Suspension isn’t entirely new technology, in fact Toyota had it in their Soarer back in 1983, but it has always been used to improve comfort and reduce body roll, particularly in the corners. Audi have debuted a system whereby the Active Suspension will detect an imminent crash and shift the weight and angle of the car so that the impact is absorbed by the roofline and the floor - the strongest parts of the chassis.

If you’re yet to update to the latest iOS, or if you aren’t on the Apple bandwagon, you might not know that Apple have packed a clever safety feature into the software. Now, the iPhone will detect when it is being driven around and it will turn off notifications. Of course, this is an opt-in function and users can turn it off in case of emergency, but it’s a seamless way of preventing drivers getting distracted by their handsets while behind the wheel.

Without getting too technical, Mazda have created a petrol engine which functions more like a diesel and can return up to 30% more MPG than a conventional petrol engine. I won’t bore you to death with the details, and it can’t really be explained in less than 400 words, but we’ll likely see this engine debuted in the 2019 Mazda 3 and the 'Kai Concept' (pictured) so keep an eye out for those!