How To Make Your Car Your Best Friend

For some people, cars are ways to get from "Point A" to "Point B."  For others, they are a passion.  Some people have even given their vehicles a name.

But, the relationship between you and your car is about to change.

"Connecting your car to the cloud has a lot of advantages," says Jake Fisher, who heads the auto testing team at Consumer Reports.

Connectivity is fairly simple now.   Some vehicles are connected by embedded systems that are always on.  Others are connected via your own smart phone.

What started as convenience, has quickly moved into the safety realm.

"I've now crashed, and my airbag has deployed, and I'm unconscious," said Fisher.  "My car can alert first responders and tell them where I am, or potentially how fast I was going, and what happened to the vehicle."

More car companies are now using apps that allow you to remotely start or lock your car.  They can find your vehicles location in a crowded parking lot.  If you have an electric vehicle you can monitor or initiate charging.

There's a lot coming, including real time video from your car.  That's a measure that could let you know if the vehicles is safe, or track it if it's stolen.  Some systems can record.  So, if anybody does any damage to your vehicle, you have the evidence.

Ford CEO Mark Fields says their coming "Ford Pass" app will allow people to talk with a live person to get questions asked.  It will have other functions as well, and not just for Ford owners.  It will be open to everybody.

"We want Ford Pass to do for the auto industry, what iTunes did for the music industry," said Fields.  "This is really around re-imagining the relationship between an auto company and the customer."

The definition of customer could change, as we see more car sharing services, and other opportunities for people to use vehicles in ways that are different than the traditional ownership experience.

Fields says Ford is trying a number of different experiments to help them better connect with the customer of tomorrow.

"We want to help make people's lives better, and do that by being more mobile."

Ultimately, the car of the future could be connected to your home, allowing you to turn up the thermostat as your reach your house on a winter's day, turn on lights at the proper time, or maybe start the oven on your ride home.

A vehicle powered by a fuel cell could even provide electricity for a home.

Whether that vehicle is automated or not, whether it's owned, shared or leased--it's likely to remain an important part of your life for years to come.