Silicon Valley Auto Show gives participants a…
By Mercurynews Com and Mercurynews Coms |
PUBLISHED: January 8, 2016 at 10:12 am | UPDATED: May 17, 2018 at 7:52 am
SAN JOSE — Frank Fantozzi drives a 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee, but he doesn’t want to be caught off guard if he needs to buy some new wheels, so the San Jose retiree comes to the Silicon Valley Auto Show every other year to see what’s new.
“A couple of years ago a car I was driving was wiped out by somebody else so I was immediately in the car market and I was glad I had been coming to shows because it wasn’t like starting over from scratch,” Fantozzi said.
Standing in front of a Toyota Mirai, a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, Fantozzi gets a glimpse of technology he’s never seen before at the auto show.
“Essentially what it does is it takes hydrogen from a tank and oxygen in the air and crams it back together to make water. When it does that it gives off electricity which we then use to charge batteries and run the vehicle,” said Erik Lunn, a senior vehicle product training specialist for Toyota.
From sensors that can help keep a car in a lane if it drifts or hit the brakes if a pedestrian steps out in front to cameras that give drivers a 360-degree view of their surroundings, participants of the auto show at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center will get a glimpse into the future of the auto industry. The show, which started Thursday, runs through Sunday.
Self-driving vehicles are also a hot topic this year and Fantozzi dreams of the days when he can drive a car to the airport, have it drive itself back home and then have it come pick him up. That may not be far from reality with Google, Mercedes-Benz, Ford and other manufacturers currently testing autonomous vehicles in Silicon Valley.
Shaun Del Grande, president of the Silicon Valley Auto Dealers Association and Del Grande Dealer Group, said that this year’s show has more participants, vehicles and products than in previous years.
“Between all the new technology and safety features in vehicles and so many new design concepts, there’s just so much to see, explore and learn this year,” he said.
More than 35 manufacturers are part of the auto show, including Nissan, Lexus, Chevrolet and more. The show also features the world debut of the Trion Nemesis, which is described as a 2,000 horsepower, twin turbo American Super Car that goes from 0 to 60 mph in 2.8 seconds and costs at least $1.2 million. Other cars that haven’t hit the market yet are also on display.
Ford’s Marketing Development Manager Dan Gray showed off the 2017 Ford Super Duty, a truck that has up to 7 cameras allowing drivers to navigate tight spaces or maneuver a trailer. He points to a camera in the front window of the truck.
“It’s a camera that focuses on the lane and if you get drowsy or you’re drifting it will maneuver you back into the lane,” he said.
The car manufacturer also announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas that it was teaming up with Amazon so its cars can communicate with Amazon Echo, a free-standing speaker that links up with a virtual assistant called Alexa.
“If you’re driving you could say ‘Alexa open up the garage door or turn on the TV,'” Gray said.
He said that Ford, which is also tripling its autonomous vehicle fleet, is focusing on five themes for its future: connectivity with its voice command system, mobility, data and analytics, customer experience and autonomous vehicles.
In 2015, U.S. car sales had a record year with auto makers selling 17.5 million cars and light trucks. Auto show participants, some who were looking to buy a new car, also got a chance to test drive some of the cars on display.
“I’m in the market for a car so it’s a great place to come and look and see what’s out there, even get ideas for things that you didn’t think of purchasing,” said Pacifica resident Roger Burkowski, who listed about five vehicles he test drove.
As for more advanced technology such as a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, Burkowski said that’s something to consider further down the road.