There's lots more, although much of it is more evolutionary than revolutionary. Mechanically, the auto industry largely continued some trends that have been underway for several years: Turbocharging became more common; direct-injection engines continued to proliferate the market; and transmissions gained gears, with seven- and eight-speed units no longer eye-raising and even word that a ten-speed was being developed. Electrification of the vehicle is underway, but with electric cars and hybrids such a small piece of the pie, it's going to be a sluggish start.
Another key thread of the year is the advancement of safety-tech and accident-avoidance features into their second or third generations, with cost coming down on some items, allowing us to see features like obstacle detection and blind-spot alert in much more affordable models. And as we look forward to a future of smart, connected cars, we might look back on some of the headlines, such as those for Google's driverless car, and single this year out as an especially insightful time when seemingly broader themes came together to give us a clearer vision of what's 10 or 20 years ahead.
Focusing back on individual items, here are nine of the top car-tech items and stories of 2011:
GM's CUE: Better than an iPad. Love it or hate it, over the next several years we're going to be seeing even more instrument-panel real estate dedicated to screen-based systems, especially touch screens. While MyFord Touch made a plunge last year, it's been followed in close succession by a host of other interfaces—Chrysler's UConnect Touch, the GM system known as IntelliLink (Buick) and MyLink (Chevy)—that aim to do most of what the Ford system can do, but with a little more simplicity. However, none of them quite matches up to GM's upcoming system for Cadillac models, called CUE (Cadillac User Experience).
While CUE isn't yet out (it won't arrive until next spring, in the new 2013 Cadillac XTS), it shows the direction of in-car touch-screen interfaces and packs several industry firsts. It's not just the first automotive touch-screen system to use a capacitative screen (think iPad); it'll also be the biggest (12.3 inches) and brightest at launch, and the first auto interface to recognize 'gestures'—think the tap, flick, swipe, and spread motions we're now used to making with phones, and more. But it goes beyond what the iPad has; haptic feedback pushes back lightly against your finger to give the menu options a 'texture,' and proximity sensors see when your hand is approaching, with the screen only then showing more options, to minimize distraction the rest of the time. A strong processor should keep it all quick. Match with this a completely new natural-language data set, and CUE is looking like one of the most important new pieces of car tech in 2012.
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