This week in Car Tech

Nokia's traffic experiment
Nokia and the University of California at Berkeley conducted an experiment to see if 100 cars acting as probes could do a better job at measuring traffic than what roadside infrastructure can. We reported from the scene as 100 cars, each equipped with a GPS-enabled Nokia phone reporting its location and speed, drove a set route in the San Francisco Bay Area. This experiment was another take on vehicle-to-vehicle communication, but using off-the-shelf technology from Nokia. The cell phone maker has shown an increasing interest in becoming an essential part of automotive technology, purchasing digital mapmaker NavTeq last year and launching new GPS services for its phones at this year's GSMA conference. Read more

Garmin Nuvi 660
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Garmin Nuvi 350
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Magellan Maestro 4250
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Garmin Nuvi 360
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TomTom GO 720
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2008 Audi A4 2.0T Quattro
The 2008 A4 demonstrates Audi's ability to run with the competition when it comes to performance, but the car's imminent cabin-tech upgrade can't come soon enough. Read more

2008 Mercury Sable Premier
Don't expect to enjoy the driving experience in the 2008 Mercury Sable, but it will support your phone and MP3 player, and deliver car-shaking bass, if that's what you're in to. Read more

Photos: 2009 Acura RL
The gadget-laden Acura RL has long been a favorite here at CNET Car Tech. As one of the first cars to offer a navigation system with real-time traffic data, and an active collision mitigation system, the current generation RL was ahead of the pack in terms of cabin and drivetrain technology. The 2009 RL comes with a new body style, a more powerful engine, and some more pioneering cabin technology including real-time weather information, and a navigation system that can automatically reroute around congestion. Read more

2008 Chicago Auto Show
This year's Chicago Auto Show had a lot to offer, from a new Chevy crossover to a Volkswagen minivan and a concept pickup truck from GMC. We culled the most interesting stories coming out of the show, posting blogs and photo galleries about new cars and concepts. Read more

Rinspeed to debut submersible sQuba in Geneva
Wayne Cunningham
Rinspeed, a boutique automotive design company, plans on blowing away the upcoming Geneva auto show with its sQuba concept, a car that swims underwater, drives autonomously on land, and is emission-free. The car, based on a Lotus Elise, uses an electric motor to drive the wheels on land, plus two other motors to drive propellers underwater. Read more

OBD II, the must have scanner tool for...
Posted by Willy
The scanner just allows you a better understanding of what's going on under the hood. Further, the sensors buried in new vehicles simply need that attention as any replacement part is costly and thus hopefully you replace the right part as appearance alone may not be telling to include some shade tree mechanics tests. Depending on what scanner you buy the simplest cost less than $100, better ones should cover wider vehicle models and/or offer updatability. What experiences have you had? Read more 

• 1. 2008 Audi S5
• 2. 2008 BMW 535i
• 3. 2008 Mercedes-Benz C300 Sport
• 4. 2008 Cadillac CTS
• 5. 2008 Audi TT 3.2 Quattro
• 6. 2008 Mercedes-Benz S-Class S63 AMG
• 7. 2008 Lexus LS 600h
• 8. 2007 Mercedes-Benz CL550
• 9. 2007 Jaguar XK Coupe
• 10. 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid

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