The 6 best new-car features: Will your vehicle have one?

Mark Phelan, Detroit Free Press
·4-min read

From better fast-charging for long drives in electric vehicles to powered climate control vents, 2024’s best new-car features came in some surprising packages.

A handful of vehicles and brands introduced innovations every buyer should consider before buying anything else.

They improve everything from child safety to trip planning, and they’re the best new features of 2024.

Here are my top six:

Access to Tesla DC chargers

No. 1 with a bullet: General Motors and Ford Motor Co. secured access to Tesla’s world-class charging network for the EVs they make, which will improve life for electric vehicle owners, increase consumer acceptance of the new drivetrain and change the auto and energy-delivery industries.

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Say what you will about Tesla: It built the best fast-charging network for efficient and reliable long-distance EV travel.

Ford is the first automaker to gain access to esla's DC fast charging network.
Ford is the first automaker to gain access to esla's DC fast charging network.

Other automakers are adding access to Tesla’s network, but Ford, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC struck first.

Panoramic display

I have recommended the new Lincoln Nautilus midsize SUV to people purely on the basis of its revolutionary 48-inch display, which replaces the conventional instrument cluster directly in front of the drive with a widescreen, customizable display stretching the width of the vehicle at the base of the windshield. Not that there’s anything wrong with the Nautilus. The display is simply that much better than anything else on the road.

The 2024 Lincoln Nautilus SUV has a 48-inch wide display.
The 2024 Lincoln Nautilus SUV has a 48-inch wide display.

The screen’s location is perfectly intuitive, its high-res display crystal clear. There is no learning curve to using it, and I’ve yet to meet a driver or passenger who doesn’t like it. Test drive a Nautilus at your peril: It may be hard to pick any other midsize luxury SUV after experiencing the panoramic display.

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Lincoln will offer a nearly identical display in the 2025 Navigator, going on sale in 2025.

More: I charged 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E at a Tesla supercharger: How it went

More: Volvo installs lifesaving radar inside 2025 EX90 electric SUV

Memory for vent settings

Not for the first time, I find myself alone, rowing against the current of opinion from every other auto critic I’ve spoken to. Power adjustable HVAC vents have been around for a while, but the Lincoln Nautilus, Rivian R1T and Rivian R1S’ execution of the idea combines good ergonomics with position memory linked to driver-memory settings.

You can adjust and store settings for Rivian R1S SUV and R1T pickup's HVAC vents from the center touch screen.
You can adjust and store settings for Rivian R1S SUV and R1T pickup's HVAC vents from the center touch screen.

Most of my peers think the feature, which controls which vents are open and where they’re aimed from the touch screen, is a needless complication, offering no benefit versus manual adjsutments.

They overlook the fact that it remembers exactly how I like my vents, returning to those settings every time my settings are recalled. Call me a dilettante, but that's a feature worth having..

Radar that can tell you left kids, pets in the car

Incredibly precise radar found on Volvo EX90 EV, Toyota Sienna and Hyundai Tucson vehicles alert these vehicles’ drivers should a child or pet be left in a locked vehicle.

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Some of the sensors are so precise they can detect an infant breathing under a blanket, or a fly buzzing in the vehicle. Sophisticated algorithms weed out buzzing insects but alert the driver to dogs or children left behind.

The 2025 Volvo EX90 electric vehicle has seven interior radar sensors to detect 'micro mivoements' by children or pets left in the vehicle.
The 2025 Volvo EX90 electric vehicle has seven interior radar sensors to detect 'micro mivoements' by children or pets left in the vehicle.

Some of the systems even beep the horn and roll down windows if the driver ignores the alert. Volvo activates climate control to keep the precious cargo comfy if the driver misses or ignores the alert.

The EX90 EV has the most comprehensive system, with seven radar sensors scanning the SUV’s entire interior, from front footwell to cargo compartment. The Sienna and Tucson both use a single radar to observe the passenger compartment.

Pet, baby driving mode for smooth ride

Hyundai’s top seller, the 2025 Tucson compact SUV, offers a driving mode that adjusts throttle response and torque to create the smoothest possible launch, a setting the automaker says will keep infants’ heads from bobbing — or pets from losing their footing — as the vehicle accelerates from a stop.

The 2025 Hyundai Tucson is a dramatically styled compact SUV. Prices start at $28,355, excluding destination charges.
The 2025 Hyundai Tucson is a dramatically styled compact SUV. Prices start at $28,355, excluding destination charges.

Power side windows

VW ID Buzz's delightfully retro electric minivan offers power windows in the sliding doors by its second-row seats. Set into the doors’ larger fixed windows, the flush-fitting glass panels retract to the rear for ventilation or just a better view.

The VW ID Buzz electric minivan's power second-row windows close flush with the larger glass surface around them.
The VW ID Buzz electric minivan's power second-row windows close flush with the larger glass surface around them.

Contact Mark Phelan: 313-222-6731 or mmphelan@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @mark_phelan. Read more on autos and sign up for our autos newsletter. Become a subscriber.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 6 best new-car features: Will your vehicle have one?

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