#Supplier

Self-driving cars will require greater connectivity, computing power and overall capability than what’s available in today’s vehicles. But they might need even more than that: trust. 

Automotive supplier company ZF revealed a new engineering concept car that aims to eliminate tailpipe emissions and put an end to accidents, all while making life easier for motorists.

The humble internal-combustion engine has been around in one form or another for more than a 100 years, dominating vehicle propulsion for all of the 20th century. Today, it still has a commanding lead over rival systems.

Vehicles equipped with more powerful 48-volt electrical systems will start hitting the road in significant quantities in the near future. This shift will increase fuel efficiency considerably without breaking the bank.

Continental is a German supplier that provides all kinds of components to automakers, from turbochargers and transmission-control units to radar sensors and instrument clusters.

For millennia man has tried to see into the future.

Modern vehicles feature electrical systems that operate on 12 volts. This has pretty much been the industry standard since about the mid-1950s. But engineers at Continental are working to really step things up.

Fuel economy is a top concern these days as automakers, suppliers and consumers alike strive to stretch every drop of petroleum as far as possible. Cylinder deactivation is a key way of bolstering the large-print numbers on a vehicle’s window sticker.

Adaptive cruise control, emergency brake assist and blind-spot monitoring were the stuff of science fiction just a decade ago, but today these features are available on many reasonably priced, mass-market vehicles. Pushing driver assistance even further, Continental is developing a suite of advanced technologies with some pretty amazing capabilities.

Traffic, inclement weather and road construction add up to headaches and frustration for motorists. According to automotive supplier company Continental the typical driver spends an average 50 minutes per day commuting to work. Add it up and that’s roughly 300 hours per year that could be spent doing more productive things.

Ford is blaming one of its suppliers for flawed fuel lines that meant 11,500 of its 2013 Escape crossovers needed to be recalled.

Aston-Martin is considering moving to smaller engines down the road and some reports say the company may tap its ally,  Toyota as an engine supplier.