From better fast-charging for long drives in electric vehicles to powered climate control vents, 2024’s best things came in some surprising packages.
A handful of vehicles and brands introduced innovative features 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.
Say what you will about Tesla, it built the best fast-charging network for efficient and reliable long-distance EV travel.
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 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
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.
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..