Some people can get attached to their cars and find themselves keeping it longer than they should. There are also those that, because of financial constraints, are unable to buy a newer car. For both of these people, the fast pace of technology can quickly make their car look old and featureless. However, if you have a little DIY know-how and the time to do it, you can add technology to your old car, giving it a new lease on life. Here are some of the easiest ways to bring your car into the new age.
Think About What You Need
There are many things that you can do to add some technology to your car. However, that doesn’t mean that all of them will be of interest to you. Think about what you want from your car and how you use it. You might be the type of person that likes to take loving care of your car and takes it to places like K&M Mobile Detailing to get it cleaned thoroughly. For you, having some nice technology in your car will be the icing on the cake. However, if you use your car for work and need a decent radio to get you through the rush hour traffic, you might just want something simple.
Parking Camera
Many new cars are now fitted with rear parking cameras. They are a major source of comfort to those who get nervous when faced with a reverse parking scenario. Some manufacturers have gone further by adding cameras to the sides and the front as well, giving you a 360-degree view around the outside of your car. Trying to do this to your old car might be a little too much, though there are kits that you can buy that allow you to fix a small camera to your boot lid. Some of the kits use wireless technology to send the pictures to a small screen that you can attach to your dashboard. Others also feature night vision for parking at night and are waterproof.
Parking Sensors
If you don’t need to see what’s behind you to park, or if you don’t mind the beeping, then you can go for the reversing car sensors instead. These are an array of proximity sensors that are placed along the rear bumper of your car. They are usually wired, which means running the wires through from the back of the car to a reader on the dashboard. Once fitted, you can then turn it on when you are maneuvering in reverse, and the sound and light will tell you how close you are to things behind you.
Echo Dot – Alexa
You might think that the Echo home hub that allows you to do things from the comfort of your armchair remotely would not work in a car. However, there is a way that you can have your friend at home sitting with you in the car. There are a couple of things that you need, however, for it to work effectively. You will need a USB 12-volt car adaptor to plug your Echo Dot into, and also some access to a Wi-Fi signal. If your car is slightly more modern, you might have one that has a Wi-Fi hub already built-in. If you don’t have that, then you will need to have a mobile phone that has a Wi-Fi Hotspot function. You can then start the hotspot and connect the Echo Dot to the Wi-Fi. Once you have done that, you can ask Alexa to read you the news, give you traffic updates and even play your music on your playlist. Unfortunately, it cannot give you directions just yet.
Bluetooth Speakers
If your old car radio is less than effective, why not try to give your car sound a little boost by adding a Bluetooth speaker. There are many portable speakers on the market that are small enough to fit on the dashboard. If you then connect it to your mobile, you can play anything on your phone in clarity. Some of the newer car radios now also have a Bluetooth feature so that you can connect the speaker directly to the radio. Then, you won’t have to worry about your old car speakers.
In-Car Radio
For those that are a little more DIY savvy, you can buy a new radio for your old car to give it a new sound and make it more compatible with other technology. There is a varied range of in-car entertainment systems that range from the modest car radio with CD player, to a multi-function system that has Bluetooth, MP4 compatibility and some even have a TV screen. To remove and replace your old car radio, you should seek some guidance that will show you how to do it. Although most modern cars have a wiring harness that can be disconnected from the radio, some older cars do not. That will mean understanding your cars wiring system so that you connect it to the new radio correctly.
FM Transmitter
The FM transmitter has been around for a long time, but it can make it easy to connect up your mobile phone to your car radio if it doesn’t have any other way of connecting it. You connect the FM transmitter to your mobile phone via the headphone socket or Bluetooth, then you program your radio to the same frequency as the FM transmitter. You should then be able to hear what comes from your mobile phone or anything else you want to connect. There are even ones that utilize your radios cassette slot if yours is of that age. They can be useful if your car has an old period radio that you don’t want to remove, but you still want to listen to your favorite songs.
Despite the age of your car, if you want to add some new technology, there are many products out there that you can use. Not all of them will need any wiring installed, so they should cause no damage to your car.
