Top 5 Reasons to Consider Buying a Used Car with Smart Technology

There are some really good reasons why you should consider a used car with smart technology.

If you’re starting to look around to buy a used car, have you thought about buying a used car with smart technology? There are some really good reasons why you should give it serious consideration. But first, it’s helpful to know what we even mean when talk about smart car technology. Car technology in general has continued to improve by leaps and bounds, but smart cars are more specifically outfitted with technologies and features that make them safer than cars have ever been before. As these technologies continue to improve, we can actually dare to dream of a day in the not-too-distant future when we not only vastly reduce the number of people who get hurt or killed in car crashes, but potentially eliminate them altogether. Here are the top five reasons you might want to consider buying a used smart car:

Adaptive Cruise Control. Smart cars will increasingly feature a very handy technology called adaptive cruise control. It tracks the cars in front of you and automatically adjusts your speed to keep a safe distance between you and the cars ahead. You don’t have to worry about braking or adjusting or restarting your cruise control. Now that’s smart! Ford, Toyota, Mercedes, and Jaguar are already producing vehicles with adaptive cruise control.

Night Vision Systems. Another technology that will become increasingly common in smart cars is night vision systems. This feature detects objects, people, and animals in the dark or hidden by the glare of oncoming headlights. What it detects is projected onto a certain section of the windshield, like a little TV screen, in black and white. General Motors is already incorporating this as an option on its DeVille Cadillacs.

Biometric Security. The smartest of the smart cars will have better security based on any number of biometric channels to make sure only the right person is trying to get into your car. These may include eye-scans, fingerprints, voice recognition, or even your own heart beat! Tesla has been making some of its cars with door handles that are entirely flush with the body of the car and only pops out for use when it detects you or your fob nearby.

Greater Convenience. Just like you can have smart thermostats in your home that can be operated from your mobile devices, this is now beginning to happen with cars as well. With Hyundai’s BlueLink app, you can use your mobile device to lock and unlock the car, start it up, and even set the internal temperature to be just where you want it when you get in.

Lower Insurance Premiums. Because of features like the ones mentioned above, the greater safety achievable in smart cars can translate into savings on insurance premiums. As just one example, if you’re 30 years old and drive a Ford Focus EcoBoost outfitted with an automatic emergency braking (AEB) system, you can expect to pay about 14% less for your car insurance, which is a significant savings.

If you’re starting to get interested in looking at used smart cars, just remember that many of these technologies are still very new, which means they will probably improve with each model year, and it may also be a while until they become widespread. If you come across a smart car that grabs your attention, make sure you thoroughly test drive it to ensure that whatever smart technology it may have is functioning properly.

By far the single most important reason to consider buying a smart car is the potential for drastically reducing an injury or fatality from a car crash. And then there’s the potential for significantly less expensive car insurance. These two benefits alone justify putting a used smart car on your priority list. A crash avoidance system is a smart car technology that feeds into both benefits. Finally, resale values are better for used smart cars

If you think you’re ready to take the plunge, visit the websites of trusted used car dealers (always check reviews at DealerRater, Yelp, and Google) in your area and see what is in their inventory in terms of cars with smart technology – it might just be the smartest move you’ll ever make!