The IT Nerd

The technology in the Chrysler 200s AWD is not the longest list that I have had to write about, but there’s still a lot here. Let’s start with the safety technology. Here’s the list of things that will keep you safe:

• Eight air bags including driver and passenger knee blockers
• Blind-Spot Monitoring with Rear Cross-Path Detection
• Rear back up camera
• The usual traction control, stability control, tire pressure monitoring systems.
• Electronic Park Brake with Safe Hold: This is designed to protect you during unexpected driving events. If you happen to open the driver’s door, unlatch the seat belt and exit while still in a forward or reverse gear, the system will automatically engage the parking brake to secure the vehicle.

The next thing is the key. It’s a proximity key that allows you to walk up, open the door, press the start button, and drive away. You can also remote start the 200s, open the trunk, and unlock the doors. Like other Chrysler vehicles I’ve reviewed, there’s also a real key on the inside. When you want to lock the car, simply press a button on the door handle when you get out of the car. Net result: You never have to take the proximity key out of your pocket.One other trick: It’s smart enough to fire up the HVAC system to either cool the car down in the summer or warm it up in winter.

Now on to the UConnect infotainment system. It’s now into its fifth iteration and it’s still very good. Navigation is still provided by Garmin which is a good thing. And as usual, it took me seconds to pair my iPhone via Bluetooth and make everything work the way I expected. Plugging in my iPhone via USB allowed me access to all the music and playlists on it. The voice recognition was good, though I had trouble with street names. The system is still powered by a huge 8.4″ touchscreen which is clear and easy to read in all lighting conditions. There are redundant controls that are well designed and easy to reach. When it comes to the design part, I’ll use the controls on the steering wheel as an example. Individual buttons have their own feel so that once you know what the functions are, you can use them purely based on feel. It’s still a excellent system to use. But it’s facing some significant competition in the form of the system that comes with the Hyundai Genesis which comes with a 9″ screen and is just as easy to use. As well as Mazda Connect which has a smaller screen, but is incredibly intuitive to use. It’s clear that car companies are trying to improve their infotainment systems to the point that they will be key features that set them apart from the competition. And I’m not even taking into account the impending onslaught of cars coming with Android Auto or Apple CarPlay on board.

No matter where I was sitting, the audio was fantastic. Supplied by Alpine and putting out over 500 watts of audio to 9 speakers, it has crisp highs and well defined bass with zero distortion. Kudos to Chrysler for providing a top notch stereo.

Now you can add features such as adaptive cruise control that can bring the car to a stop, lane departure warning with lane keep assist, forward collision warning with active braking, perpendicular and parallel park assist which worked very well when I tested it in the Jeep Cherokee earlier this year. Thus you can equip the 2oos with as much technology as you need.

In the last part of my review, I’ll wrap up some loose ends and I will give you my final verdict.

This entry was posted on September 25, 2014 at 7:00 am and is filed under Products with tags Chrysler. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.