Another year of motoring highs and lows, and without a doubt, it was another year of change.

From the introduction of artificially intelligent (AI) vehicle technology, insects creating havoc, to increased crash testing criteria, and a tease from Tesla, here are five events that made headlines in 2018.

1. Mercedes Benz gets us talking to our cars

The new A-Class Mercedes Benz launched in August and got us all talking- literally.  It arrived fully equipped with a new intelligent voice control system enabled with natural speech comprehension - easily activated by saying "Hey Mercedes".  Conventional voice control systems usually require fixed commands, but thanks to its natural speech recognition, “Mercedes” obeys virtually every command and recognises and understands nearly all sentences, from infotainment to vehicle operation. The system also has an AI learning capability, so it can suggest frequently used navigation routes or radio stations.  This class-breaking technology was a factor in the A-Class winning the 2018 AA Driven NZ Car of the Year.

2. Stink bugs causes NZ vehicle import mayhem

In early 2018 many vehicle-carrying ships were turned away from New Zealand ports due to the high risk marmorated stink bug being found in cars.  The marmorated stink bug is a native insect in Japan and hibernates in contained spaces during the northern hemisphere winter and when threatened, releases a pungent odour. The bug had the potential to cause hundreds of millions of dollars of damage to the New Zealand economy if they made it ashore. Our New Zealand vehicle import industry certainly felt the impact when thousands of vehicles couldn’t be unloaded and the ships were turned away to be treated. 

3. Tesla teases NZ

In August, the much anticipated “cheaper” Tesla Model 3 landed on our shores. The only problem was it arrived as a left hand drive variant, meaning it couldn’t be driven in New Zealand.  However, the purpose of the launch was to wet the appetite of those who had placed a deposit and desired to be the first to own one in New Zealand. The new model is minimalistic in design, with innovations such as key unlock via a smartphone app, and vehicle functions and adjustments all managed through a central command screen.

4. The end is nigh- well almost…

In December, Volkswagen indicated that the last generation of combustion engine Volkswagen cars were under development and will be introduced in 2026. Beyond that date, new models will be built on one of its several upcoming electric car platforms.  

Meanwhile, Volvo announced earlier in the year that starting with the new S60, its dropping diesel engines. “Our future is electric and we will no longer develop a new generation of diesel engines,” Volvo President and CEO Hakan Samuelsson said in a statement. “We will phase out cars with only an internal combustion engine with petrol hybrid versions as a transitional option, as we move towards full electrification”.

5. ANCAP aligns with Euro NCAP

In January, these two safety organisations aligned and now share common test and assessment protocols.  The alignment has seen an overhaul of current testing processes and the addition of extra requirements in order to get that all important 5-star safety rating.  A change to the scoring system sees the previous “best out of 37” tally replaced with the Euro NCAP model of four ‘pillars’ of safety performance. These four important areas of assessment are: Adult Occupant Protection, Child Occupant Protection, Pedestrian Protection and Safety Assist – active safety technology such as Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), Lane Support System (LSS) and Speed Assistance Systems (SAS).