CES 2008

Sirius Travel Link offers national weather maps.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

A major part of Ford's new hard-drive-based navigation system and music server will be Sirius Travel Link, a set of services that bring new, live data into the car. Travel Link features live traffic reporting, which shows traffic flow and incidents overlaid on the navigation maps. The data is integrated such that, if your route goes through a congested area, the navigation system will offer to reroute you. Next up is weather information--you can get a variety of different weather displays, from a weather map to temperature and conditions, complete with a forecast. The system lets you see weather conditions for anywhere in the country, and even has a special button to show skiing conditions. The three other services offered in Travel Link are gas prices, so you can find the cheapest nearby station, sports scores, and movie times. With the movie times function, if you have a paired Bluetooth phone, an icon will appear next to a movie you select that lets you a call the theater to order tickets. The first cars from Ford to get the new navigation system with Travel Link will be the Ford Flex and the Lincoln MKS. Looking back at our earlier post about XM's new nav traffic services, the heat is on in the satellite radio market.