Jeep Wrangler with futuristic dashboard courtesy of RIM owned QNX shown off

QNX has been talking about the future of cars, and the future is all about customisation.

The operating system has been demoed in a Jeep Wrangler Sahara and sees the digital instrument cluster (that's a dashboard to us Brits) configured according to your personal preferences.

If more than one person uses the car, each driver can switch back to their preferred configuration and skin by simply pressing the touchscreen. It's similar to the four customisable panels BMW has recently showed off in its 5-Series.

Sitting in the middle of the instrument cluster is turn-by-turn guidance that is directly paired to the head unit's GPS navigation system.

However, the head unit is far more than a virtual A to Z. Drivers can make use of any number of applications including Pandora and TuneIn for streaming internet radio, weather reports, a parking search app and once paired via Bluetooth the ability to read any texts or emails out loud to you from your smartphone.

Each time a particular favourite track comes on to the radio, you will be able to post what it is you're listening to, to your Facebook wall via a voice command. The head unit can also be used as virtual mechanic to identify any problems that occur with the car.

QNX is the operating system used in BlackBerry PlayBooks, which themselves are currently being embedded in a range of Canadian police cars.

However, QNX's vision for the future of motoring is far more integrated than merely utilising an already existing device.

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