Considering the very nature of vehicular transport is changing, it stands to reason that the all-important cluster of gauges and warning lights ought to change as well. And nothing’s more versatile than an LCD screen. In Ford’s new 2010 hybrids, instead of mechanical gauges and such, you’ll be able to choose your own electronically displayed readouts, and I imagine customize how they look somewhat as well. You can battery charge, GPS and Satellite radio coverage, perhaps even current mp3 track information — this in addition to the usual MPH and RPM indicators, of course. I believe that’s what they call “fancy,” sir.
I still don’t trust these things, although I should say that in my car the supposedly trusty mechanical speedometer doesn’t turn on for about five minutes, then with a “ding!” the needle jumps up to like 15 over the limit. I’m hoping Ford has put enough effort into these things that they’re as reliable as the old-school ones have been for almost a century. And I’m also hoping they’ll drop the terminally corny “efficiency leaves” thing.
More pictures and a demo video (that I can’t rip off, damn their eyes) over at Jalopnik.