UAE driving accessories

Luxury carmakers are in a constant arms race to deliver the most refined and technologically robust car interiors ever made. The Mercedes S-Class has built-in seat massagers and can scan the road for errant pedestrians; the Ranger Rover Sport comes with a boutique Meridian DSP sound system that uses digital signal processing to adjust for the acoustic anomalies of the automotive listening environment; and if you really don’t feel like touching the now ubiquitous touch screens found in modern cars, the Infiniti Q50 is one of the first cars to offer gesture control.
At the upper echelons, modern cars come kitted out with technology, but what if you already own and love your current car, but can’t live without a wifi hotspot? You’re in luck, as the auto accessory super store Yellow Hat now sells the BW MiFi router, offering in-car wireless internet over your mobile phone network of choice. Simply insert your sim card in the MiFi device, which draws power from the 12V outlet on your car and passengers can connect to the internet on their Wi-Fi-enabled devices. Sounds superfluous? The research suggests the opposite — a 2010 study by the UK research firm Omnibus that interviewed 2,018 people online found that more than 25 per cent of those polled were interested in having the internet in their cars, especially families and commuters.
Right, so now that you’re streaming movies as you thunder down Shaikh Zayed Road, it would be nice to have good sound in your ride. Brian Meghoe, Founder of Brian’s Custom Audio (BCA) can help. Founded in 2006, BCA prides itself on “transform[ing] cars into an environment with acoustics that are as perfectly balanced as a concert hall.”
Recently launched in the UAE, BCA seems to occupy a niche at the top of the food chain — its first four projects are all Ferraris, three 458 Spiders and one FF have recently been shipped from Dubai to the BCA headquarters in The Netherlands for bespoke sound systems.
“The journey begins by discussing in detail the client’s vision. We then come back with a proposed solution. After the design phase come acoustic improvement, integration, wiring, sound processing, installation and tuning — all done with complete precision, allowing us to satisfy and even exceed the client’s expectations.” BCA have their work cut out for them then; it’s hard to hear anything over the throaty roar of a Ferrari exhaust note.
It’s not just Japanese and Dutch companies getting into the UAE market, as 42 US manufacturers recently convened in Sharjah for the Middle East Motor Tuning Show. Saif Mohammed Al Midfa, CEO of the Expo Centre in Sharjah, views motoring accessories as almost a way of life in the region:“In this part of the world no one likes to drive stock. Since car modification is a matter of personal choice, a lot depends upon personal tastes and styles, some that can be expensive, some very classy, while others could be quite cheap but weird and wacky. With 3D printing technology making inroads into the sector, it will be interesting to see how the things take shape in the regional tuning industry,” says Al Midfa.