BMW's New Precipitation Radar Helps Drivers Steer Away from Rain... and Boredom

BMW claims to be the first automaker in the world to offer its customers the option of viewing the current precipitation for any location in Germany through a graphic display on the car's LCD screen. The new service that is provided through the BMW ConnectedDrive system, is a further development of the weather forecast that is already available in the car. According to the Bavarian automaker, the precipitation graphic displays feature two zoom settings, are updated every 15 minutes and show the geographical distribution of rain, hail or snow.

And if that ain't enough, BMW said that from July 2009, it will add "Precipitation Pattern" menu option that offers an animated representation of cloud movements over the last 90 minutes. Cool, now we all know how BMW drivers will be spending their time during traffic rush hours...