If you're reading this column, you like technology. You have it all over your home, around your office, and in your pockets. It's natural that you'd want the same stuff in your car as well. If so, you'd better speak up because some carmakers are starting to think dashboard tech is a rat hole.

In the last few years, car companies offered an unprecedented level of new technology. Dashboards sprouted satellite navigation, Bluetooth hands-free systems, voice recognition, and satellite radio. For an industry that took most of a decade to embrace CDs, this new technology is pretty impressive. But there's a problem: these in-dash toys are creating as much traffic in dealerships' service bays as on their showroom floors.

Who would believe the CEO of DaimlerChrysler would ever have to run around the world apologizing for the quality failings of Mercedes Benz, most of which are caused by digital technologies? Who would ever think BMW would develop a technology that became an icon for complicated goofiness in the iDrive system?

One apocryphal tale of auto tech gone wrong is that of some recent Mercedes Benz models equipped with advanced digital control in the sunroof. The engineers figured that since power to the motor is going through a CPU anyway, why not lay on the software good and thick? They tweaked the code so that the roof would adjust itself to the quietest open position at any given speed. But nobody told Mercedes buyers, and as the roof in their new Benz kept moving around by itself, they brought the car back in droves for warranty repair. Most of the service techs didn't know about the feature either, so they kept replacing sunroof motors and controls, all charged back to Mercedes Benz USA as a warranty job.

To be sure, it seems the European carmakers have more trouble with in-cabin technology than the Asian firms, who have a long-standing habit of using computer technology to make cars work better. They used to get laughed at for all their gimmicky valve trains, suspensions, and gearboxes. Now look who's laughing.

Automotive News reports, "Bosch Chief Executive Franz Fehrenbach, who heads the world's biggest automotive supplier, said the era was over when cars would feature all the bells and whistles that modern electronics and software could conceivably allow." The mood in some automakers' product meetings is understandably wary toward adding even more tech toys.

Which brings us to the aftermarket: most of the in-car tech you lust for today can be bought from and installed by the aftermarket. You can get a a factory navigation system and backup camera with your new Lexus GS 430 for an extra $2,250, or you can go to Best Buy and get a TomTom GO ($798) while letting the $1,452 you save comfort you every time you have to actually crane your neck to back up. Or order your Toyota Prius with Option Package #5 ($5,065) to get hands-free Bluetooth, or just buy a Parrot CK3100 ($189) and spend a couple hundred more getting it installed. Or spec your Escalade with Cadillac's ceiling-mounted rear-seat video system for $1,295, as opposed to about $300 more to put in two Audiovox HRDV700D DVD headrest systems--neither of which will block your line of sight out of the rearview mirror.

You get the idea.

Consumer technology is a fast-moving business built on lousy margins, intensive tech support, and rapid obsolescence. It's a tough game. Ask any of the PC guys to show you their scars. Who in the car business has the stomach for it?

The Howard-less sonata
When Howard Stern is crossing the street, he'd better look out for approaching Hyundais. That car company recently surveyed several hundred customers to find out whether it should offer XM or Sirius satellite radio. Edmunds InsideLine reports that Hyundai's execs were shocked by the number of customers who specifically requested XM because Sirius would soon carry Howard Stern. (Before you crack an obvious Hyundai joke, realize the company has grown its U.S. sales 464 percent in the last six years, has the fourth-highest customer loyalty rate, and ranks number two in perceived value--ahead of Mercedes Benz.) I think carmakers are a bit foolish to pick one satellite radio system over the other. Offer both--Infiniti does. It's way too early to guess which satellite radio service will be here for the long run. Add wild cards such as iPod kits, MP3 player cell phones with Bluetooth, and in-car Wi-Fi, and the bet gets even more complicated.

And yes, Hyundai is going with XM.