Ford recently took to the streets of San Francisco to demonstrate new "smart cars" that can send information to each other.

The new safety improvement works by utilizing GPS and wireless technology to constantly send updates between vehicles about the location of cars. The feature only works in a limited range, but it could prove useful in preventing accidents.

Ford is just one of many automakers working on the project, which includes General Motors, Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Audi, Mercedes, Hyundai and more. They say it will be at least five years before the feature is available on mass-produced vehicles. However, the cooperation between automakers is a good sign early on.

"Next year, we're doing a model deployment in a city where there will be thousands of equipped vehicles and trucks and buses all sending out these messages, and then the goal in 2013 is to start a regulation that will require this on all vehicles," Ford technical director Mike Shulman told PC Magazine. "Then, maybe consumer electronics companies would start designing products that could be retrofitted onto existing cars, because everyone sees the potential."

The technology is still years away, so in the meantime drivers might want to consider buying a used car from New Jersey State Auto Auction. Whether it's a used Ford or any other vehicle, there are a wide range of cars for sale at affordable prices.