Tech to make your car smarter, and driving safer

[MUSIC] It's a terrifying moment in a parent's life, seeing your child get behind the wheel of a car. But in some ways, technology has your back and your kids. Truvulo is a small device that turns your car into a connected car by plugging into the diagnostics port. A feature that became standard in all U. S. cars in 1996. Every time you start a car, the car goes through a sub-diagnostic check. We get access to that data and we can tell you something is wrong way before the check engine light comes on. That data is sent via Bluetooth to an app on your smart phone. We have sensors built within our system that tell you. How you're driving your car. So if your do hard acceleration, brakes, swerving, what speed you're driving at- things like that. Truvelo also provides alerts based on specific locations so you can find out when your child arrives or leaves home, school, or a friend's place. And, yes, the app can tell i f the device is unplugged. But, maybe your kids would welcome the driving data? The most common feedback was that they're as nervous about driving as parents are nervous about the kids' driving. My son said, once I finish my drive I want a quick thumbs up or a thumbs down. Did I do well or not do well? Another serious concern for parents? Distracted driving. The Android app Agent is designed to make your smartphone smarter. What we do is intelligently make changes on the phone in the background. And automatically. Things that you would probably do yourself manually. For example, when your battery is running low, the screen brightness lowers automatically. Its driving agent is especially well suited for texting teens. To reply say send text. They automatically detect when you're driving based off your speed or a Bluetooth connection. And then if you get text messages it will read out the messages to you, and you have the option to send an auto response or by voice dictate a response. Some added safety for kids, and peace of mind for parents. In San Francisco, I'm Sumi Das, cnet.com for CBS News.