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    @Malandy Drive by wire systems would be the big one. Although the wheel and pedals are still operated the same way, they aren't mechanically connected to the axle, so muscle power isn't being used anymore. That's the improvement that's already in regular use. But electric cars are on the market, which eliminates the heat engine issue, and self-driving cars are under active development. That last one's particularly useful, since while we may have improved cars a lot, the drivers still have all the flaws he mentions.
    – Ray
    Commented Jul 3, 2017 at 22:13
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    @Malandy Heinlein describes steering and braking as unassisted. Not strictly true even back in the day, although power assisted steering and braking were either luxury features or optional equipment - likely not common on the overwhelming majority of vehicles as they are today, and ABS wasn't even heard of on cars back then (although appearing on aircraft). Although far from ubiquitous, stability control, lane keeping assistance, semi-automatic parking, adaptive cruise control, and GPS are all modern advances and automation in what is still a car.
    – Anthony X
    Commented Jul 3, 2017 at 22:26
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    @AnthonyX I was mainly referring to the "exothermic chemical reaction, a reaction which was started and stopped every split second" bit. Yes, there's still a heat engine somewhere, but you're no longer powering it by a constant series of tiny explosions inside your engine, which is probably the most absurd part of the entire mechanism.
    – Ray
    Commented Jul 3, 2017 at 22:46
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    @Ray Let's not be too quick to judge. Have to research this, but Heinlein may not have had his facts straight regarding the relative efficiency of discrete vs continuous combustion. Depending on how its done, the "constant series of tiny explosions" may be more thermodynamically efficient than a continuous alternative. Let's not lose sight of the fact that the point of Heinlein's writing was to establish the perspective of his future-world character as looking back upon a much more technologically primitive past, and may have taken more than a little prosaic license in the process.
    – Anthony X
    Commented Jul 3, 2017 at 23:21
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    IMO, all the ABS, power steering, sort-of-auto-controls and even hybrid engines in modern cars fit firmly into Heinlein's second stage of a group of gadgets added to overcome the original design limitations. Fully electric cars like the Tesla are getting there, but they are not exactly common.
    – Whelkaholism
    Commented Jul 4, 2017 at 9:56