If Merle Hay Road is deemed the auto mile of Greater Des Moines, then Hickman Road and 100th Street should be called the million-dollar intersection. Here, luxury car dealers flaunt their top products including Mercedes-Benz’s $500,000 SLR McLaren.

Luxury vehicle, however, is starting to become a loose term, as many upscale accessories, including heated seats, climate control and navigation units, are becoming more common in standard automobiles. To stay ahead of the race, luxury vehicle manufacturers have had to push the limits of technology to add comfort and convenient accessories that help justify the price tag.

Increasing numbers of consumers are demanding more features as well.

“[People] are willing to spend more discretionary income on vehicles,” said David Baum, sales and leasing consultant for Lexus at Betts Auto Campus.

Many Des Moines area dealers have achieved record sales in recent months. Betts Auto Campus Hummer division, said sales manager Al Bell, has been in the top 20 out of all Hummer dealers in the region including Chicago and Minneapolis. European Motorcars, general sales manager David Dean said his dealership exceeded its previous sales record in June and is on its way to beat it again in July.

The difference between a $30,000 and an $80,000 luxury vehicle may not just be the price tag or the luxury package, though. The difference could also mean a completely re-engineered automobile, said Baum.

“Luxury amenities, comfort, safety, superb handling and superior performance, all these things are blended together to define the dollar amount,” said Dean.

But once a customer decides to invest thousands in a new car, it’s likely he will tack on all the additional amenities as well.

New technology leads the list of car accessories. “The current Lexus LS,” said Baum, “has 42 microprocessors.”

GPS navigation systems continue to become more advance.

Most now run on a DVD program and are voice activated so the driver ideally never has to take his eyes off the road or stop to enter an address. Many also come with Bluetooth software, which connects to the driver’s cell phone in about a 3-foot radius of the vehicle. The driver answers a phone call through the car’s computer system and the voice on the other line will come through on the car’s speakers.

In addition, some BMWs offer iDrive, a command control unit run by a mouse-like device on the car’s center console, which allows the driver to adjust settings including climate control or how long he would like the lights to stay on when he shuts the door. Lexus models may include an Electronic Chromatic Device, which uses a sensor in the back window to detect how much light is coming through the car and adjusts the brightness of the gauges in front accordingly to reduce glare.

Stereo systems in today’s luxury vehicles often consist of eight to 12 speakers, a six-CD disc changer in front and an MP3 player connection. The Hummer H2 comes with satellite radio, a popular feature, while other manufacturers, such as Lexus and Mercedes, can install one for an additional cost. The H2 also has a feature that allows the driver to listen to the radio while a passenger in the back seat plugs in headphones and listens to a CD in the stereo system, Bell said.

Convenience is as important as comfort. Most luxury vehicles come with smart key access, which require only that the driver carry the key in his pocket and start the car by pushing a button, reducing wear on the ignition. Some also come with a cruise control feature that allows the car to maintain a set distance from the vehicle ahead, which Dean said Mercedes tested in New York City during rush-hour traffic.

From there the possibilities for accessories are endless and can include reclining, vibrating rear seats, drop-down DVD screens, electronic shades and climate control seats that allow cabin air to flow through tiny holes in the leather.

A higher price tag on a vehicle may also mean more safety features. Among the many high-tech features on today’s luxury cars are sonar sensors or small cameras attached to a vehicle’s rear that detect what is behind the automobile when it’s in reverse and display it on the navigation screen. Some models even tell the driver which way to turn to avoid hitting a hazard.

Newer Lexus models come with a Pre-Collision System that keeps track of the vehicle’s speed and distance from the automobile in front of it. If it determines that a crash is inevitable, it will press on the brakes and lock the seatbelt, preparing the driver for impact.

Despite all these features, for many, buying a luxury vehicle is still about the look.

“People get excited when shopping,” said Hummer salesman Bell. “They ask, ‘How many of this color have you sold?’ because they want to be different.”

Gary Oakland, Porsche sales manager at Ramsey Auto, says that look is the most important factor for Porsche buyers. While most dealers have customers who drive away with in-stock cars, Oakland often places custom orders. Although most request the $7,000 luxury package, which includes a moon roof, trailer hitch, heated seats, driver memory seats, auto climate, Bose surround sound and Zeon lights, on their Cayenne, the most popular Porsche model among Iowans, their bigger concern is where to put leather and what color it should be.

A Porsche buyer wants special things tailored to them,” said Oakland. “They know what they want and they’re not flexible.”

Although most luxury car buyers will order everything they want from the car manufacturer when they buy the vehicle, a growing number, especially those with SUVs, are adding aftermarket products including DVD players, larger tires and chrome.

“I think people are growing more accustomed to spending more money on their vehicle to make them look better because it pays off,” said Jordan McCann, store manager for Elite Styling and Sound, “They’re happy with their vehicles.”

McCann said that more people are making changes to their vehicles rather than trading them in. The biggest vehicle updates in his shop to date: 42-inch plasma TV installed in the back of a Nissan Armada and a set of 30-inch wheels – the largest in the Midwest – added onto an H2 Hummer.

In the future, technology will likely be the driving force in car accessories. Baum said that the 2007 Lexus LS 460 will come with a keyless entry system that uses a wallet-size card, a climate control system that keeps track of the occupant’s body temperature, a 19-speaker sound system with a hard drive that can hold up to 4,000 songs and an Intelligent Park Assist system that will park the car with a touch of a button. Models will soon offer Wi-Fi capabilities as well.

“Car manufacturers keep coming out with more features, but the general public wants more,” said Baum. “They want their lives to be easier and safer.”