The Latest Car Technology Is Starting to Drive People Nuts
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https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/drivers-high-tech-cars-preferences-28ab9584
Drivers are finding they wish the smart technology in their cars was just a bit dumber.
Automakers have added new tech features in the 2020s that go beyond the touch screens, assisted-driving systems and companion phone apps that have become ubiquitous in new cars. Some vehicles come with infrared night vision, seasonal ambient lighting and interior “fam cams” showing rear passengers.
Many drivers say it is too much. The share who had positive feelings about the intuitiveness of their car’s controls fell from 79% in 2015 to 56% in 2024, according to surveys of new-car buyers by Strategic Vision, a market-research firm. The trend was similar for drivers’ perceptions of dashboard displays, screen interfaces and the layout of the instrument panel.
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In January, Vincent Dufault-Bédard tried and failed to remotely start charging his 2024 Volkswagen ID.4 electric car using its phone app. The 36-year-old engineer in Montreal scurried out into the 15° night in shorts and flip-flops, thinking he would be back indoors quickly.
But the car doors wouldn’t open because their sensor-equipped handles were on the fritz in the cold. He ended up having to shimmy into his car through the trunk.
“Just give me a normal door handle,” said Dufault-Bédard.
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Touch screens are a touchy subject for drivers like Jake Pratte. He sees them as both an annoyance and a potential hazard. Changing settings can require multiple taps and usually doesn’t deliver physical feedback like the twist of a knob or the press of a button.
“You have to sit there and stare at what you’re doing, which means you’re taking your eyes off the road,” said Pratte, a 35-year-old project manager in the St. Louis area.
I agree with the above especially. If you drive a car long enough, it is easy to feel by touch what buttons you need to move, etc. Almost impossible to do with a touch screen.
My car is kind of old, so I dont have to worry too much about it.
@taiwan_girl said in The Latest Car Technology Is Starting to Drive People Nuts:
Changing settings can require multiple taps and usually doesn’t deliver physical feedback like the twist of a knob or the press of a button.
Funny. I had a 2016 Accord (loved it), but it had a touch/slide volume control, which bothered me. Sure I used the volume control on the steering wheel instead, but when we later got the CRV (and Odyssey), the circle knob to control the volume was a great tactile feature to have back!
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There is this “safety feature” that attempts to detect if the driver is sitting upright with his/her eyes open and looking forward, and the car beeps if it cannot “detect” the driver’s eyes looking forward. Problem is the implementation results in too many false negatives — they car keep beeping even when the driver really is sitting up and alert with his/her eyes looking forward, and the beeping becomes a distraction to the driver. Worse, there is no way to disable this supposed “safety feature.”
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I've got to keep that in mind the next time I buy a car:
No annoying safety features
No ads on my screen
Real door handles, doors that can be opened with a physical key
Real buttons for the most important functions (e.g. my partner drives a new Mercedes and volume can only be controlled with a touchscreen slider - so annoying!).
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My problem with the auto-braking is you can't just disable it once. You can disable it, but it turns itself back on every time you start the car. And it's several levels deep in the screen menu.
@jon-nyc said in The Latest Car Technology Is Starting to Drive People Nuts:
My problem with the auto-braking is you can't just disable it once. You can disable it, but it turns itself back on every time you start the car. And it's several levels deep in the screen menu.
Not on our Honda. There’s a button on the dash. Same for the lane departure. What I dislike about them is the all or nothing approach. It would be useful to get a beep if I am drifting, it’s another thing to have the steering wheel start to fight me a little.
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I wish they'd put lane warning on semis. One just about ran me off the road Monday night.
“I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” ~Winston S. Churchill
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@Mik said in The Latest Car Technology Is Starting to Drive People Nuts:
I wish they'd put lane warning on semis. One just about ran me off the road Monday night.
I had to rent a U-Haul last Saturday to transport 8 digital pianos. The lack of even a backup camera or back sensors was really surprising.
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@Mik said in The Latest Car Technology Is Starting to Drive People Nuts:
I wish they'd put lane warning on semis. One just about ran me off the road Monday night.
They don't need one.
You moved, didn't you?
“Cry havoc and let slip the DOGE of war!”
Those who cheered as J-6 American prisoners were locked in solitary for 18 months without trial, now suddenly fight tooth and nail for foreign terrorists’ "due process". — Buck Sexton
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@Mik said in The Latest Car Technology Is Starting to Drive People Nuts:
I wish they'd put lane warning on semis. One just about ran me off the road Monday night.
They don't need one.
You moved, didn't you?
@Jolly said in The Latest Car Technology Is Starting to Drive People Nuts:
@Mik said in The Latest Car Technology Is Starting to Drive People Nuts:
I wish they'd put lane warning on semis. One just about ran me off the road Monday night.
They don't need one.
You moved, didn't you?
Quickly, yes.
