There have been many technical advances based on electronics applied to cars over the last thirty or more years. Some are central to modern safety, such as anti-lock brakes and stability controls, some to fuel economy and emission control and some to user convenience, such as Bluetooth, parking assistance systems and keyless entry and start systems.
And this is one of personal bête-noires. Trust me, I’ve tried keyless entry and start, not on my own car but on some rental cars, and I don’t get it. You still can’t drive without having the key in your possession, and then when you’re driving, what do you do with it? Put it in your pocket and sit on it? Leave it in your jacket or bag, and walk away from an unlocked car? Keep wondering where it is? If you hold the key in your pocket and someone else is driving, who really has control, Captain?
Given modern remote central locking systems, opening the car with a click of the plip is not difficult; the fashion for folding or block keys reduces the sharp object damage to pockets and bags, and there’s somewhere definite to put it. It’s called an ignition barrel and it seems to work pretty after all these years.
So, keyless entry and go gets my “Thanks but no thanks vote”.
QOTD then is “Which modern electronic aid gets your no vote?”
Sound system volume increase with speed of vehicle.
Frequent renter here and typically stabbing at the touchscreen while exiting the airport to turn the darn thing off.
Most cars are a cocoon like in their quiet…automated volume increases truly not necessary.
Then you get cars like my ’05 Mazda 3 where there’s so much road noise at speed that the system can’t keep up!
caljn:
The speed-sensitive volume on my 05 Malibu, at
least, had 3 levels of sensitivity. I found the least
sensitive level to be the best setting.
My current car has volume on the steering wheel,
negating the need for such a feature now.
My buddy’s Tacoma downshifts when the brakes is applied and stays downshifted until the gas pedal is pressed (I think). He doesn’t particularly like it, I would hate it!
I’m a fan of new technology if it’s properly executed and makes things better. I liked the keyless ignition on a Nissan Maxima I had. Get in, tap the button and HAL starts the car for you. Same thing on every Ford I’ve driven with keyless ignition, heck even the recent Ford’s with keyed ignition just requires you to turn to start – it does the rest until the engine lights up. My wife’s new VW Beetle TDI requires either a tap to wake HAL up and then another hold down of the button until it catches or hold the button down for what seems like way too long until it realizes you want to start the car. One is a little convenience, the other is more trouble than the old way of doing it.
Bluetooth is great when it works. It worked great in my Maxima and every fleet Ford I’ve driven at work – it connects right up and call quality is not degraded significantly. My current Honda as well as my wife’s aforementioned VW suck. If we call each other while driving we can’t understand one another due to the combined call quality degradation. Well executed makes things a little better and poorly executed makes it a little worse.
I drive an ’87 GM car and I can pull the key out with the car running. Any 80’s GM car I ever owned, I made sure to enable this(pull on key until internal safety pin breaks). I find it particularly useful when I need to access the trunk while car is running (no trunk release).
As long as I don’t turn the cylinder into full lock position, I never need the ignition key. I shut the car off and turn the ignition lock cylinder to just before it locks up.
Being able to remove the key while the engine is running is an inspection fail in NSW, first responders have to be able to shut the vehicle off in Australia, my Citroen in the event of a crash does it itself turns the fuel supply off.
GM just paid a billion dollars for this sort of problem.
Now you can use your watch to unlock your new Volvo’s doors, start the heater or AC, and check fuel or mileage (Engadget).
I’m currently living without that, but it might be pretty handy.
Probably makes it easier for someone to hack the car too.
Good. ABS, EBD, ABLS, AC, heater, defogger, (normal 3 knob control), disc brakes, power steering, FI, ECM, CC, 3 point belts, headrests, crush zones, non intrusion collapsible steering columns, door impact beams, OD Trans, lock up converter, key without immobilizer and fat plastic head. And thin pillars and large windows. Keep the rest. OK a radio with CD/aux input jack. And no “tattle tale” mode built into the control units for these functions. The rest is either too distracting, expensive to fix or unsafe under emergency conditions (such as power windows, locks, sunroofs if disabled all can trap you in your car in a fire or flood).
I like most of the goodies. I don’t see any use for rain-sensing wipers, though. Out here with the dust that we have, I think that you’d spend a lot of time with the windshield washers.
+1 to rain sensing wipers. Haven’t driven a car with them, but imagine they could also be a nuisance when driving through “buggy” areas. Would wipers turn on and smear the bugs?
I thought rain-sensing wipers would be terrible and a waste of time, but my Peugeot 307 has them, and they actually work a treat. They hardly ever get it wrong, and I’m (now) sold on them from a safety perspective.
Now, the stupid wipers on my co-worker’s 201 Ford Focus ST, that’s another story…: they aren’t rain-sensing, but they are a “speed-dependent front screen wiper system…[which]…When the vehicle is slowed to walking speed or is brought to a standstill, the wiper speed will automatically switch to the next lower wiper speed setting.” My co-worker reports that this is a terrible feature as she’ll pull up to an intersection in the rain with the wipers on constantly, and they’ll go back to intermittent, leaving her second-guessing when the traffic lights change. A dumb idea, and an unsafe one at that!
I can get the idea of them, but I’d rather just deal with a switch. All of my vehicles that have delay wipers (Hey, don’t make fun of my old 1980s stuff!) have plenty of settings for me. Turning the dial is simple.
In Wyoming, we have dust. That’s my only fear of rain-sensing wipers- dirt already on the windshield. We don’t get much rain, though. Turning the wipers on by hand is a piece of cake.
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My Audi is a little different than my other cars- it has two stalks coming out from the steering column- the left one for turn signals and cruise control. The right one handles the wipers. That’s a lot easier to control than the GM arrangement is to me. You can tap the lever downwards for a quick swipe in the mist- more cars need that feature to be that accessible!
Auto wipers would have been very useful here in the last week. They’re certainly on my wish list.
I am surprised no one has said THIS, one very annoying and ,especially, expensive gimmick… I know that it is currently aggravating me…
Electronic suspension and computer controlled struts and dampers.
My Alfa’s rides great, with no sag… But the stupid strut “squeak” is downright annoying and embarrassing.
The price for each corner, since it is an “S(Sportivo)” model… Is, get this,… $1200 each?? So, $4000+ for a replacement suspension. Oh, hell NO.
I owned an 85 Subaru AWD Turbo RX(the precursor to the WRX), back in 1995. I was sitting in traffic, when I heard a loud “POW”. The rear strut airbags blew.
It sounded like a high powered elephant gun. My Subie had the rear sag gangsta lean. It looked like more like Cheech & Chong’s Love Machine, than an 80’s Japanese turbo sedan.
I fixed that problem by, swapping the regular struts from a Subaru GL wagon.
There is one Alfa 164 L(Luxury) model in my friend’s junkyard… Not sure if the L has the same PITA electronic suspension as the S model. So back to square one.
Plus, the fact these Alfas are as rare as seeing a Dodo bird, walk by you on the street, is another obstacle in eradicating the daily squeak.
A very inexcusable expense, on a car that was close to $40,000 back in 1991. Unreal.
I also had the Ride Select electronic suspension in my 86 Mazda 626GT Turbo, 85 626LX Touring hatchback and 87 626LX Touring hatchback… Those never failed me.
Electronic suspensions were a nightmare in the 80’s and 90’s for some manufacturers… Just ask any Lincoln owner.
Don’t be like this poor bastard, folks.
touch screen. it’s a really bad idea to put something as distracting as a tv set in the dashboard. even if you need gps, the after market ones mounted on the windshield make more sense because you don’t have to take your eyes off the road to use them.
Oh, boy. This is going to be a long list… Uh… Hope you don’t mind, and I apologize in advance.
1.) Electronic Gauges – Yeah, backlit analogue gauges work well enough. Reading an LCD screen in heavy evening sunlight is a pain in the ass.
2.) Buttons for Bluetooth, Call Waiting, and Voice Chat on the steering wheel – Ya ain’t callin’ me in my car, and I’m sure as hell not going to use any of this stuff if I DID bring a cellphone with me.
3.) Infotainment systems AKA The Big Blinkin’ Distraction – Stop. Please. Stop beeping. Stop changing the graphics on the background and drawing my eyes to you. Shut down. I just want to listen to the radio. Please, no. Stop. I don’t want XM Satellite Radio, I already put the CD in.
4.) Backup cameras and blind-spot monitors – The cameras I can deal with. Most cars don’t need them, but I can understand having them on say an SUV, CUV, or truck. The blind-spot monitors though? Can they NOT beep when the car is stationary? It’s annoying when you drive a rental with them, and you stop in traffic and there’s someone a bit too close to your lane and the sensor beeps for a solid minute before the light changes.
5.) Heated, cooled, massaging anything – This is just unnecessary, adds worthless weight to the car, and more than likely will be turned on a few times before the owner doesn’t even bother. Not to mention most massage functions suck anyways.
6.) 4GLTE/Wi-Fi in the car – Sure, it’s great for the kids. But then the problem arises as to why your kid is holding your Wi-Fi capable device in the car anyways. Not to mention the plans for these services are insanely costly, simply because it’s in the car.
7.) Adjustable passenger lighting – Now, I’ve only seen this a few times on luxury cars. But most features in a luxury car trickle down eventually. And this is just dangerous. If your passenger can turn on a footwell light, or turn on the low-level light in the door, that’s going to affect your night vision. Cars for a long time have had dome lights, but those are in the middle, within driver reach. The passenger lights in this case I bring up are not.
8.) “Manu-Matic” Transmissions – The shifts are slow either way. It bugs me. Even more so when I shift myself to get more power or save some gas, and the car overrides it. Either give us automatics or manuals. The comprise isn’t worth the added weight.
9.) Having full-time AWD – For the love of differentials, can we please stop having full AWD? Make it an option, not a standard! A CUV doesn’t need AWD all the time, and it’s FWD based anyways! And no, being AWD doesn’t make it safer for you in the winter, Mrs. Bland. Having snow tires does.
10.) Electronically boosted steering – You hear me Camry?! I can’t stand electronically assisted steering that’s turned up to the maximum setting. It’s terrifying to drive. I barely turn the wheel and the entire car jerks left or right. Engineers put this in to the combat the weight issues that modern cars have, but the massive shift in momentum from a slight adjustment makes it even more dangerous than slightly stiff steering would.
EDIT: Fixed typos
I like the heated seats in my Audi in the winter. We have a family member with a back problem- in winter, they’re a blessing. I’d keep them, but I’ve heard bad things about “massaging seats”. That seems a little overboard.
Manumatics: I like this in the Audi again. When driving in the mountains, it’s nice to be able to tap down a gear when going down long, steep grades. It’s not crucial, but it’s more convenient than using a shifter conventionally (Especially a column one, since I’m prone to going too far).
AWD: Agreed completely! I just drove an Audi with quattro 800 miles across nothing but pavement that had no snow, rain, or sleet. I’m driving three wheels too many, and am really wearing down tires. The AMC Eagle was perfect there- just give me a lever.
Computers/ECMs. We already had all power stuff, a/c, and even airbags (70s GM) before them. I know–I have a loaded ’75 Olds ’98 with everything I want. Rides better than anything now, clear visibility even though it’s 19.5 feet long. Had it combined the over the shoulder belts and the air bags, I’d feel as safe as in a new Camry. It’s been so pleasant owning two 1970s cars without computer controls. Okay, they get worse mileage. I can deal with it. I’ll take using a screwdriver or electrical tape and a chart to fix something over a supercalifgralalisticharmonysensor for $400 any day. I can adjust anything by feel inside the car without taking my eyes off the road. Nothing resets. Nothing “defaults”. I turn a metal key in a metal lock and it opens. I make more at the hardware store for $2.50. No computers=no problem even a subnormal mechanic can’t try to fix.
-Push button start. I rented a BMW 328i with this feature and I could have sworn I pushed the button to turn off the car but I came back from shopping to find that the car still idling…I may have pushed the button too many times and restarted the engine. There is very little tactile feedback compared to physically removing the key from the ignition.
-Electric parking brakes. I like that I can vary the gripping force of the parking brake with a mechanical handbrake. What if the electric solenoid fails and does not release the parking brake?
-Auto dimming rear view mirror. It does not take much effort to flip the rear view mirror downward if you are dazzled by the headlights from a car behind you.
-Touchscreens. You’re practically texting when you are going through different menus, commands and options while driving; they’re pretty distracting and potentially dangerous.
-Backup cameras on cars, especially compact ones like a Corolla; I can understand them being on large SUVs and vans. I was taught in driver’s ed to turn your head and look back whenever backing up your car. Do these things even work effectively at night?
-Bulky remote keyfobs. Keyfobs keep getting bigger and heavier and many cars do not come with a valet key (that does not have any remote buttons on it) anymore. Some cars don’t even have keyholes in the door. They are costly to replace if lost and always weigh down my pockets.
-Bluetooth. I don’t want to be talking while I’m driving; I find it hard to concentrate on the driving task. Also, I wouldn’t want to subject my passengers to my personal conversations blaring over the speakers.
I can do without all of them. New points once a year set in seconds with a dwellmeter and I am off. Mechanical voltage regulator for the generator too. Heck my daily driver is a radio delete and I am keeping it that way. How much crap does one need to motor down the road? Not much.
Since the newest car I’ve owned was a ’67 model, it’s easiest for me to think in terms of what technologies I’d most like to have. The safety-related stuff is the main category, but the top items would be shoulder harnesses and a steering column that won’t impale me. The only ‘modern’ safety technology I’d really like is ABS.
Other than that, for both fuel economy and emissions reasons, EFI would be nice. But the convenience doo-dads have never appealed to me.
And in exchange, I could do without all the damn cigarette lighters and ashtrays every car I’ve owned has had.
Our Honda Pilot has an electronic liftgate. There are three ways to open it: a button on the driver’s door, the keyfob, and a button on the inside of the handle. The button on the driver’s door only works when the key is in the ignition; fair enough, open the gate then turn off the car. The fob works whenever. But the liftgate button, on the other hand… Granted, the power option is useful when your hands are full. But I never quite understood how it could be difficult to just put your stuff down.
It takes about 15 seconds for the gate to lift itself, much more time than it would take to just open it manually, and the gate can only be opened electronically. Meaning when the gate electronics go, it will be a very expensive repair bill just to access the trunk area.
Rain sensing wipers and tire inflation sensors. Just things that kinda annoy me. How hard is it to press a lever or check the tire pressure manually every few months? Also, massaging seats. C’mon a car is not a SPA!
I do like head’s up displays and heated steering wheels. And HID and LED headlamps and tail lights.
These are a few of my non-favorite things…..
Touch screen
BlueTooth
Push Button starting
Wheel mounted radio control buttons
Any device that enables cell phone use and/or texting while driving
Lane Change warning signal
DVD players in minivans
Seat Belt warning signal when belts aren`t being used
Wi-Fi enabling devices
Juice Box holders
The less catnip, the better!
Touch screens. They’re ergonomically disastrous and the only applications for which I think they make any sense aren’t ones that belong in cars, except perhaps as baggage.
I’ve also never been fond of power seats. The only way it even seems like it would even be convenient would be if it’s combined with a memory setting that also adjusts the mirrors, etc., for multiple-driver cars or after taking the car for servicing. Otherwise, it just seems like extra weight and complexity for no good reason.
Living in a city, I think y’all are overlooking the security/reassurance value of keyless entry. It’s sometimes very reassuring to know that you can easily confirm that all your doors are locked, particularly if you have absent-minded passengers.
You should be able to set it up to automatically lock the doors once the key is gone from the car.
That mostly seems like a good way to end up creating problems at the car wash, honestly…
Also if you have a garage having a locked car is not convenient either. But with my car turning it on and off is easy, although I have not used it. I have thought about it though when on a trip away from home.
With you on touch screens
My 2014 CTS has nearly all of the toys: tri-zone A/C, adaptive cruise, can sense on coming traffic if you are backing out of a parking place and other stuff too numerous to list. I like it all.
One thing that I would like to see are cars that can disable phone systems while the car is moving. I would not be surprised if the person who went through the red light and collided with me was using a cell phone. Wiped out a lot of my electronics – almost $16,000 to fix the front end.
Bwahahaha! Excluding my F150, I haven’t spent $16,000 on purchasing cars in TOTAL in 35 years of motoring. I laughed (to myself) when a friend was tire shopping for his wife’s MB SUV- he spent more on one tire change than I have on many of my cars. Does it roll down the road THAT much better?
There’s a middle ground. Compared to my 1980s stuff, the 1990s vehicles I’ve owned have been so much better. In my mind, the 1990s made some of the best cars out there….
Frank, I have probably spent a little more than you over the course of the last 48 years but not by much. The last tires I bought for my car cost me $80.00 for a set of 4 mounted and balanced with 70% tread. I can afford to run 3 cars including insurance for less than the cost of most other people who are paying on one car.
The question is: Are you enjoying the car, or enjoying the spreadsheet results?
If I get to the point where I’m so cheap that I’ll drive worn out junk bought solely due to price, it’s time to bicycle commute 24/7/365. And forget about cars completely.
The correct answer is: both! Do I enjoy my vintage rides- ’59 Bel Air, ’60 Microbus, ’66 Corvair… Yes. Do I like my T-Bird SuperCoupe… Yes. Do I like getting 45 mpg but even more importantly spending about 10 cents/mile (IIRC) with my Tempo and my Tracer? Yes. Do I enjoy leaving the vehicles at home and bicycle commuting/errand running/leisure at most every opportunity? Yes.
Synthesized-voice warnings for door ajar and other things. Fortunately I’ve experienced this only in rental cars. Freedom of speech for people–cars should pipe down.
me? Power seats, all my cars in the last 15 years or so have them, most with memories. Then I re-discovered the quickness of just lifting a lever and instant action when got my FJ cruiser. Power sear motors are quite heavy, most are slow when compare to the manual.
so my vote: Power seats, memory or not.
Otherwise, I love them all:
Power lock:
remember how you try to unlock the rear passenger door by reaching over?
Power window:
same as above.
Power mirror:
just think the passenger side mirror needs adjusting.
Keyless:
just think you are holding grocery on both hands.
Bluetooth:
Streams music to my sound system, takes phone calls.
GPS:
Think you are lost in LA, so you are driving with one hand, other hand holding map and try to read all at the same time.
Electronic ignition:
remember points need servicing?
E fuel injection:
old cars smell bad, use more fuel, and needed frequent servicing.
God, I don’t miss the bad ole days.
I like most of the current electronic stuff (especially keyless entry and start), but there’s a few I could do without. I’m actually quite amazed that in all the comments, no one has mentioned the one that I most dislike:
Automatic dimming rearview mirror – seems like it’s a lot slower to dim than the trusty hand flip.
Then there’s the irritating remote lock light flash or, worse, horn beep, particularly when it can’t be disabled (Ford). What’s most maddening is when it’s possible for the owner to easily turn that stuff off, but no one does. Of course, the well-known, infamous GM back-up lights that come on when remotely opening the doors also falls into this category. Poorly designed key fobs with buttons that are all too easily accidently pressed in a pants’ pocket are a pet-peeve, too.
After that, there’s the automatic HVAC controls that never seem to find the ‘just right’ setting. Or new cars that can’t seem to be able to keep the windshield clear of A/C condensation when the outside humidity is high.
There’s the factory NAV systems that have outdated information and mostly lock-out user input when the vehicle is in motion (Toyota).
And while I like sunroofs, there’s a wide variation in size. Subaru seems to be sticking with the large, front seat usable ones, while Mazda has ridiculously small slits set so far back it seems like they’re more for the rear seat passengers.
But I really like stuff like automatic headlights (which really should be required on all cars since they all seem to have illuminated instruments that make it difficult to tell if the headlights are on) and windshield wipers that automatically drop down to a lower setting when stopped at a light.
My auto dimming mirrors seem to work fine.
Same here. I recently installed a compass/autodim mirror in our ’05 Forester after driving a service loaner that had one. Most if not all Subies over the past 15 years or so are pre-wired for them. Works great!
Me too, I put one in my Cougar a few years ago and will never go back. I’d actually put the autodimming mirror into a technology I couldn’t live without list.
Plus they often have other useful features tied into them, like temp and a compass(that’s all the GPS I need!), considering they take up no more substantial real estate than a standard rear view mirror, I really don’t see the issue.
What I like about the factory version is that the drivers side outside mirror is also auto dimming.
Composite headlights = joke.
I remember in the ’70s when the Big Three petitioned the govt. to approve headlights other than sealed beams; they said they needed shorter lighting to make “more aerodynamic front ends”. B.S. Almost everything they make today even down to the smallest coupe has a blunt front end with the real estate of a barn- plenty of room for sealed beams.
Sealed beams which incidentally don’t yellow, craze, crack, or pit… well yeah the glass CAN be broken but it’s much sturdier than plastic and also consider the replacement costs. Back in the day only a couple bucks each; even now that S.B.s are almost a legacy item, replacement cost is but a fraction of that of a composite assembly.
See, this is how to improve performance, cost, and longevity all while thumbing your nose at crazy replacement costs for inferior parts:
And they immediately went to stacked rectangular quads on the Malibu, Fury, Monte Carlo, etc. So much for aerodynamics.
And you actually think THAT looks good?
LMAO
It’s a TEMPO. How good do the OEM parts look?
As noted (apparently you missed it) it WORKS better on several levels.
The car was FREE- 15 years ago! As one might guess the front fascia and hood were smashed out. Got a free hood, hacked the lighting out of an old F-100 grille, put in a moonroof and used the roof “hole” for the grille block. Up to 45 mpg; cents/mile practically only fuel and insurance (collector plates = no registration). Utterly reliable, comfy seats, quiet and smooth, can top 100 mph.
You see, it is ME that LMAO. *thumbup*
Most all of them, including power windows, locks and remote start. Cruise control would be okay.
The electronic power steering on the ONION took far longer to adapt to than the central mounted instrument pod [seconds in that case] where the EPS took about a week. It was akin to driving the 66 Mercury Montclair four door I learned to drive on [with a similar sort of ride float on the freeway, which I loved and still love].
It’s got an open recall for the EPS [never had a problem with it and the dealer takes three hours to do an oil change as well as a week or more for any service work I’ve had to do] and I’m still having problems getting the key out after the ignition switch recall.
The last ignition switch [had 3000 miles on it] I could take the key out and drive along. Worn key? Bah.
Given GM’s [in this case] lousy record with such simple things like an ignition switch, would I really trust them with sophisticated electronic systems in a newer car ? Not on my dime.
It’s hard to get away from any of the nanny devices. They drive the initial cost up and have the potential for higher repair costs down the road. I keep my cars long after the “sell by ” date.
I’ll take a robust structure, long lived mechanicals, ease of service and parts availability over any of the current gimmicks and fads being crammed into even the most modest vehicle.
But while we’re at it:
Digital speedometers: Suddenly it’s 1984
Factory GPS: Far less expensive to get a Garmin or other device.
And while not tech: over-sized consoles that take up passenger space and put the driver into a tub. Gun slit windows and poor visibility.
And where are the bumpers to protect all that gruesome grille work we’re seeing ? Wasn’t that what drove the legislation for 5 mph bumpers
At least give the buyer a choice. I’m buying a car not a rolling condo or a four wheeled vibrator.
I’d think driving enthusiasts would be concerned that all of their driving skills have been co-opted by electronics. It’s no longer driving, it’s being a pilot.
There is a bumper, which is behind the radiator covering as seen in this picture. The box in the middle is part of the forward seeing radar system.
Everything but ABS and fuel injection. And fuel injection isn’t all that important.
I love keyless entry/pushbutton start. Once you’ve used it, keys seem like such an old fashioned, antiquated system. Plus getting in and out of the car is a breeze – just leave the fob in your pocket or purse and you’re good for the entire day!
OVER-BOOSTED power steering(as well as electric steering I
previously mentioned). I’ve read automotive publication reviews
of both ancient and late models possessing “numb-feeling”
steering or “twitchiness” at highway speeds. This is a pre-
scription for disaster, and manufacturers, in THIS century,
should know better than to turn out a product with such
handling characteristics.
For most people, I feel that any level of power steering is
necessary only for “close quarters” maneuvering, as in parking.
Above 30mph, the only thing PS accomplishes is robbing a driver
of road feel/feedback. And nobody should be able to move a
steering wheel with one finger, or by blowing on it(!)
This comes from one who, perhaps should not admit it, but
cannot keep his car on a lane on a highway. I prefer the on-
rails tight-centeredness of little to no power steering. And no:
my car is not in need of alignment; I find the steering wheels
in just about anything built after 2000 to be too “soft”, or
easy to turn from center, even unintentionally.
I almost over-steered a friend’s 2001 Celica off of my own
street during a test drive! I figured if anything in that budget
rode like it was “on rails”, it would be that car.