New Stuff on Vehicles likes/dislikes

[aspeck]

That works if you can calculate where the Wheels are on the Car, I can't put a Car on a Drive On Hoist, even if a Gun were held to my Head

That is why you have rear view side mirrors ... or open the door and look down the side of the car ... of course I always back in ... it is from my fire department habit ... gotta be able to leave as quickly as possible ...

 

[redneck joe]

And fed ex came up with that back in the early 80s for their fleet. When backing upon arrival one is more aware of their surroundings. Then pulling out forward is inherently more safe. I implemented that in 1986 within our company.

 

[BWR1953]

... open the door and look down the side of the car...

Do that with my trucklet and it'll slam on the brakes, sound the alarm and tell you to put the truck in Park.

 

[Mc Tool]

Do that with my trucklet and it'll slam on the brakes, sound the alarm and tell you to put the truck in Park.

technology for the sake of it . Thats just crazy

 

[jimmbo]

That is why you have rear view side mirrors ... or open the door and look down the side of the car ... of course I always back in ... it is from my fire department habit ... gotta be able to leave as quickly as possible ...

Nothing in front showing where the Tires are in relation to the Hoist Ramps, and nothing that indicates you are still centered, as you drive Forward.

As for backing in to Parking Stalls, I usually try to find a Stall where I can drive thru to the Next Stall, that way I can leave going Forward, but only at Costco, as there stalls a bit wider and have Spacers between. Otherwise I am Parallel Parking, that way NO Dings in the Car from Morons parked next to me, in way too Narrow Stalls

 

[Mc Tool]

My local garage workshop has a mirror on the wall behind the four post lift .

 

[redneck joe]

Nothing in front showing where the Tires are in relation to the Hoist Ramps, and nothing that indicates you are still centered, as you drive Forward.

As for backing in to Parking Stalls, I usually try to find a Stall where I can drive thru to the Next Stall, that way I can leave going Forward, but only at Costco, as there stalls a bit wider and have Spacers between. Otherwise I am Parallel Parking, that way NO Dings in the Car from Morons parked next to me, in way too Narrow Stalls

Doesn't work if loading lumber in the truck bed.

 

[BWR1953]

technology for the sake of it . Thats just crazy

I dunno if it's just for the sake of it or not.
Might be mandated, like TPMS. But, it was definitely disconcerting the first time it happened.

For the things I like, the Lane Following feature is awesome and I use it all the time, combined with cruise control. Lane Keeping is also available, but I have that disabled because it "bounces" from left to right and back when it reaches the sidelines. Lane following just keeps the vehicle centered between the lines. I use it for miles at a time. Very nice.

My 2013 Hyundai Genesis R-Spec had Smart Cruise Control (SCC) which was nice when vehicles ahead would randomly slow down. If the car in front started slowing from 70 down to 60 and then down to 50 and so on, the Genesis would keep a safe distance behind that car. Sometimes that wasn't the best way to go. I did test it one time and it was able slow the car to a complete stop. Interesting.

 

[redneck joe]

In laws have a vehicle that SLAMS on the brakes in reverse when it senses something. So hard I thought I had actually hit something.

 

[Scott Danforth]

TPMS is mandated on all cars 2007 and newer vehicles under 10,000 because the average driver was driving with near flat tires because they didnt know that you had to check air pressure
backup cameras were mandated on all 2018 and newer vehicles under 10,000# because the average person didnt look before they backed up.

Lane assist, collision avoidance, Automated Emergency Braking and a bunch more are now mandated on all 2029 vehicles.

the new infotainment systems will soon have more mandates.

there are driver distraction guidelines since 2013 soon to be mandates.

all the mandates because we loosened the nut behind the wheel and started giving drivers licenses in cracker-jack boxes.

Remember when Drivers Education was mandatory and you had to actually learn to pilot a 4000# vehicle. that is also when the manual explained how to service the vehicle.

now there are 30 pages in a vehicle manual on using the mandated controls and 50 pages saying dont drink battery acid or wiper fluid. we also need to have multiple TV commercials telling you to not text and drive.

Im going with the 2023 American Dialect Society word of the year inserted here for what has been done to the automotive industry.

 

[aspeck]

And the more "safety stuff" that gets put in cars, the less the nut behind the wheel has to think or pay attention. I hate the safety stuff because in moments of laziness, I rely on that instead of checking myself. Check and verify ... but we don't have to any more ... the car will do it for us.

If people used them as a safety net instead of a first line defense, it would be so much better. That just isn't human nature. Let the car do it for us.

 

[Scott Danforth]

the less the nut behind the wheel has to think or pay attention

agreed

 

[Pmt133]

The only dislike I have for backup cameras is that some vehicles have such horrible outward visibility that I feel they designed it forcing your hand to use it. I can say my 03 is much easier than my 19 but I hardly use it on the 19 anyway as the depth perception and field of view on it is all wrong. Spotting with mirrors and eyeballs has always been much more effective.

 

[dingbat]

Surprised no one mentioned hitch assist......first time, every time.

Had 3 vertebrae fused during ACDF surgery back in 2020.
Blind spot, cross traffic alert and rear view monitoring are a godsend

 

[aspeck]

I like the back up camera screen location on my 2010 Yukon MUCH better than the 2013 Acadia of my wife or the 2020 Terrain that is my daily driver. Instead of a large display on the dash which pulls your eyes down and away from everything else outside the vehicle, the Yukon's screen lights up as a 1/3 of the rear view mirror. So you can watch the camera and the rear view mirror at the same time ... I like that.

 

[dingbat]

Instead of a large display on the dash which pulls your eyes down and away from everything else outside the vehicle, the Yukon's screen lights up as a 1/3 of the rear view mirror. So you can watch the camera and the rear view mirror at the same time ... I like that.

One of the things I like about Mazda is the location of the information Display. They went with a joy stick type control mounted on the center console which allowed them to put the 12" display on the top of the dash, in the driver's primary field of vision.

Better yet, a heads-up display puts the current speed, current speed limit, lane assist violations, navigation instructions, warning, etc. directly in your line of sight. No excuse to take your eyes off the road except to monitor the side view mirrors.