This is my great-aunt Mary’s 2005 Cadillac DeVille. Her husband, my great-uncle Joe drives a similar, slightly updated version of this car, a 2006 Cadillac DTS. At 78 and 88 years old, respectively, neither of them do much serious driving anymore. Beyond an occasional 45-minute drive up to Boston, their driving is mainly limited to local errands such as going to the gym, church, and out to dinner. But with these cars getting on in age, for the past several years now, both of them have expressed desire to replace them with a new car.
Before these two Caddys, uncle Joe and aunt Mary used to purchase a new car every 3-5 years, so at 10 years, these cars have served them longer than any others in their lifetime. By no means do either of them urgently need to replace these cars, as both are in good mechanical order with exceptionally low mileage. That being said, they certainly have the financial means – so why shouldn’t they treat themselves to a new car?
The problem is, they’re afraid to. In the last five years, in-vehicle technology has advanced at an exponential pace no one could’ve imagined just ten years ago. While much of this technology has been implemented in the name of making driving safer (various blind-spot, collision alert, self braking, and voice-activated technologies), the thought of getting used to a new car with new technology can be daunting to anyone unfamiliar with them.
Additionally, the widespread replacement of intuitive physical buttons with touchscreens and flat buttons is an immensely difficult challenge for many people to adapt to. Cadillac’s CUE infotainment system found on new models such as the XTS, the car Joe and Mary would probably buy, has received especially strong criticism for its difficulty of use. As Mary said about her current DeVille, “If I want it warmer, I turn the dial one way, if I want it cooler, I turn it the other way”. Especially for those requiring reading glasses, trying to see the outlines of menu buttons on a touch screen is frustrating, not to mention unsafe while driving.
The way my uncle Joe put it, “We’ve been driving these cars for so long, and I know where everything is. I don’t need to look down at any of the controls, I just feel.” Now I should add that Joe and Mary are as sharp as they’ve always been, and do their best when it comes to learning new technology. The both use cellphones and he even owns an iPad which he mainly uses to read the Wall Street Journal and check the stock market daily. But trying to read a touchscreen and feel for non-raised buttons while driving is a different story.
The sad truth is that many collisions are caused by distractions or some erroneous action such as shifting into reverse instead of drive, or mistaking the gas pedal for the brake. New teenage drivers may be more likely to cause an accident, but the percentage also increased towards the other end of the age spectrum.
People of any age don’t need the unnecessary distractions while driving, especially when distractions are caused by the car itself. This isn’t to say that there aren’t many who both prefer the latest in-car technologies, and derive great benefit from them. However, there will always by plenty who simply aren’t comfortable with an overabundance of technology dominating their center console, particularly if they don’t plan on using many of these features.
In their final years of production, cars like the Buick Lucerne, previous-generation Toyota Avalon, Mercury Grand Marquis, and Cadillac DTS often received a lot of hate for being “geriatric”, “outdated”, and “behind-the-times”. I recall one automotive magazine even singling out the Lucerne for “still offering a bench seat and column shifter”.
But when you look at it from the other side, from people who bought these cars for their user-friendliness and familiarity, it’s easy to see that there is still a need for cars with a back-to-basics approach.
Unfortunately, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find cars of that type. The honest truth for those uncomfortable with high-technology is either try and adjust to a new car with confusing controls, or just keep driving what they currently have, which might be just what my great aunt and uncle will have to do.
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I thought this was beyond questioning by now: Yes, yes, and yes.
My Dad (78 yrs old) had a tough time buying a new car, finally settling on a 2014 Escape. He spent a few afternoons sitting in the car with the manual figuring out the things he needed to know, and ignores the rest.
In a word: yes. You don’t have to be 78 and 88 either. I am 51, and want large control knobs and buttons, not touchscreens and other electronic doodads that I will struggle to operate and be an enormous distraction. The in-laws recently bought a 2015 Ford Focus and I sat in the drivers seat, looked around and found little to like about the interior. Most other new cars are the same.
Yes and I’m 32 and have driven old cars and new cars. I honestly think its unsafe. I’m perfectly comfortable with using modern technology even though I love owning and driving old cars. But I think its a dangerous distraction. My mom’s car is a 2005 Prius, and you have to flip through a bunch of different screens to get at the climate controls, which are all on a screen and not actually real buttons.
Although I understand exactly how to do this, it is not comfortable while driving. You do have to take your eyes off the road and I have never been able to adjust to it.
However, it’s my view that this really started not with touch screens but with the transition from levers and wheels to small buttons. My ’87 Cadillac Brougham was made when digital displays were the thing to have, and it had a digital climate control system. Unfortunately, the controls for that system were 5 small buttons about the dimensions of a medium sized ant. You had to reach down to turn them on, and I was forever reaching over and accidentally turning on the a/c or defroster when I was trying to turn on the vent because actually looking would have required me to take my eyes off the road.
I understand why there have been many technological innovations on cars. The majority of them, even if they make the car impossible for a layman to do any of his own work on, have been to the advantage of the owner in convenience and/or efficiency.
However, climate control and radio buttons really fall for me into the “it wasn’t broken, why did you ‘fix’ it?” realm. I can operate every power accessory on my Buick and Olds without taking my eyes off of the road. Maybe with some of today’s systems that is not possible but surely it is more possible than they make it with the touch screens.
You could put my mom and dad’s names in there for your aunt and uncle and it would be the exact same story. Those shiny surfaces and touch screens are off-putting to many. Cadillac, of all brands, makes the scariest first impression to someone who hasn’t shopped cars in a while.
My folks dealt with the issue by keeping their old cars longer. Your uncle’s DTS is the kind of car you don’t mind keeping. I love their looks and comfort but the Northstar could “go at any time”, from what I’ve been lead to believe.
The bright side about moving to a newer vehicle: side obstacle warning systems. They are especially nice considering the horrible visibility in most new cars and crossovers. Dad loves the system in his car and would never own a new vehicle without it.
I have a side (and front and rear) obstacle warning system: it’s called windows I can see out of and the willingness and ability to turn my eyes and neck. I’ve noticed in many newer models (ex: Camaro, Solstice) outward visibility is severely compromised. In the Solstice I couldn’t see much out the sides or back; in the Camaro and the Solstice if I was stopped at a traffic light I had to duck down in order to see it under the windshield header. I’m tall but not freakishly so, yet there are plenty of cars with terrible ergos for those my size.
Many modern cars are like wearing a medieval knight’s suit of armour with the visor down. One day I might need thick pillars to hold the roof off my head, but right now I need the ability to see what’s around me.
+1
+ another one. That’s why I really like the last generation of the Olds Eighty Eight. It has an excellent greenhouse and intuitive controls.
I drove a recent Camaro. It is not for me.
This is exactly the kind of thoughtful piece one expects from you, Brendan – thank you. I’m 65 and have a number of friends who are much older. They are in exactly the same position as your relatives. One issue is that many of them want/need a new car because they desire the newer safety features that older people should have and that are not installed in older model cars – blind spot monitoring, intelligent cruise control and braking, pelvic and knee air bags, etc – but at the same time they do not want overly complicated controls for common functions in the car. Friends who have purchased new Audis and Cadillacs in particular have complained about some of their systems and controls as problematic. Even the difference between the straightforward controls in my G37 vs. friends’ new Q50s have been noted, including by those younger than I.
My other pet peeve is that manufacturers are now going back to the 50’s with diverse automatic transmission controls – pushbuttons on the dash or on the console with different methods of operation, little wands on the steering wheel or on the dash, conventional floor and column shifts, twist knobs on the dash or console or rising from the console, etc. Alternating between cars and driving rental cars again becomes an orientation and safety issue for all age groups.
I’d say this Caddy is probably good to 100k miles. Then all bets are off due to reliability issues with the Northstar V8.
I owned an old 1994 Northstar for 7 years. Had a 120k on the clock and no record of a head gasket replacement. Those older ones were notorious for engine trouble. If you do oil changes as the car demands – every 3 to 5 thousand miles and don’t let it overheat, even 200k without a head gasket job is possible. And Northstar runs generally hotter than other engines.
Reportedly the 2000 and up Northstars offer much better reliability than the 1990s engines.
The only other genral problem with the transversely mounted Northstars is, that with spirited driving they literally eat motor mounts. Had to replace mine twice within a few thousand miles.
I like the short video that is making the rounds of the news in the last few days: young guy, fiddling w/ I think the GPS, goes thru the barrier and jumps the drawbridge as its opening? Distracted driving–no matter the cause or the age of the driver– is likely one of the largest causes of crashes. Texting and having to look at controls = bad news.
Now he won’t be in anyone else’s way or be the hazard that he was; i.e., doing 55 in the fast lane because Buffy is breaking up with him over the phone.
I put a touch screen stereo in my truck and it’s impossible to use while keeping my eyes on the road. And it’s not just that it’s not tactile. It’s that it takes more time to read what’s there.
A touch screen is fine, but it needs to be supplemented with buttons for every basic function.
I have an uncle that had serious anxiety problems that were triggered after he bought a new car last year and was overwhelmed by it. And my mom struggles on an almost monthly basis with some system or another in her Town & Country.
The worst part of it all is that so much of it is completely unnecessary. Yet if you want the safety systems you have to take all the other crap with it. And it’s all proprietary so nothing is standard which not only makes it harder to learn, it’s going to affect resale and repairability down the road.
With all this we also, IMHO gone backwards. I mean starter buttons and composite headlights, progressive shifting! While this trend of adding more buttons and nonintuitive controls, Why not Spark advance and choke…touch screen operated ……natch!
In 40 years of motoring I’ve never had a desire for all that stuff. The vehicle is only tasked with getting me and my stuff from A to B; I don’t need or want 13 on-board processors intervening with that. What is wrong with a dome light that goes on when a door is open and goes off when it shuts? Rube Goldberg would be pleased.
I thought GM learned this lesson the hard way back in the ’90s? GM pickups had all these fiddly HVAC controls that required to you hold buttons down and watch an electronic display in order to know what in the world you were getting vs F150s with their three rotary knobs that could be operated precisely in complete darkness only by feel, For The Win I might add.
Give me a modern day Model T- no power assist anything, sealed beam headlights, mechanical controls, and one decent processor for the EFI.
But people bring this upon themselves by ordering all these options. If there was a demand for stripped-down models there’d be more of them.
“But people bring this upon themselves by ordering all these options. If there was a demand for stripped-down models there’d be more of them.”
I disagree with this to an extent. If you study how the manufacturers are packaging the technology, you’ll find that in order to get the high end stereo you may have to buy a $4,000 “tech package” with park assist or whatever. A lot of times the more deluxe interior version of a car requires you to buy some of this technology. I think I’ve even seen something as simple as cruise control tied in with ridiculously expensive “tech packages.”
A Chevy Impala is on my shorter list for a possible new car. I’ve tried to package what I really want – better interior, high end stereo and V-6 engine in the cheapest package possible. You have to buy a lot of the “tech” stuff that I don’t care one bit about.
That’s when you get a quality aftermarket cruise control (or whatever accessory you want). Been there, done that!
Problem with aftermarket stuff is the integration is usually severely lacking and if not it won’t end up costing the end user much less than the added cost for the option group including it, which also softens the blow by being part of the monthly payment rather than a separate added expense including labor.
You can still buy a straight forward and basic car – just not in the Cadillac class. My Mazda 2 has a few round knobs for climate control and a handful of other buttons/controls. No touch screen to be found. Somehow I can’t imagine your grandparents would enjoy a sub-compact though.
Absolutely yes. My S/O replaced her Matrix with a Mazda3; I kept the Matrix and let go of my S10. It’s such a relief to get in the Matrix and be greeted by rotary knobs for the HVAC controls, and an easier interface for changing the radio station than in the Mazda. There’s also semi-circular gas and temperature gauges in the Matrix. As for a new car, geez, I’m turning into the way my Dad was at my age; “what do you want a new car for?” Ironically, he wants a new Mazda3 for himself, so I’m sure I will be spending time showing him repeatedly how the controls work.
BTW, Brendan, I think it would be advisable for your aunt and uncle to let go of the Caddies before the Northstar engines break.
I pretty much stop reading any new car review if the word outdated or behind the times comes up. Funny thing is my Dad had a stack of copies of various 80s and 90s Car and Drivers, Motor Trends, Road & Track, much of which I’d read through as a kid. One of the things I that I recall that pertains to this topic is the switch to “European style” rotary climate controls in cars like the Taurus and the criticism of holdouts with the old style sliding climate controls. You build a new car with rotarys though it’ll be called outdated and cheap instantly. Same with analog gauges which are rapidly being replaced by horrid digital LCDs but that’s a whole other rant…
My biggest problem with newer cars regarding buttons is the same thing I disliked about the switch to composite headlights to sealed beams, in that there is no longer a fixed analog to design things around, which lets “designers” run amok with all sorts of wacky designs. Now composite headlights were inevitable due to aero advantages, but inside? No, that’s just familiarity bred contempt that inspired the current designs. The funny thing is, with the exception of USB/AUX ports and Bluetooth type functions there’s not exactly that much more to a radio or climate control system than a car from the 90s with a DIN sized CD player and a climate control head, but the difference is you knew immediately what the radio was and the climate controls were on that same 90s car without even looking at them. But that’s unfashionable sooooo…….
Today’s cars, like Cadillac, do not make sense. Let’s make a car so expensive that…ahem…only people of “advanced” age can afford, and give them controls/features only an 18 year old video gamer can figure out how to use. I will stick with and restore my ’83 Ranger pickup, thank you. Just turned 49 2 weeks ago, and I still do not know what all the buttons on the remote for my A/V center do 🙂
I dislike all the touchscreen controls in new cars also… who needs the hassle of learning to operate the radio and climate controls? good design makes them intuitive… and what happens when they fail? a 3000 dollar component replacement? I suppose expensive impractical gimmicks have a place on high end cars, but they have no business on regular vehicles. I will just stick with my Panthers, I can fix them. 🙂
As a former vehicle designer, I’ve seen first-hand how this happens. The Marketing Department is not capable of independent observation and analysis; they pop their heads up out of their gopher holes to see what the competition has so they can copy it or try to copy it plus go one better. Management is closer to Marketing than Engineering so Marketing gets to dictate to a large degree what Engineering does.
I went through hell when developing a gauge cluster with electronic features. Suddenly Marketing had a laundry list a foot long of crap they wanted to burden it- and the customers- with. I called it “VCR Syndrome” in that most everybody had a VCR but hardly anyone could even set the clock on it, such were the plethora of buttons and menus.
You said it, Matt: intuitive!
No let’s make that clear: I demand I N T U I T I V E controls!
Great post, and I’ll reply with an enthusiastic YES! I couldn’t agree more with all of the points made in the article.
Not only is the driver complication a huge factor, but let’s think about how quickly technology becomes obsolete. Consider all the fancy electronics in late 1980s GMs, and how dated they seem now! I also always think about things going wrong…electronics don’t last forever. What happens if someone has a 2015 Corvette or Mustang in 50 years and the touchscreen goes haywire? How would it even get replaced?
But the thing that drives me crazy is how complacent people get with these technologies. The skills needed to back up a vehicle have been minimized because of rearview cameras and the like. What happens if/when that camera breaks? Ditto that for self-parking vehicles. Onboard GPS, while great and helpful for many people, is leading to a society unaware of their surroundings and how places connect to one another. The beauty and intuitiveness of a map is lost to a computer that does it for us.
So yes, there are so many reasons why I wholeheartedly agree with this sentiment. Gosh, I hate sounding old and crotchety about this (I’m only 34!)…but I just really don’t “get” modern cars. I’ve decided, just in the last year, that I flat out don’t like new cars anymore (at least most of them). Back in the day, I was car-crazy, but now so much focus is on the technology inside them, not the cars themselves. Going to a car show or checking this site just reinforces my sentiments!
I have to admit I really like the backup camera I put in my pickup. It makes me feel a lot better when backing up at my kids’ daycares. I’d almost consider it a necessity now.
Of course, if the visibility out the back was better to start with I’d feel differently. But so many new cars have terrible visibility all around. I drove my in-law’s Fusion a couple weeks ago and while it was a very nice driving car it felt like sitting in a bunker. And it took me a good couple minutes just to figure out the basic controls before I started out. Even the damn blinker stalk didn’t work as expected (it doesn’t stay in position when activated) and it took me probably a dozen turns before I realized there were two stages to it.
Now that you’ve mentioned the 1980s – for many Japanese cars, their premium sound systems often had multiple levers for the graphic equalizer to “tailor your sound to the interior.” Looks kinda cool on your home stereo system but not very user-friendly to the driver.
Take them too look at a new Camry. I just rented a 2015 SE. Actually a nice car for the money, much better than the 2010 I briefly owned. REALLY BIG knobs and buttons for everything. Easy to get in and out of. Cheap. Reliable. Good enough.
+1 The Camry is extremely geezer-friendly. Every time I rent one, I never have to even think about the basic controls. They’re big knobs, and function highly intuitively.
Maybe a Camry might seem like a step down from a Caddy, but I do recommend you take them to look at one, in a high trim version. Needless to say, they’ll love the fuel economy and reliability too.
THIS is why Lincoln is dead and Cadillac is dying. They’re so desperate to bring in a younger clientele that they’re alienating their older buyers, whereas Toyota is building the cars people need as opposed to the ones they want, and are perhaps the only ones doing so. Sometimes being dull as dishwater is a good thing.
You’re not a geezer. Stop that. And this may be the most interesting and spot-on post your site has ever had!!!!! Thank you!!!!
The $2,500,000+ Bugatti Veyron SuperSports looks like a breeze to operate compared to the Caddy in the article:
Yes, the Camry is one of the most “old-school ” feeling cars…which is why the mainstream car critics regularily bash it….and why it is a perpetual top seller. 🙂
They won’t buy anything that isn’t “UNION MADE”. Don’t get me started on how I feel about that.
Honestly I think they’re best bet would be to find a good-condition 2011 DTS. It might even still have a column shifter and bench seat!
Brendan, have them look at a new fully loaded Impala LTZ,made sure to get the package with the heated steering.
Union made in Detroit or Canada.
Heated steering is amazing. And the Impala LTZ really is a beautiful car. That’s a Chevy?
Wherever it’s made, there’s probably a union. Just not yours.
Brandan:
Invite them to an experiment. Let them sit in a new Cadillac and blindfold them. Then ask them to turn on the heat.
Do the same again in a Camry. Then tell them where the Camry was assembled.
Wolfgang: you presume logic has something to do with this. It doesn’t. Appeals must be made to their ego and belief systems.
Facts may shake a belief system, at least test it.
When I was on the eve of buying a Hyundai Veloster last year, I was pleased that the controls and interior functions were fairly straightforward: The ignition had a metal key, the climate control had simple buttons and rotary knobs, the gauges had analog faces, and the radio had seek buttons and a volume knob. Even the mandatory touch screen wasn’t too distracting, since it was little more than a display for the trip computer, backup camera, clock, and radio.
I’m not even sure people either care about or know how to use more basic stuff like cruise control, which is standard in practically everything now. I infer this by the way I have to constantly interrupt my cruise (which I try to use as often as possible), even on open roads w/o cross traffic, because the car in front of me is constantly changing speed. I’d rather they went a bit too slow at a fixed speed, so I can simply set & forget, than all over the place, as most do. Of course some fools discover their accelerator pedals when you try to overtake. It must wound their American pride: “How dare you pass me!”
Once, I followed a big pickup for many miles on I-10 at about the same distance, even after being obstructed by a slow car once. He must’ve had the exact same cruise setting I did. That was exceptional.
I’m in the same camp as you, generally I prefer everything to be as simple as possible. I do love the HUGE touchscreen in my Chrysler 300 though. Many of the controls are duplicated with large, easy to use buttons or knobs and the touchscreen itself is laid out extremely well and is very easy to read and use. Frankly I am surprised that Chrysler came up with this and that other systems are so difficult or non-intuitive to use. It’s probably the first system I have used where I did not prefer to use a simpler option.
The controls used the most while actually moving (radio tuner, volume and HVAC controls are duplicated in the center stack, I can easily use them by feel when needed). The one I wish most were duplicated is the heated and cooled seats.
It does not have menus and submenus, all of the major categories are in a row at the bottom, touch one and the screen expands to that function. Then either leave it on that screen or touch the same button at the bottom again to collapse the screen back to what it was before. I wish all cars had this system, but if that can’t be then if I end up ever buying any other Chrysler/Jeep/Ram/etc it WILL have this large touchscreen in it, nothing smaller will do anymore.
Exactly. That is pretty much my experience with my 2014 300-very intuitive, most controls are duplicated on the steering wheel or center stack. Much better than the other options offered today that I’ve experienced. Modern enough to take advantage of all the neat things you can do today, but not so crammed full of doo dads and other crap so as to be distracting.
You can even turn the screen off!
Now that just might be the best replacement for the Cadillacs.
Here’s my big gripe about touch screens and such: vision changes in older folks.
I’m at the point where my distance vision is still fine, but my close-up ability to focus is getting worse and worse. In the car, that’s becoming a real problem, as I don’t wear glasses, yet when I look down at a screen or something, the information can be hard to make out, most of all the text. It literally means I would need to switch to reading glasses while driving.
It’s the main reason we got our TSX without the tech package. I have never used/needed navigation, and I have little or no use for the other functions offered. And the basics, like HVAC and radio, I want to control with knobs, buttons (which I can memorize) or such.
If I ever get a car with a touch screen, I’m going to have to get bi-focals.
Progressive lenses are great. I never had any problems adjusting to them and they work fine in the car. I admit I really like the BIG letters used for the dashboard transmission indicator on my G37.
My car has an internal hard drive “Music Box” system for recording your own playlists. While it is easy to use overall, the rotary selection knob and buttons for making choices among albums, artists, songs, etc. are a real distraction when driving in heavy traffic. The problem is not just the types of controls on contemporary cars but also the amount of controls and choices available compared to just a few years ago. No wonder the “driverless” car is now seen as the answer.
I hate my progressive lenses, the sweet spot is so small I have to hold my head just so, and the distortion at the sides makes me sea sick. I usually just use my 3 year old glasses most of the time, progressives when I have to look at computer, then paper and back.
Never paid so much for something I dislike so much, but that’s something anyway..
Just a suggestion – I’ve had several pairs of these lenses made over the years and would advise you to take them back and have the opticians check to make sure they were set up and made correctly. I’ve been going to the same eye doctor here in LA for decades and his staff spend a considerable amount of time checking and marking the lenses with the patient reading close-up, across the room, signs, etc. before they’re sent off to be made. I’ve had at least one pair that were made incorrectly and caused reactions similar to yours.
That happened to me too. I take the doctor’s Rx to the vision shop to select the frame and lenses. 4 years ago I took it to Wal-Mart to save a few hundred bucks compared to my previous glasses. BIG MISTAKE. They had to redo the glasses and the second time they were still barely acceptable. This time around I went to the previous shop and selected a frame with larger diameter for the lens and the people took great care in marking the centers for distance and near vision. And to top it off they were reasonably priced at about $600.
Heh! It’s not just me who doesn’t like their progressives! As you noted, the sweet spot is so small they’re very hard to use on the computer. As luck would have it, that’s what I do every day, so I capitulated and purchased a second pair of single vision glasses just for work. Of course, if I want to see anything beyond the end of my arms, I either have to remove the glasses or look over the top.
However, when making points with co workers, I find that looking over the top is a bit intimidating to them. I usually get my way when I do that. Score one for the single vision glasses!
I was working as a theater carpenter and painter when I got my first progressives and put them on at work and immediately thought forget it, not working at all. Straight lines need to be straight. Fairly quickly my brain recalculated and soon I couldn’t tell the difference.
I’ve had progressives forever. Years ago some basic ones sucked and the reading distance focused area was too narrow to even read a book without moving my head back and forth. They’ve all been fine more recently. Last ones, they had about 6 choices of expensiveness. I asked and they said one around the middle (some brand name I’ve heard of) was the sweet spot, and they’re fine.
In the car, all the varying focuses have always worked out fine.
For the computer you are looking at something kind of big at a medium close range. The progressives are serviceable if necessary but the right strength generic reading glasses are much better.
To me, it raises the question of just how much you really need to alter settings while driving. But then I’m mostly driving on open country back-roads.
My ’05 Mazda 3 has extra stereo controls on the wheel, where I can operate them with my left thumb. At first I thought they were a gimmick, but I’ve come to appreciate them. It took a while to figure out which did what, and occasionally I hit the wrong one. The six-CD stacker is probably obsolete now, but it gives me the chance to have a variety of music to suit my mood.
And if all else fails, there’s always the OFF button – nice and large!
The Blaupunkt stereo in my Citroen came with a remote and steering wheel controls theres a 16 disc stacker in the boot and a ipod plug yeah its handy being able to adjust the sounds from the wheel a usefull gimick actually all the rest of the controls just fall to hand except the headlight raise lower control which is a little thumb roller very much like and close to the instrument light dimmer, Ive been told I need to replace the windscreen again so this time I’ll demand the correct one with the rain sensor for the automatic wipers, technology I hate it.
Take it form an eye doctor you need an exam. Then you need to go over your options to obtain clear vision in all fields of view. Oh, and it isn’t going to be “bi”-focals.
They still make them?
Yes, all ‘focals are still available.
I got my bifocals last year.
Almost everybody seems to agree they are a major distraction. I know I dodge a lot more cars these days, and most of the time they are fiddling with some kind of electronic device. And as others have pointed out you need cameras and warning beepers to over come the lack of vision caused by thick pillars and small windows. It is a real problem that should have been addressed long ago and is only going to get worse in the future. Cars are for driving, not chasing menu’s on a sun washed screen while wearing non bi-focal sunglasses. Talking on a simple basic cell phone was made illegal years ago. That same line of thinking needed to have been addressed with new cars and their controls before getting to what they have become now. Cell phone bans while driving should have been a clue to keep automotive controls simple and basic so the driver can concentrate on driving. As much as I’m not thrilled with government regulations on motor vehicles, this needs to be addressed now. And add elderly drivers into the mix, and you have the fluster cluck driving conditions we are subjected to today.
Thats a recommendation for me. Two features that I look for in a car (along with deep buttoned velour upholstery and a floaty ride.)
And totally agree about modern car user interfaces – touchscreens are the worst possible idea in a car. Big rotary knobs and switches are best, then buttons. When I bought a new stereo for my Commodore I looked around until I found something that had buttons and dials rather than a touchscreen. Found a very nice Fusion unit that did the job, and has Bluetooth and USB/ MP3 playback but no touchscreen.
That’s an incredibly short-sighted and elitist attitude on the part of the magazine. Just because their writers prefer sporting automobiles, then everybody should prefer them.
You would think in this day of niche marketing that automakers would product certain lines of cars to fit a certain clientele. Unfortunately, no, every car maker wants every model to appeal to ‘everybody’, so you don’t dare make something that only appeals to a certain age group . . . . . especially when that age group seems to have a minimum age.
God forbid that someone should sell an old person’s car. Other than Toyota, that is. They seem to get a pass on catering to a market that anybody else would be pilloried for.
The old fogey in me (I may be 34 but my wife accuses me of being a “grandpa” with some regularity) wishes it was possible to get a car with all the modern safety trappings but no other “infotainment” integration–there would be a screen for the backup camera but it would blank and disable while the car was in a forward gear. However, such things don’t seem to exist anymore. You need the gee-whiz touchscreen networked Distracto 3000 in order to get the safety options, in most cases. It’s like they don’t realize the inherent cross purposes there?
I don’t need to look down at any of the controls, I just feel.
This.
I can remember when the ability to identify controls by feel was touted as a safety feature. Back in the early seventies, I think it was.
I think you are right, Pete. I recall Mercedes Benz introduced the large flat dial switch for the lights and climate controls. They needed to be flat to prevent injuries in crashes, and large so you could operate them with winter gloves.
Then Ford’s Taurus introduced tactile buttons for window switches and cruise control. These were designed so women with long finger nails had no trouble using them.
Incidentally, my last rental car was a Chrysler 200. The light switch is rotary but it protrudes from the dash board so that I repeatedly hit my knees at it when I got in or out of the car. The older Sebring had a recessed switch at the same location. I don’t call that progress.
Cars I can buy and adjust to the technology, although I now have 2 cars from the same brand to simplify (BMW & no one are similar). The real (and dangerous) challenge is when you rent a car. I now adjust the mirrors, heat or air, check the mileage (sometimes I can’t even reset the trip mileage in the car) and drive. No radio, tech of any kind.
Is this a rhetorical question? Does the pope sh*t in the woods?
(I’m not necessarily giving my answer here. I’m pointing out how asking such questions is of little use when we already know how the vast majority of the commentariat will answer.)
EDIT: After a short period of reconsideration, I realize I was a little more snippy than I needed to be, and for that I apologize. I was pleasantly surprised by the variety of responses.
Your edit beat me to it. I’m actually pleased to see someone found a touch system they like in their Chrysler 300. It appears that the manufacturer may have dialed back the complexity to a more functional approach. Although, the writer notes that most of the touch buttons are redundant to standard type buttons.
I’m a bit perplexed by the folks that like redundant controls. Two vehicles in my little fleet have some redundant controls – mostly related to the radio, and they are on the steering wheel. I find them…….redundant. Actually a bit of pain, in my F-150 I occasionally accidently change the radio mode (AM / FM / Satellite) by clunking the control while driving. The dash controls are pretty well laid out, and I don’t bother with the steering wheel controls. If Ford would let me return the redundant controls and give me a check, I’d take the check.
You may have meant my comment from above. What is redundant is the main part of the function, i.e. temp, fan speed, and AC button for the HVAC. Other items are touch screen only such as where you want the air to go and other climate options.
For audio, Volume and Tuning are redundant. Stuff like Bass, treble, Am/Fm/Sat and more selections are in the touchscreen.
It ends up being that you use the redundant controls (knob and buttons) all the time and then the screen when you make the other selections. I never go to the screen to change fan speed or volume for example. I assume it’s just on the screen since it may as well be, i.e. there is no reason for it not to be.
Yes, the steering wheel has some of the functions as well (volume and channel selection). In this car I never use them on the wheel, in other cars I do. Just comes down to personal preference as to which set gets used, nice to have the option I guess for different people. Overall it works great.
If you got rid of the redundant controls it would probably cost Ford more to build it rather than making them all the same – in the same way it makes more sense for all levels of a car line to have power windows rather than engineering one set of power and one set of manual controls.
Steering wheel controls. It could get worse.
I crashed in the snow just from talking to my wife who was in the passenger seat. Any distraction is too much of a distraction. But you can’t tell that to these idiots who are way too busy texting or talking on their phones (that are really smart compared to who is talking on it) to even think about the fact that they are doing probably the most dangerous thing they will do all day: piloting a car. If only we could figure out a way to get them all to crash into each other and completely eliminate all of them. And don’t try to defend it by saying you have “hands-off” devices; the distraction is in the brain, or the lack of. Just stay off the road and out of the way if you’re too busy to drive.
While I hope you’re being sarcastic (folks, we gotta remember to use the /sarc tag…), I agree with most folks not even being distracted with the in car infotainment. I can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve nearly collided with folks who were not paying attention due to using a cell phone, either talking or texting. I’m amazed I still have straight sheetmetal on both of my cars.
I ride bicycles for leisure and exercise. What’s worse, I see plenty of people either talking, texting or listening to music (I assume) while riding bicycles, EVEN IN TRAFFIC! Do they have a death wish?
I agree though, keeping the distractions to a minimum is the best thing we can do to keep ourselves alive.
I’m in the yes camp as well.
With progressively more standard features in cars in all price classes, there seems to be a technology war to try and differentiate luxury cars from more common vehicles. The problem is, it’s easy and relatively inexpensive for manufacturers to dump yesterday’s new tech in a basic car. Witness Chevrolet’s current advertising of WI-FI in its more basic models.
The ethos of luxury in the ’50s and ’60s was simple push button technology. In the mid 1960s, GM promoted its Comfortron automatic HVAC system. Push a button to pick a mode, roll a thumbwheel to the desired temperature, and you were theoretically done messing with the system until the season changed. Since any manufacturer can now do something like this at just about any price point, there is a race to cater to technology geeks – early adopters of the next i phone, i pad, etc.
The problem is, there is a whole class of people that just want to get in, get comfortable, and get to their destination without having to pull over and figure out how to change the radio station.
Unfortunately, there is another whole class who wants to get in, connect, and use their laptop while clogging up the interstate in the left lane, oblivious all the while. And they feel they have the right to do it. Someone invented this thing called a ‘house’ which is ideal to use for those purposes. But they would probably find a way to screw that up and get in someone’s way, too.
With all this criticism from the REAL drivers on this site (that’s a compliment to all of you–my previous post was NOT aimed at any of my friends here except bryce) it seems that the carmakers would read and take heed…but then, you ARE dealing with GM.
G who? 🙂
FWIW, kev, it’s not only GM that has a bewildering GUI. Plenty of pixels have been used complaining about systems from Ford, Audi, MB, etc.
About the only ones that I read/hear positive comments about with any consistency are the units in the FCA cars. The Garmin units have a good reputation and the rest of the uConnect systems seem well regarded in the motoring press.
But, hate on.
I’ll also add that if everyone redirected their learning curves from learning these stupid features in their cars and learned how to drive a manual transmission you’d virtually eliminate all the ” I mistook the brake for the gas” instances and severely reduce distracted driving these systems only enable. But that notion is ridiculous…
I don’t see how it pays for any non-car people to learn an archaic skill when 99% of cars have an automatic.
What’s it pay for non-car people to learn a pointless skill? Touchscreens will seem just as archaic when everyone’s using telepathy to use their disposable interfaces in the future, at least with everyone driving a stick they’ll have to pay some freaking attention. Just fantasy, don’t poke holes 😉
Matt: you and me are thinking alike. I’ll give you a +1 for this any future posts. You save me a lot of typing, besides you are more eloquent anyway.
Almost a shame they didn’t set their sights a bit lower 10 years ago, a 3800-powered Buick in those Caddys’ condition would be a keeper!
I have said it here before that I detest all the electronics in new cars today. I would prefer to have crank windows, am/fm/cd stereo and my 5 speed. Nearly impossible to find today. Those electronics I’m sure look great to those younger but all I see is two big downsides. One, is the distraction caused by these systems along with stupid driver’s and their cell phones. Two, none of these electronic systems are going to last more than five years before gremlins start to show. Just guess what that costs.
Practically, I bought my last new car in 2004. The Focus will be a 250,000 mile car. My father is about ready to give up driving and will pass on his 2004 Le Sabre, with 39,000 miles, to me within the year. My two backups are two 1991 Mazda 626 5 speed cars in great condition. Easy to work on and easy to rebuild their engines. What, no airbags! That is it for the next 30 years.
Now the big problem I see coming down the pipe will be about 10 years from now and no later than 15 years. Catching some inside information from certain inside sources one can see electric cars being in and gas out by that time. Possibly even California freeways having embedded sensors for controlling these electric cars. That being the case how do I get my non-controlled drivers, not to mention, my older classics on the roads?
I really like my 2013 Versa S. You gotta specify the ‘S’ to get one without all the gadgets. Crank windows, rotary knobs on the radio, a genuine pull-up handle for the parking brake, rotary/lever environmental controls, and an AUX jack on the radio. The only things I wish it did have are USB/MP3 input for the radio and cruise control.
I will probably get an aftermarket cruise put in when the warranty runs out but I’m wondering how it will cope with a manual transmission. And I do fine with a manual in Portland traffic.
I really like my 2013 Versa S. You gotta specify the ‘S’ to get one without all the gadgets. Crank windows, rotary knobs on the radio, a genuine pull-up handle for the parking brake
The LS trim of the Chevy Sonic also has crank windows.
I will probably get an aftermarket cruise put in when the warranty runs out but I’m wondering how it will cope with a manual transmission.
My 85 Mazda GLC had cruise and a five speed stick. Worked fine. But then, I only use cruise when traffic is light so there is a minimum of need to change speed.
I think that at some point in the future (not 10 years, probably not 15 but maybe 20) it will become illegal to drive on the interstate system with a “non-controlled” car. But I think it will be a much longer time before the secondary highways are so regulated, if ever.
While I like the styling of this generation Cadillac, I could really do without all the distractions caused by all the digital displays here and there that are built into cars these days. My 06 Toyota Corolla has no digital displays except for the clock. Just a lighted speedometer, tachometer, and fuel and temp gauge. That’s all any car needs to have. 🙂
My 87 Corolla FX is the exact same way, minus the tach. (GAH THAT MAKES ME ANGRY!)
I guess some people just have to be dragged kicking and screaming into the modern era.
The modern era isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
Progress was good at one time, but it’s gone on for too long.
“New” and “improved” are not necessarily the same thing.
I miss gear shifters. The new Acura TL just has buttons. The S-Class, X5s have those annoying click sticks. Who needs 30-way adjustable massaging seats with 12 memory presets on the door?
I was talking to an older german doctor who owned an 89 420 sel he loved. His kids wanted him to get something new so he bought an 07 S550 some years ago. Doesn’t like the new one nearly as much and regrets selling the 126. He said the owner’s manual for the old one was about 35 pages and over 350 for the S550.
41 here. Touchscreens blow. I had a rental car a year and a half ago with touchscreen controls and it was terribly hard to use. Obviously it would get easier and more intuitive after driving it for more than the two days I had it, but give me the knobs and buttons any day of the week. I know I’m approaching “get off my lawn” territory, but it is a radical change. It’s almost as drastic as re-inventing the gas/brake/clutch pedal setup.
“re-inventing the gas/brake/clutch pedal setup.”
Don’t get me started on drive-by-wire systems that take away the progressive feel you’re used to!
A 2 day learning curve means it is not intuitive. It is exactly what you say: a radical change.
Great question Brendan. My answer is as follows. YES, to much BS.
Personally I’m more interesting in driving the vehicle.
While I agree a touchscreen is not something that should be used while driving, certain infotainment systems are quite intuitive to use (eg, Chrysler’s uConnect). Still, I want radio buttons on the wheel and normal toggles/knobs for A/C. I don’t want to have to use a touchscreen to change the temperature in the cabin or adjust fan speed.
I absolutely will not buy any car that has a touch screen. I used to drive a 1989 Chevy 2500 company truck, the one with the video game heater controls. Dumbest idea ever, until they came out with touch screens. If you wear bifocals like I do, it takes a second or two for your eyes to adjust between lenses. Two seconds with your eyes not on the road is enough time for a situation to develop that you are oblivious to because you aren’t looking. As our population ages this is the last thing we need. While I’m bitching, I wish the car companies would move the front turn signals away from the headlights. The turn signals get lost in the head light glare, if the people use them at all.
Bad turn-signal integration is definitely something I’ve noticed in recent years. I’ve been at many intersections where I think a driver doesn’t have his blinker on, but once the car gets to a certain angle in the turn, I finally see the signal. Seems like they are harder to see from the side these days.
That’s a pet-hate of mine too, Craig. The extreme frontal body curvature of some modern cars is a real nuisance in that respect. From front-on you can see the light, but not from an oblique angle.
And we have a problem here in Australia, with our bright southern sun. Lights behind frosted or smoked glass often can’t be seen. Especially with indicators that wrap up over the top of the fender – they pick up reflections from the sun, making the light near-invisible.
Since you mentioned it…am I the only person who questions the use of conventional turn-signal bulbs in a position that’s adjacent to LED brake lights? I find that the turn signal is far less bright than the taillights and hard to see in relation. Those VW arrangements where the turn signal was the ‘bullseye’ in the center of an LED brake light ring (Passat, EOS) was particularly bad. I know those were previous generations, but manufacturers are still doing this.
Maybe I’m just getting old…I’m halfway to 90, after all.
Even worse are the front turn signals adjacent to the headlight (1990s Explorer, I’m not seeing your turn signal with your headlights on) – how our federal gov’t ever accepted that as a ‘safe’ lighting configuration is beyond me . . .
And today, we have the even more maddening cars in which you can drive around with the side and rear running lights completely off, but the driver has no clue because both the DRL headlamps and instrument cluster lighting is turned on. Arrrrggggh! And no amount of headlight-flashing seems to clue these people in, either.
I’m a bit of a Luddite (anti-techie), I drive a 99 Miata and a 94 Lincoln Mark VIII. They are pretty simple compared to most modern new cars.
But I got into a new Fusion with the Ford touch screen, 4 corners for the major functions, redundant controls on the steering wheel, and knobs too. It would probably take me a few days to figure out all of the features, but to drive it it wasn’t all that different. And I’m sure some features I would learn to love and couldn’t live without!
Excellent points.
One of my big annoyances is Backup Cameras, or specifically, people’s over-reliance on them. Cameras are useful for backing into close spaces, but as a safety device I think they’re questionable because people tend to rely on them not as a supplement to common sense, but as a replacement for common sense.
A few months ago, a woman hit my car in a parking lot while she was backing out of the space next to me. She told me that her backup sensors were beeping, but “I didn’t see your car in my backup camera.” My goodness, my 18-foot long car was parked RIGHT NEXT TO HER… and she didn’t see it??
If she had just turned her head, backed out slowly, and used common sense, nothing would have happened. I suspect this type of incident happens a lot, with backup cameras, outside-mirror cameras, sensors, etc.
The woman is an idiot. Her side sensor was doing its job and she ignored it. People become desensitized to the sensors because they do beep as warning when you are close to but not necessarily about to hit something. My G37 has three different beep levels depending on how close you are to an object and it would be screaming just before the point of impact – I’m guessing her car was as well. I agree that the camera and sensors are best used in concert with common sense and accompanied by a good look over the shoulder. Overall though, great safety features.
I’ve had mine go off when a butterfly flew past as I was reversing! 🙂
YUP. If you want to watch a car salesman’s head explode, then let him ramble on about the latest touchscreen in the car/truck youre looking at. Let him go into all the features, the icons, nav system, etc. Then whip out your smart phone and ask him what that $2500 P.O.S. can do that your $500 smartphone cant. Sit back and enjoy!
Im 41, and Im pretty comfy using technology. Like most GenXers I have a smart phone, a video gaming system, a laptop, an iPod, Blu Ray player etc. I see gadgets as a means to an end, and if I see value in it (Bluetooth link to my iPhone with my 50 gazillion rock/grunge/metal albums hell YEA) then Im on board.
However, my passion is cars and driving them. Over teching a vehicle is just a bunch of wonky crap that’s guaranteed to burn out and cost me money. I guess I can see it in a car that’s so boring and lacking in appeal of its own, like so many sedans and cuvs now. But if I have a Challenger R/T with 370 hp on tap and a 6 speed manual….exactly WHY do I want to fumble around with electronic geekery?
Smart fones are about $50 here as long as you dont buy crapple versions
One of the things I really appreciate about my 2014 Jetta wagon is the simple controls and displays. The new one isn’t bad either. Here’s a pic of the all singing, all dancing Passat dash: reasonably sized buttons for the automatic HVAC, and, while I am sure there are plenty of touch screen functions for the radio/navi, the basic functions are on buttons on the flanks of the display.
And by the way, all the complaining about high tech digital touchscreen finery in cars makes everyone on this thread sound like Rambler drivers. 🙂 Is that a sign of age, or common sense?
Now that made me laugh!
The answer to the question is yes.
I am a driving instructor and vehicle collision reconstructionalist and distracted driving is by far the leading cause of modern vehicle collisions (there are few “accidents,” rather, they are collisions caused by negligent driving such as DD, speed and impaired driving) Distracted driving is at an epidemic level and the automakers are only contributing to the problem. Drivers simply have to take their eyes off the road too much to operate the touchscreens. Couple that with everyone texting and driving and the problem is out of control.
Im 41 and moderately computer-literate and find the touchscreen controls on modern vehicles confusing and distracting if not just plain annoying. I bought my 2010 Challenger because it has the basic interior with no satnav or touchscreen controls, which I don’t think is even available on the new ones. I also drive my 1984 Olds Delta 88 daily and when folks my age or older get in for a ride, they are pleasantly reminded of how much simpler and more driver-friendly older cars are and younger folks are simply amazed at the simplicity and the coolness of real buttons and levers that you actually have to use a muscle group to operate.
I would say there are never any accidents which would be classified as acts of God. All are crashes in my box due to what you mentioned and also to an extreme lack of situational awareness displayed by drivers of today.
Fifty years ago controls were simple, but this was more than balanced by bright metal practically everywhere in the interior. I once drove a 1967 Bonneville hardtop coupe (which had been my grandparents’ car) that had inordinately shiny wiper arms, rear-view and outside mirror housings, window and side mirror controls, A-pillar covers, moldings surrounding the side and rear windows, etc. – as well as the dashboard itself and all its knobs and a/c outlets.
Big rotary ventilation/defrost controls are great; our Foresters have them (’06 and ’07). They must each be 5 cm in diameter.
Got to say Toyotas are pretty good at making old fashion interior. This is my FJ Cruiser with big round and easy to use dials.
That whole set-up looks very much like the dash in my 2002 Land Cruiser 90-series. Including the Playmobil-toy on top of it, which I only use to read the outside-temperature.
I’ve got one button to push: AC on/off. And it has power windows. That about wraps it up. A few years ago I got a new used (model year unknown) radio at the dealership, in exchange for a strawberry pie.
As for the FJ Cruiser system, this is what I do with it:
The heater AC works great, as simple as it comes. Big round dials.
I use my the Bluetooth of FJ’s sound system, connect to the Bluetooth on the iPhone.
iphone takes care of:
1. Making phone calls, via siri, so no eyes of the road.
2. GPS, either apple map or google map, voice instruction via Bluetooth.
3. Search for service (food, gas etc) via Yelp on iPhone, using Siri.
4. Txt, having iPhone to read the txt, then voice recognize my reply back to txt. Via Bluetooth of course.
5. Music from iphone.
FJ’s JBL system does come with a big 12″ subwoofer so plenty powerful. I do find using google or apple map a lot easier than the in car GPS in my other cars. Not even close.
Well, the whole FJ is a retromobile.
I have to add to this because it is my pet peeve. I really like what GM is doing with Cadillac with RWD and light chassis. I test drove an ATS when they first came out and absolutely hated the CUE system. It ruined the car for me.
I’m hoping GM builds the Buick Avenir, a RWD Buick but with the much more user friendly system they put in the rest of the GM lineup.
Without a doubt! Satellite radio,Blue Tooth, radio controls on the wheel, paging devices to answer your cell phone,back up cameras, proximity warning devices,automatic “radar” braking, touch screens,etc, etc. Its just too much. EVERY car should have a mandatory government mandated device to render cellphones inoperative while the vehicle is in motion. Can`t tell you how many people I see on the cellphone, texting and even taking selfies while they drive. Don`t these idiots know that distracted driving is almost as bad as DWI? My car has a control for the radio on the left side of the rim on the wheel. I hate it because I always manage to hit it somehow, and accidently change the station I`m listening to. Maybe I`m old fashioned, but I like cars with gauges , not all the catnip that passes for technology today.I really don`t mean to get on a rant here, but……..
“EVERY car should have a mandatory government mandated device to render cellphones inoperative while the vehicle is in motion.”
You’ve got my vote, Phil.
Thanks Pete, but I`m not running. Maybe in 2020.
Cellfone use while driving has just been banned in NZ, yes really, nobody seems to have noticed and continues on their fones as if its legal still.
I agree there are a lot of stupid drivers out there, but that is a bit too nanny state for my liking.
Agree. The same result can be achieved by hefty fines (I believe that’s on the cards in Israel, combined with points on your licence).
When shopping for my first brand-new car two years ago, I ended up with a Subaru Impreza for all the right reasons: Basic, easy-to-find controls, a no-nonsense interior, gobs of interior room, and you can actually SEE out of it. Everything else on the market felt like mobile Mission Control in comparison. And the market has only gone more distraction-heavy since then. If anything, I see this as a way for automakers to push for autonomous tech. “Drivers can’t control the features they want (cough), how can we expect them to drive safely?”
… and with the kind of pacified, politically correct Eloy clones most members of the public in the West have become, they may well pull it off…
Frankly I’m happy with a screen if it actually does something. My Calais has this fairly sizeable screen, designed for nav which I don’t have (or can’t access without disk), but it does little else. It’s just a biggish screen telling me the radio station or the time. What happens when it breaks? Pointless.
I hate touchscreens I have an aftermarket sat nav in my car to use as a speedo its impossible to see,
Isuzu bless their little oriental hearts removed perfectly functional CD/steroes from their trucks recently and put in integrated touchscreen stereo sat nav backup camera setups low on the centre of the instrument panel exactly where you arent looking while backing up, yet the still fit mirrors in which you can see more, go figure
The latest Car & Driver had a letter from someone who is 88 who told them to stop fussing about the Cue system. He thinks it works just fine.
Always figured the old fart would be smarter than the Car and Driver crowd.
Exactly. See my comment below. I’m 63. After years of reading Car & Driver, Automobile, Motor Trend, etc., I’ve come to realize their reviews and rankings are like album reviews. Entertaining and essentially worthless. CUE is like Rush, unhip and fun to dump on, but a winner to those who get it.
By the way, assuming that elderly folks are not tech-savvy is a canard. As I waited to be seated for lunch at a restaurant last week, I watched a couple who were at least in their late seventies texting away on their smart phones. Let’s not forget that older folks these days are not exactly Civil War relics.
What a crock. I’ve owned two Caddy SRX’s, both with CUE, and I love it. Take the time to set the controls where you want them and then you’re set. The redundant controls on the steering wheel allow you to make changes without taking your eyes off the road. The car mags are like sheep. One dumps on CUE and then they all do. None of them have driven over 100,000 miles with it without incident. I’ve been given a 2013 SRX without CUE for a loaner and found the raft of buttons and switches even more confusing and confounding than CUE
That being said, the digital controls on my 2014 BMW 328ix ARE confusing and inconsistent and the touchscreen looks like someone glued a iPad on the dash.
This is the dash of a current model Peugeot 308. Looks very clean, almost simple. But that’s because almost everything has to be controlled through the touchscreen.
Ground control to Major Tom.
Love my Dart. Quick buttons for volume, station, climate zones, front and rear defrost, and one touch voice command for all functions… Change the display to navigation and take me home…
Funny thing is no one has mentioned in the comments about the Buick Reatta and how the touchscreen at the time was called a fad!
Not only does that whole Cadillac look much older than it is (but at least it escaped early Science and Whatever), but what were they thinking with the interior? Particularly in grey, those buttons and knobs look like ones in my 1990 Trans Sport. Which are just fine. For a 25 year old mini van.
They used to know how to look premium, and I guess, while all interiors have improved from the dark days, they’ve gotten a lot better.
I work on computers a lot. Like, a lot. I rip apart and put back together my own computer on a daily basis. I could put together something to run an entire house using an old Motorola Razor and a couple of arduino boards. Technology is something I understand. However, I understand the limits. I do not own a smart phone. I don’t even have a cellphone. If someone wants to call me, use my house phone. I know there are certain benefits to having a cellphone, but there’s nobody who would want to call me while I’m out and about anyway. I don’t like the fact that I had to buy a smart TV after my old TV died. It comes with programs and features I don’t use, and it doesn’t even have any buttons on the side for when I can’t find the remote.
This leads me into my next point. There is no need for all the controls in modern cars having to do with the touch screen in the center. I’ve been in a Ford Escape and used their system. I’ve been in a Lexus ES350 and used their system. I’ve been in a Chrysler 300 and used their system. As a man who’s only twenty years old and should love all of this, I hate it. The time wasted wading through menus, sub-menus, options, and tabs is dangerous when the average person around here is speeding along at 70 miles an hour on the interstate. I hate it because it’s dangerous, even for someone like me.
The easiest way to fix this is to get rid of the “infotainment” systems as they’re called. Backups cameras are going to be mandatory next year. I get that. Place the screen in on the driver’s dashboard. Have it to where the speedometer, tachometer, gear, and other information are displayed digitally under normal circumstances. Only when backing up should the backup camera show up instead of the speedometer and the tachometer. Less distractions, no more bright blue light flashing in the center stack of your car.
Secondly, USB and auxiliary input should be placed inside the small glove compartment in the center between the driver and passenger seats. This keeps the iPod/Phone/Moribund out of the way, and keeps the driver or passenger from reaching over to grab it every six seconds. Place a small screen with an LCD display at the top of the center stack in the dash. Either have it display the time when the radio’s off, or the radio station and the volume setting when the radio’s on. When turning one of the knobs for climate control or audio settings, have it display like “HEAT: 50/100 FAN: 25%” or “106.3FM 25% VOL/SIRIUSXM 107 25% VOL.” Have controls for the seats ON THE SEATS, and keep the standard controls for mirrors, doorlocks, windows and window locks on the door.
Doing all of that should prevent some three-toed moron from trying to find a Miley Cyrus song and ending up slamming into the Honda Odyssey in front of them.
My CTS with adaptive cruise control would not speed into the car in front. The seat also warns that you are drifting out of your lane. Still, I generally try to avoid getting involved with the screens if I am surrounded by morons talking/texting on their cell phones.
I think the complex control issue is most out of control on expensive cars. We recently bought an average price car, a 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe, and I really don’t have any problems with the dash. It has the base radio which has a small touch screen that doubles as the back up screen. The climate controls are conventional. Buttons on the wheel are useful and Bluetooth is easy to use. My 2011 Mustang is similarly straight forward on the dash. I haven’t had a chance to drive the new 2015 model.
I’m 54, am looking for a new car and absolutely hate this excessive gadget-mania. As far as I’m concerned, a car should have A/C, heated seats, PAS, radio (capable of input from any storage device, because we don’t have tape cassettes anymore, heh) a reversing camera (necessary since all modern cars have adopted the armored car looks now) and manual g/box (I consider the new robotic boxes in the realm of a gadget). None of the above should require more than simple control options. The rest is unnecessary and is really utterly useless when operating it safely requires stopping the car, fathoming where it is and how to operate it.
Oh, and the more of that rubbish you have in the car, the higher the chances it will go wrong (possibly causing other systems to shut down, stranding you somewhere in the process).
Oh, and in case anyone asks: at work I sit in front of a computer all day long, so I’m no stone age primitive. But what works on a computer does not necessarily translates well to driving conditions.
Brendan:
If your Aunt and Uncle would like to try out the Cue system without buying the car, there is an app for the iPad that has tutorials for how to use the system. I checked and this seems to still be available. My 2013 ATS came with an iPad with this preloaded, but Cadillac dropped this for 2014. Your Aunt and Uncle could get the app and play with the tutorials until they become very familiar with how Cue (and the current Cadillac dash) works.
Then they could go into the local dealer to sit in an XTS (or CTS?) and try to see if they can make it do stuff. The alternative would be to buy an Impala which may have an easier control setup.
Give me a voice activated GPS with a heads up screen on the windshield, and I would be happy. All the other stuff is too much, and is really no different from texting.
This thread has proved that over a hundred other folks share my hate for touchscreen dashes, but nobody’s addressed my top two gripes.
The screen in my 2013 Tiguan is aways dusty, and has no shielding from ambient light. In the day, it’s barely visible through sunglasses, and at night it’s distractingly bright. I’ve tried the adjustments, but their range is far too narrow for the vast brightness difference between Denver sunshine and night. Maybe they work better in Wolfsburg or Detroit- they probably do, but not where I drive.
Also troublesome is the fact that my car, moving rapidly on poorly-laid and frost-heaved roads, jiggles around a bit. Sometimes more than a bit, and that can spoil the aim of a touchscreen command. I think the knob-based screen navigation of an Audi might be better in this regard, because there’s a place to steady your hand.
My vehicle choices have been shaped by the touchscreen issue. My personal car, an ’09 GTI, is the latest model I can find with a stereo controlled by big, clear buttons and fixed knobs. I really can’t imagine myself buying anything newer, until the touchscreen phase is past. I’d prefer the screens of some Audis that retracts into the dash when not in use. But most cars, even some Audis, just plant a fixed screen standing atop the dash like a billboard. That would be ok- I could throw a plain towel over it and get about my business, LOOKING OUT THE WINDSHIELD!
I wonder how many accidents have been caused by distracted drivers playing with their infotainment systems? I bet the consumer reports people and any other in the motoring media just don’t want us to know and demand going back to simple. The car manufacturers also don’t want to go back as it is cheap stuff that they can add on prices.
We know that texting causes accidents. I don’t have a cell phone, and therefore can’t relate to texting vs touchscreen distraction, however I do have a Cue system. It is easy to get focused on the screen. On the other hand, you can glance at the screen while still keeping part of your vision on the road ahead. I usually make sure no one is coming up behind me to pass and that the road ahead is clear before jumping into the more involved stuff involving the screen. The Cue system limits what you can do while driving anyway. Probably the most distracting thing is browsing the radio stations available looking for PBS when you leave one stations range. Sometimes they are labeled.
One thing I can say with regard to navigation screens is that they are much easier and less distracting to use than trying to look at a paper road map while driving.
“In their final years of production, cars like the Buick Lucerne, previous-generation Toyota Avalon, Mercury Grand Marquis, and Cadillac DTS often received a lot of hate for being “geriatric”, “outdated”, and “behind-the-times”. I recall one automotive magazine even singling out the Lucerne for “still offering a bench seat and column shifter”‘
Those were pretty much the last generation GM cars I actually liked, especially the type of Deville your great aunt and uncle have. I thought the front seat set up was pretty much perfect (plenty of storage and cup holders without those damn consoles) and they were very comfortable. About the only way I would improve them would be to add a system by which you could attach your own phone to the car to play music and such. I’d also rather have some sort of glitzed up dials vs. the digital dash that the Deville has. Its Texas Instruments-esque green display was cool back in the 80s, by the 2000s it was horribly dated and would have been much better served with the classic gauge.
As to the various infotainment systems, I really think the point is to make you personalized adjustments well before you even start driving and then rely on the basic button controls. At least that is how I use my UConnect on the 300. With things set already, all I basically have to do is make any music or environmental adjustments via the old school wheel or dash mounted buttons.
I’ll be a lone voice in the wilderness here and say that I love loads of buttons and features! This started back in 1984 with the multi-buttoned trip computer in a family friend’s Ford Sierra Ghia. I read the manuals (I’m currently slogging through the Peugeot’s) and learn how to work everything. I’m often surprised by some of the features/functions that I didn’t know existed – eg when exiting the Peugeot, if I flick the column stalk for the lights, they illuminate for 30 seconds before shutting off. Having said that, the easiest-to-use interior I’ve found was in my old Mazda6 – nice rotary controls for the a/c, big, simple well-labelled buttons for the ICE.
As a 22 year old, I despite these features. I can hardly operate a touchscreen phone while driving. I need to sometimes for navigation, but I feel very unsafe while doing so. I don’t need to take my eyes off the road to perform any function in my 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix. Next car will probably be a used one from around 2009, when these systems were optional. In addition to being a distraction, I can only imagine how devastating it would be when the touchscreen gets wonky (THEY ALWAYS DO,) the display stops working, and other issues. More and more essential components are being loaded into these things. It’s not just infotainment systems anymore… besides the steering wheel and pedals, these are becoming the only way the driver can interface with the car. If one thing goes wrong with it, there goes a massive amount of functionality. What a disaster.
I used to be an insurance adjuster. At least one insurance company I dealt with would occasionally fix what should have been a total loss, if the owner was really old. Their rationale was that the owner would have a tough time adjusting to different control placements in a replacement car and would be prone to having another accident.
There is some logic to that, I think.