New Stuff on Vehicles likes/dislikes

kd4pbs

Petty Officer 3rd Class
Joined
Mar 5, 2012
Messages
94
The Car Manufacturers and the Government should also be charged every time a Person driving with only the Daytime Running Lights on at Night gets a Ticket. They stupidly have the Dash Lights to be on when the DRLs are operating, and people end up thinking they have Driving Lights, so they never turn the Lights on, so no Rear Lights. If the Dash was Dark, then people would clue in that they need to turn the lights on.
I know on Newer Cars/Trucks, most have Auto Lights, but the is an Off Position to the Switch on most Cars(mine only shuts the Light off if they are on, and will turn them back on the moment it is in gear). Unfortunately a Valet, or Service Tech usually turns the Switch to off, and the Owner doesn't see the change, and put it back on Auto, so...
Flip side of that is our '16 GL350 that doesn't have an "off" mode. Nothing says, "I'm a jerk" more than sitting in a parking lot at night, facing people waiting to get into some restaurant and having no choice but to have the lights in their faces if we want to stay warm.
Then one day we realized if the vehicle is running, turning the switch to either the left or right "park light" (MB owners would understand) turns off all lights when the car is running. Then when you turn off the car and forget that the switch is set to park light, upon returning to the vehicle after several hours, you're greeted with a severely drained battery because the parking lights on whichever side of the vehicle have been on the whole time.
German engineering at it's finest.
 

kd4pbs

Petty Officer 3rd Class
Joined
Mar 5, 2012
Messages
94
eh,
agree with the first sentence......but not with the last paragraph, as earlier reasons by others and me.
All of that tells the mother with the "baby onboard" sticker that she doesn't have to pay attention, so she can text on her phone while speeding in the fast lane with that kid in the car seat
My latest pet peeve is the people who warn me that *I* have to be patient because their precious little prince or princess is driving like a fool in rush hour traffic with very little if any driving experience due to them being a "new driver".
 

jimmbo

Supreme Mariner
Joined
May 24, 2004
Messages
13,921
Unfortunately there is no Test that determines if anyone will be a Good Parent. And if there was, and someone is Deemed unfit, what can be done, Forced Sterilization has been deemed Unlawful in Civilized Countries
 

flashback

Rear Admiral
Joined
Jun 28, 2002
Messages
4,038
collision avoidance may have saved the tail end of my 240Z when this gal plowed into the back end of it while putting on her mascara. I looked in the rearview and just thought dang, this is going to be fun.
 

WIMUSKY

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Sep 26, 2009
Messages
20,132
I'm sure it's been said a bunch of times, but I love the heads up display. Speedo, speed limit, cruise speed, radio station, turn by turn guidance etc.
I do like the electronic dash. That's why we bought another chev truck. Previous truck had it.... Now analog seems antiquated....
Liking the rear view "camera". Clear view with no obstacles like seats and heads...
 

Scott Danforth

Grumpy Vintage Moderator still playing with boats
Staff member
Joined
Jul 23, 2011
Messages
51,133
I dislike the social engineering and grooming that has molded people to think they need "tech" including onboard wifi, a 12 in screen, cameras on all corners, ultrasonic sensors, self-driving (hands free cruise), turn by turn guidance, a new vehicle every 3 years.

Most people today under 30 can not read a map or even navigate there home town without GPS
 

Lou C

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Nov 10, 2002
Messages
13,312
The sad reality is that no matter how you look at it increased reliance on tech is making people less intelligent and less capable. They no longer use parts of the brain needed to read maps and solve various problems etc.
Smart cars does not equal smart drivers
Social skills in particular has suffered terribly and the youth of today have little to no critical thinking skills. They can be fed anything and be convinced to believe it.
 

jlh3rd

Senior Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 10, 2017
Messages
737
especially teens, pre-teens. Their brains are malleable and their decision making capability and emotional stability varies from day to day. And they grow up needing that instant device gratification, unless the parents are smart enough to limit that exposure.
sad.
 

tphoyt

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Jun 10, 2010
Messages
1,622
That’s was my favorite me time back in the day. I would drive 100’s of miles with no real destination in mind. I ended up in keywest once and decided to sleep in my truck for the weekend. It very memorable moment still to this day and it was 45 years ago.
 

dingbat

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Nov 20, 2001
Messages
16,592
I still just go for a drive and try to get lost. Proven valuable over the years.
We used to go for on Sunday drives with the family as a kid. Went “exploring” as teens and young adults.

Still enjoy seeing the world go by but unfortunately, spending the last 25 years “on the road” severally limits my ability to get “lost” anymore.

Having said that, setting GPS to take the “shortest distance” can get interesting….lol
 

Pmt133

Ensign
Joined
Jan 6, 2022
Messages
928
We used to go for on Sunday drives with the family as a kid. Went “exploring” as teens and young adults.

Still enjoy seeing the world go by but unfortunately, spending the last 25 years “on the road” severally limits my ability to get “lost” anymore.

Having said that, setting GPS to take the “shortest distance” can get interesting….lol
Thats my problem. I did service work as a kid (still do on the side) so the 4 counties neighboring mine are relatively back of hand now. To get to a particular street address I'd still have to look it up but I can get pretty much anywhere with no real challenges.

We drove up to NYC last week for a show, we were on route one in like Edison and my girlfriend was asking if we had customers in the area. I was explaining last time I was up here I was severely hung over and got lunch at a Wendy's... and then as the words leave my lips I'm like "actually thats the Wendy's and the customer is down that street." :LOL:

I get out of state and still need some help but I make it a point to write out the route and the navigation is more for confirmation bias than anything.
 

FLATHEAD

Captain
Joined
Dec 29, 2002
Messages
3,585
I still just go for a drive and try to get lost. Proven valuable over the years.
I’ve done several 4 to 6 week cross country trips on motorcycle. This was before I had a cell phone and any kind of GPS. Just a pile of paper maps in a zip lock stuffed in a saddlebag. Always avoiding the interstate and most 4 lane roads. Doing that I’ve probably seen more of real America than most that stick to highways.
Talk about getting lost in America!

As far as all the tech. All the new cars have it like it or not. Wife gets a new car every 3 or 4 years, I get a new truck about every 7 to 10 years. I don’t mind most of it. A lot of it you don’t have to use. Some here seem bitter about it. Just drive a 20 year old car and fughettaboutit
 
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