jaybarbara

I'm so old, I remember when you had a problem with your car, it was usually the engine or Tranny that went south.
Now we have absolutely (almost)NO problems with the drive train, it's the damned technology that drives us batty!!!!
Another reason to miss the Good Old Days!!!~ HA!

ukrkoz

Why? Plenty of them low tech cars on craigslist.

skyshadow

Your mad because cars are built better now? The good ole days didn't give you GPS nav, Bluetooth connectivity, fuel injection, remote start, etc etc etc. More options, more problems.

ukrkoz

Intentionally or not, you just confirmed jay's gripe.

jaybarbara

No, I'm not mad because they're better, I'm mad because they're better in some ways and worse in others.
I'm disgruntled because they are no longer user friendly and we are hostage to technological advancements that aren't really necessary, and which WE can't fix unless we're computer scientists (which I most definitely aren't), or we bring them to "our friendly dealer" who proceeds to rip us off!
And, more to the point, skyshadow, they SHOULD be better---a typical car costs more than my first house---I SHOULD be getting a better product!
I'm bemoaning the fact that after 60 years of driving, the more things change,the more they stay the same---still troublesome, but in different areas!

nigel821

iTrader: (2)

Yep this is the reason why I will never sell my 05' STi. It's just raw on so many levels and driving experience that new stuff isn't. As much as I love technology I DO find it annoying that if I want to unlock more power from a car, I need to push a button or I need to switch drive modes...etc. The only time I should have to limit power or get more power if from my right foot. That I miss with the new stuff.

At the same time I do like all the features. But I think it's almost a necessity that one invests in the proper tools. IE: For our Mercedes I have a specific laptop, STAR (MB specific software) software, and a mux in order to communicate and properly check/configure/diagnose things on it. Without that piece of equipment I would not be able to code the car, change things or see what is going on without having to go to a dealer/shop and paying $120 for a software check...etc. I think there are at least 8 SAMs (Signal Acquisition Module) on the car that things communicate with switches, controls..etc.

I don't condone pirating software so I won't get into details here but I do recommend finding TechStream (Toyota's software) and getting it installed on a laptop with the proper OBDII usb reader. I have it and it's great to be able to check out everything on the Lexus and wife's Toyota along with changing things. Features that are "dealer" only can be changed at a whim at our house. I was able to change how many times the turn signal goes off when you give it a quick flick, the sound of chimes, all windows down with key fob...etc. Plus the convenience of being able to see live data and run a scan which will tell you what is going on with the vehicle.

Everyone wants more and more features/tech in the car. Because of that the vehicles are no longer what they once were, they are giant 2 ton computers..lol

-Nigel

Benoit

I'm probably not the best to speak about that because I'm far from beeing an expert. But I believe cars are becoming what we make them to become. When my parents bought cars in the late 80's, 90's, those where import japanese cars. They where a cancer for the eyes (google 1985 mitusibshi lancer wagon, my father had that one), but they had tons of reliability, we where many to buy them, and this started to inspire the market to become great in this aspect. But after the 2000's, the atmosphere changed again, the peoples where not necessarly buying reliable cars anymore, they where going for badge prestige and gadgets. And the industry delivered again. And now, we are landing where we are now, with cars that can access the internet and order you a pizza, but they can't f-king drive a 200k miles without major repairs or trying to kill you.

JDR76

One day we'll look back at 2019 and think of it as "the good ol' days". You know, when we still had ICE engines and could drive our cars ourselves...

Woodrow

This is awesome!! I remember when my Dad didn't want electric windows, because they are "just something else to break". Just this morning I was telling my lovely wife about my drive home from the dealership in a brand new RX loaner. I was playing with the laser cruise control, letting it manage ALL the braking and acceleration in stop and go traffic! It was really interesting, and reminded me once again how far we've come!

My first car was a VW bug. I always carried a spare fan belt and fuel pump along with the tools to change them, because there was a better than average chance they would fail. Planning for a trip in those days included a plugs, points, condenser, and distributor cap. This would be followed with a chassis lube and oil change, flushing the cooling system, probably an alignment to save the tires, and an electrical/battery check. I can't tell you how many times I drove up the "Grapevine" in various cars, worrying about how far up I was going to get before overheating this time! And that was after turning off the A/C. Today, I don't think twice about a last minute 6 hour drive to Wyoming to see our new grandson. The only prep is to get gas on the way out of town. The reliability today is incredible. I tell my wife, that's why I buy new cars instead of used cars, but the truth is, I like the electronics in the new cars.

General unreliability and/or mistrust of cars put me through school as a gas station mechanic!

ukrkoz

I like
- adaptive cruise control
- reverse camera
- auto beam headlights.
The rest - meh.. I have spherical mirror anyway on BSM equipped one and it still does better job than flashing yellow light.
As I said - there's plenty of low tech - and very much fun to drive - cars for very reasonable money out there.
Also, most of those fancy features can be disabled anyway from Settings...

Htony

Learning new things for old farts like us(I'll be 80 next year) No more new car for me. I'll just keep driving what I have until I pass, LOL!