Your thoughts on car tech? (infotainment, EPAS, etc.)

[trogdor007]

With cars getting more and more like smartphones with apps, nav, and the like, I wanted to get your opinion on car technology. I'm talking in-cabin stuff like touch screen and voice activated head units and performance and convenience options like rear parking aids and blind spot indicators. A lot of the guys I've talked to aren't very techy per se, but they said they'd love some of the new radio/sync technology but only if it's standard. On the other hand, my mom for example loves all the latest and greatest and bought an Ford Escape Titanium for all of the extras like the liftgate thing and MyFordTouch. I'm somewhere in between. While I love consumer tech and all, I feel that it can overwhelm the driving experience. I know the FR-S/BRZ interiors can be a bit sparse on comfort features, but they have more than enough tech for a lot of you. What do you guys think? Has car tech made cars better or drivers worse?

[retoocs]

Touch screens suck in a car. Give me buttons. I don't want to look down to change the radio.

While driver aids do make people safer, the problem is people solely rely on them and forget the basics. It's like rear view cameras. Most people only look at the screen when backing up and not behind them and to the sides to see if another car was coming.

[Lavalover]

I had a fancy SUV with the power liftgate thing and hated it. I do like Bluetooth connectivity and strongly prefer control knobs instead of buttons. Touchscreen buttons are a PITA and voice control has not worked reliably for me. My last car--I swear that the GPS (female) voice would get prissy with me when I ignored the directions. Machine intelligence HA! The FR-S actually has a decent balance of tech and simplicity IMO. Could use a couple more gauges though.

[Burrcold]

Let's put the added weight and price aside, if all things were equal I would love a completely tech loaded BRZ/FRS. Most cars that have land departure and collision avoidance braking, blind spot monitoring, etc. these features can be turned off if you don't like one or all (example I have a '14 Accord Touring V6 with all of the above, and I HATE the lane departure warning. So I turn it off...it stays off as well which is nice to not have to set it each time I drive the car).

Love the back-up camera, the right hand turn camera is great for checking blind spots, parking (especially up close to a curb when parallel parking), and general tight right turns. As far as large touch screen NAVI/Stereo units, I love having everything touch screen with the exception of the volume and radio scan knobs. However, as long as these are on the steering wheel, I wouldn't care.

Again...this is all making a vary unrealistic scenario of no added weight and price. So basics is fine with me.

[kevman_101]

I`m not big on in-car tech. That`s why I like the FRS. Just the right balance. I have the touchscreen unit, and while I like the look it gives, it`s not the best. Connect my usb and phone for the very odd calls I receive. Most of the times I won`t even answer. Got better things to do then talk while driving.

It`s also easy to switch from sport to hoon mode . Would of liked an oil pressure gauge, but not many cars have them anymore. I think, for a sports car, I would of liked a small screen with a few digital gauges, with critical info, like oil pressure, oil temp, water temp, etc. Things like that. I see a few cars have things like that, like the new WRX, but that is too over the top and flashy. You shouldn`t be looking at an lcd screen to see if a wheel slipped or ABS kicked in on the LR wheel.

[Purdue FR-S]

I have a fairly strong opinion on the matter so I'll try to show some restraint.

I'm sort of opposed to a lot of it personally, but I see this is the way the industry is going and that this type of change will result in driving becoming a commodity.

Self-driving cars, In-Car Entertainment, Productivity, Connectivity, etc... all steps toward removing the driving experience completely. Since the rise of cell phone usage and the convergence of all things tech related, people have become worse and worse drivers in general. They'd rather pay attention to their digital lives than the road. It's sad, but true... and it's the way it's going to be for the foreseeable future.

Same thing with all the extra features like the foot-activated lift gate, self parking, etc. People really value these conveniences over the character of the car in general, leads to a lot of automation / less "skill" required to operate.

I've always grown up loving cars and driving and have always been looking forward to what's coming in the future. Given what's happened over the past couple years though, and my new insights working for a major auto manufacturer however ... has sort of left me feeling sad about where the industry is heading :\

Adapt or die I understand, but doesn't mean I'm thrilled with what the future will hold. I suppose sleeping on long interstate car trips would be nice :P

Jeremy Clarkson kinda made a good point too:

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Q0Svvdrx_E"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Q0Svvdrx_E[/ame]

[trogdor007]

Originally Posted by Purdue FR-S

I have a fairly strong opinion on the matter so I'll try to show some restraint.

I'm sort of opposed to a lot of it personally, but I see this is the way the industry is going and that this type of change will result in driving becoming a commodity.

Self-driving cars, In-Car Entertainment, Productivity, Connectivity, etc... all steps toward removing the driving experience completely. Since the rise of cell phone usage and the convergence of all things tech related, people have become worse and worse drivers in general. They'd rather pay attention to their digital lives than the road. It's sad, but true... and it's the way it's going to be for the foreseeable future.

Same thing with all the extra features like the foot-activated lift gate, self parking, etc. People really value these conveniences over the character of the car in general, leads to a lot of automation / less "skill" required to operate.

I've always grown up loving cars and driving and have always been looking forward to what's coming in the future. Given what's happened over the past couple years though, and my new insights working for a major auto manufacturer however ... has sort of left me feeling sad about where the industry is heading :\

Adapt or die I understand, but doesn't mean I'm thrilled with what the future will hold. I suppose sleeping on long interstate car trips would be nice :P

Jeremy Clarkson kinda made a good point too:

Yeah I'd definitely agree with people focusing too much on their digital lives (texting, chatting on the phone, etc. while driving). It's a shame we've become so attached to social networking and have almost forsaken simple tasks in the name of automation. That being said, I think there's great potential for tech, especially in cars, to make the driving experience even greater (think about the change from carb to fuel injection and the age of ECM's). I ultimately view the goal of technology to make our lives easier, but that is no excuse to let it control our lives. I'm excited for the future of car tech but I'm cautiously optimistic.

[Prog]

I like car tech, because I like technology in general. Car tech should serve a different function than other technology, though. It should be non-distracting and non-disruptive to the driving experience, and it should help - when appropriate, and when asked/set to. For me, the stock BRZ head unit was exactly the opposite of this, so I replaced it.

[swpbrz]

I come from nothing so the infotainment in the brz is awesome to me. Map always up and phone always autconnects

[stevesnj]

My future infotainment system

[badrad]

I think a transition to much more tech-heavy cars is inevitable, and not necessarily in a bad way, but being involved and interested in the tech world, what kills me, is how far behind vehicles really are.

It is all marketed as being some great new infotainment nav super connectivity system, but in reality, the tech industry hasn't put any time into vehicles. Luckily that is changing, and there are great ideas coming out, but I feel it is still way behind. Even nav systems, call me biased, as I probably am to services like Google Maps, but navigation has forever been terrible in cars I have used. Similarly with touchscreens in general, as has been stated. Touch works for some stuff, but climate control on a touchscreen menu is my biggest hate in some systems. Turning a fan up one button tap at a time on a sub par touchscreen.

I agree that in a car, a button, a tactile response, is much preferred in most actions performed. I like being to keep a hand on the wheel, eyes on the road, reach a hand down by muscle memory, feel for a button or knob, and continue on driving.

I think the next steps will need to come in to supplementing the driver not being a secondary system. I do like all cameras and sensors that exist now, I also like being able to turn them off (like mentioned before with lane departure). A lot has gone too far though, throwing in arbitrary status screens and sensors, for data nobody would actually need, except to be impressed at the dealership by all of the 'advanced tech'

I still have gripes with in car tech. I want it, but it's not there yet. It's all too locked down still, independent to each manufacture, creating no interest or competition or innovation, and it really needs dedicated involvement from 3rd party companies in the industry that are automating and improving daily life elsewhere in the world.

Thus far, I think the latest Ford systems have been the 'best' at least for what I use in car tech for. Mostly bluetooth and music. I still use my phone for nav, sometimes even just screen off and audio coming through speakers.

[kthxbai]

In short, I feel overall most cars now have too much "impractical technology". Being able to access your social media from your dashboard while driving at 75 mph down a busy stretch of I-4 is insane to me.

I see value in "practical technology", i.e. bluetooth connectivity for your phone, reverse cameras (especially in our cars), blind spot monitoring, LSD, traction control, etc. Those who tend to gravitate to cars that are loaded with technology are not buying a car to drive it, deep down inside they wished the car drove itself so that they can check their facebook, twitter, or instagram account. Your car should not be an extension of your laptop, computer, smartphone (except for emergency phone calls through blue tooth or the like).

This is going to be a stretch but my opinion on these cars that are loaded to the T with technology is a disservice to the driving public. It dulls the senses as human nature will tend to move toward the path of least resistance. If you have a computer chip monitoring your blind side, monitoring objects in front of your car so that it will apply the brakes while you check your text message, or apply your brakes when you are reversing out of your driveway while you are yelling at your kids to sit down and put their seat belts on. If anything, too much technology does not make you a safer/better driver, it makes you a worse and dangerous driver.

[Pseud0logik]

I'm a total tech junkie. I swap out my phones constantly, wear a smartwatch, build my own computers, game with a mouse instead of a controller, and work in the tech industry.

I'm also a gearhead. I like my cars as stripped down as possible. Manual everything, physical buttons, feedback over comfort, performance over style.

Technology evolves so quickly that it's dated already by the time a new car hits the lot, I don't like outdated gadgets so I prefer to keep tech and cars completely separate. I have learned to love bluetooth, and I use it constantly. Other than that the base FR-S has more built-in tech than I will ever need.

[stevesnj]

Well every switch dial and light is computer controlled. The manual seat adjuster may be the only thing not hooked to a sensor or switch of some sort.