Wasn’t sure whether to post this as an IMHO or GQ so, since it mostly just irks me, it found its place in The Pit.
Exactly what genius thought up rain-sensing windshield wipers? Many of the other modern-day gadgetry that gets put into cars isn’t always necessary but is neat, useful, or otherwise adds some level of safety to the car. What purpose, I wonder, do rain-sensing windshield wipers serve? I can scarcely recall a time when it last rained while I was driving when I forgot to to turn my windshield wipers on. It’s a shame, I know … I’m amongst the unfortunate few who doesn’t have such a luxury.
The only feature I can even compare this to are automatic headlights that turn on when it’s dark. This is something that at first thought seems like an idea designed especially for idiots, but even headlights I can understand someone forgetting to turn on. I’ve been victim of it a few times myself, having driving off without realizing my lights weren’t on, maybe because the area was well lit and it slipped my mind … of course, I usually realize it and turn them on right away. These occasions are extremely rare, of course … perhaps less rare for incompetent drivers, but nevertheless, the auto-headlight idea makes practical sense. But rain-sensing windshield wipers? How accomodating must a car be for the typical moron? People used to have to know how to change and patch tires, fix radiators, repair engines, and what not just by virtue of the fact that they were car owners. With progress comes change, of course … tires are stronger and last much longer, engines and radiators are more reliable, and assembly quality is much improved from what it was years ago so that car owners don’t have to get their hands dirty, but rain-sensing windshield wipers? I just don’t get it. :rolleyes:
Granted, I’m sure there are people on here who think it would be great if cars drove themselves, electromagnetically floating up and down a computer-controlled traffic grid a la Minority Report … this would of course allow the drivers of today to do all the endlessly stupid things they already do anyway, but in perfect peace: yack on mobile phones, eat fast food, drink frappacinos, paint their nails, put on makeup, and all the other endlessly stupid things people do while driving anyway … but lest I go ahead and hijack my own thread, I’ll stop now.
I happen to have the automatic rain sensing windshield wipers on my car and I’d happily rip them out by their entrails if I could figure out which wire to yank without upsetting the entire damn computerized ecology of the car.
Fucking things never work at the right requency. It’s always too fast/fequent in light rain and it takes a just an aggressive little sprinkle to kick them into high gear.
What’s worse, and it’s happend a half dozen times now, in real downpours when roads are flowing shallow streams and a sheet of water is kicked up on the windshield while the wipers are set to auto, the fucking things just stop as if it’s stopped raining. The hell!!! I’m doing 60 on the highway passing a truck and suddenly it’s like I’ve driven into a swimming pool. :eek:
The only way to defeat the fuckers is to leave the auto setting off and just hit the single wipe manually from time to time in light drizzle.
::: shrug::: I loves my rain sensing wipers. Particulary when I have a long trip and I go from mist to rain to heavy rain, and then clear. Set em and forget em. QuickSilver don’t know what kind of car you have, but mine have a flood mode, where if a large amount of water hits the windshield from either a sudden downpour, or a splash from another car the wipers go to full atomic power.
My car has automatic headlights, and they’re great. I never have to touch the switch at all. Forgetting to turn them on isn’t a problem (since the car has DRL and the low beams come on as soon as I release the hand brake), but this way I can never forget to turn them off.
Screw the heated seats, THIS is what I want. Yes, a cold butt is unpleasant, but unless you want to drive with big puffy gloves on, the hands are where the cold really bites in.
I just had the loan of a Volvo SUV for a week. It was great, but what the hell are those rain-sensitive wipers all about? I found that no matter whether the rain was light or heavy, they were still only wipinbg about half as fast as they needed too.
Plus, of course, you get the dumbasses who forget to turn them off before driving through the carwash and get their wipers ripped off :rolleyes:
My father-in-laws wipers are set off by sudden changes in the light. Drive under a brige? WIPE. Sun behind a cloud? WIPE.
I find them annoying, and I’m glad they’re not on any of my cars. I’m with the OP - I can’t think of a single rainstorm where I forgot to turn on my wipers.
[sub]Though that flood-mode Rick mentioned would have come in handy once or twice.[/sub]
Hard to tell whether or not that’s sarcasm. If it is, don’t knock that feature until you try it … that is one luxury feature I hope starts making it into more vehicles. And just so you know, the Germans thought of it first, big surprise. The heated steering wheel made its debut (as most luxury features do) on flagship BMWs and Mercedes-Benzes before all the other companies decided to put it on their bloated luxury SUVs, hehe. The Germans invented everything from airbags to headlights that turn around corners, heated seats, mirrors and steering wheels, power seats … although now that I think about it, I’m pretty sure the rain-sensing windshield wiper was an American or British idea. I’m pretty sure Jaguar was amongst the first, at least, to tout the feature in their advertising.
Here in Florida, we could use some pre-cooled wheels. Although if you don’t have a windowsill-screen or the sun gets onto your wheel anyway, a wipe with your shirt or a paper towel or napkin (doesn’t have to be wet) will usually soak up enough of the heat that you can grab the wheel without burning yourself…too badly.
I have the rain-sensing wipers. I really like the concept but I’ve noticed some of the problems others have written about.
I like using intermittent wipers and this is just another step along those lines. At least on my car if the rain-sensing bothers you there’s a normal mode that wipes continuously.
I think it will take a generation or two of these wipers to get them done right. I’ve noticed that they will spaz out with a sprinkle or not go on during a fairly steady rain.
You took the words right out of my mouth. What’s next, sun roofs that can detect when it’s a nice day and open themselves automatically? Cup holders that heat or cool your beverage? An ejection seat in case the car goes underwater?
The auto-headlights are great, but still need to be turned on from time to time. Illinois, and I think most states by now, has a law requiring lights to be on when your wipers are on. Do the auto-wipers also turn on the headlights on those cars with the automatic wipers?
OR
If enough of the country requires headlights to be on with wipers, how about controls that automatically turn the headlights on when you activate the wipers?
I thought that too, until they didn’t go on one snowy morning when I wanted them to be on. Since they’re ‘automatic’, the designers must have figured anyone turning the headlights to ‘on’ want them really on. This I discovered when I got in my 2003 model car at 7pm on a -20 degree night to find my battery stone dead.
I really like my automatic wipers. I never have a problem with them being too slow or too fast. And in Florida, with the sudden rainstorms, it’s nice not to have to take my hands off the wheel to turn them on. Because, of course, everyone seems to forget how to drive when the road gets wet.
For years Subaru has run the headlights through the ignition switch, just like every other electrical circuit on the car (save for brake lights and hazard blinkers.) In this way, you can’t ever forget to turn your lights off and run down the battery, and if you want to leave them on all the time, you just do so. I can’t figure out why car manufacturers would let you keep the headlights on with the key out of the ignition. It serves no purpose whatsoever, and “dead battery from headlights left on” is one of the main issues AAA providers have to deal with.
As far as the OP, I can’t see that automatic wipers would be a selling point for me, but then, I don’t understand this obsession–bordering on a sexual fetist–people seem to have for an absurd number of drinks holders, either. Just put a damn hole in the center console, let the driver figure out what size container will fit, and be done with it, already. Do we really need an 8 place minivan with 17 cup brackets? Bizarre.
Well, my car’s headlights are always on, day or night, as Daytime Running Lights (which don’t seem any different from regular low beams). The automatic headlights feature really only controls the parking/tail lights and dashboard lights. If I have the high beams or fog lamps switched on, they’ll also turn on or off as it gets dark or light outside.
If it is, don’t knock that feature until you try it … that is one luxury feature I hope starts making it into more vehicles. And just so you know, the Germans thought of it first, big surprise. The heated steering wheel made its debut (as most luxury features do) on flagship BMWs and Mercedes-Benzes before all the other companies decided to put it on their bloated luxury SUVs, hehe. The Germans invented everything from airbags to headlights that turn around corners, heated seats, mirrors and steering wheels, power seats … although now that I think about it, I’m pretty sure the rain-sensing windshield wiper was an American or British idea. 
I’m pretty sure Jaguar was amongst the first, at least, to tout the feature in their advertising.