How about the freaking passlock system? There have been times where even using the key that came with my Colorado, the damn system thought I was using a phony key and prevented me from starting the vehicle for 10 minutes. Want to try again in 9 minutes? Sorry, you just reset the clock for another 10.
I had a 2007 Impala with the tire pressure indicator and it would also tell you which tire and how much pressure it had right in the in-dash display. No green and amber lights though, it just said it in words. That car also had the automatic headlights. I just set the headlight switch to auto when I bought it and never touched it again.
What kind of car is this magical thing you speak of? I must have one!
Our Honda Pilot has a tire pressure display. If it detects the pressure has dropped below the threshold, a diagram lights up showing us which tire it is that needs attention. And then it doesn’t go away until we get it fixed.
In other news, I’ve gotten really good at driving while ignoring a display of warning lights that looks like a 747 cockpit.
Since this thread has become about tire pressure, I thought I’d throw in a rant for the OP.
I hate that modern alloy wheels are made with machined concentric grooves - they make it literally impossible to keep a nice finish on them. You have to replace the wheel once it gets scuffed, because the corrosion will travel along the damnable grooves and can’t be taken out. No buffing or sanding will help, unless you go all the way down to flat…and re-clearcoat them.
Give me a flat surface wheel any day. At least I can buff out the scratches…
I have the answer. MPG and crush tests. Build for streamlining and rollover safety and visibility goes to hell. Add in styling and it gets worse.
It’s not quite that simple. I think tire pressure sensors are mounted in the wheel and transmit data by RF. It’s fairly simple to have the same sensor/transmitter on all wheels, and one receiver & indicator light. To indicate which tire is low, you’d need sensors/transmitters that can send a unique code (i.e. not just a “pressure’s low!” signal, but “I’m the left front sensor, and pressure’s low!” signal). And a receiver unit that can decipher this signal. And instead of 1 error indicator lamp, you need 4.
Though I understand some cars detect low pressure by measuring the rotation rate of each tire. (A tire with low pressure has smaller effective diameter, so it spins faster than others.) With that type of system, I expect it’s fairly easy to display which one is low.
I suspect it’s just cheaper than a set of buttons. Adding features to a computer is cheaper than adding physical buttons.
This does not work for the 2009 Vibe and automatic headlights with no way to override again becomes a stupid feature.
Daytime running lights have been mandatory in Canada for over 20 years and I’ve never heard one person complain about them.
For what reasons are they “stupid?”
Why only silver cars? I’ve seen idiots doing this in every color of car under the Sun.
Yeah, they come in all colors. But the silver lights-out cars on rainy days are as dumb as jogging in a black cloak at midnight.
A 2011 Dodge Journey. And it has both a touchscreen and buttons
:eek:
I’m in Canada and it is not" daytime running lights" that I find stupid. It is the fact that the Vibe, at night, automatically turns on your full headlights regardless of if the car is in gear or not. It is a mild annoyance but I do find times where the car is running but not in gear that I don’t want lights on (running the car at 6am to warm it up in midwinter, aforementioned drive in movies where I need the air/heater on to defog the window, etc. It is a stupid feature that could have been made useful with a bit if forethought, as shown by other manufacturers, by making it active only when the car is in gear or deactivating when the emergency break is on.
Both of our cars have a switch that does that but you can turn it off quite easily. Have you check your owners manual to be sure that you cannot disable it?
Okay so 1, sorry Cyros
2. I’m on a rather boring conf call so I decided to look up your owners manual. First of all you’re absolutely correct there is nothing you can do to turn it off. Secondly your owners manual was written for a relatively unintelligent 4 year old. They spent 11 pages on how to fasten your seatbelt.
Well, you’re correct; that is stupid.
Stuff I can do without;
Automatic/manumatic/DSG/flappy paddle/CVT transmissions
Any form of “helpful” nannyware like traction control, stability control, launch control or other such rot
Big Brotherware like OnStar, Sync, or any other monitoring technology
Event Data Recorders, A.K.A. The “black box” tattletale box (often linked with the Big Brotherware
Insurance company monitoring widgets like that Snapshot dongle from progressive, the only thing worse than nannyware is nannyware you voluntarily add to your car
Power windows, door locks and trunk release, my VW Rabbit has these and I hate them, give me old fashioned manual locking and crank windows, simpler and more reliable
Oh, and get off my lawn you dang kids!
We bought a sweet little Toyota pickup for Boy 2.0 a few months ago ($900, with four new tires on the ground, and all service records. Go us!) and I love that the windows and door locks are manual. The annoying bit? If your seatbelt isn’t engaged by the time the truck is in gear, you’re SOL. Annoying as hell, if I’m rushing to jump in, tryingto buckle up, and physically can’t because we’re already backing up by the time I’ve closed the door! Honestly, though, I don’t know whether this is a bug or a “safety feature.” Still annoying.
The family ride is a Suburban with all of the bells and whistles, including heated seats. The butt warmer control button is on the door side of the seat, and waaay too easy to bump when I get in. Usually, about three minutes into every trip, I start wondering “hot flash? Or did I hit the button again?” (It’s about 50/50. Perimenopause sucks: all the fun of menopause, plus periods twice a month. Woot!) I do love the butt warmer, though. We don’t have zoned climate control, so I can stay comfortable when Tony sets the ac on “meat locker.”
I agree. I needed a pick up truck but did not want any fancy, high powered off-road vehicle. Just something that would get me to work and let me haul things when needed. I happened to find a manual, without 4 wheel drive, without power locks and windows along with the stuff mentioned above.
The last time I took mine in for service, the person helping me said that they get a lot of requests for this type of stripped down truck but the car makers make very few.