Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

fintail

I think we all have preferences or tech that vexes us. I can deal with many modern "conveniences", but I really dislike touchscreens. There is no avoiding fingerprints, and my OCD side has a hard time with it. I would need redundant controls. The newest MB ICE interface (MBUX) has touchscreens, and I am not pleased to see it. I love the widescreen layout in my car, but I don't touch it.

tjc78

Since we have two young kids we always have baby wipes in the console. They work great to give the screen a quick touch up. They don't scratch and leave it streak free.

28firefighter

tjc78 said:

Since we have two young kids we always have baby wipes in the console. They work great to give the screen a quick touch up. They don't scratch and leave it streak free.

Also useful for unexpected bathroom trips. Not that I would know.

tjc78

Lol... we have to watch my niece Sat night into Sunday. Back to diapers for a weekend!

It felt so weird to be on vacation this year and not have to deal with any of that.

28firefighter

Hopefully you mean for her!

Potty training has been a revelation - though Sam is not nighttime trained yet. That'll come after we move him to a bed.

ab348

fintail said:

I think we all have preferences or tech that vexes us. I can deal with many modern "conveniences", but I really dislike touchscreens. There is no avoiding fingerprints, and my OCD side has a hard time with it. I would need redundant controls. The newest MB ICE interface (MBUX) has touchscreens, and I am not pleased to see it. I love the widescreen layout in my car, but I don't touch it.

As for the fingerprints, perhaps driving gloves will make a comeback!

I was out in the Caddy earlier and decided to try to solve the cruise icon conundrum. The control on the wheel is a sort of rocker switch on one of the spokes, but it does more than a typical rocker switch. It is mounted horizontally, so pushing the right side turns cruise on, pushing the left side deactivates it but does not turn it off, plus you can push it "sideways" up or down to set or resume. You can also press it straight down, which I thought might turn it off. Nope. I was slowing down following a speed limit change from 55mph to 35, and I tried that, which immediately made the car accelerate as it tried to resume its last set speed. Oops, alarming, jump on the brakes. I tried holding it in the deactivate position, no dice. Finally I stumbled onto it - you press the "on" position again to turn it off. I suppose that is logical in some ways but it would sure be nice if that was indicated there somehow.

oldfarmer50

I’m jealous:

https://youtu.be/8Ton4s1jT0c

driver100

fintail said:

Doesn't your car have steering wheel controls? I haven't manually tuned a radio (in my modern car anyway) in years. My E wagon has the updated steering wheel with small touchpads on each steering wheel control. These little pads now control preset scrolling, and once you are used to it, are quite intuitive, muscle memory. Easier than using the wheel or the big touchpad in the console.

The screens are like a computer booting up, as you probably know. You can probably do some manual adjustments on the console/stack inputs while it is getting ready. I don't use steering wheel or touchpad controls for climate control, I just use the manual inputs.

driver100 said:

OF, I had a 2012 BMW 535, and I liked that car a lot. I see new ones and I am tempted to go back to BMW,. I think they handle better than an MB. They aren't quite as comfortable, and MB generally makes their cars a little more luxurious and easier to use. Also, my MB dealer is easier to work with and is much closer.

Sometimes voice control is easier to use on the newer cars. Navigation is much easier to use with voice controls. Even the radio, to change stations I have to push control lever over, find PRESETS, scroll down to the other station, press it, then repeat to go back. In the old days I just pressed the correct button....much easier.

Also, in my E400 it has that large screen display.....I really like that. But it takes a few seconds....maybe 5 to 8 before it sets the radio and the navi and rear camera etc. start up....can't even change the climate controls or fan etc. In the old days this came on when the car started. More advantages than disadvantages...but, makes you think.

Yes, the E has controls on the steering wheel, but, I don't know which ones would work the radio. The two touchpads change the speedometer settings....maybe they can be left on for radio but then I would lose that ability.

I do lots while the screen is firing up, I press the garage door opener button, I press the get rid of OFF/ON ability by pressing a button, I put car in gear, drive out of garage, press garage close button, by then the radio or my USB stick are working.

tjc78

28firefighter said:

Hopefully you mean for her!

Potty training has been a revelation - though Sam is not nighttime trained yet. That'll come after we move him to a bed.

Ha Ha.. the things we look forward to as parents.

I can't believe my son is starting Kindergarten in Sept. Time flies.

stickguy

I can't believe I just moved my daughter into her first house this weekend.

ab348

@oldfarmer50 's link was the news of the day here last week. I was somewhat P.O.'ed. I had one of those cards, an Amazon Visa. I only really used it for Amazon purchases because you got a rebate of some small % on such purchases. So when they announced the withdrawal last year I was a bit disappointed. Chase even sent me a cheque for the amount left in my rewards account.

These lucky folks were being rewarded for financial irresponsibility. Why Chase didn't sell the debt to collectors I do not understand. There is no law against it here to my knowledge. In fact I believe Chase did exactly that previously. Chase was running the Sears Canada credit card business here prior to Sears shutting down. Some time in advance of that they announced the card was being discontinued but that the outstanding balance (esp. things like 24 month/no interest deals outstanding) still had to be paid. That business was handed over to Scotiabank for ongoing collection of payments.

If only I had known...

ab348

This is cool little video - the creator used a circa 1968 Super 8 film movie camera to shoot footage of the modern-day Indycar race at Road America, then used some vintage narration to make it all seem like a film shot 50 years ago. Nicely done.

https://youtu.be/QpO0iaMYy18

fintail

Scroll in the center display to select radio presets (the part that also has a trip computer and other things), then scroll up or down on the left pad for presets. Much easier than using any wheel or the center console touchpad. I'd rather have the radio function than other available data.

Often the first thing I do after pressing the start button is to de-select the on/off function. I do use it if I know I will be in stopped gridlock traffic however. Might as well save 5 cents worth of fuel.

driver100 said:

Yes, the E has controls on the steering wheel, but, I don't know which ones would work the radio. The two touchpads change the speedometer settings....maybe they can be left on for radio but then I would lose that ability.

I do lots while the screen is firing up, I press the garage door opener button, I press the get rid of OFF/ON ability by pressing a button, I put car in gear, drive out of garage, press garage close button, by then the radio or my USB stick are working.

fintail

When I've driven cars with a touchscreen, I've kept a microfiber at hand to wipe the screen, which would be done at least once a day.

That cruise setup doesn't sound intuitive. No labels on the buttons? On later model MBs, it is pretty self-explanatory. Cruise/Distronic settings on the left:




Both sides have basic ICE navigation. These buttons and the wheels on the spokes are metal, which have a nice feel. The small touchpads are visible in these pics too.

ab348 said:

I was out in the Caddy earlier and decided to try to solve the cruise icon conundrum. The control on the wheel is a sort of rocker switch on one of the spokes, but it does more than a typical rocker switch. It is mounted horizontally, so pushing the right side turns cruise on, pushing the left side deactivates it but does not turn it off, plus you can push it "sideways" up or down to set or resume. You can also press it straight down, which I thought might turn it off. Nope. I was slowing down following a speed limit change from 55mph to 35, and I tried that, which immediately made the car accelerate as it tried to resume its last set speed. Oops, alarming, jump on the brakes. I tried holding it in the deactivate position, no dice. Finally I stumbled onto it - you press the "on" position again to turn it off. I suppose that is logical in some ways but it would sure be nice if that was indicated there somehow.

ab348

You can see it (sort of) here, don't have a better pic right now. The icon on the right of the left-spoke rocker is the "Cruise Control On" one which is a pictogram of a speedo w/needle. The icon on the other end that is glared out is the same, just with a line through it. Even if they just had the universal power symbol next to the right side that turn it on and off it would be a lot more intuitive.



Firefox seems to be back on the job today and posting local images.

Cadillac supplies a nice logoed microfiber cloth with the car.

fintail said:

When I've driven cars with a touchscreen, I've kept a microfiber at hand to wipe the screen, which would be done at least once a day.

That cruise setup doesn't sound intuitive. No labels on the buttons? On later model MBs, it is pretty self-explanatory. Cruise/Distronic settings on the left:

jmonroe1

ab348 said:

fintail said:

I think we all have preferences or tech that vexes us. I can deal with many modern "conveniences", but I really dislike touchscreens. There is no avoiding fingerprints, and my OCD side has a hard time with it. I would need redundant controls. The newest MB ICE interface (MBUX) has touchscreens, and I am not pleased to see it. I love the widescreen layout in my car, but I don't touch it.

As for the fingerprints, perhaps driving gloves will make a comeback!

I was out in the Caddy earlier and decided to try to solve the cruise icon conundrum. The control on the wheel is a sort of rocker switch on one of the spokes, but it does more than a typical rocker switch. It is mounted horizontally, so pushing the right side turns cruise on, pushing the left side deactivates it but does not turn it off, plus you can push it "sideways" up or down to set or resume. You can also press it straight down, which I thought might turn it off. Nope. I was slowing down following a speed limit change from 55mph to 35, and I tried that, which immediately made the car accelerate as it tried to resume its last set speed. Oops, alarming, jump on the brakes. I tried holding it in the deactivate position, no dice. Finally I stumbled onto it - you press the "on" position again to turn it off. I suppose that is logical in some ways but it would sure be nice if that was indicated there somehow.

Of course it's logical. Everyone knows that two ons will produce an off. Where you been man? Up in Canada or something.

jmonroe

jmonroe1

tjc78 said:

28firefighter said:

Hopefully you mean for her!

Potty training has been a revelation - though Sam is not nighttime trained yet. That'll come after we move him to a bed.

Ha Ha.. the things we look forward to as parents.

I can't believe my son is starting Kindergarten in Sept. Time flies.

Just wait untill you have a grandson who is now driving and is going to be a senior in high school this year. Then come tell us about that.

As for his driving, he's pretty good at it and not just for his age. He did a lot of driving when we went to Myrtle Beach a few weeks ago. Son #1 kept him behind the wheel to make sure he saw lots of various driving conditions just like he did when he was teaching him how to drive.The bad part about his driving skills is he knows he's good. Kinda reminds me of his father when he was at that age.

jmonroe

driver100

fintail said:

Scroll in the center display to select radio presets (the part that also has a trip computer and other things), then scroll up or down on the left pad for presets. Much easier than using any wheel or the center console touchpad. I'd rather have the radio function than other available data.

Often the first thing I do after pressing the start button is to de-select the on/off function. I do use it if I know I will be in stopped gridlock traffic however. Might as well save 5 cents worth of fuel.

driver100 said:

Yes, the E has controls on the steering wheel, but, I don't know which ones would work the radio. The two touchpads change the speedometer settings....maybe they can be left on for radio but then I would lose that ability.

I do lots while the screen is firing up, I press the garage door opener button, I press the get rid of OFF/ON ability by pressing a button, I put car in gear, drive out of garage, press garage close button, by then the radio or my USB stick are working.

I prefer to keep the scroll display on the speedo....then I get the KMS as a big digital number, and I get that on the heads up. If I use that for the radio I still have to take my eyes off the road...almost the same as using the center knob.

I do the same 1. start the car 2. turn off START/STOP unless I know I will have a long wait, 3. press the homelink garage door opener. Probably easier to use voice control to change the radio. I switch from radio to MEDIA the most to hear my USB stick which is easy....one button. I usually only listen to one radio station, but sometimes need the all news station for traffic and weather every 10 minutes.

fintail

Funny how this is an example of where a German interface might actually be more user-friendly than something else. At least the MB is labeled on/off, and is controlled by the same button. My biggest gripe about the tech is the sensitivity of the nanny systems, especially the lane departure system, which freaks out if you get near a line. The radar cruise also doesn't follow close enough in slow traffic.

ab348 said:

You can see it (sort of) here, don't have a better pic right now. The icon on the right of the left-spoke rocker is the "Cruise Control On" one which is a pictogram of a speedo w/needle. The icon on the other end that is glared out is the same, just with a line through it. Even if they just had the universal power symbol next to the right side that turn it on and off it would be a lot more intuitive.

Cadillac supplies a nice logoed microfiber cloth with the car.

fintail

HUD is a quite rare option on that car, especially as a first year car. I've only seen a few with it. I am fine with the gauge, and radio display in the middle - so I can then scroll through my 20 presets. I've tried voice control for the radio too, and it worked fairly (not perfectly) well - but the touchpad works fine.

This system is to be replaced for model year 2021 or 2022 in the E, and is debuting now on new models. Touchscreens, less redundant buttons, we'll see how it works. Car magazine tests aren't completely glowing.

driver100 said:

I prefer to keep the scroll display on the speedo....then I get the KMS as a big digital number, and I get that on the heads up. If I use that for the radio I still have to take my eyes off the road...almost the same as using the center knob.

I do the same 1. start the car 2. turn off START/STOP unless I know I will have a long wait, 3. press the homelink garage door opener. Probably easier to use voice control to change the radio. I switch from radio to MEDIA the most to hear my USB stick which is easy....one button. I usually only listen to one radio station, but sometimes need the all news station for traffic and weather every 10 minutes.

roadburner

I like the controls in the G20 3er a lot. The menus are fairly intuitive, and although there's a touchscreen I do everything I want with voice commands, the steering wheel controls, or the iDrive controller.
I don't kow what Munich did to tune the xDrive system in my M340i loaner, but it is a hoot; this morning I pulled out onto a main road in a misting rain and gave it about 75% throttle- the rear kicked out in a smooth controllable arc with no nanny intervention. Still averaging 30 mpg.

oldfarmer50

roadburner said:

I like the controls in the G20 3er a lot. The menus are fairly intuitive, and although there's a touchscreen I do everything I want with voice commands, the steering wheel controls, or the iDrive controller.
I don't kow what Munich did to tune the xDrive system in my M340i loaner, but it is a hoot; this morning I pulled out onto a main road in a misting rain and gave it about 75% throttle- the rear kicked out in a smooth controllable arc with no nanny intervention. Still averaging 30 mpg.

Guilty pleasure.

venture

fintail said:

The radar cruise also doesn't follow close enough in slow traffic.

ab348 said:

You can see it (sort of) here, don't have a better pic right now. The icon on the right of the left-spoke rocker is the "Cruise Control On" one which is a pictogram of a speedo w/needle. The icon on the other end that is glared out is the same, just with a line through it. Even if they just had the universal power symbol next to the right side that turn it on and off it would be a lot more intuitive.

Cadillac supplies a nice logoed microfiber cloth with the car.

Why not just adjust the following distance?

ab348

fintail said:

HUD is a quite rare option on that car, especially as a first year car. I've only seen a few with it. I am fine with the gauge, and radio display in the middle - so I can then scroll through my 20 presets. I've tried voice control for the radio too, and it worked fairly (not perfectly) well - but the touchpad works fine.

I'm like Driver in that I prefer to keep the digital speedo in the main portion of the instrument cluster digital display (which makes the regular speedo something I never look at) and on the HUD, which also shows whatever song is playing. I keep compass on one side of the IP digital window (don't ask me why) and fuel range on the other.

driver100

I think you keep what is important to you on your main display. The radio and usb media system are fairly straight forward - I can easily press radio or media, not too much playing around.....wanting to see the speedo as a large digital number is my main aim....the regular speedo is harder to make out especially in kilometers since there are almost twice as many symbols since miles are almost twice the distance of a kilometer.

Not getting a speeding ticket is more important than finding a radio station.

snakeweasel

cdnpinhead said:

Having read this thread and several others, isn't it wonderful how decent people are?

I've made an issue of pointing out to the few who will listen that every key on your ring and every password (all 67 of them, plus the "security questions") are monuments to the fact that today's society is beyond help -- no one is to be trusted. In the old days you could leave your car and house unlocked. Now I have a three-page file listing all the passwords I use.

Isn't life grand?

Well, yeah, considering the alternative, at least for now.

You got a point there, in the old days we didn't have have the likes of the James Brothers, Billy the Kid, Bonnie and Clyde, Dillinger, Al Capone, road bandits, pirates and the such.

ab348

It is an interesting question. Locally we had an incident last weekend that raised this very point.

A car (a newish Kia) was stolen out of someone's driveway apparently shortly after 1:00AM in a rural area just outside of a small town. The noise of the car starting woke the occupants and they reported it stolen. The next day it was spotted in a town 45 miles away. An RCMP officer attempted to stop it and when he got out of his cruiser the driver tried to run him down. The officer landed on the hood and apparently tried to convince the driver to stop but was still at risk as the driver tried to get him off the hood so he fired his gun. The driver was killed and the RCMP officer went to hospital.

The news reported that the car owner stated that they had arrived home on the evening in question about a half-hour previous, and that "a set of keys were missing", presumably left in the car. That raised much discussion about why people still do that. A common answer was that in small towns and rural areas cars never get stolen so nobody worries about that. I cannot get my head around that kind of thinking. Maybe that comes from living in the city all my life. But to me it is no different than leaving your house doors unlocked or your wallet on your front porch. Just one of those things there is no reason to do.

fintail

I do, even at the closest setting, you become a pylon that other cars dodge and cut in front of. It works better at higher speeds, but in a 20 mph crawl, you are an obstacle.

Why not just adjust the following distance?

fintail

I have the nav screen on 100% of the time (large screen in this car, too), so I can always glance at my surroundings. I see many people with nav-equipped cars who don't have it on, which seems weird to me.

Most enforcement heroes around here give a 10 mph leeway in speed, so knowing speed down to the precise mph at all times isn't needed, a quick glance at the gauge works.

ab348 said:

4

I'm like Driver in that I prefer to keep the digital speedo in the main portion of the instrument cluster digital display (which makes the regular speedo something I never look at) and on the HUD, which also shows whatever song is playing. I keep compass on one side of the IP digital window (don't ask me why) and fuel range on the other.

fintail

It'd be interesting to see car theft rates between the "great" days of the past and today, as well. Maybe not as great as the more experienced generation endlessly pines on about.



Regarding car theft, a fun new trend is spoofed keyless entry/start systems.

snakeweasel said:

You got a point there, in the old days we didn't have have the likes of the James Brothers, Billy the Kid, Bonnie and Clyde, Dillinger, Al Capone, road bandits, pirates and the such.

graphicguy

Again, for Acura enthusiasts, the TLX-Type S info (and in turn, the styling of the new TLX in 2021) is being trickled out.

I like it....a lot! If it’s coming with the TT V6 that’s rumored, I’m a player......

https://www.autoblog.com/2019/08/13/acura-type-s-concept-monterey/

snakeweasel

imidazol97 said:

Aren't juries supposed to be impartial and fair?

Yes but unless something like bribery is involved juries can do pretty much whatever they want.

pensfan83

I use some combination of center stack controls, voice commands, and the redundant steering wheel controls. The Acura's voice recognition is not as crisp as other systems I have had but no real complaints.

The Tacoma (oh yeah for those that don't post in CCBA I picked up a Double Cab Tacoma TRD Off Road ) can have the gauge cluster configured to have the digital speed readout, haven't had that since my A4 and I forgot how much I really like it.

28firefighter

Regarding leaving keys in the car. This is absolutely something my wife grew up doing and something I will never understand. Heck, she would drive to her high school and leave her purse under her front seat with the keys in the bag. Nothing ever happened. If I did that where I went to high school, my car would last approximately 39 seconds after I walked away...

All of our cars are garaged at night, but I usually still lock them - the Subaru and X1 for sure. I'm less picky about the Saab - there is nothing of value that can be taken from the car and no one knows how to drive stick anymore, so no one would steal it.

28firefighter

pensfan83 said:

I use some combination of center stack controls, voice commands, and the redundant steering wheel controls. The Acura's voice recognition is not as crisp as other systems I have had but no real complaints.

The Tacoma (oh yeah for those that don't post in CCBA I picked up a Double Cab Tacoma TRD Off Road ) can have the gauge cluster configured to have the digital speed readout, haven't had that since my A4 and I forgot how much I really like it.

You can't do that in the TLX?

snakeweasel

stickguy said:

I notice this too, and assume people are just oblivious.

often, I am coming up to a light and it changes, and worrying about getting hit I decide to cheese the yellow, and get caught slightly late with it going red. Then I get all worried the FBI is about to come for me, until I look in the mirror and 2-3 more people just blow through dead red.

and when I do stop "firrmly" for a yellow, almost guaranteed someone in the other lane will blow past me. Or slam on the brakes to avoid ending up in my trunk.

Tell me about it, I almost became someone's hood ornament yesterday. I was the first vehicle stopped at a light, the road is one lane in each direction with a left turn lane at the light. A line of cars slowly form at the light in the on coming lane. The light turns green and I proceed through the light passing the line of cars going in the opposite direction that had stopped for the light. Well some idiot decides that since s/he is going to turn left that they can cross the double yellow line and pass everyone in front of them. Of course this left me heading straight at them doing 40+ with very little real estate between us. A panic brake and a swerve to the right and I missed them by inches.

ab348

fintail said:

I have the nav screen on 100% of the time (large screen in this car, too), so I can always glance at my surroundings. I see many people with nav-equipped cars who don't have it on, which seems weird to me.

As I've posted previously, I seem allergic to nav. Maybe if it was on-screen all the time I would figure it out though.

stickguy

I never use voice controls. Never even occurs to me to try. I did once in my sonata for Navi, and that was a total pain. Not worth the effort. Only use it in the TLX when car play is up to talk to Siri and send texts.

ab348

snakeweasel said:

Tell me about it, I almost became someone's hood ornament yesterday. I was the first vehicle stopped at a light, the road is one lane in each direction with a left turn lane at the light. A line of cars slowly form at the light in the on coming lane. The light turns green and I proceed through the light passing the line of cars going in the opposite direction that had stopped for the light. Well some idiot decides that since s/he is going to turn left that they can cross the double yellow line and pass everyone in front of them. Of course this left me heading straight at them doing 40+ with very little real estate between us. A panic brake and a swerve to the right and I missed them by inches.

Maybe the moon and the stars were in a dangerous place yesterday as I had a bunch of incidents too.

Started out a couple of blocks from my house. Pulled up behind a guy in a Touraeg who was first in line at a red light. Light turns green, he does not move. Count to 5, then 10, still nothing so I beep the horn. He visibly jerks upward and takes off. We get to the next light which has an advance green left-turn arrow in each direction. The arrow turns green but the straight-ahead signal stays red. No matter, he takes off straight through the intersection, almost taking out an oncoming car turning left on the arrow. Finally, at the next light, he veers sharply from the left lane he was in through the right lane and into a right turn lane, almost at 90 degrees, to go down that street. Jeebus.

After that it was easy, aside from the moron in a Volvo wagon who tried to merge into the right side of my car on an expressway without any signal, the two (possibly related?) SUV drivers who were trundling along in the left lane of different expressways at 55 in a 70 zone, forcing everyone to go past on the right, and the woman in an overbuilt but pricey subdivision who seemed to believe the stop sign on her side street was optional and damn near T-boned me as I passed through the intersection..

snakeweasel

qbrozen said:

The whole trailer thing has taken a back seat. We are in the hospital beside my mother’s deathbed. Today would have been my parents’ 50th anniversary. Wow.

So sorry to hear that, you have my sympathies.

snakeweasel

andres3 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

thebean said:

Ever since Texas outlawed red light cameras, it’s become a veritable free-for-all at stoplights. I’ve seen 5 cars going through AFTER the light turned to red. Normally, I see 2-3 going through every red light after it turns at high volume intersections. I know there were problems with the cameras, but I really think they solved way more problems than they created. Unless you have a squad car parked at these high volume places, people are just going to charge on through since there is no deterrent. It’s really sad that people can’t obey the law these days. What’s next? Just walking out of stores with merchandise because they didn’t want to take the time to pay? With the minuscule number of checkers in most stores, it doesn’t appear to be hard to so, unless you take something worth $100 or more with a tag on it. Even then, most employees just ignore the alarm and continue on with what they are doing across the store.


Truly, I weep for the future of society and I’m glad I’ll probably be checking out in 5-10 years.

That’s nothing, I see people where I live ride down the shoulder passing multiple cars with their right turn signal on and make a right on red without even slowing down. It’s frustrating when someone uses your law abidingness (is that a word?) to flaunt the law. I secretly hope that someone would swing out and clip those drivers as they go by.

As to walking out without paying, some cities in CA won’t prosecute theft under $750 if the person is poor and the items are “necessities”.

Weep indeed.

Where can you go on a shoulder to make a right turn? I'm curious where this road is? Sounds odd.

A lot of roads around here you can go on the shoulder to pass cars stopped at a light.

pensfan83

28firefighter said:

pensfan83 said:

I use some combination of center stack controls, voice commands, and the redundant steering wheel controls. The Acura's voice recognition is not as crisp as other systems I have had but no real complaints.

The Tacoma (oh yeah for those that don't post in CCBA I picked up a Double Cab Tacoma TRD Off Road ) can have the gauge cluster configured to have the digital speed readout, haven't had that since my A4 and I forgot how much I really like it.

You can't do that in the TLX?

Nope. I've gotten used to it though and usually leave it on miles to empty or the compass with street readout.

snakeweasel

ab348 said:

It is an interesting question. Locally we had an incident last weekend that raised this very point.

A car (a newish Kia) was stolen out of someone's driveway apparently shortly after 1:00AM in a rural area just outside of a small town. The noise of the car starting woke the occupants and they reported it stolen. The next day it was spotted in a town 45 miles away. An RCMP officer attempted to stop it and when he got out of his cruiser the driver tried to run him down. The officer landed on the hood and apparently tried to convince the driver to stop but was still at risk as the driver tried to get him off the hood so he fired his gun. The driver was killed and the RCMP officer went to hospital.

The news reported that the car owner stated that they had arrived home on the evening in question about a half-hour previous, and that "a set of keys were missing", presumably left in the car. That raised much discussion about why people still do that. A common answer was that in small towns and rural areas cars never get stolen so nobody worries about that. I cannot get my head around that kind of thinking. Maybe that comes from living in the city all my life. But to me it is no different than leaving your house doors unlocked or your wallet on your front porch. Just one of those things there is no reason to do.

Cars never get stolen in small towns and rural areas? I know some people that will strongly disagree with that.

suydam

ab348 said:

fintail said:

I have the nav screen on 100% of the time (large screen in this car, too), so I can always glance at my surroundings. I see many people with nav-equipped cars who don't have it on, which seems weird to me.

As I've posted previously, I seem allergic to nav. Maybe if it was on-screen all the time I would figure it out though.

I only have the Nav screen on when I’m — navigating. I usually have the music screen up and in the center, the digital speed readout, which also shows my electric charge and gas tank amount.

Regarding things stolen in small towns — yes, things left in cars are prime targets just because few people are around. Nowadays, who has keys? The car beeps at me if I leave the key fob in it!
But leaving house doors unlocked, everyone does that.

pensfan83

ab348 said:

snakeweasel said:

Tell me about it, I almost became someone's hood ornament yesterday. I was the first vehicle stopped at a light, the road is one lane in each direction with a left turn lane at the light. A line of cars slowly form at the light in the on coming lane. The light turns green and I proceed through the light passing the line of cars going in the opposite direction that had stopped for the light. Well some idiot decides that since s/he is going to turn left that they can cross the double yellow line and pass everyone in front of them. Of course this left me heading straight at them doing 40+ with very little real estate between us. A panic brake and a swerve to the right and I missed them by inches.

Maybe the moon and the stars were in a dangerous place yesterday as I had a bunch of incidents too.

Started out a couple of blocks from my house. Pulled up behind a guy in a Touraeg who was first in line at a red light. Light turns green, he does not move. Count to 5, then 10, still nothing so I beep the horn. He visibly jerks upward and takes off. We get to the next light which has an advance green left-turn arrow in each direction. The arrow turns green but the straight-ahead signal stays red. No matter, he takes off straight through the intersection, almost taking out an oncoming car turning left on the arrow. Finally, at the next light, he veers sharply from the left lane he was in through the right lane and into a right turn lane, almost at 90 degrees, to go down that street. Jeebus.

After that it was easy, aside from the moron in a Volvo wagon who tried to merge into the right side of my car on an expressway without any signal, the two (possibly related?) SUV drivers who were trundling along in the left lane of different expressways at 55 in a 70 zone, forcing everyone to go past on the right, and the woman in an overbuilt but pricey subdivision who seemed to believe the stop sign on her side street was optional and damn near T-boned me as I passed through the intersection..

Glad to see I'm not the only one who is experiencing what seems to be a general decline the most basic of driving skills. Yield signs, red lights, and no turn on red signs must come with an asterick denoting optional in new driver manuals now.

carnaught

Amen to all the comments about reckless, careless and inconsiderate drivers who challenge us daily in the avoidance of catastrophes.

venture

fintail said:

I do, even at the closest setting, you become a pylon that other cars dodge and cut in front of. It works better at higher speeds, but in a 20 mph crawl, you are an obstacle.

Why not just adjust the following distance?



Yeah. At that speed, and anything below about 45, I don't use it.

carnaught

graphicguy said:

Again, for Acura enthusiasts, the TLX-Type S info (and in turn, the styling of the new TLX in 2021) is being trickled out.

I like it....a lot! If it’s coming with the TT V6 that’s rumored, I’m a player......

https://www.autoblog.com/2019/08/13/acura-type-s-concept-monterey/

I agree with you, I like it a lot. Hopefully the actual car will not appreciably be different from the concept car.

jipster

Any you guys have 2 grand I can borrow? I have a very nice vacuum cleaner I could use as collateral.

Dealership says valve cover gasket is not leaking on alternator, the timing cover is. Would have to drop the engine and transmission. 14 hours of labor. Car is.probably worth $6 or $7k private party. So maybe I'll just stock up on alternators to replace when they become fouled.:-(

stickguy

In the old days people were more creative. Get some sheet metal and fabricate a shield so the oil won’t hit the alternator.

A six pack of beer might come in handy too.