Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

qbrozen

stickguy said:

Some of you people might have stroked out when our dog barfed up in the back seat of the Acura. That was not fun.

On a drive down to Florida, my oldest yacked in the 3rd row of our previous T&C. You really can't get into the seatbelt holes in the seats without significant disassembly. We had to empty out most of the tightly packed van in a gas station parking lot to attack the mess. Was a good 2-hour delay in our trip.

abacomike

Last night, I ate a late dinner at the Italian restaurant.  When driving home. I decided to change my ambient lighting in the car to bright amber on amber.  Awesome!  With my cogniac leather seating and the fact that even the dash lights and monitor lighting ads an amber subtlety, I felt like I was in heaven.  

I tried the the greens and blues and even the reds and yellows, but they were awful compared to that orangy amber on amber.  I feel like I'm an "artist" with my own paintbrush and palette - a kind of Van Gogh, but with nice ears!!! 

andres3

Anyone with a lot of experience with kids of different ages have any knowledge regarding car sickness?

When my 3 year old was 2, she showed signs of potentially being car-sick susceptible (vomit or complaining of tummy aches) on a curvy road. However, now that she's older (3) she seems to love roller coaster type moves and exhibition of speed. I hate to find out for sure with trial by error.

qbrozen

Is she doing anything different in the car at 3 vs 2? My theory would be that she could not see out of the car at 2 and therefore experiencing a disconnect between what she was seeing and what was happening to her body. That usually makes most people sick.

We carry plastic bags in our cars because we never know when it will happen. We do know they can't play on their handheld devices in the car. That is virtually a guaranteed mess. For some reason, though, watching the DVD player on the ceiling is not a problem. I think maybe it has to do with the fact that it is anchored to the object that is moving (the car) rather than having its own independent motions.

28firefighter

For what it is worth, as a kid, I never had problems with car sickness. My brother and sister? More than a 15 minute drive and they were sick, so any extended car rides required Bonine or similar.

Now as an adult, if I ride passenger in any capacity (bus, uber, driving with my wife), I get car sick very quickly.

qbrozen

28firefighter said:

For what it is worth, as a kid, I never had problems with car sickness. My brother and sister? More than a 15 minute drive and they were sick, so any extended car rides required Bonine or similar.

Now as an adult, if I ride passenger in any capacity (bus, uber, driving with my wife), I get car sick very quickly.

I'm the same way most of the time. I have to focus intently on the road as a passenger to avoid feeling nauseous. It also depends greatly on the vehicle. A floaty vehicle will get me every time.

abacomike

28firefighter said:

PF_Flyer said:

28firefighter said:

No eating or drinking in my car, either - I do carry a travel mug of coffee to work each morning with me, but it is never opened in the car.

The wife's car is another story.

Heh... just with all the travelling we did for sports with the kids all the way through college, eating on the go, in the car was pretty much a necessity! Grab n go!!

I figure I can't well put a moratorium on eating on both cars with an infant. Not practical.

There's always UBER!!!

carnaught

abacomike said:

Come to think of it, I have family visiting Monday.  I think I'll strip search all of them to avoid contraband from creeping its way into my castle on wheels!!! 

Oh, so you have your own TSA .

andres3

abacomike said:

28firefighter said:

PF_Flyer said:

28firefighter said:

No eating or drinking in my car, either - I do carry a travel mug of coffee to work each morning with me, but it is never opened in the car.

The wife's car is another story.

Heh... just with all the travelling we did for sports with the kids all the way through college, eating on the go, in the car was pretty much a necessity! Grab n go!!

I figure I can't well put a moratorium on eating on both cars with an infant. Not practical.

There's always UBER!!!

UBER has child car seats?

I know rental agencies will rent them out for some astronomical fee.

I still dislike our litigious society that caused my car salesman to run away when i asked for help installing my first car seat in the S4.

suydam

andres3 said:

Anyone with a lot of experience with kids of different ages have any knowledge regarding car sickness?

When my 3 year old was 2, she showed signs of potentially being car-sick susceptible (vomit or complaining of tummy aches) on a curvy road. However, now that she's older (3) she seems to love roller coaster type moves and exhibition of speed. I hate to find out for sure with trial by error.

That's what makes parenting so fun. They keep you guessing.
As a child I was routinely sick on curvy roads. None of my kids were -- except once, when one barfed all over the back of a rental car with no gas station for miles. What a fun trip that was.

abacomike

qbrozen said:

28firefighter said:

For what it is worth, as a kid, I never had problems with car sickness. My brother and sister? More than a 15 minute drive and they were sick, so any extended car rides required Bonine or similar.

Now as an adult, if I ride passenger in any capacity (bus, uber, driving with my wife), I get car sick very quickly.

I'm the same way most of the time. I have to focus intently on the road as a passenger to avoid feeling nauseous. It also depends greatly on the vehicle. A floaty vehicle will get me every time.

qbrozen - the only times I get sick to my stomach when I'm driving in my car is when I see a purple, bright pumpkin/orange, chartreuse, bus yellow, or any "matte" colored car sharing the road with me. If that doesn't get your stomach a-growling, nothing will!!!

qbrozen

andres3 said:

No eating or drinking in my car, either - I do carry a travel mug of coffee to work each morning with me, but it is never opened in the car. The wife's car is another story.

Heh... just with all the travelling we did for sports with the kids all the way through college, eating on the go, in the car was pretty much a necessity! Grab n go!!

I figure I can't well put a moratorium on eating on both cars with an infant. Not practical.

There's always UBER!!!

UBER has child car seats? I know rental agencies will rent them out for some astronomical fee. I still dislike our litigious society that caused my car salesman to run away when i asked for help installing my first car seat in the S4.

Rental is $15/day, IIRC. I decided it was cheaper to buy one rather than renting for a week. Well, at least when talking about a booster seat.

abacomike

While driving home from the mall this morning, I received a phone call through the Bluetooth system. On my monitor in the car, it asks me if I want to answer the phone or not by selecting "yes" or "no" - like most cars with Bluetooth do. So I reached for my mouse controller to select "yes" (could have also pressed the phone button on the steering wheel, but forgot I had one there) when I remembered that I had "gesture" control in this new car. The problem was - which finger(s) do I use and which way to I swipe? I tried all kinds of gestures - yes, even the "bird" gesture, but to no avail. By the time I reached for the controller again to select "yes", the call was gone.

Who the heck needs "gesture" controls and/or prompts? Idiots? ADHD sufferers? People who never learned how to read? I tell you, it's absolutely a waste of technology! Why put something in a car that 99% of the owners will never regularly use - except to show off this hair-brained technology to everyone who gets into the car with you - and then when everyone you know is aware of the "gesture" technology feature, you'll never use it again.

Another bit of technology that came with the 7 series as standard equipment in 2017 (it was an option in the 2016) is the "display key". Yes, the car comes with two regular key fobs, but I get to have 3 - a fob that actually lights up when you press the little button on the side of the fob. Once lit, you can switch screens to determine of your car is secure (doors locked and motion detector set), if all the windows are closed, range of miles remaining with the level of gasoline in the tank, next oil change due in remaining miles, and a lot of other useless info you can easily ascertain by either getting into your car and after starting it, pull up the info on the car's monitor - or you can download the BMW "Connected App) which has the same info as well as a myriad of other info including where you car is parked and the best way to walk to your car. Good Grief! From that same display key fob, you can actually start your HVAC system in the car by setting a starting time or immediately start the HVAC to cool the car down before you get to it. Another "waste" of good technology. I've used it a total of 3 times. Then, you need to charge the fob - so you put it into the wireless charger in the car to juice up the internal battery. But of course, you never remember to pull the key out of the console before leaving the car and you stand outside your car (sometimes in the rain) trying to figure out why the doors won't lock. Oh, I forgot the fob in the charger in the console! Whose the idiot now? Me of course.

See, that's the problem with technology development - these teams of tech geeks have nothing to do but come up with ways to use technology in a car - technology no other car has - so you will want to have what no one else has. This is a great analogy - I have pneumonia but no one I know has pneumonia - there, I have something most people I know don't have. I hope you get my point - I have lots of technology in my new car that I will never, ever use - technology that is hidden deep within the confines of my computer systems. I know I will die well before I ever learn about these technology gremlins - better yet - I can just buy a new car!

stickguy

the real trick is making the technology less noticeable. Maybe Apple should start designing cars? In any case, the idea should be to have fewer actions to take, with more stuff just hidden from you.

roadburner

qbrozen said:

Sounds like you dealt with my brother. I don't know how people can do that. I even get disgusted at my wife's vehicles. I never leave any garbage on the floor. Even after I tote the kids, I make them take everything with them when they get out. I try to not let them eat in there, but sometimes it is unavoidable due to scheduling problems.

I may have mentioned this before, but when my wife works the car line at her school she is appalled at how many cars have interiors that look like rubbish bins.

roadburner

abacomike said:

While driving home from the mall this morning, I received a phone call through the Bluetooth system. On my monitor in the car, it asks me if I want to answer the phone or not by selecting "yes" or "no" - like most cars with Bluetooth do. So I reached for my mouse controller to select "yes" (could have also pressed the phone button on the steering wheel, but forgot I had one there) when I remembered that I had "gesture" control in this new car. The problem was - which finger(s) do I use and which way to I swipe? I tried all kinds of gestures - yes, even the "bird" gesture, but to no avail. By the time I reached for the controller again to select "yes", the call was gone.

Who the heck needs "gesture" controls and/or prompts? Idiots? ADHD sufferers? People who never learned how to read? I tell you, it's absolutely a waste of technology! Why put something in a car that 99% of the owners will never regularly use - except to show off this hair-brained technology to everyone who gets into the car with you - and then when everyone you know is aware of the "gesture" technology feature, you'll never use it again.

Another bit of technology that came with the 7 series as standard equipment in 2017 (it was an option in the 2016) is the "display key". Yes, the car comes with two regular key fobs, but I get to have 3 - a fob that actually lights up when you press the little button on the side of the fob. Once lit, you can switch screens to determine of your car is secure (doors locked and motion detector set), if all the windows are closed, range of miles remaining with the level of gasoline in the tank, next oil change due in remaining miles, and a lot of other useless info you can easily ascertain by either getting into your car and after starting it, pull up the info on the car's monitor - or you can download the BMW "Connected App) which has the same info as well as a myriad of other info including where you car is parked and the best way to walk to your car. Good Grief! From that same display key fob, you can actually start your HVAC system in the car by setting a starting time or immediately start the HVAC to cool the car down before you get to it. Another "waste" of good technology. I've used it a total of 3 times. Then, you need to charge the fob - so you put it into the wireless charger in the car to juice up the internal battery. But of course, you never remember to pull the key out of the console before leaving the car and you stand outside your car (sometimes in the rain) trying to figure out why the doors won't lock. Oh, I forgot the fob in the charger in the console! Whose the idiot now? Me of course.

See, that's the problem with technology development - these teams of tech geeks have nothing to do but come up with ways to use technology in a car - technology no other car has - so you will want to have what no one else has. This is a great analogy - I have pneumonia but no one I know has pneumonia - there, I have something most people I know don't have. I hope you get my point - I have lots of technology in my new car that I will never, ever use - technology that is hidden deep within the confines of my computer systems. I know I will die well before I ever learn about these technology gremlins - better yet - I can just buy a new car!

FWIW, I think that the Display Key, Gesture Control, and touch screens are useless when you have a decent interface such as iDrive and great voice recognition hardware.

explorerx4

I have a 25 year old who still stuffs snack wrappers in the couch cushions!

stickguy

if my 25 YO did that, and still lived with me, they would find the locks changed and a copy of the apartment listings taped to the door.

venture

abacomike said:

Last night, I ate a late dinner at the Italian restaurant.  When driving home. I decided to change my ambient lighting in the car to bright amber on amber.  Awesome!  With my cogniac leather seating and the fact that even the dash lights and monitor lighting ads an amber subtlety, I felt like I was in heaven.  

I tried the the greens and blues and even the reds and yellows, but they were awful compared to that orangy amber on amber.  I feel like I'm an "artist" with my own paintbrush and palette - a kind of Van Gogh, but with nice ears!!! 

I've tried all of the colors and always come back to red. Although - whatever color is selected, when you open the door, the lighting in the door always changes to red.

ab348

abacomike said:

Who the heck needs "gesture" controls and/or prompts? Idiots? ADHD sufferers? People who never learned how to read? I tell you, it's absolutely a waste of technology! Why put something in a car that 99% of the owners will never regularly use - except to show off this hair-brained technology to everyone who gets into the car with you - and then when everyone you know is aware of the "gesture" technology feature, you'll never use it again.

I know what you mean. When I first saw the TV ad for BMW showing the gesture commands I did a mental eye roll, thinking who the heck needs - or will ever use - that? I have enough trouble with the various swipe/pinch commands on my Apple devices since I can never seem to remember which of them does what. Heck, last month I got a call on my cell while driving and the Bluetooth interrupted my music to say there was a call. CUE probably has 5 different ways to respond but like you I forgot the most handy, a little button on the steering wheel, and I ended up losing the call before I could find one of the other ways to work it. I don't know who's dumber, me or the engineers who come up with this stuff.

driver100

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

We don't eat in the car very often but I am not OCD about it. I am more of a "I hope people are responsible and eat or drink carefully in my car" kind of person.

I do have a rule that I don't lend 3 things, I don't lend my toothbrush, my underwear or my car. A friend pointed out that not lending your car, even to family members, is a good idea. Even though they are probably covered by your insurance policy, if they are in an accident, guess who's rates will go up? Not worth it.

Driver, you really don't need a rule about not loaning out your underwear to others - I'd rather go without underwear than wear your "fruit of the loom-holding underwear".  I think I'd live a happier life and sleep more soundly!

 

Just for the record......they are Jockey Classic Full Rise, not F of the L.
I know that you may not ask to borrow them but my SIL mooches whatever he can get his hands on, so made it clear to him what the rules are.

driver100

abacomike said:

Last night, I ate a late dinner at the Italian restaurant.  When driving home. I decided to change my ambient lighting in the car to bright amber on amber.  Awesome!  With my cogniac leather seating and the fact that even the dash lights and monitor lighting ads an amber subtlety, I felt like I was in heaven.  

I tried the the greens and blues and even the reds and yellows, but they were awful compared to that orangy amber on amber.  I feel like I'm an "artist" with my own paintbrush and palette - a kind of Van Gogh, but with nice ears!!! 

You just like it amber color because of this.......

explorerx4

When you open a front door in the MKC you get this:

driver100

abacomike said:

On my monitor in the car, it asks me if I want to answer the phone or not by selecting "yes" or "no" - like most cars with Bluetooth do. So I reached for my mouse controller to select "yes" (could have also pressed the phone button on the steering wheel, but forgot I had one there) when I remembered that I had "gesture" control in this new car. The problem was - which finger(s) do I use and which way to I swipe? I tried all kinds of gestures - yes, even the "bird" gesture, but to no avail. By the time I reached for the controller again to select "yes", the call was gone.

Who the heck needs "gesture" controls and/or prompts? Idiots? ADHD sufferers?

Your comments reminded me, I was reading about a 2017 BMW 540 and this is what they said...
I thought it was clever.

The iDrive 6.0 system includes a brilliant 10.3-inch display that doubles as a touchscreen. That firmly positions BMW’s infotainment system as the industry’s most redundant. Certain features can now be controlled via steering-wheel buttons, center-stack audio controls, voice commands, hand gestures, and the iDrive knob (with its own touchpad on top).

And, talk about too much technology. I washed the E400 at the DIY car wash today and as I was spraying the trubnk the lid popped open, guess the self opening feature is extra sensitive

driver100

stickguy said:

if my 25 YO did that, and still lived with me, they would find the locks changed and a copy of the apartment listings taped to the door.

I wouldn't have a 25 year old living with me...no how, no way.

driver100

stickguy said:

if my 25 YO did that, and still lived with me, they would find the locks changed and a copy of the apartment listings taped to the door.

I wouldn't have a 25 year old living with me...no how, no way.

driver100

stickguy said:

if my 25 YO did that, and still lived with me, they would find the locks changed and a copy of the apartment listings taped to the door.

I wouldn't have a 25 year old living with me...no how, no way.

suydam

Never say never. Each of mine had temporary home stints after getting their degrees before finding career jobs.

suydam

Never say never. Each of mine had temporary home stints after getting their degrees before finding career jobs.

explorerx4

@driver100,
My kids don't live with us anymore, but they visit and we are happy for that.

The older one couldn't get a job after graduating from college in 2010, so she moved back home.
Worked multiple part time jobs for a while, then got a series of 3 full time temporary jobs(3 to 6 months) after that.
Moved away to be with her boyfriend in beginning if 2012 with no job.
It took 3 months to find one, but she moved right up the ladder and next year could make more money than I do.

28firefighter

driver100 said:

stickguy said:

if my 25 YO did that, and still lived with me, they would find the locks changed and a copy of the apartment listings taped to the door.

I wouldn't have a 25 year old living with me...no how, no way.

Times are different, @driver100. It is really common now after college, either because it helps conserve expenses and pay down college debt for a short period while they work their first job, or because they were not able to obtain a job immediately.

abacomike

driver100 said:

On my monitor in the car, it asks me if I want to answer the phone or not by selecting "yes" or "no" - like most cars with Bluetooth do. So I reached for my mouse controller to select "yes" (could have also pressed the phone button on the steering wheel, but forgot I had one there) when I remembered that I had "gesture" control in this new car. The problem was - which finger(s) do I use and which way to I swipe? I tried all kinds of gestures - yes, even the "bird" gesture, but to no avail. By the time I reached for the controller again to select "yes", the call was gone. Who the heck needs "gesture" controls and/or prompts? Idiots? ADHD sufferers?

Your comments reminded me, I was reading about a 2017 BMW 540 and this is what they said... I thought it was clever. The iDrive 6.0 system includes a brilliant 10.3-inch display that doubles as a touchscreen. That firmly positions BMW’s infotainment system as the industry’s most redundant. Certain features can now be controlled via steering-wheel buttons, center-stack audio controls, voice commands, hand gestures, and the iDrive knob (with its own touchpad on top). And, talk about too much technology. I washed the E400 at the DIY car wash today and as I was spraying the trubnk the lid popped open, guess the self opening feature is extra sensitive

I have touchscreen capability, but I don't like fingerprints on the screen - I'm a neatnik when it comes to my car. 

And don't forget the beautiful black ceramic knobs and dials!

suydam

I love the touchscreen. Way easier than dials and knobs. You are right though. It does get messy. But I like the convenience.
I'm sure I could never remember which gesture does what. And I'll bet they're not standard across vehicle makes.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

We don't eat in the car very often but I am not OCD about it. I am more of a "I hope people are responsible and eat or drink carefully in my car" kind of person.

I do have a rule that I don't lend 3 things, I don't lend my toothbrush, my underwear or my car. A friend pointed out that not lending your car, even to family members, is a good idea. Even though they are probably covered by your insurance policy, if they are in an accident, guess who's rates will go up? Not worth it.

Not only that but friends and relatives treat your car like a rental. I've had loaned cars come back with curbed alloys and ripped seats. Can't imagine what they were doing.

oldfarmer50

abacomike said:

Last night, I ate a late dinner at the Italian restaurant.  When driving home. I decided to change my ambient lighting in the car to bright amber on amber.  Awesome!  With my cogniac leather seating and the fact that even the dash lights and monitor lighting ads an amber subtlety, I felt like I was in heaven.  

I tried the the greens and blues and even the reds and yellows, but they were awful compared to that orangy amber on amber.  I feel like I'm an "artist" with my own paintbrush and palette - a kind of Van Gogh, but with nice ears!!! 

Not to be a buzzkill but the Mustang had that option as far back as 2005.

Having said that I realize I'd trade mine for yours in a heartbeat.

driver100

28firefighter said:

driver100 said:

stickguy said:

if my 25 YO did that, and still lived with me, they would find the locks changed and a copy of the apartment listings taped to the door.

I wouldn't have a 25 year old living with me...no how, no way.

Times are different, @driver100. It is really common now after college, either because it helps conserve expenses and pay down college debt for a short period while they work their first job, or because they were not able to obtain a job immediately.

Times are different and they were talking about this on Talk radio today. Kids are paying huge tuition fees and there probably aren't going to be jobs for them. Many work at 3 part time jobs. Many are on limited time assignments. Simple things like grocery cashier jobs which employ millions, could go as now there is self check outs in stores, but the next step is a scanner will pick up all the bar codes in your buggy, just pay for total as you leave.

Then there are people surviving being an Uber driver, or renting out a place on AB&B. It is a changing world, and you are very kind hearted and patient to offer your home....I just can't live that way...I am too selfish and mean.

The exception is if the child is still attending university and is helping to pay their own way.

I think the only solution is a guaranteed wage for everyone. One day I will work out the details.

driver100

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

On my monitor in the car, it asks me if I want to answer the phone or not by selecting "yes" or "no" - like most cars with Bluetooth do. So I reached for my mouse controller to select "yes" (could have also pressed the phone button on the steering wheel, but forgot I had one there) when I remembered that I had "gesture" control in this new car. The problem was - which finger(s) do I use and which way to I swipe? I tried all kinds of gestures - yes, even the "bird" gesture, but to no avail. By the time I reached for the controller again to select "yes", the call was gone.

Who the heck needs "gesture" controls and/or prompts? Idiots? ADHD sufferers?

Your comments reminded me, I was reading about a 2017 BMW 540 and this is what they said...
I thought it was clever.

The iDrive 6.0 system includes a brilliant 10.3-inch display that doubles as a touchscreen. That firmly positions BMW’s infotainment system as the industry’s most redundant. Certain features can now be controlled via steering-wheel buttons, center-stack audio controls, voice commands, hand gestures, and the iDrive knob (with its own touchpad on top).

And, talk about too much technology. I washed the E400 at the DIY car wash today and as I was spraying the trubnk the lid popped open, guess the self opening feature is extra sensitive

I have touchscreen capability, but I don't like fingerprints on the screen - I'm a neatnik when it comes to my car. 

And don't forget the beautiful black ceramic knobs and dials!

The E400 has pads that you can use to move the curser, one on each side of the steering wheel and one on the console. Just swipe the pad, no fingerprints on the screen...it's for neat freaks.

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

abacomike said:

Last night, I ate a late dinner at the Italian restaurant.  When driving home. I decided to change my ambient lighting in the car to bright amber on amber.  Awesome!  With my cogniac leather seating and the fact that even the dash lights and monitor lighting ads an amber subtlety, I felt like I was in heaven.  

I tried the the greens and blues and even the reds and yellows, but they were awful compared to that orangy amber on amber.  I feel like I'm an "artist" with my own paintbrush and palette - a kind of Van Gogh, but with nice ears!!! 

Not to be a buzzkill but the Mustang had that option as far back as 2005.

Having said that I realize I'd trade mine for yours in a heartbeat.

But do you get a choice of 64 different shades....the E does?

abacomike

driver100 said:

Last night, I ate a late dinner at the Italian restaurant.  When driving home. I decided to change my ambient lighting in the car to bright amber on amber.  Awesome!  With my cogniac leather seating and the fact that even the dash lights and monitor lighting ads an amber subtlety, I felt like I was in heaven.  

I tried the the greens and blues and even the reds and yellows, but they were awful compared to that orangy amber on amber.  I feel like I'm an "artist" with my own paintbrush and palette - a kind of Van Gogh, but with nice ears!!! 

Not to be a buzzkill but the Mustang had that option as far back as 2005. Having said that I realize I'd trade mine for yours in a heartbeat.

But do you get a choice of 64 different shades....the E does?

If I had a choice of 64 different shades of colors for ambient lighting in my car, I'd go nuts!  You need limits with those options - I'd have to invite every friend and neighbor into my car at night for opinions on which color combos were best - I'd fall asleep by the time we all agreed on a color - I'm under the covers by 9:00 PM watching my big screen TV.

Last night was a rarity - I've only been in my new car 3 times after dusk in the 4 months I've owned it.  With family coming Monday, we won't be getting home until after dusk.  I'm taking them out for steak Monday evening - you think they'll pick up the tip for the waiter after I pay the $400 dinner tab?  Nah - not my family! 

ab348

@driver100 - you should update your signature to get rid of the "on order".

jmonroe

explorerx4 said:

When you open a front door in the MKC you get this:

When my '15 Genny was new, my grandkids liked to watch the side mirrors at night move to the driving position and cast the Genny logo on the ground. Even had to call the neighbor kids over when we left to show them.

I guess this is an upscale puddle light but not as useless as waving at a screen to make functions work. If I had a car with the waving feature, I'd put it in the file next to, "I'm not talking to my car".

I have a story, from just the other day, about talking to my car but I'll tell it later when @driver100 goes to bed.

jmonroe

explorerx4

64 colors are taking an interesting idea and turning into stupid.
How about this?
When I remote start my truck it has a 'preconditioning' feature.
That means I can set it to turn on heat/heat-defrost/heated seats or air con and/or cooled seats on.
My wife's MKC has the additional option of activating the heated steering wheel.
She can remote start from her phone, too.

imidazol97

jmonroe said:

I have a story, from just the other day, about talking to my car but I'll tell it later when @driver100 goes to bed. jmonroe

It must be more than 150 words?

abacomike

explorerx4 said:

64 colors are taking an interesting idea and turning into stupid. How about this? When I remote start my truck it has a 'preconditioning' feature. That means I can set it to turn on heat/heat-defrost/heated seats or air con and/or cooled seats on. My wife's MKC has the additional option of activating the heated steering wheel. She can remote start from her phone, too.

I have a heated steering wheel - it warms up every morning - gets burning hot in the afternoon - then cools off in the evening.  Isn't solar power wonderful? 

jmonroe

imidazol97 said:

jmonroe said:

I have a story, from just the other day, about talking to my car but I'll tell it later when @driver100 goes to bed. jmonroe

It must be more than 150 words?

Who's going to count when @driver100 is in bed ?

jmonroe

tjc78

explorerx4 said:

64 colors are taking an interesting idea and turning into stupid. How about this? When I remote start my truck it has a 'preconditioning' feature. That means I can set it to turn on heat/heat-defrost/heated seats or air con and/or cooled seats on. My wife's MKC has the additional option of activating the heated steering wheel. She can remote start from her phone, too.

Our Enclave does that.  We don't remote start often, but it is a nice feature to have everything warming up/cooling down before you get there.   

imidazol97

All of these units with super features and various high tech ways ot controlling or not controlling them are amazing. My problem is with all those colors of lighting, I'd have to analyze each and every one under varying light conditions. I already change channels and adjust the auto temperature up and down. My wife is neurotic from watching me. I'd need a divorce lawyer.

I tried to change the beautiful blue interior light accents on my Malibu. Can't do it. Just one color. I feel so deprived.

I think the combination of knobs on the console and touch screen along with steering wheel controls for certain features is done just right for me and my needs. I don't even try to use the voice. Same for the Bluetooth.

There's such a thing as too much.

driver100

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

abacomike said:

Last night, I ate a late dinner at the Italian restaurant.  When driving home. I decided to change my ambient lighting in the car to bright amber on amber.  Awesome!  With my cogniac leather seating and the fact that even the dash lights and monitor lighting ads an amber subtlety, I felt like I was in heaven.  

I tried the the greens and blues and even the reds and yellows, but they were awful compared to that orangy amber on amber.  I feel like I'm an "artist" with my own paintbrush and palette - a kind of Van Gogh, but with nice ears!!! 

Not to be a buzzkill but the Mustang had that option as far back as 2005.

Having said that I realize I'd trade mine for yours in a heartbeat.

But do you get a choice of 64 different shades....the E does?

If I had a choice of 64 different shades of colors for ambient lighting in my car, I'd go nuts!.

Last night was a rarity - I've only been in my new car 3 times after dusk in the 4 months I've owned it.  With family coming Monday, we won't be getting home until after dusk.  I'm taking them out for steak Monday evening - you think they'll pick up the tip for the waiter after I pay the $400 dinner tab?  Nah - not my family!

 

It's just a slide control............they claim there are 64 colors but they are just on a spectrum. Some colors like white is pointless and not much fun, pink - well?????, some people would like greens like lime green, I like orange and blue....I think blue works the best. Maybe I will try whiskey amber some day.

I don't know what is worse. If my SIL didn't offer to pay for the tip....I am sure he wouldn't, or once he invited about 12 people for his son's graduation from high school to a particular restaurant.....but, we each had to pay our own bills. Wouldn't be a problem if he said that, but, only he invites everyone and doesn't pay. All he had to do was say we are meeting at the restaurant afterwards if you care to go....not say, you are invited for lunch!

driver100

ab348 said:

@driver100 - you should update your signature to get rid of the "on order".

Consider it done...thanks for the reminder. I was going to say 2017 MB E400 (delivered on time )

berri

Isn't 64 colors what Microsoft Windows offers as alternatives when you set up your computer and screen? I seem to recall learning 3 basic colors way back in elementary school - red, blue and yellow