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That lawsuit is &^%$#@@ insane. The plaintiff thinks that the rotary knob, in use in both Jaguars and Land Rovers, for about the last 10 years is "defective"??? He ought to see the (*&^%$#@!!!#$%) abortion of a shifter my 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee has!
There have been Jaguars, with that shifter, in my family for over 10 years, and we've never had any issues. But had I had some time, other than a short test drive, in the Jeep before I bought it, I NEVER would have bought it.
Furthermore, what far too many people, in this day and age, fail to understand, is that driving a vehicle takes attention and concentration. You can't effectively drive, while yakking on a phone, disciplining your children, putting on your make-up, shaving, or gulping down your latte. And secondly, as the controls of most cars have gone electronic, the old fashioned, column mounted gear shift, that actually was mechanically attached to the transmission, is now a relic of the past. (and believe me, I'm NOT saying it was a change for the better)
yes - you have to pay attention to what you are doing.
New vehicles are complicated. Get in there and learn how to use it. Practice
My older sister just bought a Grand Cherokee. She had issues with being able to operate her Dodge and sheesh - I wonder how this is going to work out.
If the owners manual warns them to use the parking brake then the lawsuit will fail, won't it?
No
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheGrandK-Man
So all this transition from electro-mechanical to purely FBW(fly-by-wire) is driven by money??
All the more reason for me to keep buying increasingly older cars! I don't need some chip thinking for me.
Cars are controlled by computers these days. It's the only way to meet statutory requirements, and it also simplifies assembling the vehicle. Eliminating mechanical linkages is a good thing, since they require adjustment and maintenance, and are a failure point. However, the user interface needs to be intuitive and simple, with no room for error, and no need to make 2 motions to put the vehicle in park or any other gear.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by WRM20
No
Cars are controlled by computers these days. It's the only way to meet statutory
requirements, and it also simplifies assembling the vehicle. Eliminating mechanical
linkages is a good thing, since they require adjustment and maintenance, and are a
failure point. However, the user interface needs to be intuitive and simple, with no
room for error, and no need to make 2 motions to put the vehicle in park or any
other gear.
Doesn't mean I have to buy one! Like I said, 2010 is my cutoff model year.
I look at driving as how much time can be spent looking out your windows, and as little time having to look inside the car to figure out how to do something that used to be second nature.
What about glove boxes that are operated by an electrically operated button instead of a simple handle? If there's a crash, or even an electrical malfunction, the glove box is not operable.
What if those two were to combine... an electrically operated glove box, combined with a cell phone in a glove box, during a crash or electrical malfunction...
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wawa1992
what about glove boxes that are operated by an electrically operated
button instead of a simple handle? If there's a crash, or even an electrical
malfunction, the glove box is not operable.
what if those two were to combine... An electrically operated glove box, combined with a
cell phone in a glove box, during a crash or electrical malfunction...
I wish they'd just get rid of the shifter and make it so you have to advance through 6 different menus in the touch screen if you'd like to change the gears. In fact, I'm kind of surprised that it isn't this way already.
You ARE being sarcastic, right??
And along that line, I love it when you first start your car, and the touch screen shows, for about 10 seconds, the warning message that tells you distracted driving is dangerous. If it's so dangerous, then WTH did they install a device that requires you to take your eyes off the road, and then potentially scroll through 2-3 pages of rather small lettering, to do something simple, and frequently necessary, like turn on the defroster??
If there was a warning to always use the parking brake and they ignored it ...
Either party has to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the other party was negligent. The mere fact that the manual said to always use the parking brake is irrelevant on its own. It's easier, I think, for the car owner to prove that the design of the shifter was garbage, and likely to lead to accidents, and that the parking brake warning wasn't prominent enough, and should have been permanently etched on the dash in 3 inch letters. It's also simple to demonstrate that only a very small percentage of drivers use the parking brake, and that the shifter should put the car in park without any real effort by the driver.
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3,095 posts, read 2,039,080 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by leadfoot4
You ARE being sarcastic, right??
And along that line, I love it when you first start your car, and the touch screen
shows, for about 10 seconds, the warning message that tells you distracted driving
is dangerous. If it's so dangerous, then WTH did they install a device that
requires you to take your eyes off the road, and then potentially scroll through
2-3 pages of rather small lettering, to do something simple, and frequently
necessary, like turn on the defroster??
I suspect he was being tongue-in-cheek, yes.
Another thing to consider in all of this is MARKETING. Over in that department, the philosophy is to think up new ideas, designs, and even brand names, ostensibly to attract new buyers, and new demographics, to the customer fold.
IE: To appeal to Millennials/Gen Y/Z, et al, a car maker might replace half the traditional dashboard layout with a touch screen or tablet style layout, since that is how so many potential customers, born after 1980 or 1990, interface with their world. Eliminating all physical media playback options from that dash, replacing them with Apple Car Play, or at minimum, Blue Tooth connectivity for their ever-present smartphones.
Replacing a simple gear shift lever or turn signal stalk with knobs and/or buttons, or a Star Trekky interface on a touch screen? That works in the home, but is counterintuitive in a mobile setting, at 60mph, with fellow motorists just feet to either side of you.
A supermarket chain might, instead of packaging store-brand items as such, devise a brand that might sound more appealing to younger shoppers than just "Shoprite Butter". In fact, they have chosen "Bowl & Basket" as their in-house brand for edibles such as milk, butter, pasta, and bread. "Paper Bird" now appears on the plastic wrapped around household paper goods(toilet paper, napkins, paper plates, etc). In small block text underneath those house brands: 'A Shoprite Brand'.
Do I think such product development processes are necessary? No I don't!.
What is so difficult about leaving in even a single-disc CD player in a motor vehicle? And what is wrong with 'Shoprite Milk', or 'Kroger Brand Spaghetti'?
For me, I think these changes, in search of ever higher profits and satisfaction of shareholders, are nowadays occurring too abruptly.
Last edited by TheGrandK-Man; 12-25-2020 at 09:10 AM..
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