Todays new cars should come with this: [insert desired feature here]

[dr wogz]

So, with new cars comes new technology.. Automatic / sensing windshield wipers, automatic lights (automatic hi beams!) able to self parallel park, lane drift, etc..

Is there any feature you 'wish' new cars came with?! Like automatic turn indicators? a 'bird' button (to show "those" drivers their actions are not cool or welcome) On-board coaching when driving too slow, too fast?

good? bad?

 

[Mushtang]

Hover capabilities. This is 2017 and we don't have flying cars yet!! I've been lied to.

Also, a cup holder big enough to fit my large drink into.

 

[ksaves2]

Intelligence testing interlock so stupid people can't drive!

 

[cerving]

Intelligence testing interlock so stupid people can't drive!

+1. You read my mind...

 

[TangoJuliet]

Intelligence testing interlock so stupid people can't drive!

+2!

 

[FredA]

In the cabin RF jammer for Cell Phone frequency.

 

[blackjack2564]

"Battering ram" bumper, for times when an idiot blocks you in by parking 2 inches from your bumper.

 

[Cabernut]

More cylinders than passengers

 

[Cl(VII)]

An indicator next to the speedometer of what the current speed limit is on that section of road. If google maps can estimate my time of arrival this info must exist in a way that could be integrated into the car.

 

[AfterBurners]

I once had a hit and run with a clown crossing an intersection with a shopping cart full of squeaky toys. So if they had a clown sensor LED indicator that would work for me

 

[EXPjawa]

My beef isn't what cars should come with, but what drivers bring to the table - the required level of training an preparation for drivers is woefully inadequate. Most drivers are simply not qualified to operate a 4000lb piece of machinery that's rolling down the road at 100 feet per second. Nor do they have any appreciation of the physics at play in allowing them to do that (or the consequences of when it goes wrong). I say this as a car enthusiast and as someone that's worked in the automotive industry for 20-years: the day when ineffective people are removed from the driving equation can't come soon enough. Either by mass-transit or autonomous vehicles. Until then, driver licensing should be much more stringent, and should also include periodic retesting. Rant over.

With all that said, where's my damn flying car? Hasn't Popular Mechanics been promising that for decades by now? I have mixed feelings about the amount of tech being hoisted on new cars. Some are genuinely useful, some only add to the distraction. I get that not everyone thinks driving should be a purist activity, but most of the tech intended to promote safety have the flip side of becoming reliant on it and allowing drivers to become worse as they do so. But where do you draw the line? A well-sorted ABS system is literally a life saver, but people loose the skill of modulating their brakes. But the braking gets done effectively, and no harm no foul. OTOH, back up cameras are handy tools, but often lead to people failing to look out of the actual window. So, this stuff goes both ways. All in all, I'm in favor of tech that helps discourage distraction (Bluetooth connectivity, for example) and opposed to what adds to the distraction (like touchscreen infotainment system in cars). I like automatic wipers and lighting, fear that lane departure and blindspot warning systems encourage lazy driving.

All I really want in a car is excellent chassis stiffness, tune-able suspension, good brakes, 450+ HP, a 6-speed manual and full-time (3 Torsen) AWD. The other stuff can go. That's not too much, right? I know, not likely unless I build it myself... :wink:

 

[Peartree]

An indicator next to the speedometer of what the current speed limit is on that section of road. If google maps can estimate my time of arrival this info must exist in a way that could be integrated into the car.

This is one of the things that I *really* like when use a GPS (Garmin) for long trips. Not only does it tell you what the current speed limit is, it calculates your current speed and displays them side by side. The only time that its wrong is through newly placed construction zones, and recently reopened construction zones. That, and one or two roads WAY out in the country in Missouri near the cow pasture launch site.

 

[Nytrunner]

An indicator next to the speedometer of what the current speed limit is on that section of road. If google maps can estimate my time of arrival this info must exist in a way that could be integrated into the car.

Off topic as far as car wishes, but I use an app called VelociRaptor which does pretty much what you describe. It doesn't have data for every single road, but its been pretty useful so far.

Its on Android, I'm not sure about other platforms.

 

[TangoJuliet]

My beef isn't what cars should come with, but what drivers bring to the table - the required level of training an preparation for drivers is woefully inadequate. Most drivers are simply not qualified to operate a 4000lb piece of machinery that's rolling down the road at 100 feet per second. Nor do they have any appreciation of the physics at play in allowing them to do that (or the consequences of when it goes wrong). I say this as a car enthusiast and as someone that's worked in the automotive industry for 20-years: the day when ineffective people are removed from the driving equation can't come soon enough. Either by mass-transit or autonomous vehicles. Until then, driver licensing should be much more stringent, and should also include periodic retesting. Rant over.

With all that said, where's my damn flying car? Hasn't Popular Mechanics been promising that for decades by now? I have mixed feelings about the amount of tech being hoisted on new cars. Some are genuinely useful, some only add to the distraction. I get that not everyone thinks driving should be a purist activity, but most of the tech intended to promote safety have the flip side of becoming reliant on it and allowing drivers to become worse as they do so. But where do you draw the line? A well-sorted ABS system is literally a life saver, but people loose the skill of modulating their brakes. But the braking gets done effectively, and no harm no foul. OTOH, back up cameras are handy tools, but often lead to people failing to look out of the actual window. So, this stuff goes both ways. All in all, I'm in favor of tech that helps discourage distraction (Bluetooth connectivity, for example) and opposed to what adds to the distraction (like touchscreen infotainment system in cars). I like automatic wipers and lighting, fear that lane departure and blindspot warning systems encourage lazy driving.

All I really want in a car is excellent chassis stiffness, tune-able suspension, good brakes, 450+ HP, a 6-speed manual and full-time (3 Torsen) AWD. The other stuff can go. That's not too much, right? I know, not likely unless I build it myself... :wink:

Agreed... On just about every point you made, but especially the more stringent licensing and testing requirements!

 

[ksaves2]

An indicator next to the speedometer of what the current speed limit is on that section of road. If google maps can estimate my time of arrival this info must exist in a way that could be integrated into the car.

Cripes Herr Docktor, my Igo Primo does that already. I can have it yell at me if I want. Kurt

 

[BDB]

This:

[video=youtube;wuhbqcMzOaw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuhbqcMzOaw[/video]

I just looked up the expected delivery date for my Tesla 3 yesterday: Sept 24, 2018. Ugh...Don't know if my Toyota with 243k miles will hold out until then.

 

[michigander]

radar for suicide deer !!

 

[Marc_G]

...I like automatic wipers and lighting, fear that lane departure and blindspot warning systems encourage lazy driving.

Nice post, but I disagree with the comment on blindspot warning encouraging lazing driving. Actually I'm a fan.

I was driving my wife's new Sienna (2016 model year) that has blind spot warning, which is good because it has a big blind spot, of which I'm well aware. The warning system saved me from causing an accident where someone was approaching rapidly in the lane to the left. I looked all around before starting a lane change, nobody there in the left lane including the blind spot. I signaled, and moments later I started the maneuver, doing a quick doublecheck in the mirror (nobody there, still), only to be warned by the system. Looked again, and the car that had been in my lane a few car lengths back 1.5 seconds ago was now in the lane to the left, rapidly overtaking me, emerging from the blind spot that I had just checked now 2 or 2.5 seconds ago. While this was an A-hole move on their part (shifting lanes and rapidly overtaking AFTER I had signaled my intent with my blinker), nonetheless it would have been my fault.

Frankly, if the warnings work well enough, I can live with some people getting lazy about checking on their own. I think the trade off is a favorable one.

 

[dr wogz]

This is one of the things that I *really* like when use a GPS (Garmin) for long trips. Not only does it tell you what the current speed limit is, it calculates your current speed and displays them side by side. The only time that its wrong is through newly placed construction zones, and recently reopened construction zones. That, and one or two roads WAY out in the country in Missouri near the cow pasture launch site.

Another nice thing with this feature, is that the GPS displays the speed in your chose of units. We, in Canada, drive in kilometers. How fast is 60mph? Dunno. but my GPS tells me I'm allowed to go 97kph.. it also turns red when I go over the posted speed..



And, pretty much anywhere in N. America, the speed limit is maxed at 65Mph / 110Kph. Why, then, is my car able to, and rated to pin at 280kph? Do I really need a car, for my every day drive.. That's rated at that top speed? And with 360hp able to push 0-60 in 3.2 seconds? (I know, 'cuze it's really real really cool!! )

 

[Woody's Workshop]

I want no Tech. FM radio would be the limit. No carpet or headliners in pickup (work truck/farm truck/hunting truck).
No air bags, solid frame and a 6 speed manual tranny.
I can't see a farmer getting lost in his field and keeping a carpet clean with cow crap all over his boots.
Maybe most people want a luxury pickup, but I'm not one of them.
I liked it when cleaning out the cab was the use of a garden hose.

 

[Banzai88]

Turn signals.

 

[EXPjawa]

Nice post, but I disagree with the comment on blindspot warning encouraging lazing driving. Actually I'm a fan.

I was driving my wife's new Sienna (2016 model year) that has blind spot warning, which is good because it has a big blind spot, of which I'm well aware. The warning system saved me from causing an accident where someone was approaching rapidly in the lane to the left. I looked all around before starting a lane change, nobody there in the left lane including the blind spot. I signaled, and moments later I started the maneuver, doing a quick doublecheck in the mirror (nobody there, still), only to be warned by the system. Looked again, and the car that had been in my lane a few car lengths back 1.5 seconds ago was now in the lane to the left, rapidly overtaking me, emerging from the blind spot that I had just checked now 2 or 2.5 seconds ago. While this was an A-hole move on their part (shifting lanes and rapidly overtaking AFTER I had signaled my intent with my blinker), nonetheless it would have been my fault.

Frankly, if the warnings work well enough, I can live with some people getting lazy about checking on their own. I think the trade off is a favorable one.

An acceptable response. They certainly would have their place, on vans and vehicles with poor visibility, especially on cargo vans and the like. But I do feel that on mainstream sedans and such, where a driver actually has the ability to see out of readily, drivers will still fall into the mode of simply wandering over a lane without looking because their vehicle didn't alert them. I've seen enough of how driving habits degrade to recognize the potential.

The same goes for anything that makes it simpler for the driver to just sit there and zone out. The case of that Tesla Autopilot fatality was ruled as driver negligent and not a fault of the system. However, it underscores my point that drivers will quickly fall into the pattern of leaning heavily on such systems if it makes their lives easier. The fact that the driver ignored a multitude of warnings regarding saying alert is mitigated (in my opinion) by the simple fact that Tesla chose to market the system - which is glorified adaptive cruise control and lane departure - as "Autopilot". For this, even though the system does what it is supposed to do quite well, I think Tesla is somewhat culpable. Maybe not from a liability point of view, but because in the mind of the basic consumer, it sets the expectation that the system is more grand and more capable then it is meant to be. From a marketing view, it oversells the abilities. For that reason, my thinking is that interim solutions like that should be leapfrogged (and not use customers as beta testers) and be held off until a full self-driving system is viable. Or if nothing else, call it something more realistic... Otherwise, you get people like the guy that was killed cruising down the highway watching Harry Potter on his dash because he thinks the car will do more for him than it is able to. People, as drivers, need to be either completely involved in overseeing the process or completely removed from the equation.

Anyway, I digress once again. It comes back to a balance of what technologies aide and improve safety without becoming a crutch or a distraction. I am also a fan of seat heaters and wonder why they didn't become prominent sooner. But I wonder about heated steering wheels. I also wonder why all cars, at least all cars in the north east, don't offer heated mirrors as an easy option. Ford, for example, likes to bundle them into $2000 option packages that force you into fancy trim, navigation systems, and other stuff I don't want. Another thing that I think ought to be a factory option - especially in the northeast (and Canadians would dig this too) - would be snow tires on a second wheel set, all of which is OEM validated and built into the chassis calibration and tire pressure monitoring. The only car I'm aware of to do this is the Focus RS. But I would totally do that if I were in a position to buy one.

 

[EXPjawa]

And, pretty much anywhere in N. America, the speed limit is maxed at 65Mph / 110Kph. Why, then, is my car able to, and rated to pin at 280kph? Do I really need a car, for my every day drive.. That's rated at that top speed? And with 360hp able to push 0-60 in 3.2 seconds? (I know, 'cuze it's really real really cool!! )

A minor point, but in a lot of states, the limit is 70 mph on highways, with a number of locations out west at 75 mph. There are a few stretches in TX that are even 80. But your point is valid, there is no practical need for most cars to be capable of triple-digit speeds, at least not in North America. But it does make them more interesting. It also allows cars to be sold and used in Europe (where Autobahn trips are not unlikely) with the same hardware and calibrations. That's why a lot cars are governed to 155 mph, especially cars of German origin.

 

[jazzviper1]

Ejection seats, 50 cal. machine guns and Tow II missile launchers. Perfect for Dallas driving.

 

[tmacklin]

....full line of accessories.

 

[cbrarick]

a 6 inch mmt for quick get aways, ** insert P motor here **

 

[Nathan]

Deflector shields that repel shopping carts in parking lots.

 

[FredA]

Wow - I vote for the Alfa and accessories....winner!

 

[rharshberger]

Wow - I vote for the Alfa and accessories....winner!

You can have the Alfa's, I will take the accessories.😁

 

[hornet driver]

Ejection seats, 50 cal. machine guns and Tow II missile launchers. Perfect for Dallas driving.

I hear ya about Dallas driving--need to strengthen the bumpers so we bump draft . A big spike that shoots out of the rear for tailgaters would be way cool!! A directed electromagnetic pulse cannon would be cool to--take care of those talk and text idiots!!!