Technology on your vehicle that you dislike.

[M_Six]

I've read some articles about folks buying slightly older used cars because they don't want the newer "assistive" technology on the newest cars. What "features" of your current car would you rather not have?

On my GLC300:

1. The butt ugly info screen. It literally looks like someone glued an iPad to the dash as an afterthought. It's mostly useless in my car because the original owner didn't spring for navigation. I can see audio settings and vehicle settings, but it isn't useful for anything else. And unlike the screen on my former C300, where you could set the screen to just show the time, with my GLC300 you have to settle for some screen you'll never use. I can turn the system off, but then the Bluetooth phone system doesn't work, which is silly.

2. The center console where the gear selector *should* be is taken up by a mouse-like device and a twist knob which change menus and such on the aforementioned screen. Both pretty much do the same thing. And both are unnecessary and clunky.

3. The gear selector is some jackass engineer's mind game. It's where the wiper controls on any other car would be. And the shifter won't let you choose a gear until you are stomping on the brake pedal. With any other car I can start the car and be in the gear I want in 2 seconds. With this car I have to wait until the warning on the info screen goes away and then it might let me choose a gear if I'm putting enough pressure on the brake and the doors are closed. If the driver's door is open even a crack, the electronic parking brake won't release. When I drive my wife's car, I'm constantly turning on the wipers because I'm so used to hitting that stick to get the car in gear.

4. Collision avoidance. The little red triangles in the side view mirrors to warn of vehicles in your blind spots are ok. But the sensors in the front bumpers pick up every mailbox and garbage bin I drive by, but miss things like vehicles turning in front of me.

5. Keyless entry and start. I can lock my car by just touching the outside of the door handles. But more often than not, the car gets locked because I accidentally brush the door handle. And for some odd reason, the unlock feature refuses to work for my wife. Plus the keyless start system will work if the key is close enough to the car, but not necessarily in the car. So it's possible to start the car without having your keys. Wifey has a key to my car. If I'm taking her to work, my car will start whether or not I have my key with me. So when she jumps out at the office and I head off, I'm screwed if the engine dies or I turn the car off at a store on the way home.

6. Rain sensing wipers. All my BMWs had decent rain sensing wipers. The rain sensing wipers on the two MBs I've owned have sucked. MB needs to up their game there.

I think the ideal balance of tech and driving pleasure in a cars I've owned were in my 2001 E39 and 2001 E38. Stick a modern hands-free phone system in those cars and they'd be perfect.

And speaking of cars of that era...BMWs had fresh air vents in the center of the dash so you could crank the defroster and still have cool air blowing on your face. You could even warm the incoming air a bit if needed. Pure brilliance. I don't know if the newer BMWs still have that vent, but they should be standard in every car.

[///MPhatic]

The new cars are just to busy. Too busy. Too damn busy. There's crap everywhere, like they're trying to mimic too many icons on a desktop or apps on a phone screen. Trash, all of it.

[hubbahubba]

Bring it all except the anti collision stuff. I hate the wheel shaker. Don't push my brakes for me. But please keep all the other apps coming. I LOVE the heads up when I am coming up to a speed camera!

[vreihen16]

I loathe ABS brakes, and any vehicle telematics system. BMW has twice now turned their telematics systems into paperweights with the shutdowns of the 2G and 3G cellular networks, and I'm sure that 4G/LTE won't be around in 10 years. Look at a Ford Model T today, and then think how your current car's telematics will not age as gracefully in 100 years.....

[pikkagtr]

Electronic assisted power steering is the bane of an enthusiast car.
The steering feel in my then f80 and now J29 compared to my e85 M Roadster is night and day

[BMWCCA1]

Can't think of any . . . but then my newest BMW is a 2013 128i M-sport 6MT with the last version of iDrive before touch-screen. The hydraulically boosted power steering is near-perfect, and the car never steers or brakes for me.

All of the useless technology in the new cars is part of the reason I retired from selling BMWs, a vocation I began in 1976.

[eliphil]

Four times in the last two days my M550 stopped short coming out of the garage for no reason….. When keys are in pocket car doesn’t always unlock. Android auto has a mind of its own. Camera system also thinks it knows best. My Audi tech from 2016 was better for me.

[spazzyfry123]

Auto stop/start. Company car has it, and it’s downright dangerous when I’m trying to cross traffic quickly. I run into this frequently leaving my house. Limited visibility to the left and cars just “pop up” to the right with the hill. When I am ready to get out but the car isn’t… sheesh

[Maynard]

For me the M2C is pretty much at the sweet spot - most everything I dislike I can turn off (lane departure and stop/start especially) and we missed the stuff I hate that came with the new gen: icons and no buttons; no CD; brake by wire; permanent engine stop/start. At the same time, I love the 'new tech' that it is keeping track of temps and fluid levels to prevent a catastrophic blowup. I'm old school so I also do that 'I'm dreaming, how can it be' that the computer controls and turbos can produce such crazy power and still be as tractable as anything I've ever driven.

I do wish there was a f'ing 'park' button for the DCT, and that the traction/braking systems were a little more transparent and defeatable for the track (without coding). They also screwed up the turn signals from the original electronic version, probably b/c everybody griped about them when they came out.

And I wish they would make it harder for my wife to figure out how to set the 'speed warning' to chime at some ridiculous non-triple-digit speed.

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

Auto stop/start. Company car has it, and it’s downright dangerous when I’m trying to cross traffic quickly. I run into this frequently leaving my house. Limited visibility to the left and cars just “pop up” to the right with the hill. When I am ready to get out but the car isn’t… sheesh

I forgot to mention that in my original post. I hate that "feature." I can turn it off, but I have to do that manually every time. There's no way to do it permanently without a plugin tool I don't have. And the dealer wouldn't do it for me.

[ShapeShifter]

• Like others here; My biggest dislike, is not being provided an option to permanently turnoff the Auto Start/Stop Function.

• A minor gripe, no option to Fold/Unfold Mirrors on Engine Shutdown/Startup.

[kscarrol]

Originally Posted by M_Six

I've read some articles about folks buying slightly older used cars because they don't want the newer "assistive" technology on the newest cars. What "features" of your current car would you rather not have?

On my GLC300:

1. The butt ugly info screen. It literally looks like someone glued an iPad to the dash as an afterthought. It's mostly useless in my car because the original owner didn't spring for navigation. I can see audio settings and vehicle settings, but it isn't useful for anything else. And unlike the screen on my former C300, where you could set the screen to just show the time, with my GLC300 you have to settle for some screen you'll never use. I can turn the system off, but then the Bluetooth phone system doesn't work, which is silly.

2. The center console where the gear selector *should* be is taken up by a mouse-like device and a twist knob which change menus and such on the aforementioned screen. Both pretty much do the same thing. And both are unnecessary and clunky.

3. The gear selector is some jackass engineer's mind game. It's where the wiper controls on any other car would be. And the shifter won't let you choose a gear until you are stomping on the brake pedal. With any other car I can start the car and be in the gear I want in 2 seconds. With this car I have to wait until the warning on the info screen goes away and then it might let me choose a gear if I'm putting enough pressure on the brake and the doors are closed. If the driver's door is open even a crack, the electronic parking brake won't release. When I drive my wife's car, I'm constantly turning on the wipers because I'm so used to hitting that stick to get the car in gear.

4. Collision avoidance. The little red triangles in the side view mirrors to warn of vehicles in your blind spots are ok. But the sensors in the front bumpers pick up every mailbox and garbage bin I drive by, but miss things like vehicles turning in front of me.

5. Keyless entry and start. I can lock my car by just touching the outside of the door handles. But more often than not, the car gets locked because I accidentally brush the door handle. And for some odd reason, the unlock feature refuses to work for my wife. Plus the keyless start system will work if the key is close enough to the car, but not necessarily in the car. So it's possible to start the car without having your keys. Wifey has a key to my car. If I'm taking her to work, my car will start whether or not I have my key with me. So when she jumps out at the office and I head off, I'm screwed if the engine dies or I turn the car off at a store on the way home.

6. Rain sensing wipers. All my BMWs had decent rain sensing wipers. The rain sensing wipers on the two MBs I've owned have sucked. MB needs to up their game there.

I think the ideal balance of tech and driving pleasure in a cars I've owned were in my 2001 E39 and 2001 E38. Stick a modern hands-free phone system in those cars and they'd be perfect.

And speaking of cars of that era...BMWs had fresh air vents in the center of the dash so you could crank the defroster and still have cool air blowing on your face. You could even warm the incoming air a bit if needed. Pure brilliance. I don't know if the newer BMWs still have that vent, but they should be standard in every car.

I'll pile on the GLC300 wagon here. My wife has one similarly equipped but things I don't get... turn off the car and it doesn't automatically put the transmission in Park so if you're on a grade the car will roll. And second, the saved seating is poor. We each have a key but no automatically moving to my saved position when I unlock with my key and to get to the seat to my position, I have to stand there holding the #2 button until the seat completes it's move to my position. When parked on the street I am forced to stand there with the door ajar holding the button...

[RickFLM4]

Since auto stop/start can be turned off no major complaints on my car. Little silly to require pushing the off button twice and occasionally there will be some CarPlay hiccups, but overall mostly happy with tech level in my car (which is a 2018). The wireless charging does not accommodate larger, newer phones, but not a big deal to me.

In my wife’s 2020 Volvo XC60, I have had the safety stuff freak out on me twice. Both times in heavy rain, car slammed in the brakes with no hazards near me. Fortunately both times no one behind me either. Both times was at the end of a long road trip and generally I like the tech on the road trip except when that happens.

Her car also has some partial auto pilot / semi autonomous tech, which works really well on an open road during a road trip. However, it is overly conservative when traffic gets more dense and that annoys me enough to turn it off when I’d probably like to really use it.

Her newer car also requires USB connection for CarPlay to work, while my older car is wireless. And her car has more CarPlay hiccups than mine.

Not really tech, but I really, really like the massaging seats in the Volvo on a road trip. Seemed gimmicky when we got it, but they are great. Volvo now removed them as an option (or at least did in a prior model year when we were shopping for a replacement) and that, along with pricing at the time, was one of the main reasons we held onto the Volvo when the lease ended.

[chassis]

Originally Posted by M_Six

1. The butt ugly info screen.

Agreed. Porsche integrates the screen into a real "dashboard" aesthetic.

Originally Posted by M_Six

3. The gear selector is some jackass engineer's mind game.

I like the MB DirectSelect lever.

Originally Posted by M_Six

4. Collision avoidance.

Agreed. I am a bit aggressive in roundabouts and the collision avoidance triggers from the car approaching from my left as I enter the roundabout.

Originally Posted by M_Six

5. Keyless entry and start.

Love it. No complaints with the MB, BMW or Porsche solutions.

Originally Posted by M_Six

6. Rain sensing wipers. All my BMWs had decent rain sensing wipers. The rain sensing wipers on the two MBs I've owned have sucked. MB needs to up their game there.

Agree. MB rain sensing and wiper timing is poor. BMW and Porsche are OK. Give me old school selectable delay wipers with 4 or 5 discrete settings like on my 2010 Touareg. That system was perfect.

My list:

Active Lane Keeping, aka quasi-autonomous driving. Terrible and objectively dangerous techology on my Cayenne. It veers the car suddenly and dangerously when it mis-interprets stripes on the road. PID, an add-on to Active Lane Keeping, mis-interprets speed limit signs and dangerously slows the vehicle or illegally speeds up the vehicle. I have turned this rubbish tech off.

[Rono63]

Active lane keeping assistance is the feature I dislike on all the newer vehicles. I disabled it on delivery of my M4 and have done the same on my Porsche. I don’t understand why these manufacturers think people would want this feature on performance vehicles.

[Nuckle]

Land Rover

Auto Start Stop must be manually disabled at every start.

Lane keeping sucks but you can leave it off.

Can’t lock the doors with the motor running so dumb.

Won’t idle for more than 30 minutes without shutting down and being left a nasty message about the environmental impacts.

Auto hold and parking brake makes going through a car wash hectic like enough to just hand wash the damn thing.

I do like my defender though.

Can’t comment on the wife’s X5 as I never drive it. It doesn’t have a V8.

[Car-Addicted]

Something very important happened last week and no I don't mean that elder abuse debate. The Supreme Court struck down Chevron Doctrine: Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc.
This will be very critical in what the EPA and other agencies with unelected bureaucrats can do in regards to regulations. I expect the automotive manufactures will launch court suites to challenge a lot of the silly legislation that has added aggravation and cost to today cars and trucks. I hope they go after Start/Stop first.

[spazzyfry123]

Originally Posted by M_Six

I forgot to mention that in my original post. I hate that "feature." I can turn it off, but I have to do that manually every time. There's no way to do it permanently without a plugin tool I don't have. And the dealer wouldn't do it for me.

I should mention that the company car has the button front and center, but I am only reminded to turn it off after almost being T-boned

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by spazzyfry123

I should mention that the company car has the button front and center, but I am only reminded to turn it off after almost being T-boned

Mine is on the center console and I usually hit it after the first time I stop at a light and the engine quits.

My 2001 E38 had an engine "failsafe" that would kill the engine if it detected something wrong. It once happened to me just as I started a left turn through an intersection. So in order to save the engine from damage, it shut it down and left me stranded across the center of an intersection. There's safety for you.

[eliphil]

Why doesn’t the radio shut off when u turn the car off in a 5 series until you lock the car. I know you can hold in the radio button but who wants to do that. Genius engineering…..

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by eliphil

Why doesn’t the radio shut off when u turn the car off in a 5 series until you lock the car. I know you can hold in the radio button but who wants to do that. Genius engineering…..

The radio in my GLC300 never turns off. You can hit the mute button, but the sound system has no On/Off button. At least not one that I've found. If I want to make sure that music doesn't start playing if I accidentally hit the mute or volume buttons, I have to set the audio input to USB device when there is no USB device attached. How I long for a simple audio system with real buttons and knobs.

[spazzyfry123]

Originally Posted by M_Six

Mine is on the center console and I usually hit it after the first time I stop at a light and the engine quits.

My 2001 E38 had an engine "failsafe" that would kill the engine if it detected something wrong. It once happened to me just as I started a left turn through an intersection. So in order to save the engine from damage, it shut it down and left me stranded across the center of an intersection. There's safety for you.

That indirectly reminds me of my GLI that I had. The wastegate would “flutter” as the turbo was coming on. It caused the car to stutter when accelerating. I was turning left to cross two lanes at a major intersection and it just flat out stalled because I gave it the beans to take a gap. Apparently too much fuel and not enough air right as a big rig was heading my way.

Acknowledged issue with the car but no resolution. That was then followed by an oil pump failing less than 1000 miles after I paid it off and grenaded the motor. Last VW for this guy!