quote:

Originally posted by armored:
I wonder if all this touch screen nonsense will die out when people find out how expensive they are when they have to be replaced.
The interior of a vehicle is a brutal place for electronics and plastics.

Subaru realized that all-touchscreen controls are dangerous and dumb and people hated them and have started bringing more physical knobs and buttons back with the 2026 model Outback.


2024:




2026:

My Chevy Equinox EV has buttons for the AC controls, knobs for temp settings, but like that Subaru still has the giant digital screens.

Too many things are still available on the screen in order to do something. They have digital buttons for quick access.

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
Subaru realized that all-touchscreen controls are dangerous and dumb and people hated them and have started bringing more physical knobs and buttons back with the 2026 model Outback.

Shame they couldn’t integrate the display into the dash nicely in 2026, as they did in 2024. These big ol’ displays grafted onto dashboards these days are like digital warts.

quote:

Originally posted by vthoky:
These big ol’ displays grafted onto dashboards these days are like digital warts.

That is a nice way of saying it is a low effort design that looks like a cheap shit afterthought.

It is a bit less shitty than Ford's dumb design and Toyota's low effort lump.

quote:

Originally posted by .38supersig:
That is a nice way of saying

I try to be polite most of the time...

But you're not incorrect, sir.

Dashboards were better when they are analog with buttons and switches

quote:

Originally posted by vthoky:

Shame they couldn’t integrate the display into the dash nicely in 2026, as they did in 2024. These big ol’ displays grafted onto dashboards these days are like digital warts.

Yep. A huge pet peeve of mine. These cars all look like the designers forgot the screen and then just slapped an iPad on top at the last minute.

quote:

Originally posted by P250UA5:

Our Expedition, you kick your foot under the center of the bumper for hands-free opening/closing.
I definitely wouldn't want walk up activation

Our Lincoln had that, my only thought was if you are 70 years old with a bit of balance issues which is common in older folks, standing on one foot with hands full might not be a wise idea.

The walk up is a good concept, not so much in real time operation though....

Foot under the bumper is great UNLESS you didn't want the hatch opened and your dog walks under the bumper.

quote:

Originally posted by egregore:
[FLASH_VIDEO]<iframe frameborder="0" height="638" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ehxExyzWtAE" title=""Customer states"" width="359"></iframe>[/FLASH_VIDEO]

Yeah, that's dumb...but if Chrysler wouldn't put batteries in idiotic locations in the first place, you'd just have a wet trunk. My old work car, a police package Durango, had the battery under the front passenger seat. It's a police car. Guess what we put behind the passenger seat. That's right, a cage. And it's a cop car with all those auxillary electronics, so parasitic draw is always a thing. Guess how fun it is to service that battery when it dies. You're pulling the seat, or the cage, or both. As opposed to literally every other squad car I've ever had where you just pop the hood, unbolt the leads and the clamp, and pull it out.

Then again, Chrysler has been retarded about batteries all the way back to the 90s with the Concorde and the Intrepid (and maybe the Sebring, too?) that required you to jack it up, take the wheel off, and extract it through the wheel well.

Idiots.

^^ Battery in the trunk is NOT dumb (or idiotic!), but the owner...Retarded!

I've got an '09 Volvo S60 with the battery in the trunk, and previously had two Volvo XC70s with the battery in that location. I actually prefer the battery in the trunk. It's away from all the heat, dirt, etc of the engine compartment, and when it comes time for replacement, it's MUCH easier to remove in my experience. Trunk mounting the battery 'should' prolong the service life, and also helps somewhat with vehicle weight distribution/handling.

Under the passenger seat though...Now That IS Retarded!

Toilets.

The fill valve assembly is on the left, which means the water valve coming out of the wall is also (usually) on the left. In my home, at least, there is a wall on the immediate left side of each toilet - no room to do anything. I am right-handed, like the vast majority of people. When replacing the toilet parts, it's difficult to get your right arm down in there to 1) shut off the valve (hopefully it's not stuck), 2) unscrew the water supply line (yea, get that wrench in there), 3) unscrew the locknut and 4) reassemble everything. Who decided to put the tank hole on the left - some left-handed person?

quote:

Originally posted by 229DAK:
Who decided to put the tank hole on the left - some left-handed person?

Some brilliant right handed guy, but back then the tank was mounted to the wall and an overhead chain was pulled to flush with the right hand.

Similar to the buttons on modern clothing.

quote:

Originally posted by egregore:
[FLASH_VIDEO]<iframe frameborder="0" height="638" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/r4hX1iX2OIg" title="Beware of malfunctioned power tailgate #shorts #ytshorts" width="359"></iframe>[/FLASH_VIDEO]

Yeah, I freaking hate that crap. Power trunks, power sliding doors, power seats...slower, less convenient, and one more expensive and complicated thing to break, activate when you don't want it to, or create parasitic draw and drain your battery so your car won't start. When did we get too lazy to open and close our own doors?


I'm 6'5" and my wife is 5'3". She puts the seat so far forward I don't know how she even fits between the seat back and the steering wheel. I physically cannot get into the driver's seat after she drives. One of our cars had power seats, and it took forever to slide the stupid thing all he way back so I could get in. I went to a junkyard, got a manual seat track, swapped them out and tossed the power one. Went from 30 seconds of bending over to push that button and waiting on that stupid powered worm gear every time I wanted to drive the car to two seconds of lifting the handle and shoving the seat back. Simpler. Lighter. Faster. Cheaper. Better in every way.


This is also a big part of the reason why you can't buy a new car in the United States for less than $20k any more, and most are over $50k.

My wife's Pathfinder has two buttons on the inside door panel . They are presets for two different drivers. You set the seat and steering wheel to your liking and it stores the settings. No more fiddling with multiple seat buttons to get comfortable whenever you change drivers.

^^^

Cadillac had this in the late '80s.

For some reason it didn't become more prevalent.

Our suburban has memory seats. Better than having to hold the button. Still slower than manual.

My driver side seat slides all the way back, automatically, for easy entry and exit. After pressing the "Start" button, the seat and side view mirrors go to preset position for Driver 1 or Driver 2, depending on which key fob was used to unlock the door.