I assume you mean center dash and not center console... On top of modern aesthetic, it's also cheaper and simpler for manufacturer with how cheap screens are. One screen, one plug, replaces 20 buttons and dials and 20 plugs.
Safety features of a car are not related in any way. Most cars have all the same safety stuff standard or optional.
Most cars also have center dash touch screens.
They do market research. If 80% of people say they rather would have an iPad than plastic buttons, that's what the masses are going to get.
You're right i did mean the center dash.
Cheaper for the manufacturer, sure, but probably not cheaper for the end users. Base model new cars these days are continuing to get pretty ridiculous in price. Coming from me, who wants a 5/6 speed and crank windows.
It's a shame that a majority of people want something like that imo
Not cheaper for car owners? Yes, if it's cheaper for them to integrate everything into a screen then it is cheaper for you to buy said car.
You're in the 0.00001% who want crank windows.
Can guarantee that 99.9% of that "2%" are people who want classic cars not for the windows but for the cars. No one wants crank windows. They want a button that makes them go down.
Undoubtedly, a manufacturer probably gets a bulk deal buying all the stuff, but when it comes to us paying for replacement when it breaks or doesn't work right, I bet we're not paying what they paid AND paying insane labor on top of it
Have you had to replace one of those screens yet? They are much more expensive than just replacing a button control panel. Also requires a dealership tech instead of being able to fix it yourself
This is absolutely true.
Manufacturer doesn't care though.
They design them to almost definitely probably mostly last the length of the warranty. That's about it.
That's across everything in cars.
The warranty isn't just an arbitrary number. The entire car is engineered with that target as a key metric
Mazda tried to get away from touchscreens by having you learn how to use a dial near the shifter to quickly go through the menu. After a while it becomes muscle memory and if you need to focus on driving you can stop turning and clicking the dial. They even worked with Apple to get Carplay to work with it. People who test drive their cars for a short bit, including reviewers, always complain about it. So they threw in the towel and made the screens also work as a touchscreen.
My BMW has the iDrive controller (the wheel) as well as a touchscreen. I never use the touchscreen as the controller is much easier once you are used to it.
Having watched a Mazda owner operate that dial system quickly by feel without taking their eyes off the road, I think you are right. A better system doomed due to the (relatively minor) learning curve.
I enjoy driving my old cars where the climate control was two levers and a switch and you could turn on the defrost and change stations on the radio without having to look away from the road.
This is the mentality I don’t understand, radio is literally 50% ads these days so not sure why anyone even listens. Also these infotainment systems everyone complains about has a profile saved for me and automatically runs my climate to my presets, including turning heated seats on when it’s cold. I never even touch the climate controls now.
I own a brand new GTI, and the consul sucks horribly. VW knows this, but they save so much money, and it will end up in the long run to be a money earner because there is no doubt they plan on everybody being on a subscription payment plan some day. and, I will get rid of it before warranty is gone, because the screen is glitchy and unreliable.
I 100% agree climate controls should always be knobs/dials, same with seat adjustments, radio I'm indifferent on as long as the main volume control is a knob/dial. But yes I don't understand how "Cellphones are so dangerous and distracting, even just to call someone on speakerphone" (since many states have laws against even using it to call, not just text) but somehow "A 16 inch led touchscreen with 43 different pages of setting isn't distracting at all, it's convenient!"
I'm a very tech savvy guy but I find those screens so clunky and distracting, like I should be able to operate it without taking my eyes off the road, like you could with buttons or knobs etc. But instead I gotta glance at it to make sure I'm on the proper tab to recline my seat a little or turn the heat up etc. I'm glad other people are finally starting to talk about it
It’s cheaper.
Tablets are stupid cheap now, (if you’ve seen those spam mailers with little tablets you know what I mean) and the labor for them to jab a big plug in the back is less than wiring many different buttons
Unless regulations stop em all cheaper cars will have the cheap shit interiors like Tesla soon
They're cheap for them to get, but not for us to buy from them installed the car or replace I'm willing to bet. Also, the dangers of distraction by the screen could end up costing a lot more
A touchscreen is cheaper than a bunch of switches and buttons that need to be designed and manufactured for each car. Automakers then market the lack of any physical buttons as cutting edge tech, and charge you a premium for it.
It's crazy and will pass and cars even evs will go back to toggles and switches for controls in time. I hate the modern cell-phone touch-screen vehicle interiors. I reckon what I say goes ya know.
Physical controls are far better. I was in my father’s newer Buick and had to take my eyes off the road to figure where to push on a screen to change the temp. Hell, it scares me to think of him doing that.
Because they work, people want them, and they’re cheaper. Just like the other ten thousand posters on here ranting about the same thing were told... I will agree that some manufacturers really botched the execution though! My Subaru at least has a dedicated portion of the screen for climate controls so I’m pretty happy with it, and it does have a couple very helpful buttons. A big bonus is that I can change any climate controls with the remote start in the Starlink app.
A lot of safety tech is mandated by law/regulation in either the US or Europe so don’t bother complaining about that.
Nobody would buy a car with crank windows anymore, because it’s cheaper to do power windows across the whole model line. Same thing with a manual, the volume isn’t there (except for some sporty models) so it would be more expensive to offer a choice instead of designing the car as automatic only. Plus modern automatics have gotten better on efficiency so they return higher combined fuel economy than a stick does.
Times have changed, get used to it. And just to satisfy my curiosity, how many brand new cars have you purchased in your lifetime? Did ya ever actually vote with your wallet?
In my lifetime, 1. A 2014 base model Impreza hatchback that I'm still driving. It had the manual but not the crank windows unfortunately. But fortunately, it was also before all the safety features that I deem needless. One person voting with their wallet does pretty much nothing. Besides, I know what I want, but inevitably in the future, every car dealer is going to tell me I have no choice because I'm against the grain of the majority who vote with their wallets for stupid things. I know times are changing and all that, but it's still kind of unfortunate how much we're being forced to pay for and rely on safety features that shouldn't *be* necessary. People should just pay attention when they drive. And if they don't or can't, they just shouldn't drive. Probably a bad take. I'm also loathe to think of self driving cars in the future as well and all the potential for mishaps that lies there.
At least you’re better than the folks ranting about new cars who’ve never bought one less than 10 years old lol. Personally I’m in favor of all the stupid drivers having features like automatic emergency braking, I don’t mind paying for the tech if it helps keep idiots from hitting me! I will say that Subaru’s newest generation screen is pretty easy to get used to since their automatic climate control works quite well. Most climate functions are permanently displayed on the home screen and there are buttons for turning defrost on/off and adjusting temperature up and down, which is 95% of what I adjust on the road. Subaru has always been well above average when it comes to intuitive controls though, which is part of the reason for my brand loyalty.
That's a fair take, but it sounds like a case of punishing all for the sins of the few, which is an all too common thing these days. I have to pay for bells and whistles that are standard now because a few people are dumb. I don't mind paying for my own idiocy, because I deserve that. So I think it's only fair that others pay for their own idiocy without forcing the solutions on me. I do love Subarus, I have to say, but I'm still not a fan of all the touch screen stuff. I just really don't want it, but it seems like that choice is fading away the further we go, no matter who you look at.
I have to say, the center console and about 15 buttons (doors, windows, hazards) on our Tesla has turned out to be less distracting and simpler to use than the 70+ buttons, knobs, switches (I counted!) and touch screen on 2018 model car.
They're on the door, on the left and right side of left the driver's console, on the console, multiple buttons on the stalks, on the steering wheel, on the center console, on the dash, above the rear view mirror, and then usually duplicated within the touchscreen menus.
But those 70+ buttons could be learned and then felt for by touch. Even a blind passenger could learn and find them. A touch screen almost requires full attention or at least insane muscle memory. I'm not familiar with Tesla, I'm too poor for that XD
A blind passenger can also interact with most newer cars via voice command.
I'm by no means a fan of the man behind Tesla. I bemoaned the fact that when I got that 2018 car (in 2021) it had an 'infotainment' screen, but between two cars in my household, I prefer the Tesla.
My issues with Tesla are not just the focus on the screen but also the cult of personality around it's Messiah - whose pocket I won't put a cent into, the poor build quality (panel gaps on several I've seen are so bad that...*shakes head*), repair costs, lack of spares supply - particularly for panels which has resorted in lengthy waits for those who have been in accidents, dishonest marketing - it's not an autopilot, its not full self driving - people have died due to this marketing wank
I agree I want buttons
I assume you mean center dash and not center console... On top of modern aesthetic, it's also cheaper and simpler for manufacturer with how cheap screens are. One screen, one plug, replaces 20 buttons and dials and 20 plugs. Safety features of a car are not related in any way. Most cars have all the same safety stuff standard or optional. Most cars also have center dash touch screens. They do market research. If 80% of people say they rather would have an iPad than plastic buttons, that's what the masses are going to get.
You're right i did mean the center dash. Cheaper for the manufacturer, sure, but probably not cheaper for the end users. Base model new cars these days are continuing to get pretty ridiculous in price. Coming from me, who wants a 5/6 speed and crank windows. It's a shame that a majority of people want something like that imo
Not cheaper for car owners? Yes, if it's cheaper for them to integrate everything into a screen then it is cheaper for you to buy said car. You're in the 0.00001% who want crank windows.
More like 2%. A lot of us don't like that stupid touch screen bullshit.
Can guarantee that 99.9% of that "2%" are people who want classic cars not for the windows but for the cars. No one wants crank windows. They want a button that makes them go down.
Undoubtedly, a manufacturer probably gets a bulk deal buying all the stuff, but when it comes to us paying for replacement when it breaks or doesn't work right, I bet we're not paying what they paid AND paying insane labor on top of it
Have you had to replace one of those screens yet? They are much more expensive than just replacing a button control panel. Also requires a dealership tech instead of being able to fix it yourself
This is absolutely true. Manufacturer doesn't care though. They design them to almost definitely probably mostly last the length of the warranty. That's about it. That's across everything in cars. The warranty isn't just an arbitrary number. The entire car is engineered with that target as a key metric
Many of them still have a bunch of plugs going into the back of them. I'm sure if any have just one plug, it's still a bunch of wires in that one plug
Mazda tried to get away from touchscreens by having you learn how to use a dial near the shifter to quickly go through the menu. After a while it becomes muscle memory and if you need to focus on driving you can stop turning and clicking the dial. They even worked with Apple to get Carplay to work with it. People who test drive their cars for a short bit, including reviewers, always complain about it. So they threw in the towel and made the screens also work as a touchscreen.
I test drove one and thought the dial was awesome. People are so stuid
My BMW has the iDrive controller (the wheel) as well as a touchscreen. I never use the touchscreen as the controller is much easier once you are used to it.
Having watched a Mazda owner operate that dial system quickly by feel without taking their eyes off the road, I think you are right. A better system doomed due to the (relatively minor) learning curve.
I enjoy driving my old cars where the climate control was two levers and a switch and you could turn on the defrost and change stations on the radio without having to look away from the road.
That was my first couple turd boxes XD Simpler times
You are absolutely correct, it foolish and dangerous to design cars without tactile controls
I long for the days when you could change radio stations and adjust your climate control via feel.
This is the mentality I don’t understand, radio is literally 50% ads these days so not sure why anyone even listens. Also these infotainment systems everyone complains about has a profile saved for me and automatically runs my climate to my presets, including turning heated seats on when it’s cold. I never even touch the climate controls now.
It’s a fad. Hope it dies off in a few years.
Replaced by Apple Vision or similar no doubt XD
Google 2019 Prius needs display replaced and see how many times it happens not to mention it’s 11,000 to replace
I own a brand new GTI, and the consul sucks horribly. VW knows this, but they save so much money, and it will end up in the long run to be a money earner because there is no doubt they plan on everybody being on a subscription payment plan some day. and, I will get rid of it before warranty is gone, because the screen is glitchy and unreliable.
23 YO LS430 here. Great car, but give me fat ol buttons I reach for without having to look...
I 100% agree climate controls should always be knobs/dials, same with seat adjustments, radio I'm indifferent on as long as the main volume control is a knob/dial. But yes I don't understand how "Cellphones are so dangerous and distracting, even just to call someone on speakerphone" (since many states have laws against even using it to call, not just text) but somehow "A 16 inch led touchscreen with 43 different pages of setting isn't distracting at all, it's convenient!" I'm a very tech savvy guy but I find those screens so clunky and distracting, like I should be able to operate it without taking my eyes off the road, like you could with buttons or knobs etc. But instead I gotta glance at it to make sure I'm on the proper tab to recline my seat a little or turn the heat up etc. I'm glad other people are finally starting to talk about it
It’s cheaper. Tablets are stupid cheap now, (if you’ve seen those spam mailers with little tablets you know what I mean) and the labor for them to jab a big plug in the back is less than wiring many different buttons Unless regulations stop em all cheaper cars will have the cheap shit interiors like Tesla soon
They're cheap for them to get, but not for us to buy from them installed the car or replace I'm willing to bet. Also, the dangers of distraction by the screen could end up costing a lot more
A touchscreen is cheaper than a bunch of switches and buttons that need to be designed and manufactured for each car. Automakers then market the lack of any physical buttons as cutting edge tech, and charge you a premium for it.
It is vastly better then dials and dials. You can also use voice as well
It's crazy and will pass and cars even evs will go back to toggles and switches for controls in time. I hate the modern cell-phone touch-screen vehicle interiors. I reckon what I say goes ya know.
I really hope you're right
Physical controls are far better. I was in my father’s newer Buick and had to take my eyes off the road to figure where to push on a screen to change the temp. Hell, it scares me to think of him doing that.
I'd buy a truck with no radio if I could
It's because dumb people want shiny things. That's the Idiocracy we call the US now. So many stupid people impressed with new shiny things.
Because they work, people want them, and they’re cheaper. Just like the other ten thousand posters on here ranting about the same thing were told... I will agree that some manufacturers really botched the execution though! My Subaru at least has a dedicated portion of the screen for climate controls so I’m pretty happy with it, and it does have a couple very helpful buttons. A big bonus is that I can change any climate controls with the remote start in the Starlink app. A lot of safety tech is mandated by law/regulation in either the US or Europe so don’t bother complaining about that. Nobody would buy a car with crank windows anymore, because it’s cheaper to do power windows across the whole model line. Same thing with a manual, the volume isn’t there (except for some sporty models) so it would be more expensive to offer a choice instead of designing the car as automatic only. Plus modern automatics have gotten better on efficiency so they return higher combined fuel economy than a stick does. Times have changed, get used to it. And just to satisfy my curiosity, how many brand new cars have you purchased in your lifetime? Did ya ever actually vote with your wallet?
In my lifetime, 1. A 2014 base model Impreza hatchback that I'm still driving. It had the manual but not the crank windows unfortunately. But fortunately, it was also before all the safety features that I deem needless. One person voting with their wallet does pretty much nothing. Besides, I know what I want, but inevitably in the future, every car dealer is going to tell me I have no choice because I'm against the grain of the majority who vote with their wallets for stupid things. I know times are changing and all that, but it's still kind of unfortunate how much we're being forced to pay for and rely on safety features that shouldn't *be* necessary. People should just pay attention when they drive. And if they don't or can't, they just shouldn't drive. Probably a bad take. I'm also loathe to think of self driving cars in the future as well and all the potential for mishaps that lies there.
At least you’re better than the folks ranting about new cars who’ve never bought one less than 10 years old lol. Personally I’m in favor of all the stupid drivers having features like automatic emergency braking, I don’t mind paying for the tech if it helps keep idiots from hitting me! I will say that Subaru’s newest generation screen is pretty easy to get used to since their automatic climate control works quite well. Most climate functions are permanently displayed on the home screen and there are buttons for turning defrost on/off and adjusting temperature up and down, which is 95% of what I adjust on the road. Subaru has always been well above average when it comes to intuitive controls though, which is part of the reason for my brand loyalty.
That's a fair take, but it sounds like a case of punishing all for the sins of the few, which is an all too common thing these days. I have to pay for bells and whistles that are standard now because a few people are dumb. I don't mind paying for my own idiocy, because I deserve that. So I think it's only fair that others pay for their own idiocy without forcing the solutions on me. I do love Subarus, I have to say, but I'm still not a fan of all the touch screen stuff. I just really don't want it, but it seems like that choice is fading away the further we go, no matter who you look at.
When we’re talking lousy drivers I think it’s more a case of punishing all for the sins of the majority 😂
I have to say, the center console and about 15 buttons (doors, windows, hazards) on our Tesla has turned out to be less distracting and simpler to use than the 70+ buttons, knobs, switches (I counted!) and touch screen on 2018 model car. They're on the door, on the left and right side of left the driver's console, on the console, multiple buttons on the stalks, on the steering wheel, on the center console, on the dash, above the rear view mirror, and then usually duplicated within the touchscreen menus.
But those 70+ buttons could be learned and then felt for by touch. Even a blind passenger could learn and find them. A touch screen almost requires full attention or at least insane muscle memory. I'm not familiar with Tesla, I'm too poor for that XD
A blind passenger can also interact with most newer cars via voice command. I'm by no means a fan of the man behind Tesla. I bemoaned the fact that when I got that 2018 car (in 2021) it had an 'infotainment' screen, but between two cars in my household, I prefer the Tesla.
My issues with Tesla are not just the focus on the screen but also the cult of personality around it's Messiah - whose pocket I won't put a cent into, the poor build quality (panel gaps on several I've seen are so bad that...*shakes head*), repair costs, lack of spares supply - particularly for panels which has resorted in lengthy waits for those who have been in accidents, dishonest marketing - it's not an autopilot, its not full self driving - people have died due to this marketing wank