Thread Starter
#1
Because they cannot think for themselves, I know.
But the point I am trying to make is that even though most modern cars that cost over ₹10 lac have a fancy and lengthy equipment list, there are very few that actually give the impression that they are well put together.
Cars now have keyless entry, a start/stop button, rain-sensing wipers, automatic headlamps, reverse parking sensors, and a whole host of other features. This is great, but where’s that innate human wiseness behind these features? Where, in other words, is the common sense?
I booked a Hyundai Fluidic Verna CRDi SX (O) 1.6 on Tuesday, and while I wait for my car to arrive, I found myself puzzling over these questions as I considered the car’s impressive list of features. So I’ll be using it as an example in this post, but most of my points apply equally well to other cars of its class (and above).
The Verna has true keyless entry and start. You approach the car, pull the door handle and sit inside. You press a button and it turns on. Excellent stuff, this!
But then you realise that the electrically folding mirrors haven’t automatically opened for you. This is neither an extra feature nor would including it have significantly added to Hyundai’s cost of building this car. It just isn’t there for some reason we don’t know.
When you start driving, speed sensors in the car automatically lock the doors for you. But when you stop and turn off the ignition, it doesn’t unlock them. What? Why? You step out of the car and move away from it and it doesn’t fold the rear view mirrors, roll up the windows or lock the doors (until one minute later, which is ridiculous). It won’t even alert you to the fact that you just left your keys inside the car until you try to lock it by pressing the request sensor on the door.
The electric connections for these features are already there, and so is a bunch of logic to make them function the way they are currently. All it would’ve taken to make them smarter is throw in some more logic. So why not?
Why can’t I press a button on my remote to have the car turn on all its lights and give a honk so that I can locate it in a crowded parking lot? Why doesn’t it turn off the lights for me when I forget to do so and leave the car? Why won’t it even turn off the ignition once the key is outside the car? Why doesn’t it automatically tilt the rear view mirrors downwards when I engage the reverse gear?
I know that the lack of some of these features is specific to the Verna, but I also know that these are deficiencies shared by many cars. We need more intelligence in our cars, more human-centric engineering. Money can buy you more features, but you need a thinking mind to make them more useful.
It’s just a thought that struck me today and I thought it was worth posting here. I hope it’s not terribly inappropriate and sparks a discussion.
But the point I am trying to make is that even though most modern cars that cost over ₹10 lac have a fancy and lengthy equipment list, there are very few that actually give the impression that they are well put together.
Cars now have keyless entry, a start/stop button, rain-sensing wipers, automatic headlamps, reverse parking sensors, and a whole host of other features. This is great, but where’s that innate human wiseness behind these features? Where, in other words, is the common sense?
I booked a Hyundai Fluidic Verna CRDi SX (O) 1.6 on Tuesday, and while I wait for my car to arrive, I found myself puzzling over these questions as I considered the car’s impressive list of features. So I’ll be using it as an example in this post, but most of my points apply equally well to other cars of its class (and above).
The Verna has true keyless entry and start. You approach the car, pull the door handle and sit inside. You press a button and it turns on. Excellent stuff, this!
But then you realise that the electrically folding mirrors haven’t automatically opened for you. This is neither an extra feature nor would including it have significantly added to Hyundai’s cost of building this car. It just isn’t there for some reason we don’t know.
When you start driving, speed sensors in the car automatically lock the doors for you. But when you stop and turn off the ignition, it doesn’t unlock them. What? Why? You step out of the car and move away from it and it doesn’t fold the rear view mirrors, roll up the windows or lock the doors (until one minute later, which is ridiculous). It won’t even alert you to the fact that you just left your keys inside the car until you try to lock it by pressing the request sensor on the door.
The electric connections for these features are already there, and so is a bunch of logic to make them function the way they are currently. All it would’ve taken to make them smarter is throw in some more logic. So why not?
Why can’t I press a button on my remote to have the car turn on all its lights and give a honk so that I can locate it in a crowded parking lot? Why doesn’t it turn off the lights for me when I forget to do so and leave the car? Why won’t it even turn off the ignition once the key is outside the car? Why doesn’t it automatically tilt the rear view mirrors downwards when I engage the reverse gear?
I know that the lack of some of these features is specific to the Verna, but I also know that these are deficiencies shared by many cars. We need more intelligence in our cars, more human-centric engineering. Money can buy you more features, but you need a thinking mind to make them more useful.
It’s just a thought that struck me today and I thought it was worth posting here. I hope it’s not terribly inappropriate and sparks a discussion.