Annoying automotive trends

[RPDBlueMoon]

I don't really find this one annoying, or evidence of lack of driving skill. Depending on the situation you find yourself in, they can be helpful, but you wouldn't want to use that mode all the time. Land Rovers and "rally-esque" cars have had these for quite a few years.

I don't drive around in Sport mode on my Mustang since I'm not a fan of the sharp throttle response when just driving around town, but would definitely want it if I'm doing a track day, or hitting some curvy back roads for fun. Gives the car more flexibility, really.

I think what is annoying also is how some manufactures focus so much of their attention on the drive modes. Genesis and Acura, have a massive drive mode selector thats there to just fancy people. Like you don't need a huge massive ball wasting interior space to just change a mode lol, I do it with a small button on my steering wheel. Mercedes and BMW are the worst at convoluting the modes and just creating a ridiculous amount of modes. Like Sport, Sport+, Sport ++ lol it gets to a point where it becomes redundant .

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[AceS550]

I don't really find this one annoying, or evidence of lack of driving skill. Depending on the situation you find yourself in, they can be helpful, but you wouldn't want to use that mode all the time. Land Rovers and "rally-esque" cars have had these for quite a few years.

I don't drive around in Sport mode on my Mustang since I'm not a fan of the sharp throttle response when just driving around town, but would definitely want it if I'm doing a track day, or hitting some curvy back roads for fun. Gives the car more flexibility, really.

Valid points, I can sympathize with where you’re coming from. It would bother me less if drive mode settings could be remembered. I would be content with always being in track mode.

 

[RPDBlueMoon]

Valid points, I can sympathize with where you’re coming from. It would bother me less if drive mode settings could be remembered. I would be content with always being in track mode.

They can be remembered but just depends on the car I believe. Just goes back to my first point, shitty integration of technology lol.

How some of these small things aren't noticed during R&D is beyond me. They probably just dont care.

 

[Jo3f1sh]

I think what is annoying also is how some manufactures focus so much of their attention on the drive modes. Genesis and Acura, have a massive drive mode selector thats there to just fancy people. Like you don't need a huge massive ball wasting interior space to just change a mode lol, I do it with a small button on my steering wheel. Mercedes and BMW are the worst at convoluting the modes and just creating a ridiculous about of modes. Like Sport, Sport+, Sport ++ lol it gets to a point where it becomes redundant .

Oh yeah. Can definitely agree on that. A small button on the steering wheel, or the toggle switch that the Mustang has is more than enough.

And really, driving modes just need to be: Normal / All the Power NOW / Let's Chill I'm on Dirt or Snow

 

[coz0502]

Yup, even though the damn thing is obsessed with the LIE and the GWB. Never a good idea to take either for any reason. I like to check the traffic even if I know the route. I also like to see by how much I can beat the estimated time.

I agree, traffic in Tampa Bay can be unpredictable. A normal 20 min drive can turn into a nightmare when an accident occurs. I blame this primarily on the roads being 5 to 10 years behind the population driving them. I use my map app every time I get in the car. It's saved me a couple times rerouting me around an accident that happened very shortly before I was coming up on it.

 

[jgruben1134]

I didn't know you could do that with SYNC. I'm going to try it out, specifically for the heated wheel. I hate where they buried the button for it.

The heated wheel button is on the home screen

 

[Shadow277]

What is NVH in OP?

 

[RPDBlueMoon]

The heated wheel button is on the home screen

If you're using Android Auto that means backing out of it into Sync. It usually dumps me onto the radio screen for some reason, not home. So what could have been a single button press (even if a soft button) is now:

Home screen of AA
Back to Sync
Home screen of Sync
Turn the handmelters off
Back to AA

I've had to pull over to do this because I'm not fiddling with the screen while driving. That's the navigator's job.

You guys are talking about the Mustang?? Lol I had no idea it had a heated steering wheel. This is one feature I desperately need, my hands are always cold

 

[jgruben1134]

If you're using Android Auto that means backing out of it into Sync. It usually dumps me onto the radio screen for some reason, not home. So what could have been a single button press (even if a soft button) is now:

Home screen of AA
Back to Sync
Home screen of Sync
Turn the handmelters off
Back to AA

I've had to pull over to do this because I'm not fiddling with the screen while driving. That's the navigator's job.

Oh - yeah, that does suck. I just never plug my phone in the car, so I'm not familiar with AA.

 

[Shadow277]

I personally like the return of underglow, headlights, and tail lights. It helps take down the rice.
Also, I thought camber was a new concept?

 

[Cobra Jet]

The most annoying to me are:

1) Excessive fake grilles, including the massive fake front grilles on many cars, esp. Toyota being the worst offender (see images below), and fake rear grilles/vents like on the Civic Type R. The front grilles on some cars is beyond ridiculous, and cars with under 200 hp have much larger fake grilles than the real grilles on the 460 hp Mustang.
2) Marketing: a) Germans calling 4 door sporty fast back shaped sedans "coupes" - why not just call it a fastback like it is? Sounds just as cool. b) Porsche calling their EV Taycan a "Turbo S" - it has zero turbos.
3) Screen mania interiors; Screens aren't that cool to me. I prefer a tasteful combination of high res. screens and physical buttons and analog gauges. I think the Mustang nailed it with physical controls for the important things.
4) Digital gauge clusters, esp. when used to show a digital image of a round analog gauge
5) The fact that every manufacturer tries to make their non-sporty cars look aggressive like real sports cars (fake vents/grilles/etc.)

Examples of terrible grilles:
Corolla:

And the worst offender of fakeness, the '21 Avalon (does a single person think this is a sports sedan or makes tons of power because it has a bunch of fake black grille on the front??). The void area in the front appears physically larger than the real grilles on the 650 hp ZL1:

And the Sienna minivan (yuck):

The new M4 has an ugly mug as well that looks like gigantic buck teeth:

There are many, many other examples of ugly front fake grilles; too many to post. But Lexus is also a major offender.

This is my #1 disgust with “modern” designers. The entire front bumper cover is just one ugly ass grille.... BMW ruined the front end and overall appearance of their car line - looks like shit.

Ford using the same “corporate” style front grille across all platforms - stupid. Let the products have their own individualistic design and stop forcing the same redundant design element down everyone’s throats... if I wanted 3 of my Ford products to look exactly the same from the front - I would have bought 3 of the same damn vehicle....

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The center stack flat screens - getting way too big - most look stupid affixed to the top of a dashboard or just left stuck to the middle where it does not blend in. Many look like someone just leaned a tablet against the dash and left it there - plus many barely face the driver’s scope of vision; angle the damn thing already!

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EV vehicles with the boring, almost non-existent no design element front fascia, except a set of headlights... something is better than nothing - just please not a huge fake ass grille....

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Wind wafting with windows open.... never had this happening in my older vehicles, but in most of the newer models, even with the windows slightly down - the barrage of wind wafting is horrendous.

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The emergence of the “highlighter” exterior paint colors... what’s next, “glow in the dark”?

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Put spare tires back in cars and stop the POS tire inflator kits.

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Incorporate functional EQ’s with available sound systems AND let buyers “amp up” the systems instead of partnering with garbage audio suppliers that just give fancy names to their systems, but still supply under powered crap with paper coned speaker components....

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