New Car Nanny Features Explained

[outlaw_dogboy]

If they put all those electronic gadgets on cars because customers want them they would make other cars without them for people who don't, or they would give you the option of deleting or bypassing them easily. No, they give us electronic junk because they want to own us, control us and make vehicles impossible to repair when they are paid off.
I was thinking of buying a new truck a couple years ago....I looked into it and decided to fix mine up and paint it and keep it a few more years instead. Spend the extra money on guns and ammo.
It's not only the complexity of the electronics, but the emissions equipment, the water based paint and the stupid low profile tires. I hear they are putting devices in vehicles to spy on their owners. Screw them.

I think the only "driver assist" thing they are required by law to put in new vehicles is the Traction Control Systems. Vehicle stability. The idea as I understand it is to prevent people from losing control in less than ideal traction situations. They have been in for quite a while, and are easily turned off if/when you want to. All the rest is, I believe, people asking for it, or the companies actually thinking they can make you safer.

I have been driving (legally) 70 years. How did I manage to survive without turn signal (used hand and arm signals), backed up without hitting or running over anything or body (situational awareness), looked where I was going so I didn't need anything to remind me to stay in my lane. My cruise control was how far down on the right pedal I pushed and held it. Learned to adjust the outside mirror if the car actually had one (none on the passenger side). Headlights were controlled by a button on the floor. Push down and they went to bright, push again and back to dim. When it was dark you turned them on. When it was sunny you turned them off. I didn't need all the bells and whistles then and don't need them now. I prefer to drive the car, not have the car drive for me.

I'm in my late 50's, and I like most of the new features. To play with (and distract me.... which is what they usually do). I like the blind spot monitoring, but I still use my side mirrors and check over my shoulders before changing lanes. The backup camera, while not really a must-have, certainly makes getting a long-wheel-base truck easier to get in a parking space. I WISH our had the god's-eye view of the space around the truck, but that wasn't on any of the options we ordered, and we didn't order it specifically.
IMO, all these bells and whistles are like a manual safety on a firearm. They enhance the safety, in theory. But you're never supposed to rely on them, because they can fail at the most inopportune moment.

FoxMike... I guess we just have to realize that the young'uns are going to rule the world.....

even though they can't read an analog timepiece....

We are doomed.........

J.

Well, I've taught mine to both read a time-piece (analog) and am teaching her to drive a manual transmission (Jeep Wrangler). She keeps her Apple Watch set to an analog face, and loves the Wrangler. Wants it to be her daily driver when she gets her license.

I'm sure there are others of us out there who are doing the same... althought I'm sure it is less and less every year.

 

[Dan in MI]

ABS I love. Traction control not so much. With a 4x2 and a non locker (1 wheel drive) it doesn't allow some manuevers unless you turn it off. Sometimes you don't have the time or preparation to turn it off.

 

[Tenbore]

I like:

Blind Spot Information System: This is letting you know there is a car in the area the mirrors can's show you..

That's why you turn your head and look.

 

[Shamus2022]

Current wheels: 1953 Ford Golden Jubilee tractor, 1957 Jeep w/1960 V6; 1978 Lincoln Continental--none of them dare to beep about anything.

 

[outlaw_dogboy]

ABS I love. Traction control not so much. With a 4x2 and a non locker (1 wheel drive) it doesn't allow some manuevers unless you turn it off. Sometimes you don't have the time or preparation to turn it off.

Interesting story to share:
When I first got my Tacoma, I went to the local liquor store on aa winter day. This was back in 2015, when we had quite a few winter events here in MD. The parking lot had a fairly steep uphill exit onto the main road. There was some snow piled right at the edge of the parking lot, up against the curb. when I stopped to check traffic before entering, my left rear tire was parked on the snow. When I pressed the throttle to pull out, the truck moved maybe a couple inches, spun, and then dethrottled automatically cue to the traction control kicking in. Tried again. Same thing. I couldn't move forward. Instead of backing up and trying a different path, I hit the TCS button, which turns off the throttle function, but also turns ON a pseudo-rear locking differential (more of a limited slip). Hit the throttle again, and pulled forward out of the lot with no problem.
Over the years, I've found that it will do similar in some situations in light rain. Not good when you try to enter a road from a stop sign in traffic, and the throttle rolls back because one of your tires starts spinning a little. So I make it a habit to turn off the TCS when it rains, before I need it.
My Tacoma also will turn off both the TCS and the limited slip rear if you hold the button for about 3 seconds. Puts you all the way back to the early 2000's technology, with only ABS.

 

[DickTater]

Just my two cents on Nanny features. I have seen several incidents, and been in one when I was under 4 years of age...where a car was rolling away or had children in it when odd things happened. At least 3 of them could have been deadly and 2 were very scary. All at the slowest speeds imaginable. The ability for someone to get in the car and stop it, or put it in gear, etc...were crucial points. In some cases, the friendly auto-locking door proved to be the pivotal technology. In the 80s, I was easily able to hop in a strangers pickup that was rolling away at 1mph before it headed downhill and into downtown.
Another situation, my mom and aunt rushed to help an old feller who was backing up his boat down the boat ramp...and he got himself pinned under the boat's trailer wheel in about a foot of water and was basically going to drown. I was a little kid, saw it all, but I still don't know what happened. The car let loose and rolled a bit while he was unstrapping? My mom had to get in the car and pull forward while my aunt dragged him out. And one other episode where a bunch of kids were left in a VW Beetle while the mom ran into the conv. store for one minute. One of the kids popped the emergency brake and the whole troop of kids went backwards, very slowly at first....across the parking lot, thru a shallow ditch, across 2 lanes of a busy 4 lane suburban 'highway' and into the median ditch.

A family member had a Geo Metro that had some cable-arrangement which locked the doors after 30ft of rolling.
I always wonder about door and window locks, neutral switches, foot-on-brake and other nanny-features, many electronic, that would not work in certain circumstances and emergencies...especially with water or flooding involved. I have an all-electric car and although it is superior to every other Chevy I ever owned for engineering, fit and finish, reliability...I have no idea what will still work if I get up to the floorboards in water. Also, it's auto door locks pinch the bottom of my arm when they lock if my window is open and I have my arm up. Feels like a hornet stung me, and it has gotten me 100 times especially at the drive thru and during summertime.

 

[buckeyeshooter]

I never thought I'd buy a new car, especially with all the nanny features they bolt on them now. My friend was a trucker and he'd call me when on the road and all I could hear was incessant beeping from this and that. So, I get that people would hate these features without ever having used them because I was one of them.

It was time to get rid of my low mileage 2016 Nissan Rogue. The road trip I took with my granddaughter in April was an eye opener with how much road noise got into that car. There were other reasons why it was time right now to move it on. Really long story short, I bought a 2023 Honda CR-V EX-L right off the carrier with 3 miles on it. It's the top of the line that isn't a hybrid. The reviews on it rated it #1 in its class and the quietest

I was concerned about the nanny features and **** going beeeep every time I sneezed.

Collision Mitigation Braking System: Beep--On. I drove backroads home in a light rain. There was one car in front of me. They slammed on their brakes and came to a complete stop for absolutely no f'n reason. The car beeped as I was slamming on the brakes. In another second the car would have slammed on the brakes for me. It reacts that quickly!

I got home and tried to set it all up like I wanted it. Just about everything that beeps can be made not to beep, so that came first. The volume of the beeps is adjustable from loud to very low. I set mine to low.

Blind Spot Information System: Beep--Off. It will give an orange flashing car in the side mirror if a vehicle is in that zone for the 90% who don't have a clue how to adjust their outside mirrors. No big deal.

Adaptive Cruise Control: Beep--Off. This blows conventional cruise control away! I went to a gun show last Saturday and set the cruise at 78 mph. If I get within an adjustable set range of the vehicle in front of me it will slow the car to their exact speed and keep me that set distance away. If I pull into the fast lane it automatically speeds me up to 78. If a car pulls out in front of me it will back me off that set distance etc. What's not to like?

Lane Departure Warning: Beep--Off. It will show an orange icon where the tach is if I drift over a lane or change lanes without using my turn signals. This is for every driver in GA and MI, and every BMW driver no matter where you're from. It simply flashed a low light orange warning on and then instantly off.

Road Departure Warning: Turned off. It's adjustable how far you can drift in the lane. It will literally turn the steering wheel to keep you centered. Screw that! Theoretically I could put on my cruise control and RDW and drive 400 miles on the interstate with my hands off the steering wheel. I'd fall asleep. No.

Back Up Camera: Way cool! It even tells you is there's any cross traffic while you're backing out, like in an angled space at Walmart. I guess it beeps, don't know, yet. You can even set it to look down from above if you want to back right up to something. I have no idea how Honda does that.

Traffic Sign Recognition: As soon as you pass a speed limit sign it will post it in white right next to the digital speedometer. There's also an analog speedometer. It will shut it off if it detects you've turned onto a new road, so it doesn't work when on the twisty hilly roads where I live until it sees another speed limit sign. I still really like it!

Auto High-Beam Headlights: Amazing! These will stay on bright until it detects any light ahead and it dims way before I'm able to see the oncoming headlights. Headlights also turn on when your windshield wipers are turned on. Don't like auto? Switch it to manual and it works like any headlights in my lifetime.

I don't like anything that beeps at me for no good reason. I have a couple I still have to figure out, but I will.

Cholo Sez: Don't buy any car you can't shut off/partially shut off the nanny features. Some you simply can't, but I havn't figured those out yet. Make sure you can turn off most of the childish nanny beeps. Fortunately on this car I can. You can use them or not.

The bottom line is these features aren't nearly as annoying as I thought they might be. The ability to turn things off was a huge plus, especially most of the beeping.

For the $ I spend on this car it should turn into Katie Sunshine when the sun goes down

If I ever have to buy a 'new' car, I will be purchasing a restored 1969-70 Pontiac Grand Prix or a 1965 Pontiac Catalina 2 + 2. I want a car with leg room and one I can work on without a laptop and no nanny features.

 

[rotor]

I live in a small town area but when we travel to the metroplex with people driving like maniacs I appreciate the nanny features, Having been driving for 64 years and wish my older vehicles had some of these features. Most can be turned off. I especially like heads up display, eyes don't need to leave the highway.
Have a friend who in the old days backed his car out of his driveway and ran over his kid. Fortunately not fatal. Wouldn't happen with nanny features. Back out of Walmart parking and hear that warning. That's the accident that didn't happen.

 

[mirglip]

One problem I have with electronic gadgets is that they all require "special procedures" to get them to do what you want. In most cases, even the dumbest people can memorize the procedure and can say it's easy, but it's only easy if you have memorized the procedure. Often you can't use logic or instinct to get the damn thing to do what you want, you have to read the 300 page manual (if you have it with you) and find the "special procedure".
50 years ago everything we did was figured out with logic and instinct and we didn't have to memorize so many "special procedures". Now we have to have hundreds or even thousands of these "special procedures" memorized just to function in our daily lives.
At some point our memory banks become overloaded with procedures and our ability to function using logic and instinct become irrelevant because they don't get the job done.
The solution? Avoid buying products that are procedure intensive. That's why I still drive my 2006 truck.

 

[Taterman]

If I ever have to buy a 'new' car, I will be purchasing a restored 1969-70 Pontiac Grand Prix or a 1965 Pontiac Catalina 2 + 2. I want a car with leg room and one I can work on without a laptop and no nanny features.

Ahhh, my first car was a '65 Pontiac Catalina. That thing was a beast at 19' long. My friends called it the bat mobile.

 

[Kevin]

I live in a small town area but when we travel to the metroplex with people driving like maniacs I appreciate the nanny features

I am wondering about this. Too bad people didn't state if they drive in heavy traffic or just moderate rural settings.

Someone says Blind Spot Monitoring, just turn your head. Well, sure, except in Dallas, even the small roads are two and three lanes in each direction and cars are driving 60mph around town. Things happen so quickly, the BSM is an extra assist. I don't rely on it, but it certainly helps at high speed with heavy traffic.

When I drive out into the country to my gun range, it doesn't really help much at all.

 

[Wyandot Jim]

"One problem I have with electronic gadgets is that they all require "special procedures" to get them to do what you want. In most cases, even the dumbest people can memorize the procedure and can say it's easy, but it's only easy if you have memorized the procedure. Often you can't use logic or instinct to get the damn thing to do what you want, you have to read the 300 page manual (if you have it with you) and find the "special procedure".



Yep my poor brain is full up. If I have to remember one more thing I will have to forget something to make room. That something could be HOW TO GET HOME

Cholo,
I still picture you driving up in a BAD Arsh Mustang. How times have changed Next you will be growing a beard.

 

[Cholo]

Jim, I really liked that '96 Mustang Cobra. I only used it for road trips and dating. Owned it for 24 years and it had 69k on it without a ding. There are several reasons I sold it, one being I couldn't fit one more motorcycle in my garage without the car moving out. It had the best seat I've ever owned bar none. Also, I could take off my shoes and stretch both legs out fully on a trip.

I had a lot of good memories in that car.

You know, I just might grow a beard LOL

 

[DickTater]

Don't get me started on self-driving cars. I would like to see the nanny-features tamed. They can stop working on self-driving and re-focus on the useful tech. I see a Chevy truck commercial all the time touting the self-driving. You know what they show people doing, while the car self drives? Clapping to We Will Rock You. Well, how wonderful. They have spent billions of dollars on a tech we will never be able to trust and will never work fully - for the great benefit of clapping our hands while we drive?

The logical next step is for them to market MORE things that we can do when we are supposed to be driving the vehicle. Changing a diaper? Watching a movie? Proofreading a speech?

 

[Johnnu2]

I am wondering about this. Too bad people didn't state if they drive in heavy traffic or just moderate rural settings.

Someone says Blind Spot Monitoring, just turn your head. Well, sure, except in Dallas, even the small roads are two and three lanes in each direction and cars are driving 60mph around town. Things happen so quickly, the BSM is an extra assist. I don't rely on it, but it certainly helps at high speed with heavy traffic.

When I drive out into the country to my gun range, it doesn't really help much at all.

Kevin, I hate to admit how many years I've been driving in and out of Manhattan.... fortunately NOT daily, not even Monthly any more, but often enough to know, even at my advanced age, how to stay FOCUSED at the high speeds in NYC traffic (yes, that traffic moves at speeds no one will admit to.) It isn't fun, and certainly something that I avoid as much as possible. BUT I can tell you that the beeps and dangerous 'safety assists' in the new cars would most certainly get my old brain confused.... and killed. Distracted driving is dangerous driving.
IMHO,
J.

 

[Dan in MI]

Good analogy. It's like your wife gasping we're about to hit something when it's just a squirrel running parallel to the road. In the mean time you're frantically searching for the real threat you missed. (But didn't)

 

[JiminMaine]

If I ever have to buy a 'new' car, I will be purchasing a restored 1969-70 Pontiac Grand Prix or a 1965 Pontiac Catalina 2 + 2. I want a car with leg room and one I can work on without a laptop and no nanny features.

My Aunt had a 65 Catalina convertible that she would let me borrow, If I was to ever get an old restored car that would be it. I loved that car. The only problem it had was the power brakes. They were soooo touchy that all you had to do was think about touching the brake pedal and you were going through the windshield. Maybe that was because I was used to driving my Dad's 1947 International KB-2.

 

[Johnnu2]

Good analogy. It's like your wife gasping we're about to hit something when it's just a squirrel running parallel to the road. In the mean time you're frantically searching for the real threat you missed. (But didn't)

Dan....

YOU TOO ?

J.

 

[Wyandot Jim]

Well forget all of that sissy stuff.

Now we are a talken

 

[Ka6otm]

That's why you turn your head and look.

Or why I put bug eyes in both my mirrors for many years.