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I want to replace my aging car (Mazda 3 from 2005), it’s served me great and it has no issues at all after 200k km (125k miles) but my gf is pregnant so I’m mor

I want to replace my aging car (Mazda 3 from 2005), it’s served me great and it has no issues at all after 200k km (125k miles) but my gf is pregnant so I’m more concerned about space and especially safety. Even if my car has some important safety features like traction and stability control, lateral airbags etc. there’s been 15+ years of safety improvements. And I feel like it’s a terrible moment to buy a car. I’d like my next car to last for many years like my previous one, but ICE ones feel obsolete right now, and regulations are going to make it increasingly difficult to keep owning one. But EVs are just not practical for my use case (I don’t drive often but when I do it’s long distance) and in my country (very few charging stations). I feel they're just not quite there yet. Also very concerned about battery degradation, seeing how it’s been with phones and other rechargable battery products I’ve owned.

throwaway0a5e 5y ago
Unless your car lacks side curtain airbags does particularly poorly on the partial front overlap test safety improvements have been negligible since the roof strength increases of the early '00s. Most of the advances since the 2000s have come from cheaper tech enabling things like automatic braking and stuff that makes texting your way into the back of a stopped semi truck less fatal when applied at scale. Is that worth $30k? I dunno, not my money.
- justinph 5y ago
  Not true. Automatic emergency braking (AEB) has been shown to reduce frontal crashes by about 43% and injuries in those crashes by 64%. That's a pretty big sizable jump. I can personally attest AEB has kept me out of at least one crash. Source: https://www.consumerreports.org/automotive-technology/automatic-braking-reduces-car-crashes-injuries-iihs-study/ https://www.consumerreports.org/automotive-technology/automa...
  - throwaway0a5e 5y ago
    You are misrepresenting the capability of AEB. AEB will prevent you from rear ending someone at <10mph in stop and go conditions and knocks 5-20mph (being really generous on that upper bound) off the contact speed for higher speed rear endings (that most people won't ever get in over a lifetime). It mostly does not prevent the kinds of accidents where people get injured (save me the anecdote about how your brother's roomate's uncle backed his semi into the loading dock a little too hard and hurt had a sore neck the next day). Don't get me wrong, for what it does it works, but it is not the magic want the internet tends to act like it is. you have to weigh the potential improvement against the price of a new car.
- Xenoamorphous 5y ago
  Yes I also got the impression that around the early 2000s there was a much bigger leap in terms of car safety than in the 15 years or so since.
- fomine3 5y ago
  ESC (or call ESP, VSC, DSC, whatever) is also a huge improvement. It's shame that it failed to standardize the name despite the goodness.
space_rock 5y ago
With your phone you charge it to 100% and then use it down to low charge. Everyday repeat. It's basically the worst case scenario for a lithium battery. An EV you can keep it a comfortable 70% charge until you need to go long distance. And you don't cycle it daily to 100%
watt 5y ago
It is a terrible moment to buy. 800V charging tech is just becoming available, Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia Ev6 are like next gen comparing to VW ID3 and ID4, Skoda Enyaq, even Tesla Model 3 will struggle to keep up. I expect much more clarity in next 3, 4 years regarding long-term ownership.

throwaway0a5e 5y ago

Unless your car lacks side curtain airbags does particularly poorly on the partial front overlap test safety improvements have been negligible since the roof strength increases of the early '00s. Most of the advances since the 2000s have come from cheaper tech enabling things like automatic braking and stuff that makes texting your way into the back of a stopped semi truck less fatal when applied at scale. Is that worth $30k? I dunno, not my money.

justinph 5y ago
Not true. Automatic emergency braking (AEB) has been shown to reduce frontal crashes by about 43% and injuries in those crashes by 64%. That's a pretty big sizable jump. I can personally attest AEB has kept me out of at least one crash. Source: https://www.consumerreports.org/automotive-technology/automatic-braking-reduces-car-crashes-injuries-iihs-study/ https://www.consumerreports.org/automotive-technology/automa...
- throwaway0a5e 5y ago
  You are misrepresenting the capability of AEB. AEB will prevent you from rear ending someone at <10mph in stop and go conditions and knocks 5-20mph (being really generous on that upper bound) off the contact speed for higher speed rear endings (that most people won't ever get in over a lifetime). It mostly does not prevent the kinds of accidents where people get injured (save me the anecdote about how your brother's roomate's uncle backed his semi into the loading dock a little too hard and hurt had a sore neck the next day). Don't get me wrong, for what it does it works, but it is not the magic want the internet tends to act like it is. you have to weigh the potential improvement against the price of a new car.
Xenoamorphous 5y ago
Yes I also got the impression that around the early 2000s there was a much bigger leap in terms of car safety than in the 15 years or so since.
fomine3 5y ago
ESC (or call ESP, VSC, DSC, whatever) is also a huge improvement. It's shame that it failed to standardize the name despite the goodness.

space_rock 5y ago

With your phone you charge it to 100% and then use it down to low charge. Everyday repeat. It's basically the worst case scenario for a lithium battery. An EV you can keep it a comfortable 70% charge until you need to go long distance. And you don't cycle it daily to 100%

watt 5y ago

It is a terrible moment to buy. 800V charging tech is just becoming available, Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia Ev6 are like next gen comparing to VW ID3 and ID4, Skoda Enyaq, even Tesla Model 3 will struggle to keep up. I expect much more clarity in next 3, 4 years regarding long-term ownership.