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I've owned and driven a Model 3 since October of 2021, and I only have a vague idea of where the emergency door release is or how to use it. If I were trying to

I've owned and driven a Model 3 since October of 2021, and I only have a vague idea of where the emergency door release is or how to use it. If I were trying to escape, I doubt I'd be able to figure it out quicker than a panic-fueled kick to the window. The theme of "no need for buttons, everything is software driven" of the model 3 is the thing I like the least about the car. The marketing message is "this is the future, and it's better", when in reality, I think it's all motivated by cutting costs. A single touch screen is far cheaper than the cost of designing and testing physical controls. The "fancy" feature of rolling down the frameless windows before opening and closing isn't a feature, it's a compromise. Rather than properly design seals, let software solve it. If I could have a Model 3 that had no touch screen, manual everything, that'd be amazing. It'd also mean that random software updates wouldn't require me to relearn where the hell all the controls I'd become familiar with went.

throwaway0a5e 4y ago
You don't even need to "design and test" controls cabin controls. There are companies that make that stuff. You call their sales department, spend a lot of time emailing back and forth. Exchange CAD models, etc, etc, magic happens and a pallet of assemblies that fit in you dash and plug into the stuff you need to shows up at the loading dock of your manufacturing facility. The problem is that you can't market your creation as a yuppie status symbol when you've built stuff using off the shelf parts. Some snarky reviewer will point out that you're using some switch in common with their 10yo car or that the out of sight portion of your HVAC is copy-pasta'd from a minivan and the internet idiot will whip themselves into a frenzy over it. I'm sure the engineers would just love to call up someone who makes that stuff just buy a battle tested solution but that is simply not compatible with the realities of the product they're working on.
- buffington 4y ago
  I have a friend who's dad had what, at the time, seemed like the weirdest job. He'd test the physical controls in Toyotas. What "testing" meant was pretty broad. It might mean simple single control bench testing, to environmental testing (ie, mocking up a car interior, then exhaustively flipping switches and turning knobs in various atmospheric conditions, from freezing and dry to hot and humid, and all variations between), to epic road trips cross country, to epic off roading trips. While it's true there are companies that offer "turn-key" components, the integration of all of these still requires a huge amount of testing. I want REAL controls that never move, that can be used without having to take my eyes off the road, and that have tactile feedback when used. It seems clever to just move physical controls to software, like it's some sort of innovation, but for me, as the driver, I'll never buy a car again that does it the way Tesla does it.

throwaway0a5e 4y ago

You don't even need to "design and test" controls cabin controls. There are companies that make that stuff. You call their sales department, spend a lot of time emailing back and forth. Exchange CAD models, etc, etc, magic happens and a pallet of assemblies that fit in you dash and plug into the stuff you need to shows up at the loading dock of your manufacturing facility. The problem is that you can't market your creation as a yuppie status symbol when you've built stuff using off the shelf parts. Some snarky reviewer will point out that you're using some switch in common with their 10yo car or that the out of sight portion of your HVAC is copy-pasta'd from a minivan and the internet idiot will whip themselves into a frenzy over it. I'm sure the engineers would just love to call up someone who makes that stuff just buy a battle tested solution but that is simply not compatible with the realities of the product they're working on.

buffington 4y ago
I have a friend who's dad had what, at the time, seemed like the weirdest job. He'd test the physical controls in Toyotas. What "testing" meant was pretty broad. It might mean simple single control bench testing, to environmental testing (ie, mocking up a car interior, then exhaustively flipping switches and turning knobs in various atmospheric conditions, from freezing and dry to hot and humid, and all variations between), to epic road trips cross country, to epic off roading trips. While it's true there are companies that offer "turn-key" components, the integration of all of these still requires a huge amount of testing. I want REAL controls that never move, that can be used without having to take my eyes off the road, and that have tactile feedback when used. It seems clever to just move physical controls to software, like it's some sort of innovation, but for me, as the driver, I'll never buy a car again that does it the way Tesla does it.