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The tech sucks. Lack of 360 cameras. Lack of RADAR. Lack of Ultrasonic sensors. Lack of Android Auto/Apple Carplay. Lack of integrated Rearview mirror camera. L

The tech sucks. Lack of 360 cameras. Lack of RADAR. Lack of Ultrasonic sensors. Lack of Android Auto/Apple Carplay. Lack of integrated Rearview mirror camera. Lack of Heads-up Display (let alone augmented reality HUDs integrated into the GPS navigation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8tl0KmqaqU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8tl0KmqaqU) That's just the standard tech everyone likes in cars in the year 2024. There's also the lack of physical windshield wiper controls, physical highbeams, or physical climate control buttons. (Everything is tablet-only for the ultimate cheapness / low-end experience). ---------- The funny thing is that we're in a situation where a 2016-era Model 3 has a better driving experience than the refresh. Well, you know, until they software-disabled the Ultrasonics and RADAR units to make the older model worse.

noncoml 3y ago
No HUD. Auto sensing wipers that never actually sense when it’s raining. Lack of physical buttons. No way to keep the sun out of the car making it feel like a greenhouse. Much less A/C vents than other cars. Plastic horrible interiors. No road noise isolation. You have to share the only screen with the passenger.
- MarkMarine 3y ago
  They actually continuously deployed that wiper breaking update. My car in 2019 had wipers that worked. That and the phone key never working, especially when it was raining and I was holding a child and groceries… that was it for me. Traded it in for a gas car. I’m not pumped about oil changes but at least the company won’t be able to remotely deploy bugs to my working car features
- tzs 3y ago
  > Auto sensing wipers that never actually sense when it’s raining I've never had auto sensing wipers, and am curious. Do they actually make enough of a difference to be worth the added hardware? The manual wipers with controls on one of the steering column stalks in my car are so little effort to use that I usually am not even aware of it. I see rain on the windshield and then I see the wipers deal with it and have to infer that I must have started them because that is much more likely than someone surreptitiously install an after-market automatic wiper system.
  - noncoml 3y ago
    I’d say they are ok. But the problem with Tesla is that you either have the auto-sensing option or you have to go through the screen in the middle. The don’t have the stalk option. They have a shortcut but still requires you to look at the screen in the middle. I don’t know how this car is considered safe
  - Sohcahtoa82 3y ago
    It's one of those things that's kind of nice, but also generally unnecessary and I could easily live without, for the exact reason you mention. Manual wipers on a stalk are just right there next to your hand anyways, hardly an inconvenience when you need to use them. About the only time auto wipers are handy is when you're driving through an area where the precipitation is highly inconsistent, torrential downpour one minute, a light sprinkle the next. Of course, Tesla doubled down on their automatic wipers by removing the stalk. -_- In my 2019 Model 3, I can't change wiper behavior on the stalk, though there is a button on the end that if I press, it forces a single wipe, or continuously wipes if I hold the button. It also causes the display to show the wiper speed adjustment UI, and allows me to tilt one of the steering wheel controls to change the setting, so I don't HAVE to use the touch screen. But tbh, I'd still rather just have a stalk with a knob that sets the setting.
  - moogly 3y ago
    > Do they actually make enough of a difference to be worth the added hardware? The hardware is super simple. Probably costs $5.
benoliver999 3y ago
This is all valid, but I would say that their actual EV tech, ie battery management, charging network and efficiency is still best in class. Of course now they've gutted this team perhaps that won't be the case for long
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
grecy 3y ago
I'm always fascinated to see a critique about a device (car in this case) that never once even mentions the core thing(s) the device is supposed to do. You didn't even mention any of - fuel mileage, road noise, driver fatigue, comfort of seats, performance of HVAC, visibility, crash safety, passenger comfort and entertainment, storage volume, leg room. You know, transporting meat sacks safely, comfortably and cheaply. I personally think it's because vehicle manufacturers have spent the last ~20 years not really improving the core vehicle at all, and instead convincing people that massage seats and car play are actually important. Personally I think they're a distraction from the fact most cars today get the same horrible mileage they did 20 years ago. If someone made a car that was comfortable, easy to drive, had plenty of storage and was super cheap to drive (like 3l/100km / ~70 US MPG) I'd be all over it. And that is what EVs are. So far they're mostly focusing on the core product and have not spent the time or money on the fluff.
- Breza 2y ago
  I was driving a 2016 Ford Fiesta. Last year I decided it was too small for my family of three. I wanted an EV, and my needs focus on exactly the practical stuff you describe. I don't need a car that I can turn into a robotaxi or whatnot. I was incredibly disappointed by Tesla. I tried all the EVs at the DC auto show and it feels like all the legacy manufacturers have caught up with Tesla at every price point. I ended up buying a Bolt EUV. It's amazing how much comfort and capability I got per dollar spent. Much better than any Tesla.
- AlexandrB 3y ago
  I find this to be a weird perspective because EVs, and especially Tesla, seem to be focused entirely on fluff. That's one of the reasons they cost so damn much compared to ICE "economy" compacts. Things like "pop out" door handles and steel body panels are fluff. A steering "yoke" is fluff. Side glass that can withstand a steel bearing is fluff. Constant (broken) FSD promises are fluff. Features like a HUD or stalks on the steering wheel would make a driver's experience better and more comfortable. The former they never added, the latter they removed (probably to improve margin).
  - 3y ago
thereddaikon 3y ago
Most of those examples aren't the cars being outdated really. They were intentional decisions to either cut costs or two stubbornly do it their own way. A tech refresh wont give you radar because Elon didn't want radar. They could have had it years ago but didn't. Same with carplay and android auto. They wanted their software stack.
- dragontamer 3y ago
  > They could have had it years ago but didn't. They did have it years ago. That's the insult. Elon is specifically removing features and trying to sell a worse car to people. Here we are nearly a decade later and people are seriously asking "what's wrong with a Tesla??" Well, have yall seen what the Highland Refresh has ___removed___? That's my point, its a worse car now.

noncoml 3y ago

No HUD. Auto sensing wipers that never actually sense when it’s raining. Lack of physical buttons. No way to keep the sun out of the car making it feel like a greenhouse. Much less A/C vents than other cars. Plastic horrible interiors. No road noise isolation. You have to share the only screen with the passenger.

MarkMarine 3y ago
They actually continuously deployed that wiper breaking update. My car in 2019 had wipers that worked. That and the phone key never working, especially when it was raining and I was holding a child and groceries… that was it for me. Traded it in for a gas car. I’m not pumped about oil changes but at least the company won’t be able to remotely deploy bugs to my working car features
tzs 3y ago
> Auto sensing wipers that never actually sense when it’s raining I've never had auto sensing wipers, and am curious. Do they actually make enough of a difference to be worth the added hardware? The manual wipers with controls on one of the steering column stalks in my car are so little effort to use that I usually am not even aware of it. I see rain on the windshield and then I see the wipers deal with it and have to infer that I must have started them because that is much more likely than someone surreptitiously install an after-market automatic wiper system.
- noncoml 3y ago
  I’d say they are ok. But the problem with Tesla is that you either have the auto-sensing option or you have to go through the screen in the middle. The don’t have the stalk option. They have a shortcut but still requires you to look at the screen in the middle. I don’t know how this car is considered safe
- Sohcahtoa82 3y ago
  It's one of those things that's kind of nice, but also generally unnecessary and I could easily live without, for the exact reason you mention. Manual wipers on a stalk are just right there next to your hand anyways, hardly an inconvenience when you need to use them. About the only time auto wipers are handy is when you're driving through an area where the precipitation is highly inconsistent, torrential downpour one minute, a light sprinkle the next. Of course, Tesla doubled down on their automatic wipers by removing the stalk. -_- In my 2019 Model 3, I can't change wiper behavior on the stalk, though there is a button on the end that if I press, it forces a single wipe, or continuously wipes if I hold the button. It also causes the display to show the wiper speed adjustment UI, and allows me to tilt one of the steering wheel controls to change the setting, so I don't HAVE to use the touch screen. But tbh, I'd still rather just have a stalk with a knob that sets the setting.
- moogly 3y ago
  > Do they actually make enough of a difference to be worth the added hardware? The hardware is super simple. Probably costs $5.

benoliver999 3y ago

This is all valid, but I would say that their actual EV tech, ie battery management, charging network and efficiency is still best in class. Of course now they've gutted this team perhaps that won't be the case for long

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]

grecy 3y ago

I'm always fascinated to see a critique about a device (car in this case) that never once even mentions the core thing(s) the device is supposed to do. You didn't even mention any of - fuel mileage, road noise, driver fatigue, comfort of seats, performance of HVAC, visibility, crash safety, passenger comfort and entertainment, storage volume, leg room. You know, transporting meat sacks safely, comfortably and cheaply. I personally think it's because vehicle manufacturers have spent the last ~20 years not really improving the core vehicle at all, and instead convincing people that massage seats and car play are actually important. Personally I think they're a distraction from the fact most cars today get the same horrible mileage they did 20 years ago. If someone made a car that was comfortable, easy to drive, had plenty of storage and was super cheap to drive (like 3l/100km / ~70 US MPG) I'd be all over it. And that is what EVs are. So far they're mostly focusing on the core product and have not spent the time or money on the fluff.

Breza 2y ago
I was driving a 2016 Ford Fiesta. Last year I decided it was too small for my family of three. I wanted an EV, and my needs focus on exactly the practical stuff you describe. I don't need a car that I can turn into a robotaxi or whatnot. I was incredibly disappointed by Tesla. I tried all the EVs at the DC auto show and it feels like all the legacy manufacturers have caught up with Tesla at every price point. I ended up buying a Bolt EUV. It's amazing how much comfort and capability I got per dollar spent. Much better than any Tesla.
AlexandrB 3y ago
I find this to be a weird perspective because EVs, and especially Tesla, seem to be focused entirely on fluff. That's one of the reasons they cost so damn much compared to ICE "economy" compacts. Things like "pop out" door handles and steel body panels are fluff. A steering "yoke" is fluff. Side glass that can withstand a steel bearing is fluff. Constant (broken) FSD promises are fluff. Features like a HUD or stalks on the steering wheel would make a driver's experience better and more comfortable. The former they never added, the latter they removed (probably to improve margin).
- 3y ago

thereddaikon 3y ago

Most of those examples aren't the cars being outdated really. They were intentional decisions to either cut costs or two stubbornly do it their own way. A tech refresh wont give you radar because Elon didn't want radar. They could have had it years ago but didn't. Same with carplay and android auto. They wanted their software stack.

dragontamer 3y ago
> They could have had it years ago but didn't. They did have it years ago. That's the insult. Elon is specifically removing features and trying to sell a worse car to people. Here we are nearly a decade later and people are seriously asking "what's wrong with a Tesla??" Well, have yall seen what the Highland Refresh has ___removed___? That's my point, its a worse car now.