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It's great to see this change in direction. I had the opportunity to drive a Tesla recently, and I was pretty blown away by how hostile the ux was. Even the in

It's great to see this change in direction. I had the opportunity to drive a Tesla recently, and I was pretty blown away by how hostile the ux was. Even the indicator stalk has no tactile feedback leading to me indicating left then right multiple times after completing a simple lane change (as I pushed it slightly too far for the lane change mode so it didn't shut off automatically). Don't get me started on things like the AC and window wipers being behind the touchscreen, it's like they designed it to require a copilot. It's driver aid features also get easily tricked leading to random steering corrections and slamming on the brakes. I'd love to know if anyone's analyzed the rate of rear end collisions compared to older/simpler cars, as I suspect it could be statistically higher. It was also fairly amusing parking it in the garage - it seemed to mistake our dog for a motorbike and the other vehicle as a truck with the 3 of us colliding, glad it didn't try and automatically phone in the "collisions"

lotsofpulp 2y ago
I drive a Model Y almost every day, and I don’t feel inconvenienced by any of the digital controls, except the lack of volume knob if you have a passenger and they want to control the volume. I simply don’t need to adjust anything except music. And lack of CarPlay, especially due to how convenient SharePlay is with other car passengers. Autopilot has also been sufficiently good for the price at which the car is sold at. At $40k, I did not find a competitor with a better version of lane assist.
- porphyra 2y ago
  Honestly, it seems like people who clamor for physical controls are a vocal minority --- Teslas sell very well [0] and owner satisfaction is very high [1] despite the loud complaints from non-Tesla drivers online. It seems most people who actually drive Teslas are happy with them, and even controversial things like steering buttons take 5 minutes to get used to. [0] https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-the-worlds-best-selling-cars-from-2024/ https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-the-worlds-best-sell... [1] https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/car-reliability-owner-satisfaction/most-and-least-liked-car-brands-a1291429338/ https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/car-reliability-owner-s...
  - BoredPositron 2y ago
    Citation needed.
  - nixass 2y ago
    > Teslas sell very well Someone's been sleeping for last 12 months
  - redeux 2y ago
    Maybe it’s part of the reason that Teslas are involved in more fatal accidents than any other car manufacturer. https://www.roadandtrack.com/news/a62919131/tesla-has-highest-fatal-accident-rate-of-all-auto-brands-study/ https://www.roadandtrack.com/news/a62919131/tesla-has-highes...
    - porphyra 2y ago
      That study was already debunked. They had underestimated the number of miles traveled by a large margin. https://www.reddit.com/r/electricvehicles/comments/1gyznda/tesla_model_y_fatality_rates_exaggerated_in/ https://www.reddit.com/r/electricvehicles/comments/1gyznda/t...
      - redeux 2y ago
        The study was debunked by a Tesla exec posting on X and reposted on Reddit. Excuse me if I view that with a very healthy amount of skepticism.
        concordDance 2y ago
        I'd happily wager $100 that in a couple of years time we'll have the data to conclude that Model Ys were not 3x more lethally dangerous than average. Would you take that bet?
        porphyra 2y ago
        The Tesla exec has access to the actual figure for miles traveled and why should he lie about something like that? And just from visual inspection, it is evident that there are numerous surprises with the iSeeCars study that are difficult to explain. For example, why is there such a huge difference between Model 3 and Y fatality rates even though the cars are similar in most respects? Another thing to note is that the number of fatalities is only a handful, often under 10 in a year. The standard deviation of the Poisson distribution would already give error bars of 30% at least, making direct comparisons between models meaningless. Finally, if you read the accident reports, most of the fatalities are head on collisions with drunk drivers and not wearing seatbelts. Having physical controls for hvac or whatever has absolutely nothing to do with it.
- tapoxi 2y ago
  I have an ID4 around that price, it keeps the lane and has a lane change assist. Is there any special sauce to autopilot?
  - nixass 2y ago
    [flagged]
    - lotsofpulp 2y ago
      I will be the first to say Elon is a Nazi and shouldn’t be in a leadership position. But it’s crazy to claim Model 3 and Y are not competitively priced products that are usable for many, many people. And I will also say I would not currently pay extra for a high end Tesla. But on the cheap end, and with the far superior buying experience without a stealership in the middle, it is welcome competition to the incumbent automakers.
      - DecentShoes 2y ago
        What's your evidence that he's a nazi? Waving at a crowd doesn't count btw.
        dangus 2y ago
        Oh it’s waving? You should upload a video of yourself doing it. Do it right now if it’s not a Nazi salute. I’ll wait for your upload.
  - lotsofpulp 2y ago
    ID4 was at least $10k more expensive in Oct 2024, with worse driving performance.
    - korisnik 2y ago
      ID4's price seems to be $42k in the US? How much is the Model Y? Or did ID4's price decrease to $42k recently?
- whoitwas 2y ago
  Windshield wipers, turn signal, heat? I feel like you're being dishonest or just accustomed to the hostility.
  - lotsofpulp 2y ago
    Wipers and turn signals are physical controls, I don’t find them much different than any other car. I haven’t had to change heat/cool settings, I have it set to 70F and I haven’t had to adjust it.
    - whoitwas 2y ago
      See. I'm a hacker. I need to control things. I bought the car and want access to it.
      - dzhiurgis 2y ago
        There’s an API and even third party buttons. I don’t think there’s any other modern car getting so much scrutiny. Ironically it is making it so much better than competitors they basically have no chance to catch up.
        whoitwas 2y ago
        I think you're describing Tesla, I have no idea lacking context. You couldn't pay me to drive Tesla at this point.
  - yurishimo 2y ago
    If they live in SoCal, 2/3 you listed might not be relevant. Paired with the battery degradation in cold climates… I also don’t see much reason to buy a Tesla in 2025. There are better quality interiors for less money. The only thing Tesla has going for them is acceleration (if you pay!) and that is only relevant on a racetrack to push the car to it’s limits. Any normal EV is plenty quick for daily driving.
    - 2y ago
- snotrockets 2y ago
  Hyundai and Kias have good ADAS, and can be had for less then a Tesla.
  - nunez 2y ago
    Nowhere near as good.
    - snotrockets 2y ago
      You can get better in a Mercedes, but it ain't cheap. Tesla ADAS isn't all that it made out to be: it's mostly very aggressive, which imo makes it more dangerous, especially to others. No wonder Tesla owners took the "most dangerous drivers" crown from Bimmer owners.
porphyra 2y ago
Wipers have physical controls on the wheel/stalk. You never need to touch the AC controls when driving thanks to auto mode. In the worst case you can use voice control, which you can again trigger from a physical control. The 3D visualization is completely separate from the code that actually runs FSD, auto park, and other driver assist features, so just because it shows something wonky like a motorbike doesn't mean that it's what the car "thinks" it is.
- lobsterthief 2y ago
  On my Subaru the “full auto” HVAC mode automatically switches it to outside air. So I never use it, because I inhale more exhaust and pollen. Pretty bad design for an otherwise well-designed car.
- ForTheKidz 2y ago
  For those of us who don't own a tesla, what on earth is "auto mode"?
  - porphyra 2y ago
    You set the temperature and the hvac adjusts the fan speed and turns on the air conditioner or heating as needed. Honestly, after setting my car to my preferred temperature months ago, I never had to touch the hvac ever since. No idea why people keep wanting to fiddle with theirs.
    - cpursley 2y ago
      Ah, so just as terrible as auto mode home thermostats. I miss the days of simple rotary dials where you twist to the temp you want right now then forget.
      - cwalv 2y ago
        Setting the desired temp is 'auto mode'
    - 2y ago
al_borland 2y ago
This is one of the main reasons I don't think I'd buy a Tesla. Even the car I have now, I bought at the end of a model year, before a major redesign, because a lot of tactile controls were going away. I really dislike using a touch screen while driving, as it makes me take my eyes off the road more than I'd like. I also just like how physical controls feel and make more sense. I was gifted the book, The Design of Everyday Things by Donald Norman, back in college and it really stuck with me how unintuitive many physical controls are in cars, as well as poorly designed doors on/in buildings (Norman doors as they are often called, in honor of the book).
- readthenotes1 2y ago
  That book is incredible... https://youtu.be/QEE_-C0Nwjw?si=wZsabQ_0cqGlxORL https://youtu.be/QEE_-C0Nwjw?si=wZsabQ_0cqGlxORL
- natch 2y ago
  fyi, it’s a myth that you must use the screen to control things.
- sejje 2y ago
  I haven't read it yet, but I see this book recommended all the time on here, so I snatched it at a thrift store the other day for $0.25.
- _huayra_ 2y ago
  I remember reading that book when it clicked how frustrating the doors at my grad school uni could be: they had what is clearly a "pull" handle on both sides, but it only opened one way. They just added signs that said "Poussez" (push in French) on the push side because clearly no one thought about the design before installing it! It's unbelievable in the decades since that building my office was in was built, no one thought "hey let's put plates on this side so you CAN'T pull".
  - andrepd 2y ago
    I've heard it phrased like this: your door has an UX so bad that it needs an instruction manual (even if 1 word long).
anon373839 2y ago
Teslas are 100% about cost-cutting. Flimsy, cheap, uncomfortable - but they do make those goofy spaceship noises! The lack of normal knobs, buttons, and stalks is just more of the cost-cutting. It baffles me that they were ever considered “luxury” cars except as to price.
- api 2y ago
  Tesla's claim to fame was being the longest range fastest EVs. They were pioneers in this era. Then they started investing in weird niche vehicles like the Cybertruck and dubious AI stuff instead of improving their regular cars, and the rest of the auto industry caught up with EVs. Not surprisingly, companies that have been making cars forever are pretty good at making cars. Cars have always been a very competitive market, so you didn't have the kind of absolute stagnation you see in some other industries. Tesla just gave them a kick in the butt to make electric cars.
  - anon373839 2y ago
    > Tesla's claim to fame was being the longest range fastest EVs That's true, and they are insanely fast. But I will never forget when the Model S was released and was competing against flagships like the 7 series and S class. When I tried one out, my overwhelming first impression was: this is it? And that was 2012. And it's still basically the same car!
    - api 2y ago
      I've heard it described as the most advanced drive train in the world with the body of a 1990s Kia on top.
      - jjav 2y ago
        But a 1990s Kia had proper physical controls for everything.
      - genewitch 2y ago
        So kind of like the Mitsubishi Evo X? The frame and body and interior was garbage. That drive train though.
dzhiurgis 2y ago
[flagged]
- mmcclure 2y ago
  > CarPlay maps are garbage. What? The benefit of CarPlay is that I can use my map app of choice. Apple Maps, Google Maps, Waze, whatever. In 5 years of daily driving I rarely used Tesla’s maps and opted for my phone connected via Bluetooth.
  - dzhiurgis 2y ago
    Any map without easy pinch and zoom is garbage. IDK perhaps you haven't used Tesla, but carplay just is incredibly inferior. I feel like I'm arguing about iPhone vs Nokia/Sybian in 2008.
    - deleted 2y ago
      [deleted]
    - genewitch 2y ago
      I have a 2023 Subaru and a 2013 Lexus. The Lexus has built-in mapping in GPS. The Subaru does not. It uses CarPlay or Android Auto. The difference between changing to a different input source or changing a track or adjusting the audio settings between the two is night and day. I don't have to have my phone plugged into a USB port, which is flaky. The Lexus automatically goes back to the map after a few seconds. I don't understand the appeal of having your car screen be a dumb terminal for your phone. Maybe it's better if you use Spotify or Apple Music or something, I don't know.
      - lotsofpulp 2y ago
        Same UI across all cars and one less thing of business creating an avenue / exit for your data. I get into a rental car, I connect my iPhone and use CarPlay, I don’t have to worry about leaving my contacts data behind or anything else, and I am already familiar with the UX. That is why Tesla and Rivian and GM don’t offer CarPlay, even though it is free and easy to implement. They don’t want people to be able to easily switch cars, they don’t want to just be a fungible appliance. But as a consumer, I do want them to be a fungible appliance.
blackeyeblitzar 2y ago
> It's driver aid features also get easily tricked leading to random steering corrections and slamming on the brakes. I have the opposite experience. My friends Teslas blow me away with their drivers assistance stuff. But the German and Japanese cars I’ve driven - absolute garbage, bordering on deadly. Random braking, not braking even with traffic stopped in front, aggressive collision prevention in places like parking lots, suddenly losing recognition of lanes, and other things. I believe these companies outsource the high tech stuff - not sure to whom - but I suspect they aren’t a tech company.
seb1204 2y ago
I don't know what you are on about but I put it down to being unfamiliar with the car. I've driven a Tesla model 3 for 3 years and the context sensitive buttons in the steering wheel are too notch. Want to change the windscreen wiper speed, press button on the left lever, roll the wheel. I have driven Hyundai, BYD, Nissan, Toyota and Xpeng cars recently, all new models and all have buttons and dials overload all dialled to the 'auto' setting. What's the point. I'm all for sensible buttons but they need to work within the car over all UI. A Toyota Corolla has 10! Buttons in each side of the steering wheel. I need to take my eyes of the road to get the right one. The one thing that I think should be improved in all cars is that I want to use the AC auto settings but still have the air come out of the bottom vents and not into my face only.
- rsync 2y ago
  Good design doesn’t need explanations or instructions. A well designed user interface for an automobile should be discoverable and intuitive for anyone that’s driven a car previously.
  - SlightlyLeftPad 2y ago
    I think I agree although, great design also pushes things forward in a thoughtful and intuitive way.
  - somenameforme 2y ago
    Let's say I don't agree (and indeed I don't) - why? My argument would be that 'tools' should be designed solely with the purpose of enabling them to work in the most effective way possible. That is often not immediately intuitive at all. Go open up e.g. Unreal Engine and you're going to struggle to do literally anything. Maybe after an hour you might figure out how to put a square on the map. The same is true of something like Maya or any other really powerful tool. Obviously things should not be unnecessarily hostile, but it often simply turns out that there are 'revolutionary' ways to do things that weren't really done in the past, and so somebody coming from that past will often find themselves out of their domain, at least for a few moments until they learn and/or have things explained.
dhosek 2y ago
I got a ride on Lyft a few weeks ago where the driver had a Tesla and I had a hell of a time just figuring out how to open the door to get in.
Yhippa 2y ago
Is it just me, or is it really annoying to have to move your eyes down and to the right to see your speed? I assume people just get used to it over time.
- 01HNNWZ0MV43FF 2y ago
  I'd really dig a heads-up laser display in cars. I should always feel like I'm piloting a fighter jet, even the artificial horizon and ammo count should be in there
cafeinux 2y ago
Am I the only one abashed by the fact that the reverse engine trigger is a slider on the touch screen? That's probably the last control I would have thought about putting on the touch screen.
- vanviegen 2y ago
  It's a control you only need when the car is turned on and standing still. The rest of the time it's just taking up space/material/attention. Sounds pretty suitable for a touch screen to me, though I'd probably be mystified for some time stepping into an unfamiliar car that does this.
  - cafeinux 2y ago
    I can count on more than one hand the times where I had to reverse quickly because my current position was putting myself or others at risk, either because of my fault or because of careless drivers fault. All in all, it's a control that helps you maneuver a 2 tons vehicle, like your wheel, your gas pedal and your brake pedal. I personally think this kind of control should never depend on a flimsy touchscreen that can break or bug more easily than a mechanical control (although I agree it's less important that the wheel and pedals).
ChrisMarshallNY 2y ago
This recalls this HN thread, from a couple of years ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30140984 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30140984

lotsofpulp 2y ago

I drive a Model Y almost every day, and I don’t feel inconvenienced by any of the digital controls, except the lack of volume knob if you have a passenger and they want to control the volume. I simply don’t need to adjust anything except music. And lack of CarPlay, especially due to how convenient SharePlay is with other car passengers. Autopilot has also been sufficiently good for the price at which the car is sold at. At $40k, I did not find a competitor with a better version of lane assist.

porphyra 2y ago
Honestly, it seems like people who clamor for physical controls are a vocal minority --- Teslas sell very well [0] and owner satisfaction is very high [1] despite the loud complaints from non-Tesla drivers online. It seems most people who actually drive Teslas are happy with them, and even controversial things like steering buttons take 5 minutes to get used to. [0] https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-the-worlds-best-selling-cars-from-2024/ https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-the-worlds-best-sell... [1] https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/car-reliability-owner-satisfaction/most-and-least-liked-car-brands-a1291429338/ https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/car-reliability-owner-s...
- BoredPositron 2y ago
  Citation needed.
- nixass 2y ago
  > Teslas sell very well Someone's been sleeping for last 12 months
- redeux 2y ago
  Maybe it’s part of the reason that Teslas are involved in more fatal accidents than any other car manufacturer. https://www.roadandtrack.com/news/a62919131/tesla-has-highest-fatal-accident-rate-of-all-auto-brands-study/ https://www.roadandtrack.com/news/a62919131/tesla-has-highes...
  - porphyra 2y ago
    That study was already debunked. They had underestimated the number of miles traveled by a large margin. https://www.reddit.com/r/electricvehicles/comments/1gyznda/tesla_model_y_fatality_rates_exaggerated_in/ https://www.reddit.com/r/electricvehicles/comments/1gyznda/t...
    - redeux 2y ago
      The study was debunked by a Tesla exec posting on X and reposted on Reddit. Excuse me if I view that with a very healthy amount of skepticism.
      - concordDance 2y ago
        I'd happily wager $100 that in a couple of years time we'll have the data to conclude that Model Ys were not 3x more lethally dangerous than average. Would you take that bet?
      - porphyra 2y ago
        The Tesla exec has access to the actual figure for miles traveled and why should he lie about something like that? And just from visual inspection, it is evident that there are numerous surprises with the iSeeCars study that are difficult to explain. For example, why is there such a huge difference between Model 3 and Y fatality rates even though the cars are similar in most respects? Another thing to note is that the number of fatalities is only a handful, often under 10 in a year. The standard deviation of the Poisson distribution would already give error bars of 30% at least, making direct comparisons between models meaningless. Finally, if you read the accident reports, most of the fatalities are head on collisions with drunk drivers and not wearing seatbelts. Having physical controls for hvac or whatever has absolutely nothing to do with it.
tapoxi 2y ago
I have an ID4 around that price, it keeps the lane and has a lane change assist. Is there any special sauce to autopilot?
- nixass 2y ago
  [flagged]
  - lotsofpulp 2y ago
    I will be the first to say Elon is a Nazi and shouldn’t be in a leadership position. But it’s crazy to claim Model 3 and Y are not competitively priced products that are usable for many, many people. And I will also say I would not currently pay extra for a high end Tesla. But on the cheap end, and with the far superior buying experience without a stealership in the middle, it is welcome competition to the incumbent automakers.
    - DecentShoes 2y ago
      What's your evidence that he's a nazi? Waving at a crowd doesn't count btw.
      - dangus 2y ago
        Oh it’s waving? You should upload a video of yourself doing it. Do it right now if it’s not a Nazi salute. I’ll wait for your upload.
- lotsofpulp 2y ago
  ID4 was at least $10k more expensive in Oct 2024, with worse driving performance.
  - korisnik 2y ago
    ID4's price seems to be $42k in the US? How much is the Model Y? Or did ID4's price decrease to $42k recently?
whoitwas 2y ago
Windshield wipers, turn signal, heat? I feel like you're being dishonest or just accustomed to the hostility.
- lotsofpulp 2y ago
  Wipers and turn signals are physical controls, I don’t find them much different than any other car. I haven’t had to change heat/cool settings, I have it set to 70F and I haven’t had to adjust it.
  - whoitwas 2y ago
    See. I'm a hacker. I need to control things. I bought the car and want access to it.
    - dzhiurgis 2y ago
      There’s an API and even third party buttons. I don’t think there’s any other modern car getting so much scrutiny. Ironically it is making it so much better than competitors they basically have no chance to catch up.
      - whoitwas 2y ago
        I think you're describing Tesla, I have no idea lacking context. You couldn't pay me to drive Tesla at this point.
- yurishimo 2y ago
  If they live in SoCal, 2/3 you listed might not be relevant. Paired with the battery degradation in cold climates… I also don’t see much reason to buy a Tesla in 2025. There are better quality interiors for less money. The only thing Tesla has going for them is acceleration (if you pay!) and that is only relevant on a racetrack to push the car to it’s limits. Any normal EV is plenty quick for daily driving.
  - 2y ago
snotrockets 2y ago
Hyundai and Kias have good ADAS, and can be had for less then a Tesla.
- nunez 2y ago
  Nowhere near as good.
  - snotrockets 2y ago
    You can get better in a Mercedes, but it ain't cheap. Tesla ADAS isn't all that it made out to be: it's mostly very aggressive, which imo makes it more dangerous, especially to others. No wonder Tesla owners took the "most dangerous drivers" crown from Bimmer owners.

porphyra 2y ago

Wipers have physical controls on the wheel/stalk. You never need to touch the AC controls when driving thanks to auto mode. In the worst case you can use voice control, which you can again trigger from a physical control. The 3D visualization is completely separate from the code that actually runs FSD, auto park, and other driver assist features, so just because it shows something wonky like a motorbike doesn't mean that it's what the car "thinks" it is.

lobsterthief 2y ago
On my Subaru the “full auto” HVAC mode automatically switches it to outside air. So I never use it, because I inhale more exhaust and pollen. Pretty bad design for an otherwise well-designed car.
ForTheKidz 2y ago
For those of us who don't own a tesla, what on earth is "auto mode"?
- porphyra 2y ago
  You set the temperature and the hvac adjusts the fan speed and turns on the air conditioner or heating as needed. Honestly, after setting my car to my preferred temperature months ago, I never had to touch the hvac ever since. No idea why people keep wanting to fiddle with theirs.
  - cpursley 2y ago
    Ah, so just as terrible as auto mode home thermostats. I miss the days of simple rotary dials where you twist to the temp you want right now then forget.
    - cwalv 2y ago
      Setting the desired temp is 'auto mode'
  - 2y ago

al_borland 2y ago

This is one of the main reasons I don't think I'd buy a Tesla. Even the car I have now, I bought at the end of a model year, before a major redesign, because a lot of tactile controls were going away. I really dislike using a touch screen while driving, as it makes me take my eyes off the road more than I'd like. I also just like how physical controls feel and make more sense. I was gifted the book, The Design of Everyday Things by Donald Norman, back in college and it really stuck with me how unintuitive many physical controls are in cars, as well as poorly designed doors on/in buildings (Norman doors as they are often called, in honor of the book).

readthenotes1 2y ago
That book is incredible... https://youtu.be/QEE_-C0Nwjw?si=wZsabQ_0cqGlxORL https://youtu.be/QEE_-C0Nwjw?si=wZsabQ_0cqGlxORL
natch 2y ago
fyi, it’s a myth that you must use the screen to control things.
sejje 2y ago
I haven't read it yet, but I see this book recommended all the time on here, so I snatched it at a thrift store the other day for $0.25.
_huayra_ 2y ago
I remember reading that book when it clicked how frustrating the doors at my grad school uni could be: they had what is clearly a "pull" handle on both sides, but it only opened one way. They just added signs that said "Poussez" (push in French) on the push side because clearly no one thought about the design before installing it! It's unbelievable in the decades since that building my office was in was built, no one thought "hey let's put plates on this side so you CAN'T pull".
- andrepd 2y ago
  I've heard it phrased like this: your door has an UX so bad that it needs an instruction manual (even if 1 word long).

anon373839 2y ago

Teslas are 100% about cost-cutting. Flimsy, cheap, uncomfortable - but they do make those goofy spaceship noises! The lack of normal knobs, buttons, and stalks is just more of the cost-cutting. It baffles me that they were ever considered “luxury” cars except as to price.

api 2y ago
Tesla's claim to fame was being the longest range fastest EVs. They were pioneers in this era. Then they started investing in weird niche vehicles like the Cybertruck and dubious AI stuff instead of improving their regular cars, and the rest of the auto industry caught up with EVs. Not surprisingly, companies that have been making cars forever are pretty good at making cars. Cars have always been a very competitive market, so you didn't have the kind of absolute stagnation you see in some other industries. Tesla just gave them a kick in the butt to make electric cars.
- anon373839 2y ago
  > Tesla's claim to fame was being the longest range fastest EVs That's true, and they are insanely fast. But I will never forget when the Model S was released and was competing against flagships like the 7 series and S class. When I tried one out, my overwhelming first impression was: this is it? And that was 2012. And it's still basically the same car!
  - api 2y ago
    I've heard it described as the most advanced drive train in the world with the body of a 1990s Kia on top.
    - jjav 2y ago
      But a 1990s Kia had proper physical controls for everything.
    - genewitch 2y ago
      So kind of like the Mitsubishi Evo X? The frame and body and interior was garbage. That drive train though.

dzhiurgis 2y ago

[flagged]

mmcclure 2y ago
> CarPlay maps are garbage. What? The benefit of CarPlay is that I can use my map app of choice. Apple Maps, Google Maps, Waze, whatever. In 5 years of daily driving I rarely used Tesla’s maps and opted for my phone connected via Bluetooth.
- dzhiurgis 2y ago
  Any map without easy pinch and zoom is garbage. IDK perhaps you haven't used Tesla, but carplay just is incredibly inferior. I feel like I'm arguing about iPhone vs Nokia/Sybian in 2008.
  - deleted 2y ago
    [deleted]
  - genewitch 2y ago
    I have a 2023 Subaru and a 2013 Lexus. The Lexus has built-in mapping in GPS. The Subaru does not. It uses CarPlay or Android Auto. The difference between changing to a different input source or changing a track or adjusting the audio settings between the two is night and day. I don't have to have my phone plugged into a USB port, which is flaky. The Lexus automatically goes back to the map after a few seconds. I don't understand the appeal of having your car screen be a dumb terminal for your phone. Maybe it's better if you use Spotify or Apple Music or something, I don't know.
    - lotsofpulp 2y ago
      Same UI across all cars and one less thing of business creating an avenue / exit for your data. I get into a rental car, I connect my iPhone and use CarPlay, I don’t have to worry about leaving my contacts data behind or anything else, and I am already familiar with the UX. That is why Tesla and Rivian and GM don’t offer CarPlay, even though it is free and easy to implement. They don’t want people to be able to easily switch cars, they don’t want to just be a fungible appliance. But as a consumer, I do want them to be a fungible appliance.

blackeyeblitzar 2y ago

> It's driver aid features also get easily tricked leading to random steering corrections and slamming on the brakes. I have the opposite experience. My friends Teslas blow me away with their drivers assistance stuff. But the German and Japanese cars I’ve driven - absolute garbage, bordering on deadly. Random braking, not braking even with traffic stopped in front, aggressive collision prevention in places like parking lots, suddenly losing recognition of lanes, and other things. I believe these companies outsource the high tech stuff - not sure to whom - but I suspect they aren’t a tech company.

seb1204 2y ago

I don't know what you are on about but I put it down to being unfamiliar with the car. I've driven a Tesla model 3 for 3 years and the context sensitive buttons in the steering wheel are too notch. Want to change the windscreen wiper speed, press button on the left lever, roll the wheel. I have driven Hyundai, BYD, Nissan, Toyota and Xpeng cars recently, all new models and all have buttons and dials overload all dialled to the 'auto' setting. What's the point. I'm all for sensible buttons but they need to work within the car over all UI. A Toyota Corolla has 10! Buttons in each side of the steering wheel. I need to take my eyes of the road to get the right one. The one thing that I think should be improved in all cars is that I want to use the AC auto settings but still have the air come out of the bottom vents and not into my face only.

rsync 2y ago
Good design doesn’t need explanations or instructions. A well designed user interface for an automobile should be discoverable and intuitive for anyone that’s driven a car previously.
- SlightlyLeftPad 2y ago
  I think I agree although, great design also pushes things forward in a thoughtful and intuitive way.
- somenameforme 2y ago
  Let's say I don't agree (and indeed I don't) - why? My argument would be that 'tools' should be designed solely with the purpose of enabling them to work in the most effective way possible. That is often not immediately intuitive at all. Go open up e.g. Unreal Engine and you're going to struggle to do literally anything. Maybe after an hour you might figure out how to put a square on the map. The same is true of something like Maya or any other really powerful tool. Obviously things should not be unnecessarily hostile, but it often simply turns out that there are 'revolutionary' ways to do things that weren't really done in the past, and so somebody coming from that past will often find themselves out of their domain, at least for a few moments until they learn and/or have things explained.

dhosek 2y ago

I got a ride on Lyft a few weeks ago where the driver had a Tesla and I had a hell of a time just figuring out how to open the door to get in.

Yhippa 2y ago

Is it just me, or is it really annoying to have to move your eyes down and to the right to see your speed? I assume people just get used to it over time.

01HNNWZ0MV43FF 2y ago
I'd really dig a heads-up laser display in cars. I should always feel like I'm piloting a fighter jet, even the artificial horizon and ammo count should be in there

cafeinux 2y ago

Am I the only one abashed by the fact that the reverse engine trigger is a slider on the touch screen? That's probably the last control I would have thought about putting on the touch screen.

vanviegen 2y ago
It's a control you only need when the car is turned on and standing still. The rest of the time it's just taking up space/material/attention. Sounds pretty suitable for a touch screen to me, though I'd probably be mystified for some time stepping into an unfamiliar car that does this.
- cafeinux 2y ago
  I can count on more than one hand the times where I had to reverse quickly because my current position was putting myself or others at risk, either because of my fault or because of careless drivers fault. All in all, it's a control that helps you maneuver a 2 tons vehicle, like your wheel, your gas pedal and your brake pedal. I personally think this kind of control should never depend on a flimsy touchscreen that can break or bug more easily than a mechanical control (although I agree it's less important that the wheel and pedals).

ChrisMarshallNY 2y ago

This recalls this HN thread, from a couple of years ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30140984 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30140984