Is a Car That Just Drives Not Enough Anymore?!
Discussion
Just been reading the thread on the 640d running report and an interesting question popped into my head as another guy who'd just ordered a 6 series spoke about spec / options and I'd never even heard of the items he had specced.
Stolen from that thread is this picture of a dash / interior of a current 6 series:
On first notice I am shocked by just how big the dash / trans tunnel appear to be and how "un car like" it is to me, there are no switches as such and the large screen looks like a small TV and no doubt does all sorts of fancy things. The dials look to be digital.
Compare this to my latest purchase:
The switch gear basically operates lights, wipers and heater and that about your lot. There is a tacho, speedo, fuel and temp gauge as standard. Mods include a radio and 2 extra gauges (oil pressure and voltmeter). Basically, all stuff to do with driving a car. Granted, a heater and modern radio are not to do with driving and someone with a '30's car may argue that my Triumph is nothing but an entertainment system on wheels.
Point being as a classic car enthusiast, I'm marvelled, curious and slightly worried that others on the road are too busy playing with their iCar, rather than actually concentrating on the road ahead!
Stolen from that thread is this picture of a dash / interior of a current 6 series:
On first notice I am shocked by just how big the dash / trans tunnel appear to be and how "un car like" it is to me, there are no switches as such and the large screen looks like a small TV and no doubt does all sorts of fancy things. The dials look to be digital.
Compare this to my latest purchase:
The switch gear basically operates lights, wipers and heater and that about your lot. There is a tacho, speedo, fuel and temp gauge as standard. Mods include a radio and 2 extra gauges (oil pressure and voltmeter). Basically, all stuff to do with driving a car. Granted, a heater and modern radio are not to do with driving and someone with a '30's car may argue that my Triumph is nothing but an entertainment system on wheels.
Point being as a classic car enthusiast, I'm marvelled, curious and slightly worried that others on the road are too busy playing with their iCar, rather than actually concentrating on the road ahead!
Car is so small it is very easy to reach over to the passenger side ... djglover said:
Do you wear a bowler hat for work and piss in a bedpan?
This was not meant as a 'take the piss out of classic cars thread'. The whole point was this is a website that is meant to be for people who love driving. So, I'm intrigued to see whether or not people really want the technology that is put into modern cars and if so, why? 
Negus said:
Technology does improve over the years you know....
But can you have too much of it?Last year I went to Silverstone fo the F1. They had huge trucks which out of the top of them came huge screens. I ended up watching the race on the screens. I could have done that on my sofa at home.
Negus said:
Technology does improve over the years you know....
Hmmm not sure of the word "improve", I am not old (23) and yet I fail to make any sort of connection with modern cars, I have tried a couple (E46 3 litre BMW, 986 Boxster S) and yet I didn't feel them come alive until doing WELL over the speed limits. Yet, I know that the above mentioned aren't THAT fast in terms of modern cars. Yet I can have fun at 30mph in my GT6! V8Triumph said:
chris333 said:
edo said:
Do you have a stick to change channels on the radio?! 
no, the stick just changes the volume of the engine (but not the rate of acceleration, if its anything like my old spitfire )
... ..got to love a nice straight sixJoking aside, V8Triumph makes a good point. It is all to easy to be distracted by some of the "toys".
Having said that, many of the toys actually make less distraction; Head-Up display allows you to have pertinent info (speed, nav instructions, speed limit) "at the end of the bonnet" so you dont have to change your focus to dials "in" the car.
Likewise, buttons (to a point) on the steering wheel can be used without taking your eyes off the road - a big improvement over the small buttons on a a standard DIN radio (on the other side of the car )
The large screen I agree could be a distraction, but can be turned off. I do like having the nav zoomed to high detail on roads I dont know, which gives me a basic knowledge of the type of roads coming up, schools, junctions, twists and turns...
As with everything, used correctly, the technology can "assist". But needs to be used with common sense.
Having said that, many of the toys actually make less distraction; Head-Up display allows you to have pertinent info (speed, nav instructions, speed limit) "at the end of the bonnet" so you dont have to change your focus to dials "in" the car.
Likewise, buttons (to a point) on the steering wheel can be used without taking your eyes off the road - a big improvement over the small buttons on a a standard DIN radio (on the other side of the car
)The large screen I agree could be a distraction, but can be turned off. I do like having the nav zoomed to high detail on roads I dont know, which gives me a basic knowledge of the type of roads coming up, schools, junctions, twists and turns...
As with everything, used correctly, the technology can "assist". But needs to be used with common sense.
V8Triumph said:
Negus said:
Technology does improve over the years you know....
Hmmm not sure of the word "improve", I am not old (23) and yet I fail to make any sort of connection with modern cars, I have tried a couple (E46 3 litre BMW, 986 Boxster S) and yet I didn't feel them come alive until doing WELL over the speed limits. Yet, I know that the above mentioned aren't THAT fast in terms of modern cars. Yet I can have fun at 30mph in my GT6! V8Triumph said:
I am not old (23) and yet I fail to make any sort of connection with modern cars, I have tried a couple (E46 3 litre BMW, 986 Boxster S) and yet I didn't feel them come alive until doing WELL over the speed limits. Yet, I know that the above mentioned aren't THAT fast in terms of modern cars. Yet I can have fun at 30mph in my GT6!
You don't feel the speed in a modern car. 100mph+ in a modern car does not feel like 100mph, comfy, relaxed, quiet etc. Do it in an old car and 100mph feels fast. Well, if you're planning on doing 20k+ miles, mostly for business or in traffic, you're only going to make one choice if those 2 cars are parked in front of you.
I quite like heating that works in the winter and air-con for the summer, too... something the Spitfire isn't going to be great at!
I quite like heating that works in the winter and air-con for the summer, too... something the Spitfire isn't going to be great at!
edo said:
Joking aside, V8Triumph makes a good point. It is all to easy to be distracted by some of the "toys".
Having said that, many of the toys actually make less distraction; Head-Up display allows you to have pertinent info (speed, nav instructions, speed limit) "at the end of the bonnet" so you dont have to change your focus to dials "in" the car.
Likewise, buttons (to a point) on the steering wheel can be used without taking your eyes off the road - a big improvement over the small buttons on a a standard DIN radio (on the other side of the car )
The large screen I agree could be a distraction, but can be turned off. I do like having the nav zoomed to high detail on roads I dont know, which gives me a basic knowledge of the type of roads coming up, schools, junctions, twists and turns...
As with everything, used correctly, the technology can "assist". But needs to be used with common sense.
I'm going to sound like a right old duffer now, lol but what is Head-Up display and how does it work? If I'm reading it right you virtually "see" info on the road? Having said that, many of the toys actually make less distraction; Head-Up display allows you to have pertinent info (speed, nav instructions, speed limit) "at the end of the bonnet" so you dont have to change your focus to dials "in" the car.
Likewise, buttons (to a point) on the steering wheel can be used without taking your eyes off the road - a big improvement over the small buttons on a a standard DIN radio (on the other side of the car
)The large screen I agree could be a distraction, but can be turned off. I do like having the nav zoomed to high detail on roads I dont know, which gives me a basic knowledge of the type of roads coming up, schools, junctions, twists and turns...
As with everything, used correctly, the technology can "assist". But needs to be used with common sense.
Honestly, I didn't know a. what the screen did and b. that you could turn it off. I do use a tom tom sat nav so can see how having one built in to your car could be useful.
The key word is of course, common sense. You need a degree of common sense to drive in the first place, so we should hope people do not get distracted by technology (or radios over the other side of the car!) but unfortunately we do not live in an ideal world. People are always going to get distracted by something, be that technology or simply how a car actually drives.
V8Triumph said:
edo said:
Joking aside, V8Triumph makes a good point. It is all to easy to be distracted by some of the "toys".
Having said that, many of the toys actually make less distraction; Head-Up display allows you to have pertinent info (speed, nav instructions, speed limit) "at the end of the bonnet" so you dont have to change your focus to dials "in" the car.
Likewise, buttons (to a point) on the steering wheel can be used without taking your eyes off the road - a big improvement over the small buttons on a a standard DIN radio (on the other side of the car )
The large screen I agree could be a distraction, but can be turned off. I do like having the nav zoomed to high detail on roads I dont know, which gives me a basic knowledge of the type of roads coming up, schools, junctions, twists and turns...
As with everything, used correctly, the technology can "assist". But needs to be used with common sense.
I'm going to sound like a right old duffer now, lol but what is Head-Up display and how does it work? If I'm reading it right you virtually "see" info on the road? Having said that, many of the toys actually make less distraction; Head-Up display allows you to have pertinent info (speed, nav instructions, speed limit) "at the end of the bonnet" so you dont have to change your focus to dials "in" the car.
Likewise, buttons (to a point) on the steering wheel can be used without taking your eyes off the road - a big improvement over the small buttons on a a standard DIN radio (on the other side of the car
)The large screen I agree could be a distraction, but can be turned off. I do like having the nav zoomed to high detail on roads I dont know, which gives me a basic knowledge of the type of roads coming up, schools, junctions, twists and turns...
As with everything, used correctly, the technology can "assist". But needs to be used with common sense.
Honestly, I didn't know a. what the screen did and b. that you could turn it off. I do use a tom tom sat nav so can see how having one built in to your car could be useful.
The key word is of course, common sense. You need a degree of common sense to drive in the first place, so we should hope people do not get distracted by technology (or radios over the other side of the car!) but unfortunately we do not live in an ideal world. People are always going to get distracted by something, be that technology or simply how a car actually drives.
Sorry for the yank, but you get the idea. Projected onto the windscreen.
If you want to be even more bamboozled by tech; If I get lost, I hit a button and a nice lady or gentleman at BMW talk through the car audio, know where I am and send an address I am looking for straight into the sat-nav
They can also unlock the car for me, should I get locked out (subject to security questions of course). In the event of an accident, the car notifies the emergency services of the accident, the number of occupants, and the severity of the crash (air bags deployed etc).Cotty said:
V8Triumph said:
I am not old (23) and yet I fail to make any sort of connection with modern cars, I have tried a couple (E46 3 litre BMW, 986 Boxster S) and yet I didn't feel them come alive until doing WELL over the speed limits. Yet, I know that the above mentioned aren't THAT fast in terms of modern cars. Yet I can have fun at 30mph in my GT6!
You don't feel the speed in a modern car. 100mph+ in a modern car does not feel like 100mph, comfy, relaxed, quiet etc. Do it in an old car and 100mph feels fast. BTW a BGT V8 will top out at over 130mph and reaches 100 easily. However, 100 in what is basically a B with a big engine feels quick! 
Even in my old square dash early 80's Porsche 944, 100mph was not much of an occasion and the car encouraged to be pushed to well over the speed limit! So, you can see the problem combine effortless performance with mind boggling technology and Mr./ Mrs. Numpty (who is not a PH'er) has easily got overwhelmed.
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