Manufacturer Stingieness
Discussion
Mr Tidy said:
Nickbrapp said:
I thought of another one that always crops up this time of year
Cars with always lit dials, not a bad idea in isolation, but so many manufacturers keep them full brightness that the drivers think their lights are on, so drive around on DRLS (with no back lights obviously)
Obviouslt these are a age where auto lights cost more, but when I had a mk6 golf without auto lights, the dials used dim down so you could only see the needles in the dark.
That set-up is a real menace, and should never have been allowed. Cars with always lit dials, not a bad idea in isolation, but so many manufacturers keep them full brightness that the drivers think their lights are on, so drive around on DRLS (with no back lights obviously)
Obviouslt these are a age where auto lights cost more, but when I had a mk6 golf without auto lights, the dials used dim down so you could only see the needles in the dark.
I've had one or two close calls in the past on unlit 3 lane dual-carriageways in heavy rain at night only to find someone bimbling along in the middle lane when the inside lane was empty with no rear lights, but thankfully the 3rd lane was empty!
Thankfully my 2005 and 2006 BMWs didn't have DRLs but did have auto-lights as standard.
Which means that unless my journey starts in darkness and I can see the headlamps shining off the scenery, I often find myself manually turning the lights on because I have no way of knowing if the car has noticed the conditions are dim/wet/misty.
They were the top of the line headlights at the time - steerable HIDs for when you absolutely must pretend that you're driving a Citroen SM/DS. So the lack of a small green lamp seems a bit tight. But then, there's no cupholders in the front either. Probably bad design rather than tightness, but I understand both of these omissions were fixed for the W212 E-class.
legless said:
Cold Fusion said:
The UK specification on all cars and vans supplied in the uk from eu owned companies dropped due to brexit due to eu type approval not being valid in the UK after we left the single market.
I work directly for the UK head office of a major OEM, and I can say with certainty that this is complete b
ks. ks. Another Internet FACT.mikeiow said:
You need the glorious Saab nightlight button!
Turns all interior lights off bar the speedo….& even that cuts out the over-80mph until you approach about 70, IIRC!
Surprised more manufacturers didn’t pick up on that. Seriously useful for night driving.
My C2 VTR has this feature!Turns all interior lights off bar the speedo….& even that cuts out the over-80mph until you approach about 70, IIRC!
Surprised more manufacturers didn’t pick up on that. Seriously useful for night driving.
On the subject of dials, I thought this one was a corker.
Mrs Limpet is running a different hire car every few weeks from her employer at the moment. Latest is a diesel Vauxhall Grandland, to which they apparently fit the same 8,000 RPM with a 6,500 RPM red-line rev counter as the petrol model, but with another red line stuck on at 5,000 RPM.
They haven't even bothered to extend it to meet the original red line. Looks daft.
Mrs Limpet is running a different hire car every few weeks from her employer at the moment. Latest is a diesel Vauxhall Grandland, to which they apparently fit the same 8,000 RPM with a 6,500 RPM red-line rev counter as the petrol model, but with another red line stuck on at 5,000 RPM.
They haven't even bothered to extend it to meet the original red line. Looks daft.
Edited by Limpet on Monday 29th November 18:31
av185 said:
normalbloke said:
Max M4X WW said:
Back in 2011, my parents ordered an Audi A4 company car. It was an S-Line Black Edition so pretty much top of the range (excluding S, RS etc) and had the usual massive wheels, fancy interior, B&O stereo etc and had a list price of around 35k from memory.
When it arrived we realised we (or the dealer, who should have really suggested it IMO) missed a £150 option for interior lighting back which gave you a glovebox light (!!!) and lights in the sun visors.
I thought this sort of thing would be standard on a high spec, 'prestige' car costing £35k+!
But everyone knows S line is for those with champagne tastes and lemonade pockets.When it arrived we realised we (or the dealer, who should have really suggested it IMO) missed a £150 option for interior lighting back which gave you a glovebox light (!!!) and lights in the sun visors.
I thought this sort of thing would be standard on a high spec, 'prestige' car costing £35k+!
And to describe an Audi 'S line' even approaching 'prestige' seems rather pretentious lol.
And all this "stuff like TPM and remote-close windows would add £10k to the price"... don't make me laugh! Just how much extra does a factory-installed TPM cost? Most of this tech is piss cheap to fit in a vehicle to a manufacturer. And when you're doing 20-30k a year in one, you want to be able to spec comfy seats and toys, why not?
Totally agree with OP, in a country where we spend more and more time in awful traffic, commercial vehicles should be available with as many comfort and convenience options as possible.
caymanbill said:
Currently driving a 2013 polo with no remote locking, virtually no other options. I understand car makers have to make thier profits, but surely that is just tight. This is why the industry is/was ripe for disruption from someone like tesla.
Other than the fact someone bought it new so there is a market for it, entry level models are quite often "loss leaders". So they make a loss on each one they sell, price draws someone in to the showroom, but they want alloys, air con or whatever and before they know if they're looking at something for more moneyFast Bug said:
Other than the fact someone bought it new so there is a market for it, entry level models are quite often "loss leaders". So they make a loss on each one they sell, price draws someone in to the showroom, but they want alloys, air con or whatever and before they know if they're looking at something for more money
It's for the same reason that standard-fit alloy wheel designs are often made to look deliberately awful. The better looking ones are no more expensive to manufacture, but are an easy £800 additional margin. Jaguar steve said:
heisthegaffer said:
My old Ma's Fiat Tipo had an electric mirror on the passenger side only, manual on the driver's side.
So have both my Berlingos. That's all you actually need.Court_S said:
Fast Bug said:
Why give something away of people will pay for it? I've never understood why people spends thousands on a brand new car, but won't pay the 50 quid for tailored mats. They'll either go without or drag the beaten to crap one out of their part exchange, it's usually filthy, worn and doesn't fit....
I only they were £50.BMW want £100 plus for the bloody things.
Wills2 said:
I think this is stingy, I noticed that on my new 7 series the passenger wing mirror doesn't have the diming feature, I think that's penny pinching, I'd swear the previous one had it.
I can't speak for 7ers, but every car I've ever had with auto-dimming door mirrors, it's only been the driver's side. The logic has two key points: firstly, if you have faster traffic approaching on the passenger side in the sort of conditions where these mirrors are useful, then you deserve to have your retinas burned. Secondly, you may need the undimmed view of the verge on lanes. Downside is that you lose the benefit when driving on the continent.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff