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 Because
we can do it is no doubt the answer to a question I’m more frequently mulling
over. My more recently rumination occurred as I sat in the back of a new
GS300 Lexus listening to the salesman explain the car’s entire list of
feature’s to its new owner (a decidedly low tech person). That question
is “just how much technology do we really need to be incorporated into
our cars?”
The list of features for this new Lexus is very long, and understanding how everything works takes a massive instruction manual, a couple of short cut guides, and an hour or so of explanation from the salesman delivering the car. Having sat through the verbal presentation, my conclusion is that most of the detailed features will seldom be used, and add very little to the overall drivability of the car. The first item explained was the automatic rain-sensing windshield wiper. This feature eliminates the need for the driving to turn on the wipers, or select a different speed for the wipers. The car’s sensor’s detect rain and automatically vary the wiper speed depending on the intensity of the moisture hitting the windshield. No longer will drivers have to flip a lever one click or three, or play with the speed control, nor will we have to remember how to turn on the wipers! Next on the list was an explanation of the built in combination navigation system, entertainment system, and cellular phone service. Redundancy was the watchword in these areas. Drivers have their choice of buttons on the center console, controls on the steering wheel, voice activation, or if you’re really talented the ability to manage everything using the touch screen display. When the salesman got to the point where he explained how to use the video display to view DVDs, I started to chuckle. Seems you can only watch a DVD when the car is stopped, gear shift in park. I mulled over that fact a bit, wondering how many people will choose to sit in their car to watch a movie on a pretty small screen! I understand the value of DVDs in back seat areas to keep passengers entertained, but in the front seat with the car parked with the ignition on? Maybe this is the modern day replacement for the Drive-In Theatre, which had other important aspects to consider. The explanations continued moving on to the keyless entry system that eliminates the need to press a button on a remote key fob. That’ll save a lot of wear and tear on pants pockets, since you’ll no longer need to reach in to find your keys. Then outside mirror functionality was reviewed. They’ll fold in automatically or at the punch of a button, or down if you need to see the curb better when you’re parallel parking (something I maybe do once or twice a year!). I suppose the fold in mirrors are a good idea if you live in downtown Boston, where this winter I noted a number of broken mirrors dangling from the sides of cars. We moved on then to discuss headlights that track with the movement of the steering wheel, headlight washers, the rear view bumper camera, the automatically or manually adjustable suspension (which automatically switches from comfort to sport when it senses you might have made an incorrect choice based on how you’re driving!). I waited patiently as the explanations continued – I was on the scene to hard wire the radar detector into the car after the salesman departed. Heated seats where explained, as were the buttons associated with programming the seats to a particular driver’s preference. When the discussion shifted to Bluetooth technology for the phone, and which providers offered it, I knew we were moving into uncharted territory for a non-technical person. The car came with XM radio technology, which also required an explanation on how to select satellite as an option for the radio, then what was required to setup an account and activate that feature. Can’t wait to hear how that goes! Lexus has their version of a TipTronic transmission, so that needed to be explained. If that feature is used more than once or twice over the next three years, I’ll be more than a little surprised. Hmm, let’s decide how we want to drive to work today up Route 128, manually shift gears getting on the on-ramp or let the car decide what gear to use! This car will not be lapping any race tracks, or be driven hard up some twisty road, so I suspect the automatic option will get 99.999% of the usage. But when you need it you want that feature! I could go on, there are still more features built into this Lexus, but you get the idea. Most of the technology built into this car will seldom if ever be used. I know that from my own experience with the automatic sun screen feature in my Audi A6, which I’ve only used to demonstrate to others that the car has that feature. I’ve also not yet used the tape player (who still plays tapes in their car?), or put more than one CD in the six disc CD player. I’ve got several information display options, but I only ever use the setting the car came with. I’ll open my sunroof maybe four or five days a year, opening it reduces the effectiveness of the automatic climate control system. I like the ability to maintain 70 degrees on my side of the car all the time! So what would cars really cost if they only contained features that people actually used on a regular basis, and how much easier would they be to maintain? Soon we’ll have built in tire pressure monitors on all cars, not just upper market cars. Then we’ll surrender full control of the throttle as collision avoidance systems take greater control over car spacing. Some day in the future I’ll no doubt crawl into my car, speak the word office, and the car’s computer working with a global navigation satellite will decide the optimum route to take for that day, and will work with the car’s mechanicals to get me to my assigned parking space while I watch a movie on the built in DVD player. When that day comes, I think I’ll stay home! |
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