Motorists over 50 want Hood ornaments, Wooden steering wheels and Ignition keys according to Survey

[1912Staver]

So it's not just me with new vehicle headlight issues ! I drive a small car, many in my area have tall vehicles, 4 x 4's , crossdressers,, SUV's etc. And I drive quite a bit at night. The last couple of years the glare issue has become ...glaring.  Glare from other vehicle lights is often so bad that it outshines their turn signals at 4 way stop situations. What's the use of signaling a turn if the other drivers cant make out the light from the signal light against the headlight glare ? Or is it just my aging eyes ? 

I like to see where I am going as much as anyone , but the current state of illumination borders on the ridiculous. Sometimes when a 4 x 4 is behind me at a red light I feel like a WW2 aircraft caught in the searchlight beam's of hostile air defense. Do they all need their headlight's plus driving lights on all the time ?

4 big candlepower light sources seems a bit of overkill.

 

Greg in Canada

Edited February 16, 2020 by 1912Staver (see edit history)

[padgett]

I have come to the conclusion that most people do not know how to turn  their fog lights off.

ps see FMVSS 108 12.24.4 headlamp height

Not less than 55.9 cm. (22")  nor more than 137.2 cm. (54")

Height above road surface measured from center of device with vehicle at curb weight

 

So you would be ill advised to drive a GT-40 on a TLB at night.

 

ps Florida did away with inspection in all but 6 counties (there are 68) in 1972.

[60FlatTop]

On 2/14/2020 at 5:05 PM, Mark Gregory said:

10. White wall tyres - 8%

 

That made think the survey might not reflect my tastes, the tyres part says furinurs to me. I have liked new cars for the past 62 years. And still like them, old and new.

 

When old men can't adapt to the changing times it is just a sign that Mother Nature is getting ready for a new cycle. And it doesn't include them.

[Turbinator]

On 2/15/2020 at 12:40 PM, TexRiv_63 said:

I'm definitely "over 50" at 71 and I don't want any of that stuff on my new car. I love all those things if they are appropriate to a hobby car but I also love most of the new car features - after you have had a car with a heated steering wheel, you can never go back! I'm also a little surprised to see so many in this car-centric group having such a hard time with new car features - all you have to do is read the owners manual. Now admittedly it's pretty thick and you might have to read it more than once...but if I can figure this stuff out anyone can.

Don, not so sure about those manuals explaining what you need to know to get where you want to go with all the electronics. Some of the manuals are written by American engineers or Off shore folks where English is not their first language. We have people writing, but I’m not sure they are communicating what they write.

Turbinator

[padgett]

Well after about 100 pages of how to fasten a seat belt you might find info on the light bulbs and fluids but not much else. I always buy a service manual for my cars and most are useful (have a number on CD now, at least they are easy to lift). Even have a manual for a car I do not have yet (but someday).

 

Just checked my DD and in the driver's reach are 65 buttons, four rotary knobs. three multifunction levers, and a fake ignition key. Plus a touchscream.  Oh missed the five buttons and two rockers (for the not-a-sunroof) on the overhead.. Why I put velcro dots on the ones I use a lot.

 

 

Edited February 16, 2020 by padgett (see edit history)

[Ed Luddy]

23 hours ago, Matt Harwood said:

I've been casually looking for a replacement for my Cadillac CTS wagon, but to be honest, it seems to be one of the last mostly analog cars. I don't want a touch screen or push button start or extra gadgets that talk to my phone. I just don't. Yes, the Cadillac annoys me because it turns on its own headlights, but the instrument lights and headlights are on separate circuits so they often don't talk to each other and the dash is too dark to see. I hate that I can't adjust the seat while I'm moving. I'm annoyed that the on/off switch for the radio isn't really an on/off switch but rather a button that asks the computer to turn on the radio, and sometimes it decides not to do it. Same with the volume knob--the faster you turn it, the less it does because it thinks you're doing something you don't want to do. And, of course, the automatic hatch that crushed my hand seemingly out of spite.

 

But that's the future, I guess. I don't know how they decide these things need to be in the cars--focus groups, I suppose. But do people REALLY want all this stuff or are they just saying yes when it's offered? I bet if you had to think of what you really wanted in a car, it wouldn't start with a touch screen with ten layers of menus...

 

Meh. I've become a Luddite and I'm not happy about it. But I don't want a car to frustrate me--the rest of my life does enough of that. I just want it to work the way it should.

Just be glad you don't love Cadillac Allante's!  I was just laughing to myself about entering my 1990.5 mint condition Pearl Allante' in the closest AACA show this coming summer. But then I realized it probably wouldn't start after I stopped to fill it up due to a security system glitch such as the dreaded VATS, which has been bypassed but none the less still afflicted it. Or the roof mechanism that always caused much swearing and skinned knuckles to raise and lower. The crappy dash display, etc.

 There needs to be a masochistic award for those stubborn owners who haven't given up on Allante's.  

I'm not one of them.

[padgett]

Almost bought an Allante but stayed with Reattae. Last car I buy will probably be the retractable follow-on, by then the Northstar was pretty reliable & have a friend with a number of Shelby short-stars. Frankly never liked the Allante steering wheel and was unimpressed by the pushrod V-8s before the '93. And then I will probably dispose of at least one of the SLKs. Am waiting for a downturn but people in Florida are just too proud of theirs. Almost bought one a year ago but there was so many thousands difference between the advertised and the out the door ($1k documentary fee...) that I passed. Only requirement is Not Black.

[Kevin M]

If I end up with an allante at some point I’d definitely go for a 93. The analog dash and north star are a lot more appealing to me than the digital dash. One thing I do like on my 98 lesabre is the steering wheel controls for the radio. It’s just four buttons. Volume, seek, source, and another I don’t use or remember what it is. One feature I do want on the next car I buy to daily drive is heated seats. NY InThe winter isn’t too fun when you have a leather interior and the heat doesn’t kick in for a while. 

[zepher]

Here's a '93 for you. 

 

https://losangeles.craigslist.org/lgb/cto/d/scottsdale-1993-cadillac-allante/7070004358.html

[padgett]

Quite a few in Florida https://daytona.craigslist.org/ctd/d/ormond-beach-cadillac-allante-northstar/7074510464.html

[Steve_Mack_CT]

Love the look of my Caddy tail lights especially at night, no mistaking those verticals, updated but definately caddy DNA.

[60FlatTop]

On 2/15/2020 at 12:40 PM, TexRiv_63 said:

I'm definitely "over 50" at 71 and I don't want any of that stuff on my new car. I love all those things if they are appropriate to a hobby car but I also love most of the new car features - after you have had a car with a heated steering wheel, you can never go back! I'm also a little surprised to see so many in this car-centric group having such a hard time with new car features - all you have to do is read the owners manual. Now admittedly it's pretty thick and you might have to read it more than once...but if I can figure this stuff out anyone can.

 

That's a lot like people trying to use a computer and never had any training. The doctor just picked them up by the ankles 50-75 years ago and installed all the instructions with one slap. Once installed they need good circulation to be able to use it.

 

Bernie

[1937hd45]

Just now, 60FlatTop said:

 

That's a lot like people trying to use a computer and never had any training. The doctor just picked them up by the ankles 50-75 years ago and installed all the instructions with one slap. Once installed they need good circulation to be able to use it.

 

Bernie

 

The same can be said for the !Phone, has anyone run across someone that can show how it works WITHOUT OBSENITIES? Bob 

[padgett]

Dunno, my handwriting is terrible (was left handed, tried to make me right handed, didn't work) so in college I had an Olivetti manual typewriter, then had an IBM Selectric (still in den), then started using computers (much easier to correct). Only thing I wonder is have long slender fingers and have difficulty with cell phone buttons, wonder how people with normal-to-fat fingers manage. Voice ?

 

Can say typing on a 66 WPM teletype was an ordeal, never got used to the shift button for numbers.

 

Remember a time when  using a computer required some intelligence and was not for everyone. Rules are different now.

[Pfeil]

17 hours ago, padgett said:

Well after about 100 pages of how to fasten a seat belt you might find info on the light bulbs and fluids but not much else. I always buy a service manual for my cars and most are useful (have a number on CD now, at least they are easy to lift). Even have a manual for a car I do not have yet (but someday).

 

Just checked my DD and in the driver's reach are 65 buttons, four rotary knobs. three multifunction levers, and a fake ignition key. Plus a touchscream.  Oh missed the five buttons and two rockers (for the not-a-sunroof) on the overhead.. Why I put velcro dots on the ones I use a lot.

 

 

 

  Owners manuals tell very little about maintenance these days. Service manuals cannot be had in print anymore, that means when you are under the dash working you can't take the computer monitor with you which means you have to print a schematic off your computer to take with you. Oh, also a 20 years ago when you bought a factory service manual they were about 40 bucks. A new factory CD for my 2019 is $290.00 and the blank they burned cost 3 cents!

 

On checking the owners manual for my 64 & 65 VW beetles  tells how to;  with pictures! changing oil, adjusting valves, adjusting the carburetor, cleaning and oiling the air filter- ( Oh God! a real oil bath air filter!)  setting points, static timing the engine, replacing and gapping spark plugs, checking/replacing transaxle gear oil, adjusting brakes, checking brake lining, repacking wheel bearings, tire pressures and how to rotate,  checking and adjusting the steering gear, check/adjust the clutch cable, seat adjustment and removal, battery checking and how to use the hydrometer. Unbelievable it shows how to rig up a wall and all the specifications on the wall for adjusting the headlamp high and low beams. And I'm sure I've left some things out.

 

  You have to remember this is a time when real men painted and worked on their own houses, worked on their own cars, cut their own lawns and tended gardens, built their own fences and concrete walls. In those days self reliance was a virtue and gave self worth.

   I replaced a water heater the other day and my neighbor said why don't you call a plumber? My answer was why should I pay good money to someone when I know how to do the job better and save money to boot. The money I saved just gave my wife and I two nights dinners out for free. God another Pansy! It only took 40 minutes!

 

[Barney Eaton]

Padgett (Peterson) is the exception to us older drivers....he has been a geek since high school.

Older drivers wanting a key......I think that is a security issue, we don't trust battery operated remotes, what if the battery goes dead and we can't get into the car, let alone start it?   We have fought our battles now we just want reliable, user friendly and comfortable transportation.

My Buick Enclave has the radio, navigation etc all combined and it is not user friendly.  

The only way I can navigate to a unknown location is use my old Garmin or cell phone.

Also the cushioning on my backside has gone away and I want seats that don't make my rear end go numb after 30 miles.  The second row in the Enclave is torture...they made the seats fold 2 or 3 different ways and the mechanism takes up all the space that should be soft and supportive.   The second row seat belt receptacle is located inboard because of all the contortions the seat does which makes latching the seat belt difficult to find then latch.    Give me lounge chair seats.

Someone above talked about trucks........it is a requirement in Texas to own a truck,  I purchased a new 2011 GMC (just turned 60K) and my wife could not get in without help.......sure I could buy running boards or bolt on steps but why don't they make a "city" truck?   This truck has never been of a dirt or gravel road, why do I need 10 inches of ground clearance?   As noted the tailgate hits you above the belt when lowered, why so high.   Within the first 500 miles I put on 2 in drop front spindels and dropped the back 5 inches with shackles and removing the "riser" block that was factory installed on the rear springs.  It still sits higher than the 2002 GMC that I had.  The seats in the truck are more comfortable than the Enclave.

I am a supporter of electronic ignition, fuel injection and overdrive automatic transmissions....... I drive vehicles to around 90K and trade.....never need to tune or adjust anything on the engine....just change the oil and filter.

* Pfil above hit a sore spot......my wife said call a plumber..... they wanted $1800 to install a $425 Home Depot water heater.   I did it myself.

Last week the grandson called and said he was stranded on the side of the road.... oil pressure light came on and he had just had the oil changed.....you guess it,  they failed to tighten the oil filter so it leaked out until the pressure light came on.   I still change my own oil because of stories like that.... like gun lovers........they will need to pry that wrench out of my hand.

Edited February 17, 2020 by Barney Eaton (see edit history)

[padgett]

Hey I resemble that remark. OTOH I work on my own cars (changing oil and filter is 20 minutes in my driveway rather than 2 hours at a shop). If the water heater goes, I just replace it. Did require a helper to lift my new cyber-monday TV onto the stand (I mount TVs at least on a 3 foot stand, can still stand straight against a wall) and thinking about becoming a cord-cutter. My '72 Wagon (modified seat), then '92 TranSport was a very comfortable trip car, so is my '12 Grand Cherokee (newest car - RWD for 2 mpg more). Latter two were 6 cyl.

 

Have never had (or want) a pickup truck though would not turn down an El Camino or Caballero.

 

Agree was a nerd before the term existed (could make my Lionel trains do amazing things, more so when I moved to Marklin. Now all that is here is a Little Tykes). Was addicted to computers in '57 & grew up with them. I do have a MacBook and a Chromebook so I can help others. Learned Unix before there was Linux. Speak many languages (Fortran, PL1, J73, ADA,...) but prefer assembly language.

 

Use my cell phone for everything and just ignore the dash nav in my DD. With a NavTool have Android Auto so now combining hobbies.

 

Is an easy solution to the high truck - Ekstensive Metal Works over in Houston can put you on the ground.

[carbking]

Nothing wrong with most computers that cannot be cured by their morning cup of coffee.......................down the keyboard!

 

Jon.

[60FlatTop]

1 hour ago, padgett said:

Dunno, my handwriting is terrible (was left handed, tried to make me right handed, didn't work)

 

I had the same problem in grade school. My Dad was a leftie and I had a propensity to write and use my left hand in things that were "Taught". Resistance was futile. I had a stroke a few years ago and the left side is not working as well. I figure I am somewhat less capable than I was, but equal to those who tried to change me.

 

When I was in my 30's, maybe late 20's I had my handwriting analysed. A woman, she gave me one of those withering looks and said "You're overconfident".

[padgett]

I was once told I'd make a good bus driver.