The more I hear about all this technology going into cars, the less I want it. I don’t think I need it and really don’t care for it. The lack of knowledge about how to deal with this technology in the repair process is concerning too. A collision instructor I know says most of the collision technicians in his classes don’t know that systems in new cars have to be recalibrated after a collision repair even though there isn’t a light on the dash. That’s scary stuff. See pg. 48 for more on that.
I’m pretty OK with my ’09 Honda Civic. It doesn’t have a lot of gadgets, and I’m fine with that. Then again, I was also OK with my old big box TV until I got a flat-screen HD, and now I know I could never go back. People probably got by in the days before air conditioning, too, but what would happen if someone took away your central air today?
When my parents bought their 2015 Lexus SUV, they had to wait for my brother, the engineering major, to come visit so he could set the clock and explain all the gadgetry in this rocketship. When my dad recently came by in the Lexus to pick me up, he was playing around with the gadgets like a pro.
Which makes me wonder: will I adjust to a new car that is essentially a computer on wheels? Will everyone adjust, even the diehard traditionalists who say someone will have to pry the steering wheel from their cold, dead hands before they’ll let a car drive them? I think it’s possible when you look at all the grandparents who never used to text but now are doing that and much more on their smartphones. I guess the future remains to be seen.
