Gift link: https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/cars/driver-assistance-technol...

This is why I drive a nearly 30-year-old vehicle. Big, easy-to-use knobs and buttons, no screens, little automation of any kind. I find that slapping my iPhone into a magnetic holder on the dash is far more seamless than CarPlay integration, which sometimes fails to work or fritzes out randomly.

The mandated addition of screens to vehicles sold in the US, which happened around 2008 by administrative fiat (for use by backup cameras), was the death knell for simple mechanical human-automotive interfaces.

Great subject. Too bad about the content:

> Even as the price of a new car soars—now hovering around $50,000—automakers argue buyers are getting more bang for their buck, including more safety and entertainment tech features.

> For many buyers, that’s exactly the problem.

Finding it hard to believe that for "many buyers" safety features are "exactly the problem".

A good friend of mine (we'll call him G) worked at an auto body shop. An older client came in and was bitching about how his brand new Mazda (IIRC) kept freaking out when he changed lanes, and asked G if he could disable the lane departure warnings. G showed him how and said, BTW, these are supposed to be a backup for if you fall asleep - they don't go off if you use your blinker.

Dude bro politely asked G to turn the lane departure warning back on.

I recently got a newish car 2022 and I like all the features. Way better than my 2008.