EV thread

[Zorba]

View attachment 499189

My phone tells me where the police are, when there's an object on the road, when there are cars parked on the side of the road, calculates the fastest route based on current traffic and closures etc.

BFD. Somehow I have managed to get by without that, and still do. I don't care where the police are, I pay attention to the road (instead of fiddling with a PHOOOOOONNE like several here will defend vehemntly) and can acutally mange to avoid objects, I couldn't POSSIBLY care less about cars on the side of the road or what they're doing. The amount of effete crap that people have been boondoggled into thinking is "necessary" is just mind boggling. Oh, and some dedicated GPSes will do traffic as well, but amazingly enough, I can get such info on the radio on the rare occasions that I care.

Allow me to quote part of an article I found on this subject:

"I have been surprised by the almost visceral response some people have when they discover I don't own a smartphone. Some even take it as a personal affront. It registers as a challenge to the myth of inevitability, the myth that one needs a smartphone to thrive in contemporary society." The article continues: "I can only conclude that I have scratched the skin of a technological fundamentalism that,like other fundamentalisms, wishes to monopolize a whole society, and, therefore, cannot tolerate the smallest difference of opinion."

I had noticed this as well, although on a more subconscious level until this article pointed it out to me. Our whole fucking society is ALL about the PHOOOOOONNE. This isn't right, it isn't healthy. Dare to criticize OR abstain from these things and the apologists come out of the woodwork and will defend these things to the death. The worldwide addiction and catering to these devices comes at a HUGE societal cost. VERY much like the kazillions of facebook apologists - everyone knows the problems with facebook and similar sites, yet they will defend it until the cows come home. THE EMPEROR HAS NO CLOTHES! I refuse to worship at the altar of the latter day false God "Convenience", even though a smartphone is anything but. Convenience ALWAYS comes at a cost, one that I'm not often willing to pay - and that's when the "convenience" actually is such; not a hassle like crippled smartphone is, never mind the bullshit put on modern cars.

 

[Apparition]

BFD. Somehow I have managed to get by without that, and still do. I don't care where the police are, I pay attention to the road (instead of fiddling with a PHOOOOOONNE like several here will defend vehemntly) and can acutally mange to avoid objects, I couldn't POSSIBLY care less about cars on the side of the road or what they're doing. The amount of effete crap that people have been boondoggled into thinking is "necessary" is just mind boggling. Oh, and some dedicated GPSes will do traffic as well, but amazingly enough, I can get such info on the radio on the rare occasions that I care.

There's no fiddling with the phone needed. Carplay to the giant touchscreen in the dash and all the warnings pop up as needed. Also I'd be surprised if you exceed the speed limit.

 

[Granite]

If anyone is expecting @Zorba to be like “hmm … yeah good point. Ok I love phones now!” I would just encourage you to reevaluate the energy you put into that effort!

 

[InOmaha]

You also don't know me from Adam and I suspect I've been on various Jeep forums longer then most. It's not a strawman argument. I just find it funny that there is still an aversion to technology when it comes to the inevitable progression of automobiles, phones, TVs, computers, etc. Like you I also worked in IT - a LONG time ago. I remember the grousing about laptops, and Novell, and GUI, etc. etc.....

CJ guys grouse about YJs, and both grouse about TJs...TJ guys grouse about XJs. It's like Glock and Colt. Never-ending..

Who is this Blaine guy? Maybe I should argue with him also....

Not trying to be a dick. I'm getting crankier the older I get.

 

[Apparition]

If anyone is expecting @Zorba to be like “hmm … yeah good point. Ok I love phones now!” I would just encourage you to reevaluate the energy you put into that effort!

No

 

[InOmaha]

I'm tempted to mail him my last phone so he can see what he's missing.

 

[Woodrow]

If anyone is expecting @Zorba to be like “hmm … yeah good point. Ok I love phones now!” I would just encourage you to reevaluate the energy you put into that effort!

Forum members being unwilling to change, or even re-evaluate their position on newer tech is definitely a theme of this whole thread. That’s fine and I’m guilty of stubbornness too, but it’s mildly entertaining that we are 93 pages into “nope. not gonna. you can’t make me.” repeated over and over

 

[Zorba]

There's no fiddling with the phone needed. Carplay to the giant touchscreen in the dash and all the warnings pop up as needed. Also I'd be surprised if you exceed the speed limit.

You would be correct, I very seldom exceed the speed limit. If I'm in one HELL of a hurry, I'll do 5 over, but that's it. Hence I don't need the hassle of the "convenience" of knowing where the cops are. When I drove out to Florida from Commiefornia, there was a couple of square states where the speed limits were rigorously enforced. If it said 45 MPH, people were going 45, NOT 50, not 55, not 60. It was fucking refreshing. Unfortunately Florida is just like California in that regard, lunatics going 10,15, 20, or more over, swerving in and out of lanes and - I have little doubt - fiddling with their PHOOOOOONNE while doing so.

 

[Zorba]

If anyone is expecting @Zorba to be like “hmm … yeah good point. Ok I love phones now!” I would just encourage you to reevaluate the energy you put into that effort!

I like all sorts of tech, as I've said before - I did retire from a "high tech" career. I just don't like pointless tech, tech for its own sake, tech that doesn't improve my life, tech that is a hassle to use and/or deal with, over priced tech, built in obsolescence tech (purposely), and most especially tech that is designed to suck money out of my wallet. The smartphone is all of the above, and so is most of the "smartphone-esque" tech found in oh-so-"modern" cars and elsewhere. But people are slaves to this crap, will defend it to their dying breathe, and neither I nor "Cassandra" will EVER be believed or paid attention to by the vast majority. Its all about the PHOOOOOONNE!!! So be it.

Just to be clear, I don't care what others do - but when the choices of others starts to impact ME, and society in general, I'm going to raise a flag.

 

[cliffish]

You would be correct, I very seldom exceed the speed limit. If I'm in one HELL of a hurry, I'll do 5 over, but that's it. Hence I don't need the hassle of the "convenience" of knowing where the cops are. When I drove out to Florida from Commiefornia, there was a couple of square states where the speed limits were rigorously enforced. If it said 45 MPH, people were going 45, NOT 50, not 55, not 60. It was fucking refreshing. Unfortunately Florida is just like California in that regard, lunatics going 10,15, 20, or more over, swerving in and out of lanes and - I have little doubt - fiddling with their PHOOOOOONNE while doing so.

Just got back from S. FL (boca, Delray,etcc) I was shocked at the amount of traffic and I95 seemingly 7 lanes wide. I won't complain about the traffic back here in lower NY that much anymore (OK, I will still complain)

 

[srimes]

Just got back from S. FL (boca, Delray,etcc) I was shocked at the amount of traffic and I95 seemingly 7 lanes wide. I won't complain about the traffic back here in lower NY that much anymore (OK, I will still complain)

When I head up the mountain dirt roads and pass 10 miles from my driveway I rarely see another car, but if I do I bitch about it.

 

[BlueC]

My phone tells me where the police are, when there's an object on the road, when there are cars parked on the side of the road,

Mine tells me that after I pass the situation....

 

[Apparition]

Mine tells me that after I pass the situation....

Using Waze?

 

[BlueC]

Using Waze?

Google maps. I've heard of Waze, but never used it.

 

[Apparition]

Google maps. I've heard of Waze, but never used it.

You should try it.

 

[Apparition]

We have a few normal passenger vehicles and a side-by-side registered and plated as an Ag. Vehicle that we can take on the roads within 10 miles.
I would love to have something in between just for shuttling into town that has a windshield, better road manners and more passenger capacity. The problem is those side by sides now even cost as much as a 1/4 ton truck.
I have to believe there’s a market for a tweener vehicle that could be electric, ideally a polymer frame so it won’t rust out, and under $10k. Just seats, lights, a horn, and motor that gets you places and back and can be plugged into household 110v when not in use to stay charged.

A simple vehicle like that could sell for wider use but maybe not enough of a market for a major car mfg to jump on it.

I missed this post.

I'm guessing the feds won't allow it for "safety" reasons.

 

[zachpeakee]

I had a couple really nice VWs a ways back, bought a 95 Golf Sport brand new, what a great car that was, also leased a 95 Jetta for the wife. Always thought they were great driver's cars, drove like tanks. Been a long time since I've owned a German car & if they had the reliability of the tin can Japanese cars I switched to they'd dominate the world.

Of every vehicle I've ever owned, NOTHING beats the drivability of the German lineup.
Even some of my older 2000's era's BMW's would out-drive most modern Japanese/US vehicles on the road now.
Dependability isn't as shabby as the world would make you believe either (on par with US manufacturers), as long as you keep on top of maintenance.

It's the lack of knowledge around the systems/maintenance that makes people shy away. The German engineering is completely different from what would/can be seen on a Japanese/US vehicle. I think this is a large reason why people are genuinely scared/anxious to own & work on German vehicles.

Not to mention the cost of maintenance if you must find a shop to work on them.
Euro shops are few/far between, and they know it, and that is reflected in the maintenance costs.

With that being said, I think every manufacturer could stand to take some reliability notes from the Japanese market.
There's just something about Toyota, Lexus, Infiniti, Nissan, Honda that can't be replicated in terms of reliability. It's pretty mind-blowing to see.

Honestly, I have not much good to say about the American car manufacturing market.
It's so hit or miss in terms of reliability I don't even think it belongs in the discussion.

 

[zachpeakee]

I would love to have something in between just for shuttling into town that has a windshield, better road manners and more passenger capacity. The problem is those side by sides now even cost as much as a 1/4 ton truck.
I have to believe there’s a market for a tweener vehicle that could be electric, ideally a polymer frame so it won’t rust out, and under $10k. Just seats, lights, a horn, and motor that gets you places and back and can be plugged into household 110v when not in use to stay charged.

A simple vehicle like that could sell for wider use but maybe not enough of a market for a major car mfg to jump on it.

The idea has been pitched a few times, but never stuck in the US market.
America is the #1 country in the world, as far as yearly mileage is concerned, and we claim that spot by a LONG margin.

Majority of the US population is NOT in the market for a "townie" style vehicle.
The amount of consumers who would be interested is far outweighed by consumers who are NOT interested.

Average mileage for a typical American is around 40~ miles per day (or around 12,000 miles per year).
Not to mention, majority of that mileage is 55+ mph driving.
Something that those small vehicles simply aren't engineered to handle.

BUT, you specifically aren't out of luck.
Seats, lights, a horn, and a motor, for under $10k...

You should do some research into the Japanese "KEI" vehicles.
They're pretty much a glorified utility 'cart', and are becoming extremely popular in the US market.
(there's a LOT of styles of KEI cars, including trucks, cars, SUV's, etc)

Extremely minimalist, and pretty much they're exactly what you described.

 

[steelhd]

There's no fiddling with the phone needed. Carplay to the giant touchscreen in the dash and all the warnings pop up as needed. Also I'd be surprised if you exceed the speed limit.

Dont try. He will take every opportunity, then invent at least a hundred more, to go on and on and on about his hatred of smartphones and complex car electronics regardless of the fact that anybody who has been a member for more than fifteen minutes knows exactly how he feels.

 

[Paradiddle]

You would be correct, I very seldom exceed the speed limit. If I'm in one HELL of a hurry, I'll do 5 over, but that's it. Hence I don't need the hassle of the "convenience" of knowing where the cops are. When I drove out to Florida from Commiefornia, there was a couple of square states where the speed limits were rigorously enforced. If it said 45 MPH, people were going 45, NOT 50, not 55, not 60. It was fucking refreshing. Unfortunately Florida is just like California in that regard, lunatics going 10,15, 20, or more over, swerving in and out of lanes and - I have little doubt - fiddling with their PHOOOOOONNE while doing so.

5 over!!! HAHAHAH. You will get murdered on the highways here in California. I would certain pit your slow ass to get around you.

Zorba is a 90 year old Amish man trapped in a late 40's body with the dancing habits of a 24 year old Egyptian. I LOVE IT!