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Friar Zucchini
Aug 6, 2010

Cakefool posted:

Normal carburetors vary the fuel with the air.

Show me proof a triumph any car was ever wired for AC from the factory.

I don't know the details, he hasn't told the story in a while, that's just what I think I remember. He wasn't real fond of the drive across Virginia at night in the rain without wipers or headlights is all I know for sure.

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Twerk from Home
Jan 17, 2009

This avatar brought to you by the 'save our dead gay forums' foundation.
So Ford did poorly on Consumer Reports list this year.

I don't know very much about how CR's long-term reliability works, but I'm pretty surprised to see Ford rated as garbage-tier reliability and Audi as the most reliable European make. Either my internal impression of car brands is massively out of date, or CR's methodology is questionable.

My own instincts would say that GM interiors fall apart, VAG stuff will need window regulators and occasionally have electrical gremlins, Chrysler group stuff that isn't a V8 will be trash, and Ford stuff will work well because most of it is really old tech.

I know that looking at the entire brand doesn't say a ton because there will be huge variance between different models, but what on Earth happened to Ford that made them instantly become the worst? Does the new Focus suck or something?

Twerk from Home fucked around with this message at 20:33 on Oct 29, 2012

IOwnCalculus
Apr 2, 2003





I think people are smacking them hard for the complaints around MyFord Touch or whatever it's called. It looks good on paper but most people seem to think it sucks rear end.

I think we're at a point now where automakers are going to be perpetually behind the 8-ball in terms of in-car entertainment - tablets and smartphones are evolving extremely rapidly, but thanks to the longer lead time of a car, the latest and greatest there is already old before it even hits showroom floors.

Thwomp
Apr 10, 2003

BA-DUHHH

Grimey Drawer

IOwnCalculus posted:

I think people are smacking them hard for the complaints around MyFord Touch or whatever it's called. It looks good on paper but most people seem to think it sucks rear end.

I think we're at a point now where automakers are going to be perpetually behind the 8-ball in terms of in-car entertainment - tablets and smartphones are evolving extremely rapidly, but thanks to the longer lead time of a car, the latest and greatest there is already old before it even hits showroom floors.

I got the Chevy MyLink with my new Sonic and I have to say it's quite responsive and non-intrusive. Everything is big and easy to hit.

Plus, it's got an smartphone app section that could increase its utility by expanding beyond allowing just Pandora and Stitcher radio (but we're talking about a huge automaker here so who knows).

However, it doesn't try to do nearly everything that MyFord attempts. I think putting the climate controls in the MyFord system alone was a huge mistake.

quote:

I know that looking at the entire brand doesn't say a ton because there will be huge variance between different models, but what on Earth happened to Ford that made them instantly become the worst? Does the new Focus suck or something?

I read that since Ford recently replaced a number of their long-running and reliable models (Escape, Fusion, etc) with new models this year, Ford lost those reliability records and so they are just left with the records of the stuff with the MyFord Touch and the newish Lincolns.

Thwomp fucked around with this message at 21:08 on Oct 29, 2012

KYOON GRIFFEY JR
Apr 12, 2010



Runner-up, TRP Sack Race 2021/22
CUE is supposed to be pretty good.

People's perceptions of brands always lag reality, because you need at least a couple years of data to get reliability information on a specific model, and then you need a year or so for that data to socialize around, and by that time most models are going through a full update.

oRenj9
Aug 3, 2004

Who loves oRenj soda?!?
College Slice
They really need to start making the in-car entertainment systems easily replaceable. They could move toward a system similar to the DIN, but with connectors that will allow it to integrate with the rest of the car electronics. Then roll and "upgrade" into the price of the car. That way, after a fixed amount of time, say a year, the customer would bring the car to the dealership and they would replace the entertainment system with a modern one out of the newer model of their vehicle.

This would give companies the opportunity to respond to the responses of current customers a lot more quickly. It sucks to buy a car with a $4000 entertainment option only to find out in a month that you dislike something about it, but you're stuck with it since you just paid $40k for the thing.

It builds customer loyalty, faith in the brand, and increases profit margins. With cars staying on the road longer and longer, the company who figures out how to keep their used cars up-to-date with the latest technology is going to gain a long-term influence over millennial buyers.

CornHolio
May 20, 2001

Toilet Rascal
I'm waiting for the day where a car's entire systems are controlled through a single touch-screen with a highly customizable interface. I'm sure different interfaces would cost money to switch to, but I'd think that it'd solve a lot of problems.

How changeable is the interface on the Tesla S?

cakesmith handyman
Jul 22, 2007

Pip-Pip old chap! Last one in is a rotten egg what what.

oRenj9 posted:

They really need to start making the in-car entertainment systems easily replaceable. They could move toward a system similar to the DIN, but with connectors that will allow it to integrate with the rest of the car electronics. Then roll and "upgrade" into the price of the car. That way, after a fixed amount of time, say a year, the customer would bring the car to the dealership and they would replace the entertainment system with a modern one out of the newer model of their vehicle.

This would give companies the opportunity to respond to the responses of current customers a lot more quickly. It sucks to buy a car with a $4000 entertainment option only to find out in a month that you dislike something about it, but you're stuck with it since you just paid $40k for the thing.

It builds customer loyalty, faith in the brand, and increases profit margins. With cars staying on the road longer and longer, the company who figures out how to keep their used cars up-to-date with the latest technology is going to gain a long-term influence over millennial buyers.

Alternatively they could not give you a reason to stick with your 2-3 year old car & entice you to the new model with shiny features? Cars may be staying on the road longer but that just means manufacturers need to give you better reasons to buy new ones.

Xguard86
Nov 22, 2004

"You don't understand his pain. Everywhere he goes he sees women working, wearing pants, speaking in gatherings, voting. Surely they will burn in the white hot flames of Hell"
If they offered an upgrade for like 500$ every year I bet they would see a better return than trying to use it as a feature to entice new buyers.

My 07 nav is so inferior to my phone I just don't use it and for my next car I don't want the navigation package because it will be antiquated so quickly.

Devyl
Mar 27, 2005

It slices!

It dices!

It makes Julienne fries!

Thwomp posted:

I think putting the climate controls in the MyFord system alone was a huge mistake.

I think putting anything more than what's necessary to successfully drive a car and protect you (airbags, ABS, traction control, etc) shouldn't be controlled by a computer. Call me old fashioned, but I really don't need bluetooth, a heated cup holder, a refrigeration unit, the ability to talk to my radio, and air-conned seats, let alone have it all being controlled by a computer. Don't get me wrong; they're nice options, but if I'm going to have them I don't want everything computer controlled.

oRenj9 posted:

They really need to start making the in-car entertainment systems easily replaceable. They could move toward a system similar to the DIN, but with connectors that will allow it to integrate with the rest of the car electronics. Then roll and "upgrade" into the price of the car. That way, after a fixed amount of time, say a year, the customer would bring the car to the dealership and they would replace the entertainment system with a modern one out of the newer model of their vehicle.

This would give companies the opportunity to respond to the responses of current customers a lot more quickly. It sucks to buy a car with a $4000 entertainment option only to find out in a month that you dislike something about it, but you're stuck with it since you just paid $40k for the thing.

It builds customer loyalty, faith in the brand, and increases profit margins. With cars staying on the road longer and longer, the company who figures out how to keep their used cars up-to-date with the latest technology is going to gain a long-term influence over millennial buyers.


That's why I always get cars with the most basic audio system selection. For the price of a manufacturer's "upgraded" system, I can easily take the car to a pro car audio shop and have them throw in a top-notch nav system and high quality speakers. This way the out-dated factor goes slower than manufacturers' units.

Devyl fucked around with this message at 22:11 on Oct 29, 2012

IOwnCalculus
Apr 2, 2003





We're in the era of lifetime* transmission fluid and other components, automakers are not in the business of making life easy to keep your car on the road and 'up to date' long term. Unfortunately, with the increasing integration of in-car entertainment, trying to find elegant solutions to problems as simple as the old oval Taurus' center stack seems simple compared to trying to properly integrate an aftermarket head unit into anything modern.

*When the transmission dies a horrible death because the fluid wasn't changed in 120k, that's the lifetime.

cakesmith handyman
Jul 22, 2007

Pip-Pip old chap! Last one in is a rotten egg what what.

Xguard86 posted:

If they offered an upgrade for like 500$ every year I bet they would see a better return than trying to use it as a feature to entice new buyers.

My 07 nav is so inferior to my phone I just don't use it and for my next car I don't want the navigation package because it will be antiquated so quickly.

If a single person keeps their car a year longer after upgrading their stereo, that's a car you didn't sell this year. Dumb idea for the manufacturer.

InitialDave
Jun 14, 2007

I Want To Believe.
But what if the upgradeable stereo swings it for me to buy your car in the first place?

I just want to be able to plug my iphone in and have steering wheel controls. Whatever the cheapest way to do that gets my vote for the head unit, and while I'm open to a "premium" package on the rest of it (amp, better speakers, subwoofer and so on), you need to do it at a better price than I can buy decent kit aftermarket.

Xguard86
Nov 22, 2004

"You don't understand his pain. Everywhere he goes he sees women working, wearing pants, speaking in gatherings, voting. Surely they will burn in the white hot flames of Hell"

Cakefool posted:

If a single person keeps their car a year longer after upgrading their stereo, that's a car you didn't sell this year. Dumb idea for the manufacturer.

versus the money you get from people putting off a new car but dropping a few hundred for the upgraded unit.

My point of view is that the gizmos alone aren't enough to get people to buy but you could pick up that long tail money selling refreshes.

davebo
Nov 15, 2006

Parallel lines do meet, but they do it incognito
College Slice

Xguard86 posted:

My 07 nav is so inferior to my phone I just don't use it and for my next car I don't want the navigation package because it will be antiquated so quickly.

That's exactly what I did when I got my new car. I didn't want the navigation package with the larger touchscreen that did more functions. In fact the smaller touchscreen I did get, I wish I could have avoided in the model I got. I'd really prefer a nice tiny screen that tells you information, and physical buttons that do everything else. Using it is the most distracting thing I do while driving and the only controls they put on the steering wheel are volume and next/previous track/station.

It's perfectly easy to just have a row of buttons right below the screen, then have the screen above label their functions if the functions change based on what you're doing.

doritos
Dec 6, 2010

by Y Kant Ozma Post
Replacing "intergrated" stereos isn't really that hard. You just buy a housing that fills up the empty space, there's usually also a wiring adapter so your steering wheel controls work too.

To be honest though, I don't see the point anymore. AUX inputs have been a thing since the mark II punto, and the weakspot is the lovely standard speakers anyway.

Friar Zucchini posted:

I don't know the details, he hasn't told the story in a while, that's just what I think I remember. He wasn't real fond of the drive across Virginia at night in the rain without wipers or headlights is all I know for sure.

Literally everything you posted was gibberish.

doritos fucked around with this message at 23:42 on Oct 29, 2012

Viggen
Sep 10, 2010

by XyloJW

doritos posted:

Literally everything you posted was gibberish.

I dunno. I really like the idea of an AC alt. Just hook a nice big-assed rectifier diode up to it, and it'd probably be fine.

When it caught fire, you could blame Lucas. :smug:

v- :thejoke:

Viggen fucked around with this message at 23:47 on Oct 29, 2012

doritos
Dec 6, 2010

by Y Kant Ozma Post
But that's what it is anyway. Three phase AC generation (to smooth it) and a bridge rect.

He probably confused negative and positive earth.

I've no idea what he was on about with the carbs though. Did triumph use SUs standard? I could see how they'd seem a bit odd compared to those silly things you guys have over there.

OXBALLS DOT COM
Sep 11, 2005

by FactsAreUseless
Young Orc

davebo posted:

That's exactly what I did when I got my new car. I didn't want the navigation package with the larger touchscreen that did more functions. In fact the smaller touchscreen I did get, I wish I could have avoided in the model I got. I'd really prefer a nice tiny screen that tells you information, and physical buttons that do everything else. Using it is the most distracting thing I do while driving and the only controls they put on the steering wheel are volume and next/previous track/station.

It's perfectly easy to just have a row of buttons right below the screen, then have the screen above label their functions if the functions change based on what you're doing.

The Prius, of all cars, has a really good system where the steering wheel buttons are touch sensitive as well as actual physical buttons. Touching a button lights up its icon on the dash so you can feel around for buttons without having to look down at the steering wheel.

That is the best use for non-tactile touch controls in a car, in my opinion.

Devyl
Mar 27, 2005

It slices!

It dices!

It makes Julienne fries!

doritos posted:

But that's what it is anyway. Three phase AC generation (to smooth it) and a bridge rect.

He probably confused negative and positive earth.

I've no idea what he was on about with the carbs though. Did triumph use SUs standard? I could see how they'd seem a bit odd compared to those silly things you guys have over there.

Triumph used Zenith-Stromberg carbs for the U.S. version of the tr6. All other countries got fuel injection. He's kinda-sorta right about the airflow thing though. It doesn't pull a constant amount of air in to the carb, but it DOES maintain a constant depression for the fuel to be pulled up through the metering needle. Little known fact: Zenith-Strombergs have to actually be oiled with motor oil to maintain proper functionality.

Devyl fucked around with this message at 00:21 on Oct 30, 2012

TheGoatTrick
Aug 1, 2002

Semi-aquatic personification of unstoppable douchery

IOwnCalculus posted:

I think people are smacking them hard for the complaints around MyFord Touch or whatever it's called. It looks good on paper but most people seem to think it sucks rear end.
Everyone is calling out MyFord Touch, but Ford has other problems besides that. Their dual clutch transmission has been having problems (programming, bad clutch seals, etc.) and it's the only automatic offered on the Focus and Fiesta.

Kia Soul Enthusias
May 9, 2004

zoom-zoom
Toilet Rascal

oRenj9 posted:

They really need to start making the in-car entertainment systems easily replaceable. They could move toward a system similar to the DIN, but with connectors that will allow it to integrate with the rest of the car electronics. Then roll and "upgrade" into the price of the car. That way, after a fixed amount of time, say a year, the customer would bring the car to the dealership and they would replace the entertainment system with a modern one out of the newer model of their vehicle.

This would give companies the opportunity to respond to the responses of current customers a lot more quickly. It sucks to buy a car with a $4000 entertainment option only to find out in a month that you dislike something about it, but you're stuck with it since you just paid $40k for the thing.

It builds customer loyalty, faith in the brand, and increases profit margins. With cars staying on the road longer and longer, the company who figures out how to keep their used cars up-to-date with the latest technology is going to gain a long-term influence over millennial buyers.

Mazda sorta did that by having common connectors from the late 90s to about now. The radios were all the same size but the faceplate is unique to the car. That isn't for an infotainment system though, just their radios.

oRenj9
Aug 3, 2004

Who loves oRenj soda?!?
College Slice

Xguard86 posted:

versus the money you get from people putting off a new car but dropping a few hundred for the upgraded unit.

My point of view is that the gizmos alone aren't enough to get people to buy but you could pick up that long tail money selling refreshes.

Exactly; most of the car buying public is too pragmatic to buy an entire new car just to upgrade the entertainment system. Making entertainment systems easily upgradable won't hurt new car sales in the slightest. But in the long run, it will improve brand loyalty by projecting the idea that the car won't become obsolete when the iPhone 9 drops BlueTooth support or something.

As a side effect, residual values will probably increase as a result, since those $4k upgrades won't completely depreciate over the life of the lease. That means more leases, which are basically prime sales for dealers and manufactures. It also increases the amount the manufacture gets from CPO'd vehicles, as they can require that the dealers install their $2k upgrade for a vehicle to carry the certification. And having "best in class resale value" is always a great selling point.

All-in-all, it is a financial win for the manufacture, the dealer, and the customer.

D C
Jun 20, 2004

1-800-HOTLINEBLING
1-800-HOTLINEBLING
1-800-HOTLINEBLING

hedge posted:

Everyone is calling out MyFord Touch, but Ford has other problems besides that. Their dual clutch transmission has been having problems (programming, bad clutch seals, etc.) and it's the only automatic offered on the Focus and Fiesta.

Woah, didnt know that, I thought the trans on the Focus I had as a rental this week felt strange.

Otherwise, they loving disabled the AUX-In and the SYNC usb port for some hosed up reason so I had to listen to the radio for the week.

Also there is no storage in a Focus, big dash, no storage, bad cup holders, some of the lights/buttons dont make much sense. Drove nice, but I couldnt live with one.

cakesmith handyman
Jul 22, 2007

Pip-Pip old chap! Last one in is a rotten egg what what.

oRenj9 posted:

Exactly; most of the car buying public is too pragmatic to buy an entire new car just to upgrade the entertainment system. Making entertainment systems easily upgradable won't hurt new car sales in the slightest. But in the long run, it will improve brand loyalty by projecting the idea that the car won't become obsolete when the iPhone 9 drops BlueTooth support or something.

As a side effect, residual values will probably increase as a result, since those $4k upgrades won't completely depreciate over the life of the lease. That means more leases, which are basically prime sales for dealers and manufactures. It also increases the amount the manufacture gets from CPO'd vehicles, as they can require that the dealers install their $2k upgrade for a vehicle to carry the certification. And having "best in class resale value" is always a great selling point.

All-in-all, it is a financial win for the manufacture, the dealer, and the customer.

What planet are you on? AI & people willing to upgrade cars are in the astonishing minority. Someone might be unwilling to buy a new car because the new one has a better stereo but if they bought a new car in the first place they are statistically going to buy another one in three years time. After three years not only will there be a better stereo, but the interior will be different, the wheels will be bigger :rolleyes: the exterior will have been tweaked or you may even be able to entice them into a bigger car.

I want long-lasting upgradeable cars with easily changed mechanicals, that don't require dealer-specific tools but it won't happen when the majority of people want the new car now with zero down, rather than fix "a broken shitheap" (needs wear items like fluid changes, brakes, alignment, maybe bushes). Sorry, but it's unrealistic daydreaming unless someone starts a company making this mythical modular car & we all buy one, then support the company forever with upgrades.

KozmoNaut
Apr 23, 2008

Happiness is a warm
Turbo Plasma Rifle


Cakefool posted:

I want long-lasting upgradeable cars with easily changed mechanicals, that don't require dealer-specific tools but it won't happen when the majority of people want the new car now with zero down, rather than fix "a broken shitheap" (needs wear items like fluid changes, brakes, alignment, maybe bushes). Sorry, but it's unrealistic daydreaming unless someone starts a company making this mythical modular car & we all buy one, then support the company forever with upgrades.

That's what basically all of AI wants, which is why the overwhelming majority of us buy cars that are at least 5-6 years old, specifically cars that have earned a reputation for being relatively DIY-friendly. It's not perfect, but it's definitely the best option, compared to buying new or building something from scratch ourselves.

I bought a 12 year old car. Literally the only issues it has are the vehicle speed sensor and a couple of worn bushings on the rear anti roll bar. Everything else is like new. I see no need to pay at least three times as much for a new car, when both of those issues have quick and easy fixes. Even if you need a mechanic to do them, they're non-critical and inexpensive.

But it's so much easier to just unload the old car and get a new one with a warranty. I don't mind, it means more used cars for us economically sensible folks.

Big K of Justice
Nov 27, 2005

Anyone seen my ball joints?
Hummer is back.. sorta..

The last few months I was getting pictures of this and went to a focus group meeting put on by AM General to H1 owners who asked for our input.

So here it is.. in all of its soft door glory:

http://www.genuinehumveekit.com/index.html
http://www.genuinehumveekit.com/media.html

For historical perspective there was 2 companies involved with hummer in recent history, AM General Corporation, the defense division of American Motors and GM. AM General produced the HMMWV, and the civilian H1, and in the late 90's early 00's signed a deal to lease the IP of Hummer to GM.

AM General went on to produce the H1 and H2 in South Bend Indiana and GM largely produced the H3.

Of course when GM shut down Hummer and tried to sell it, they didn't find many buyers... not because of lack of interest, but simply because many buyers initially thought that they got AM General and the HMMWV/H1 with the deal.

Instead, they found that GM had a lease until 2014/2015, after which all IP rights would revert back to AM General. Kind of a bum deal.

Today, AM General is sitting with an idle HMMWV Plant, waiting to see if their next generation truck will win the JLTV contract [ http://amgeneralbrv-o.com/ ].

GM is sitting back licensing out the Hummer brand for $$$ including an electric mini-H4XT thing for the UK and a clothing store chain in South America :cripes:. I guess GM's plan is to sit back and collect licensing income on toys and poo poo until their deal expires.

So with that situation, AM General figured out a way to bring out a "HUMVEE" that is in no way shape or form a "HUMMER H1" in the minimum legal sense. GM isn't happy about the situation, but apparently there is a few restrictions.

The rumor was, it wasn't a Hummer by legal definition if the chassis shipped with CARC military paint, didn't have a stereo installed and if it didn't have the Hummer[tm] doors installed on it. That's the unofficial story...



So what do you get?

AM General is testing things out by offering a roller Humvee C-series [commercial] truck.

Basically for $59,000, you get the latest generation of HMMWV Hardware, a 12,800 GVW chassis, with the uparmored 3 piece sectional box frame, the upgraded crossmembers, the wilwood upgraded brake kit. The torsen bias differentials, the aluminum soft top body, with civilian style roll bar assembly and insulated top. 2 inch body lift built in as a standard option [to allow fitment of the Duramax/alison 1000 drivetrain option] .

The chassis ships as a roller with the body installed but with the a-pillar windshield removed. The interior is in one crate, doors and roll bars in another, and another crate containing the seats on a pallet.

The interior is the 04/06 H1 interior with a digicamo texture, so all you Forza playing xbox guys will be familiar with the interior from that video game.

The electrical harnesses are prewired and installed including the body, chassis, and hood harness, with jumper connections to the drivetrain. The HVAC and gauges are isolated on their own harness system for maximum compatibility.

No engine/transmission is included, you are left to your own devices for that or by going through "official channels". This is part to maintain the system as a "kit" and dodge certification costs. That being said we were told that all components in the kit meet or exceed FMVSS specifications.

Reading between the lines, I suspect there will be 3-4 official "Humvee kit assembly" shops out of the old big hummer dealers, where they will build out the kits as a finished turn key vehicle.

Otherwise, you need a big shop, and about 100 hours worth of labor to complete the truck by their tests.

Options included under carriage production grid, rocker panel protection, eaton-elocker option, heated windshields, 2 piece alloy bead locked wheels, and a few other do-dads.

Adjusting for inflation from the H1's launch in 1992, it's not a bad price, but I'd figure they'd included all that stuff provided they aren't shipping it with a drive drain, but they're the ones doing the bean counting, not me.

As it stands, it's 59,000 for the kit, but a completed truck will run upwards of 100,000 once done. Unless you want to throw used parts at it and can do a lot of the work yourself.

Personally, I'm out for the kit, the general response I've gotten from a few friends who were ready to buy this was they will wait until they offer a model with hard doors and steel roof assembly. Besides I already got a tan and black soft top :v: and it ran me half of the kit cost.

Why would any non-hummer person care about this? If this thing takes off we'll see the GEP/Steyr 3200 3.2L Optimizer turbo diesel motor hit the public US market [small monoblock inline 6, 550 lbs, 300 hp, 550ft/torque]..

I asked AM general if they would sell me that motor for my existing truck, and all I got from the rep was "I'm not authorized to talk about that"..

:(

Big K of Justice fucked around with this message at 15:35 on Oct 30, 2012

Throatwarbler
Nov 17, 2008

by vyelkin
What kind of engines will fit in it?

KozmoNaut
Apr 23, 2008

Happiness is a warm
Turbo Plasma Rifle


Throatwarbler posted:

What kind of engines will fit in it?

It's made exclusively for the Mazda 13B.

PT6A
Jan 5, 2006

Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

hedge posted:

Everyone is calling out MyFord Touch, but Ford has other problems besides that.

How did ford gently caress up MyFord Touch so horribly when SYNC was, and still is, so completely excellent? They were on the right track and then decided to veer off into fuckup land.

As for upgradability in my stereo, it should be good for me until minijacks, USBs and Bluetooth all go obsolete, which I don't think will happen any time soon.

Thwomp
Apr 10, 2003

BA-DUHHH

Grimey Drawer

Geared Hub posted:


Today, AM General is sitting with an idle HMMWV Plant, waiting to see if their next generation truck will win the JLTV contract [ http://amgeneralbrv-o.com/ ].


I originally read that has the BRO-V and thought they stumbled onto some new kind of SUV type.

Cocoa Crispies
Jul 20, 2001

Vehicular Manslaughter!

Pillbug

PT6A posted:

How did ford gently caress up MyFord Touch so horribly when SYNC was, and still is, so completely excellent? They were on the right track and then decided to veer off into fuckup land.

As for upgradability in my stereo, it should be good for me until minijacks, USBs and Bluetooth all go obsolete, which I don't think will happen any time soon.

The siren song of touchscreens and the futuristic ability to use voice controls to adjust any of the cabin comfort features. Ambition and hubris.

PT6A
Jan 5, 2006

Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Cocoa Crispies posted:

The siren song of touchscreens and the futuristic ability to use voice controls to adjust any of the cabin comfort features. Ambition and hubris.

Yeah, I guess that's it. I don't get the attraction of touchscreens in cars. Being able to reach blindly for the fan or heat adjustment knob is fantastic. On the other hand, selecting a song or playlist from my iPod would be a pain in the rear end, so it's a very good place to have voice control as an option.

Throatwarbler
Nov 17, 2008

by vyelkin
Chrysler's system is exactly like that.

http://www.dart-mouth.com/gizmos.html

Xguard86
Nov 22, 2004

"You don't understand his pain. Everywhere he goes he sees women working, wearing pants, speaking in gatherings, voting. Surely they will burn in the white hot flames of Hell"
a lot of this stuff gets a lot of grumbling until people learn the new system and the manufacture gets a chance to polish it a little after feedback. iDrive is supposed to be pretty good and well liked these days.

Sometimes it does seem like change for the sake of change and stuff like AC can stay a knob you turn. Push button start that still requires key insertion is another one of those "why?" things.

kimbo305
Jun 9, 2007

actually, yeah, I am a little mad

Xguard86 posted:

a lot of this stuff gets a lot of grumbling until people learn the new system and the manufacture gets a chance to polish it a little after feedback. iDrive is supposed to be pretty good and well liked these days.

iDrive isn't a great example because it took them years to get to be not lovely. Better, intuitive touchscreen/voice control systems are coming, but I think it'll be a very rocky road getting there.

Flash Gordon Ramsay
Sep 28, 2004

Grimey Drawer

kimbo305 posted:

iDrive isn't a great example because it took them years to get to be not lovely. Better, intuitive touchscreen/voice control systems are coming, but I think it'll be a very rocky road getting there.

I would be happy if Infiniti would update their firmware to let the phone button on my G37 activate Siri.

Big K of Justice
Nov 27, 2005

Anyone seen my ball joints?

Throatwarbler posted:

What kind of engines will fit in it?

Officially the Duramax 6.6L, the 6.5 diesel family, cummins diesel, vortec 6 and 8 liter gas engines and "a few others". The only thing they specifically said would not fit was the newer Ford powerstrokes.

The limitation being the A-pillar clearance and the side kick panels from the cab and the airlift hooks and cooling stack on the front.

I know of one guy is going to put an Isuzu 3.0L diesel engine in it with an Alison 1000, but hes a guy who runs a small trucking company and I think hes got a crashed donor box truck ready to go.

The ideal engine would be the 3.2L Small block diesel they have on tap if they offer it for non military use...

NOTinuyasha
Oct 17, 2006

 
The Great Twist

Throatwarbler posted:

Chrysler's system is exactly like that.

http://www.dart-mouth.com/gizmos.html

Chrysler actually has a really good system, somehow, with Uconnect. It's too bad my parent's new Grand Cherokee doesn't have it, but I tried it on a Charger and it was great, I'm assuming the Dart system is good too. It's GM's CUE and Ford's MyTouch that both suck. And to make this clear, it's not because MyTouch aimed too high or just too new for some people, it's because Ford is incompetent. Everyone else probably looked into capacitive buttons and realized it was just a gimmick that had no place in a car.

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skipdogg
Nov 29, 2004
Resident SRT-4 Expert

PT6A posted:

How did ford gently caress up MyFord Touch so horribly when SYNC was, and still is, so completely excellent? They were on the right track and then decided to veer off into fuckup land.

As for upgradability in my stereo, it should be good for me until minijacks, USBs and Bluetooth all go obsolete, which I don't think will happen any time soon.

I have no idea. I own 2 Ford vehicles right now. I have a 2011 Fusion Sport with the old style SYNC and it works loving perfectly. My wife has a 2012 Ford Explorer with the My Ford Touch and I loving hate it.

They have gotten tons of complaints on the MFT software, so they really dumbed it down from version 2 to version 3. We actually wanted to roll back from the 3.x software to the 2.x but that wasn't possible. The early 3.x code was buggy as poo poo as they rushed it out. On our last road trip it would randomly switch between our 2 iPhones with the BT streaming, and on one trip it just crashed. The whole center screen and 2 small LCD's in the gauge cluster just went black for about 5 minutes and the whole system rebooted. Too bad that entire system runs the entire loving car. I think HVAC still worked, but nothing else did. There's an upgrade available, but when I tried to download it last week before our most recent road trip last weekend it wouldn't download. I contacted support and they said it was a 'known issue' and to try again 'next week'.

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