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What's something modern you won't miss when it becomes obsolete?

Gregg Axley

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,125
Location
Tennessee
I wish we could ban Clockwork Orange here. :p
I saw CO back in the 80's.
Of course I saw Pink Floyd's The Wall around the same time.
Both films kind of blended together for me, so I don't remember either one. [huh]
It was a weird period for me, because I do remember some of the movie Brazil.
What an odd movie that was!

Since I rented a new car recently, because my "good" car was in the shop, I'll say I won't/don't miss all the electronic gadgets.
Every knob in this car turned, but it was all electronic. If you wanted the fan for the a/c to go up, you got a delay before the signal actually sped up the fan. The same goes for the stereo. The knobs on the steering wheel, good Heavens. I think the vehicle needed a class for new owners, just to use all the functions. Had this been a Cadillac or really high dollar car, I'd be lost. :eusa_doh:
 

LizzieMaine

Bartender
Messages
33,728
Location
Where The Tourists Meet The Sea
Since I rented a new car recently, because my "good" car was in the shop, I'll say I won't/don't miss all the electronic gadgets.
Every knob in this car turned, but it was all electronic. If you wanted the fan for the a/c to go up, you got a delay before the signal actually sped up the fan. The same goes for the stereo. The knobs on the steering wheel, good Heavens. I think the vehicle needed a class for new owners, just to use all the functions. Had this been a Cadillac or really high dollar car, I'd be lost. :eusa_doh:

I had to use a loaner car recently -- a 2003 Chevy Impala, the most modern car I've ever driven -- and couldn't even figure out how to adjust the seat. Have we really become so utterly flaccid and pasty-faced as a society that we're too weak even to pull up a lever and hunch the seat forward with our own strength? Do people actually *want* such nonsensical gadgetry? Or is it just foisted upon them because the Boys From Marketing know they can get away with sticking it on? Never mind, I know the answer.
 

Gregg Axley

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,125
Location
Tennessee
Now I like my controls on the wheel for cruise and the radio.
At high speeds it's much easier NOT to have them there, than to LOOK at the stereo and turn it up or punch buttons.
Some of the other gadgets are what I call "go outs."
Because they go out, and then the are useless.
Voice activated is probably the most shocking to me.
Acura came out with that years ago when we were looking at one.
I could just see that going out, and then you would have to work the a/c manually. Oh the humanity!
That car lost out to a Subaru because it was reliable, practical, rode nice, and would go anywhere no matter what the terrain.
Just cruise and comfy seats, nothing else. Best car I ever owned, but that eventually lost out to something larger, which is what we have now.
If only I could put more comfortable seats in the current one, I'd be happy.
Oh sure Recaro makes some nice ones, but I'd have to match the leather, which would make the seats...well more than I want to pay for a pair, that's how much.
 
Messages
10,883
Location
Portage, Wis.
I think the gizmos are more for impressing others than for personal use.

I have been shopping for a new truck and just bought one today. I set out to buy one with no cruise, A/C, power windows/seats/locks, or anything. The only options I wanted were red paint, auto transmission, 4x4, and a sliding back window.

I could find no such truck. The one I bought is loaded with options. I will never use any of them, really. It even has rear-defrost, in a single cab truck. I've never even seen that before. All the goodies sure impressed my friends, though. It's just as well optioned as my Cadillac, minus the leather interior.

I had to use a loaner car recently -- a 2003 Chevy Impala, the most modern car I've ever driven -- and couldn't even figure out how to adjust the seat. Have we really become so utterly flaccid and pasty-faced as a society that we're too weak even to pull up a lever and hunch the seat forward with our own strength? Do people actually *want* such nonsensical gadgetry? Or is it just foisted upon them because the Boys From Marketing know they can get away with sticking it on? Never mind, I know the answer.

I watched K-Mart fall apart. I was in management at ours for awhile. We were dying, then we had a huge upswing, and now it's more dead than ever. It's sad to see it happen. I am fearing ours won't make it much longer and I shop there frequently. It's much better than going across the street to Wal-Mart.

Tom,



I'm disappointed in K-Mart. Its kind of like how Sears wound up. My mother use to buy everything at Sears and they had damn good products. But that ended in the '80s with the investment boondoggle. I used to like K-Mart, they had a lot of good stuff if you looked around but since they got involved with Martha and Sears, they're now headed down the same road. I remember standing in a line a while back at KM and some guy in the line on his cellphone was saying "Yeah, I'm in line at K-Mart. They have 20 registers and only one is open." The stores have become dirty and disorganized, and their products just don't seem to be as diverse as in the past although prices seem to be holding, at least to me. I used to buy a LOT of stuff at K-Mart but that changed.

I think we've lost the old guard ownership and management to a newer generation that thinks a fast buck from junk is the way to do business.
 
Now I like my controls on the wheel for cruise and the radio.
At high speeds it's much easier NOT to have them there, than to LOOK at the stereo and turn it up or punch buttons.
Some of the other gadgets are what I call "go outs."
Because they go out, and then the are useless.
Voice activated is probably the most shocking to me.
Acura came out with that years ago when we were looking at one.
I could just see that going out, and then you would have to work the a/c manually. Oh the humanity!
That car lost out to a Subaru because it was reliable, practical, rode nice, and would go anywhere no matter what the terrain.
Just cruise and comfy seats, nothing else. Best car I ever owned, but that eventually lost out to something larger, which is what we have now.
If only I could put more comfortable seats in the current one, I'd be happy.
Oh sure Recaro makes some nice ones, but I'd have to match the leather, which would make the seats...well more than I want to pay for a pair, that's how much.


This is one of those case today that I have been lamenting for a long while---along with Tom. There is no such thing as a purely luxury car today. They have taken the sports car and given people the notion that they are luxury cars. That is the furthest thing from the truth. They have no room. The seats are like sitting on concrete benches and they ride stiff like a truck. You feel every bump in the road.
This is the reason that I reached back to 1986 to get a Cadillac because the Broughams were big, comfortable and ride like your sofa on wheels. :p There is no comparable "regular car" being made today unless you want a Rolls or a Bentley but they are small and cost WAYYYY too much money. :doh:
 
I think the gizmos are more for impressing others than for personal use.

I have been shopping for a new truck and just bought one today. I set out to buy one with no cruise, A/C, power windows/seats/locks, or anything. The only options I wanted were red paint, auto transmission, 4x4, and a sliding back window.

I could find no such truck. The one I bought is loaded with options. I will never use any of them, really. It even has rear-defrost, in a single cab truck. I've never even seen that before. All the goodies sure impressed my friends, though. It's just as well optioned as my Cadillac, minus the leather interior.

Yes, they are there to impress the friends and neighbors. :p I always laugh when I look at the hundreds of pages in the owner's manual for the Escalade. Yeah right, I am going to use all that. lol lol I use some of it though. :p
 
I saw CO back in the 80's.
Of course I saw Pink Floyd's The Wall around the same time.
Both films kind of blended together for me, so I don't remember either one. [huh]
It was a weird period for me, because I do remember some of the movie Brazil.
What an odd movie that was!

Since I rented a new car recently, because my "good" car was in the shop, I'll say I won't/don't miss all the electronic gadgets.
Every knob in this car turned, but it was all electronic. If you wanted the fan for the a/c to go up, you got a delay before the signal actually sped up the fan. The same goes for the stereo. The knobs on the steering wheel, good Heavens. I think the vehicle needed a class for new owners, just to use all the functions. Had this been a Cadillac or really high dollar car, I'd be lost. :eusa_doh:

If you don't remember it then it isn't worth remembering. Ban it now! :p

Don't laugh, my friend just bought a new car and they do have a class for new owners. He took it with his wife. lol lol
 

rjb1

Practically Family
Messages
561
Location
Nashville
Lizzie's experience with the seat adjuster reminds me of a recent rental car I drove. The clerk made a point of coming out with me to show me how to adjust the seat. The adjustment mechanism was part of a flat panel that laid flat against the seat upright, so that you would never recognize it as an adjustment mechanism, if someone didn't point it out. Apparently so many people had so much trouble with it that they made the explanation part of the rental process.
Truly poor design!
On a similar topic, I read an article recently that Ford was getting so much negative feedback from customers about their all-electronic controls that they were planning to re-introduce buttons and knobs. Perhaps there is hope yet...
 
Messages
10,883
Location
Portage, Wis.
Does yours have a lipstick, instead of a cigarette lighter?

Yes, they are there to impress the friends and neighbors. :p I always laugh when I look at the hundreds of pages in the owner's manual for the Escalade. Yeah right, I am going to use all that. lol lol I use some of it though. :p

Hit the nail on the head, there. My '96 Fleetwood Brougham is the final year they made a body-on-frame, RWD, V8 sedan. I love that car and I haven't been in anything newer that compares.

The whole sports car being luxury cars thing needs to go away. Bring me back the big dinosaurs that roamed the boulevards of this fine nation.

This is one of those case today that I have been lamenting for a long while---along with Tom. There is no such thing as a purely luxury car today. They have taken the sports car and given people the notion that they are luxury cars. That is the furthest thing from the truth. They have no room. The seats are like sitting on concrete benches and they ride stiff like a truck. You feel every bump in the road.
This is the reason that I reached back to 1986 to get a Cadillac because the Broughams were big, comfortable and ride like your sofa on wheels. :p There is no comparable "regular car" being made today unless you want a Rolls or a Bentley but they are small and cost WAYYYY too much money. :doh:
 
Messages
12,009
Location
East of Los Angeles
I had to use a loaner car recently...
A couple of years ago my wife and I attended her Goddaughter's wedding in Chicago, and the rental company gave us a new(ish) 2011 Jeep Patriot. While we were driving at night, we noticed the headlights would dim considerably whenever I used the turn indicators, but didn't know the full extent of the "problem" until after we had followed one of her brothers to a relative's house. When we arrived he got out of his car laughing and told us, "Your car was winking at us!". The "dimming" was actually the headlight turning off on whichever side of the car was indicating a turn, i.e. the left headlight would turn off when I indicated a left turn and the right headlight would turn off when I indicated a right turn. When we returned the car I informed the attendant of this problem, and he immediately replied, "Oh no, that's a safety feature." Really? Providing the driver with less light while driving at night is a safety feature??? :twitch:
 

LizzieMaine

Bartender
Messages
33,728
Location
Where The Tourists Meet The Sea
The phrase "super cute."

People who think "begs the question" means "raises the question."

Katie Couric.

TV stations and video packagers that stretch out programming produced in standard aspect ratio to fit the "wide screen" format.

The sports licensing industry.

The marketing concept of "cool."

The marketing concept of "kewl."

Marketing concepts.

People who are always telling you that they're one-thirty-second Native American. Except on St. Patrick's Day, when they all become one-sixteenth Irish.

Middle-aged skateboarders.

People who pronounce "no'theastah" as "nor'easter."

Bucket seats.

Peter Thiel.

People who wouldn't be caught dead eating a fluffernutter, but can't stop gushing about Nutella.

Asymmetrical haircuts.

The word "foodie."
 

Feraud

Bartender
Messages
17,190
Location
Hardlucksville, NY
A couple of years ago my wife and I attended her Goddaughter's wedding in Chicago, and the rental company gave us a new(ish) 2011 Jeep Patriot. While we were driving at night, we noticed the headlights would dim considerably whenever I used the turn indicators, but didn't know the full extent of the "problem" until after we had followed one of her brothers to a relative's house. When we arrived he got out of his car laughing and told us, "Your car was winking at us!". The "dimming" was actually the headlight turning off on whichever side of the car was indicating a turn, i.e. the left headlight would turn off when I indicated a left turn and the right headlight would turn off when I indicated a right turn. When we returned the car I informed the attendant of this problem, and he immediately replied, "Oh no, that's a safety feature." Really? Providing the driver with less light while driving at night is a safety feature??? :twitch:
That is an awful feature!
 
Messages
10,883
Location
Portage, Wis.
I'll second that one!

Bucket seats.

That's a terrible idea! I like more light when I'm turning, not less. Cornering lamps have always been the way to go, for the extra lighting. I have no idea why Jeep would do the exact opposite.

A couple of years ago my wife and I attended her Goddaughter's wedding in Chicago, and the rental company gave us a new(ish) 2011 Jeep Patriot. While we were driving at night, we noticed the headlights would dim considerably whenever I used the turn indicators, but didn't know the full extent of the "problem" until after we had followed one of her brothers to a relative's house. When we arrived he got out of his car laughing and told us, "Your car was winking at us!". The "dimming" was actually the headlight turning off on whichever side of the car was indicating a turn, i.e. the left headlight would turn off when I indicated a left turn and the right headlight would turn off when I indicated a right turn. When we returned the car I informed the attendant of this problem, and he immediately replied, "Oh no, that's a safety feature." Really? Providing the driver with less light while driving at night is a safety feature??? :twitch:
 

Edward

Bartender
Messages
25,078
Location
London, UK
Heh. Back in the days when I drove, I didn't like laid back seats of any sort (or, for that matter, driving - what bliss to live in a city with a reasonable public transport network!). I used to have them rigid, bolt upright... I'd probably fit better in a truck than a sports car.

A couple of years ago my wife and I attended her Goddaughter's wedding in Chicago, and the rental company gave us a new(ish) 2011 Jeep Patriot. While we were driving at night, we noticed the headlights would dim considerably whenever I used the turn indicators, but didn't know the full extent of the "problem" until after we had followed one of her brothers to a relative's house. When we arrived he got out of his car laughing and told us, "Your car was winking at us!". The "dimming" was actually the headlight turning off on whichever side of the car was indicating a turn, i.e. the left headlight would turn off when I indicated a left turn and the right headlight would turn off when I indicated a right turn. When we returned the car I informed the attendant of this problem, and he immediately replied, "Oh no, that's a safety feature." Really? Providing the driver with less light while driving at night is a safety feature??? :twitch:

My assumption would be that the headlight bulb going out was to allow the indicator flasher to be seen more clearly, showing you're turning. I've never seen that feature before, though - I'd have assumed it was a fault too, but I've not driven since February 1999.

People who are always telling you that they're one-thirty-second Native American. Except on St. Patrick's Day, when they all become one-sixteenth Irish.

Oh, don't even get me started on Plastic Paddies. Typically the first to throw into the bucket for bombs too.... (but let's not go through that door labelled Verboten, eh? ;) ).
 
Does yours have a lipstick, instead of a cigarette lighter?



Hit the nail on the head, there. My '96 Fleetwood Brougham is the final year they made a body-on-frame, RWD, V8 sedan. I love that car and I haven't been in anything newer that compares.

The whole sports car being luxury cars thing needs to go away. Bring me back the big dinosaurs that roamed the boulevards of this fine nation.

No, it has two lighter receptacles but I think they are more for charging ithingies than for actually lighting anything. :p The Broughams have one on each door. :p Four lighters. :p That would make sense for today's technophiles. I wonder why they put less in? CHEAP!

Yes, a luxury car should not only get you there in style but in comfort as well. You should also be able to put lots of suitcases in the trunk for long trips. I went to the store recently and when I opened my trunk the rice rocket owner next to me marveled at how much space there was. I should have told them not to be surprised if their car wasn't there when they came out. I might put it in my trunk and take off with it. :p
 

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