What Happened To All My Car's Buttons?
Why hello there! It's time for another episode of the TTAC podcast!
Why do new cars not have enough buttons and knobs?
We find out with analyst Ed Kim from AutoPacific.
Also, TTAC contributor Matthew Guy and I discuss winter windshield wipers and the future of NASCAR driver Daniel Suarez.
Kim passed on some data that we weren't able to get to during the recording, just as an FYI for you all:
60 percent of new vehicle shoppers say that "I like the nice clean look of screens instead of buttons and dials,” but 48 percent say “I'd rather control my vehicle’s functions with dials or buttons than use a screen.” That adds up to 108 percent, which means there is definitely at least some overlap of people who want the look that screens provide and people who would rather use physical controls.
FYI, 44 percent say “The more screens in my vehicle the better” and 53 percent say “I’d like to have the option to upgrade the size of my center screen.”
So basically, the big story here is that physical controls are very well liked and desired, but so is the look of screens. Give the people both!
You can find us wherever you get your podcasts or by clicking here. If you like what you hear, please leave a review!
We thank Ed Kim and Matthew Guy for their time, and Matt Posky for editing. Most of all, we thank you for listening!
We'll see you next time!
[Image: Volkswagen/VerticalScope/TTAC.com]
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Tim Healey grew up around the auto-parts business and has always had a love for cars — his parents joke his first word was “‘Vette”. Despite this, he wanted to pursue a career in sports writing but he ended up falling semi-accidentally into the automotive-journalism industry, first at Consumer Guide Automotive and later at Web2Carz.com. He also worked as an industry analyst at Mintel Group and freelanced for About.com, CarFax, Vehix.com, High Gear Media, Torque News, FutureCar.com, Cars.com, among others, and of course Vertical Scope sites such as AutoGuide.com, Off-Road.com, and HybridCars.com. He’s an urbanite and as such, doesn’t need a daily driver, but if he had one, it would be compact, sporty, and have a manual transmission.
More by Tim Healey
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- Normie I like Corey's posts because his earnest effort makes for a civilized comment space.And I get more information and curiosity from his lavish coverage of a car that was never "me" than from any articles I've seen about my cherished tall & boxies.
- Bookish So some lawyer comes up with a scam to shake down the auto industry and the NYT makes it an ethical crusade against Ford. And you repeat it moralistically and uncritically.
- Normie "Big Oil"From OZ?
- AZFelix This generation of Cadillac articles also shows consistent placement of photos relative to the corresponding text.
- Biff Finally the chickens have come home to roost. I have been saying this for three years: just wait until the EV’ers have to pay the road tax. Lets not forget that it’s California we are talking about and they have never met a tax they didn’t like. Plus it’s “the rich” buying new cars so its a double “lets tax’em!” The solution is simple enough. Have EV’s go into emissions stations as part of license plate renewal. Except here record the milage and get a bill for the cost. The rate should be around 1.5X the comparable gas size vehicle due to added weight. Lets watch the progessive politics swallow this one!
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I think buying decisions now must be made to buy vehicles made before the infestation of info systems with touch screens. These are expensive to replace and are unsafe to use while driving.