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Sedans Luxury Lounge
21519 messages, Last post on Dec 07, 2009 at 6:26 PM
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Replying to: ljflx (Mar 27, 2009 7:01 am) Len, This is old news... even if recently reported. And you are right that it isn't good strategy... and apparently Toyota now thinks so, too. Their U.S. approach to the Insight will now be to add a new hybrid, rather than re-introducing the old one... which is indeed a better strategy. Toyota's latest U.S. strategy is to offer a hybrid Yaris or equivalent, which would be a cheaper alternative. That would give them the cheap hybrid as well as the premium hybrid... therefore theoretically putting a little more squeeze on Honda. Unfortunately for Toyota, however, Honda's Insight will still be perceived as a less costly Prius-fighter, and Honda will also introduce a hybrid version of their very successful Fit model. That's the one that will likely give Toyota a big headache. And, of course, there's still the Civic hybrid to contend with. At this point, I see this vehicle category heating up in a big way and getting ultra competitive... it will ultimately benefit the hybrid consumer in spades. TM |
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Replying to: tayl0rd (Mar 27, 2009 4:08 am) I don't think that's really the same idea. The '80s digital dash was purely an aesthetic, it served no function that analog gauges did not. '80s designers were obsessed with straight angles and robots, so the digital dash replaced '50s fins as the design excess of the decade. The iPod simply copied something that already existed (what Apple always does), and made it easier to use/shinier. The equivalent of dangling car keys in front of a baby. Early digital cameras and plasma TVs were very successful, despite serious flaws and enormous price tags. In my opinion, digital dashes didn't catch on because they were hideous. The '80s were the absolute nadir of car design world over, and I'm glad those days (and those dashes) are gone. Putting every secondary control on a single screen just isn't smart. If the wrong sunlight hits it, or you're wearing the wrong sunglasses, essentially all the controls are rendered invisible. Even if you can see it, it will constantly be covered in dust and finger prints. How attractive. Let me demonstrate the point. No car embodied the digital dash more than the Aston Martin Lagonda, both in Series 1 LED form, and Series 2 CRT form. LED technology in the late '70s was a big deal and Aston really broke new ground. Should they have? No.   Now here's a modern Aston flagship with proper needles and dials.  Audi's driver information display is sort of the modern interpretation of the digital dash, and it makes sense to have a digital readout of things like music info, temperature, miles remaining in the tank etc. However, when it comes to the tach and speedo, I want needles and dials, and on the center stack I want knobs and buttons.
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Replying to: ljflx (Mar 27, 2009 7:01 am) I really didn't know any of this was happening. I like wars that benefit the consumer. |
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Replying to: lexusguy (Mar 27, 2009 10:06 am) That early rendition of digital was hideous... yet even if it was analog it would have been hideous. Looks terrible either way. Designs evolve and change. The digital GUI on the iPhone for example is simple, but it is still very cool. I am convinced that it is entirely possible to design a cool digital GUI in a vehicle's cockpit, and I believe that we will see a good execution of one in the near future anyway. TM
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Renault has just announced car production is to be increased from next week onwards in each of the three factories they have in Spain. As a consequence workers have been called to resume not only full labor-week turns and but also temporary saturday work. This is due to increased car demand all over Europe. European Gvs., in particular in Germany and France, have started subsidizing car turnover plans. Regards, Jose (On the other hand, I have to say, I miss Bristol2, a good friend in this Forum. Where are you, David?) |
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Replying to: tagman (Mar 27, 2009 10:20 am) Possibly. The S-class with Nightview Assist has a digital dash, with a "fake" analog gauge when the display is turned off. I prefer BMW's version in the 7, which still has proper gauges. I just don't like the flat, 2d look that you get in the Benz. The iPhone's GUI is very useful for certain things, but when it comes to editing documents or composing emails, I'll take my Nokia E90's big physical keyboard any day of the week. When I want to adjust the temperature in the car, give me a button I can press or a knob I can turn. I don't want to stab at a piece of glass.  
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Replying to: lexusguy (Mar 27, 2009 1:01 pm) I'm OK with either touch screen or a button/knob, it just depends on which one is set up better. Sometimes I even prefer the voice command, and not have to touch anything at all. It's all about how well it's done. Designs constantly evolve and change, and sometimes in the process they actually improve. BTW, I like the Mercedes dash (and the BMW dash as well)... interesting (almost strange) to see the contrasting classic analog clock in the lower right corner in the MB picture.  TM |
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Dials. In the absence of space constraints that demand a smaller readout, a la an F1 cockpit, I prefer dials and needles as well. I'll go further, in that I much prefer simple backlighting to elctro-chromatic displays. And my further preference is for white dials with black indicators. One of the downsides to upscale, IMO, often is a lot of wasted effort on "enhanced" visuals that are anything but, in a quest to achieve a kind of next-step sophistication. Ad absurdum. That's my Friday rant. I'm all better now. thanks. BTW, the TTS still has not arrived. Got a call Wednesday that the carrier had to seek shelter from hail storms! Better late than damaged (which is not an option, of course). |
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Replying to: plan_man (Mar 27, 2009 4:23 pm) I agree, my preference is for simple, elegant gauges. The "halo" rings on Acuras and some Infinitis look cartoonish and chintzy, and do nothing to enhance the car. They are mostly just distracting. Lexus gauges used to be excellent when they were just white EL with the red floating needle effect. They've totally lost the plot now though, the new RX has their most ostentatious and generally annoying gauges yet, with that dumb blue "glow" effect. Unsurprisingly, Audi's gauges remain some of the absolute best. I've also found that I've grown very fond of the center driver display, and I miss it when I'm driving other cars. In my opinion, white dials only work in classic cars, and seem to clash with modern materials. 
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Replying to: lexusguy (Mar 27, 2009 5:03 pm) Well, of course you will like the Audi speedo meter, because you will drive
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