Car Advice

[Out of the Rafters at the Q]

Oddly spot on with one I’ve seen, different model.

This isn’t meant to be a slight against Tesla, or to say they don’t have safety features. It’s entirely anecdotal.

But I’ve seen enough to be petrified to be in one if something goes REALLY bad.

The big problem is that the "safety feature" of a door release should never be a different way than normal.

If you're in an emergency situation, there's a good chance you panic and aren't thinking clearly. You might not think of where a manual release is for a door--you hit the first thing you see and then FREAK THE FUCK OUT when it doesn't work.

Door latches that fail when power is disrupted should be illegal. They cost lives.

 

[MikeOC33]

Door latches on many vehicles are getting overly and unnecessarily complicated. Power assist, push button, push here and this pops out...just because you can create a different type of door latch doesn't mean they should. Keep it simple, or it's stupid.

 

[Out of the Rafters at the Q]

Door latches on many vehicles are getting overly and unnecessarily complicated. Power assist, push button, push here and this pops out...just because you can create a different type of door latch doesn't mean they should. Keep it simple, or it's stupid.

I'm okay with fancy door latches that are electronic, but it has to be THE SAME LATCH that operates manually when the power is severed or the electronics fail.

Many cars have this. Some cheap out and do not.

 

[Criznit]

In regards to door latches...

There is a reason automatic seatbelts don't really exist anymore.

 

[macbdog]

Oddly spot on with one I’ve seen, different model.

This isn’t meant to be a slight against Tesla, or to say they don’t have safety features. It’s entirely anecdotal.

But I’ve seen enough to be petrified to be in one if something goes REALLY bad.

The new Suzuki Samurai. All the rage until the body bags started to pile up.

 

[KI4MVP]

Door latches on many vehicles are getting overly and unnecessarily complicated. Power assist, push button, push here and this pops out...just because you can create a different type of door latch doesn't mean they should. Keep it simple, or it's stupid.

automatic doors on the Tesla have always served a purpose. They don't have to build a window seal into the door. Pressing the button lowers the window slightly before the door opens. Then the window closes and seals after the door is closed. So the whole part that normally is added to the door around the window isn't needed, which reduces weight and cost.

The purpose was recently extended. Car now checks for approaching vehicles, pedestrians, or cyclists before opening the door and will beep instead of opening if the door could be hit when opened. Second press overrides this.

Small refinement to improve safety. Tesla constantly makes refinements like this.

 

[Out of the Rafters at the Q]

automatic doors on the Tesla have always served a purpose. They don't have to build a window seal into the door. Pressing the button lowers the window slightly before the door opens. Then the window closes and seals after the door is closed. So the whole part that normally is added to the door around the window isn't needed, which reduces weight and cost.

The purpose was recently extended. Car now checks for approaching vehicles, pedestrians, or cyclists before opening the door and will beep instead of opening if the door could be hit when opened. Second press overrides this.

Small refinement to improve safety. Tesla constantly makes refinements like this.

"People's lives don't matter because it saves us some money on door seals" isn't the glowing endorsement you think it is.

 

[MikeOC33]

In regards to door latches...

There is a reason automatic seatbelts don't really exist anymore.

What do you mean?

 

[MikeOC33]

automatic doors on the Tesla have always served a purpose. They don't have to build a window seal into the door. Pressing the button lowers the window slightly before the door opens. Then the window closes and seals after the door is closed. So the whole part that normally is added to the door around the window isn't needed, which reduces weight and cost.

The purpose was recently extended. Car now checks for approaching vehicles, pedestrians, or cyclists before opening the door and will beep instead of opening if the door could be hit when opened. Second press overrides this.

Small refinement to improve safety. Tesla constantly makes refinements like this.

I understand weight savings, and certainly safety approaches, I am talking solely about the simplicity or complicatedness of a door handle itself.

If an average person can't figure out how to open an unfamiliar car door, either from the outside, or the inside, then it is too complicated or too hidden. This is not necessary.

Also, if a normal person is perplexed how to open a weird car door latch under normal conditions, it ain't gonna be any simpler under a stressful/dangerous condition.

One of the things I do not like with the Mach E is it does not have an exterior door latch. It has a push button on the B pillar. Push the button and an interior peg pushes open the door about an inch. Then you use a dead handle to pull it open. The interior has a normalish lever.

 

[Criznit]

What do you mean?

Automatic seatbelts were only a major thing for a few years. Prone to failure they were phased out rather quickly.

I seem to recall a story of an elderly woman who was trapped in her car for a couple of days when the battery died. Sure most people would've made it out before rescue (no cure for stupidity) but some couldn't figure it out or were physically unable to.

Here is something I found after a quick Google, actually could be deep dive worthy if I get bored enough.

Here Is Why the Automatic Seat Belt Was a Terrible Idea

Automatic seat belts were prevalent in many cars in the late 80s and early 90s. Eventually, they were banned because they were unsafe and were replaced by airbags.

www.motorbiscuit.com

 

[KI4MVP]

Anyone who's looking for a car really should find a way to test this before they buy

 

[KI4MVP]

Better video of the new Full Self Driving, which was released to just a few people yesterday.

 

[bigking777]

Nice.
The last two updates have been major improvements.
Running 12.5.4.2 now.

 

[prf100]

Better video of the new Full Self Driving, which was released to just a few people yesterday.

Got a 30 day free trial of FSD. Struggled with our dark, narrow streets in a big way. Nothing dangerous, but would slow down / semi-brake check for no apparent reason. I'm happy with it on the highway, would trust it on very "typical" streets, but the seemingly random slow downs / brake checks don't give me a lot of confidence in autonomous driving being anywhere close. Just happened too frequently for me to be comfortable - and I'll admit, I have a high bar here, if its autonomous driving that we're striving for.

 

[KI4MVP]

Got a 30 day free trial of FSD. Struggled with our dark, narrow streets in a big way. Nothing dangerous, but would slow down / semi-brake check for no apparent reason. I'm happy with it on the highway, would trust it on very "typical" streets, but the seemingly random slow downs / brake checks don't give me a lot of confidence in autonomous driving being anywhere close. Just happened too frequently for me to be comfortable - and I'll admit, I have a high bar here, if its autonomous driving that we're striving for.

How long ago was the trial?

It keeps getting better through rapid releases.

My car is on v12.5.4.2, which is significantly better than the version they did the free trial on earlier this year
My son's car is on v12.5.6.2, which is significantly better than what I have
v13.2.x is a major improvement over either.

Only a few weeks separate these releases. Tesla AI team is moving fast.

Tesla built the one of the largest AI supercomputers in the world to train v13. This is the first build trained with that.

Here's an example of v13.2 slowing down for a pedestrian the driver didn't see until he reviewed the video later.