Modern Cars

[Hilldodger]

The insurance company have given me a Vauxhall Astra Billy Whizzer thing as a courtesy car

It's an SRI, is very quick and works well as a machine but is totally without character and has sooo many gadgets. There appears to be three different indicator functions

And whats with all modern cars havng small windows? I actually feel claustrophobic in the damn thing.

Horrible.

Give me a pre war Bugatti any day. No, please, give me a pre war Bugatti. Or an Alfa of similar age if you must.

 

[Mortiroloboy]

Grrrrrrrrr, don't talk to me about cars Grrr, my multipla is currently sat round at my mechanics, waiting on two rear radius arms, going to cost me the price of Ribble winter trainer to get it sorted. Grrr.

 

[snakehips]

My modest little box has cruise control ! Where can you use that ? In London ? On Britain's motorways ?

 

[Arch]

There appears to be three different indicator functions

My old mini had three indicator functions: Left, Right, Off.....

I know what you mean though. All fancy gadgets and a body shape you can't see the edges of, and still useless if you live in an ungritted London street and don't know how to drive on snow...

 

[Mr Pig]

The simpler the car is the happier I am. Our car has stuff like electric sunroof and mirrors, what for? Handles did the job and never went wrong. In some ways I'm happy that we can't afford a new car because there aren't any new cars that I'd want. Overly complex and no character, they're just domestic appliances.

 

[LLB]

The insurance company have given me a Vauxhall Astra Billy Whizzer thing as a courtesy car

It's an SRI, is very quick and works well as a machine but is totally without character and has sooo many gadgets. There appears to be three different indicator functions

And whats with all modern cars havng small windows? I actually feel claustrophobic in the damn thing.

Horrible.

Give me a pre war Bugatti any day. No, please, give me a pre war Bugatti. Or an Alfa of similar age if you must.

You are echoing the sentiments of the now retired Chief designer at Rover (Spen King). My sister had a focus, swapped to a new Astra last year and said exactly the same thing.

LORRIES ARE INVISIBLE. Honestly. You can sit in
some new cars and not see an articulated lorry only
50m away because of the design of the A-pillars, the
spars that frame the windscreen. Doesn’t bother the
lorry driver, but it should worry us. A bike can be
tracked by the pillar blind-spot of a moving car on a
curved road or roundabout, right up to the point of
impact. The driver will never have seen you.
When 19.7 per cent of all accidents in the UK are
caused by drivers who ‘Look But Fail To See’* (see
June issue) and the latest European study reveals
nearly 55 per cent of all bike crashes occur at
junctions*, it seems obvious that obtrusive, chunky
A-pillars are a real problem. So why is there no
research into this issue and why does nobody
seem to even recognise this blinding danger?
Renowned car designer Spen King – responsible
for the original Range Rover and the Rover 200
series – believes bikers are increasingly in danger
because of modern A-pillar design. ‘Too much
emphasis has been placed on secondary safety – the
protection of vehicle occupants from a crash. As a
result, the dangers to those outside the vehicle have
increased. Manufacturers need to concentrate more
on primary safety – avoiding the accident in the
first place,’ he says.
The latest Euro NCAP (European New Car
Assessment Programme) results, released in June,
show more cars winning five-stars for occupancy
protection but scoring badly for primary protection.
The Vauxhall Astra, Saab 9-3 convertible and Fiat
Doblo all scored high for passenger protection and
just one star for primary safety.

http://74.125.77.132/search?q=cache...rn+car+safety+pillar&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=uk

 

[Arch]

The simpler the car is the happier I am. Our car has stuff like electric sunroof and mirrors, what for? Handles did the job and never went wrong.

I think I'd actually choose manual handles, for safety. While I've never been trapped in a flooded car, I do know that you can still trust a handle to work under water.

 

[Rhythm Thief]

On a slightly different subject, my boss was showing me the ancient ERF tractor unit he uses as a breakdown truck last night. He's just restored it, and it's beautiful! I told him if he ever wanted to give it to me instead of the horrible modern Renault Premium (with horrible automatic gearbox - yeeuch), I'd love to drive it.

 

[tyred]

I don't like modern cars either. They lack character, have pathetic visibility and are much too complicated for people like me who likes to fix my own car. People go on about efficiency and economy but what's the point when it costs ££££££s to diagnose some silly electrical problem.

 

[sheddy]

Its at this time of year that I notice that leecy windows were invented for the lazy motons who can't be arsed to clear their windows...

 

[zimzum42]

I think I'd actually choose manual handles, for safety. While I've never been trapped in a flooded car, I do know that you can still trust a handle to work under water.

Clearly the life of a provincial archaeologist is akin to that of James Bond these days!

 

[LLB]

Its at this time of year that I notice that leecy windows were invented for the lazy motons who can't be arsed to clear their windows...

So you wind the snowed up window down and fill the car with it, or do you mean both front and rear electric demisters which only ford has the license to put on its cars ?

What is with this 'Moton' name anyway ? . Most cyclists on here drive as well.

 

[sheddy]

Clearly the life of a provincial archaeologist is akin to that of James Bond these days

Is that a bone in your pocket or are you just pleased to see me ?

 

[Young Un]

I like hardly any modern cars...

..which is why I would like a ford anglia for my first car

 

[Arch]

Clearly the life of a provincial archaeologist is akin to that of James Bond these days!

Did you never see Bonekickers?

LLB - I think sheddy probably (I may be wrong), means people get into cars and rely on the heated windscreens to clear the snow or ice, meaning they probably drive off with the merest letterbox area cleared to peer through, and the first time they stop, the snow on the roof slides down and obscures the screen all over again....

I cleared my Mum's car yesterday morning, with a broom, barely a flake left clinging to it by the time I finished - screens, roof, side windows, mirrors, lights, plates. But a lot of people don't bother.

I've always taken Moton to mean that sort of driver that none of us would want to admit to being - thoughtless, in a world of their own, impatient. Not all motorists are motons, but if someone doesn't clear their car properly, they probably are...