In-car tech v driver distraction

**george formby** · 25th November 2010, 16:30

This is a bit long winded but discusses the effects of in car technology from the manufacturers perspective ($$$$$) & safety advocates (lives). Imagine in a few years somebody updating facebook in their land cruiser whilst negotiating the Mangamukas, it's comin & it's legal.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=47b_1290622681

**bogan** · 7th March 2011, 11:17

and others are getting in on it too A car that can read out email, Facebook updates cos apparently inattention is using you hands to do other tasks, not the mind

would be ok if it was just for traffic jams, and as soon as the car starts moving it says 'watch the road asshole' or maybe if the car had following radar and lane awarness and it was only used in slow moving traffic jams. But tbh, i think it'd be safer to raise the speed limit enough that people don't get bored enough to want to be distracted while driving.

**onearmedbandit** · 7th March 2011, 11:26

Oooo, do they have that for bikes? Updating my status while riding is sometimes just too taxing with only one arm. That would be a godsend!

**YellowDog** · 7th March 2011, 11:37

I do hate all this gimmicky crap that is there to help sell cars, but mostly serves to distract drivers and reduce their ability to drive safely.

**onearmedbandit** · 7th March 2011, 11:43

Originally Posted by YellowDog

I do hate all this gimmicky crap that is there to help sell cars, but mostly serves to distract drivers and reduce their ability to drive safely.

I've got a well sounded argument against what you're saying but it will have to wait as traffic has just started moving again and my toast is almost ready, and I think that's the jug on the go too. If I can't log back in here (just about on the motorway now) I'll update my status on FB with my point.

**scumdog** · 7th March 2011, 12:11

Originally Posted by YellowDog

I do hate all this gimmicky crap that is there to help sell cars, but mostly serves to distract drivers and reduce their ability to drive safely.

Yep, about 75% of what gizmos CAN do is wasted on me.

Giving me an 'up-spec' car is like giving an aborigine a control set for a Polaris missile...

**Swoop** · 7th March 2011, 12:14

It's probably not a bad thing in a way.
Cars are on the verge of fully driving themselves, so the "driver" can sit in the back and facetweet 'till their heart's content.

**mashman** · 7th March 2011, 12:20

An ex boss of mine used to drive along the motorway watching the news on the LCD display in his BMW... scared the shit out of me. Tis ALL a distraction.

**Toaster** · 7th March 2011, 12:30

Originally Posted by scumdog

Yep, about 75% of what gizmos CAN do is wasted on me.

Giving me an 'up-spec' car is like giving an aborigine a control set for a Polaris missile...

Give me a 1970s V8 classic car and a simple solid reliable motorcycle any day.

One of the complaints you hear from driving journalists is that the over-techno cars really do take the raw fun out of driving. I guess the closest to that in bikes would be the high spec gold wing.... more buttons than a jumbo jet by the looks.

**Swoop** · 7th March 2011, 13:05

Originally Posted by Toaster

I guess the closest to that in bikes would be the high spec gold wing.... more buttons than a jumbo jet by the looks.

I believe the Jumbo Jet is lighter than a goldwing.

**CookMySock** · 7th March 2011, 13:16

Originally Posted by scumdog

Yep, about 75% of what gizmos CAN do is wasted on me.

That puts you in a really good position, because about 75% of many peoples lives are wasted on electronic gizmos.

**ducatilover** · 7th March 2011, 14:22

Originally Posted by mashman

An ex boss of mine used to drive along the motorway watching the news on the LCD display in his BMW... scared the shit out of me. Tis ALL a distraction.

The screens in BMWs were all legally required to be non viewable to the driver at any more than a walking pace (can't remember the exact speed), so you could watch shit during traffic jams in you nice E39 540i etc. It must have been toyed with to override this function, as it was in the E39 from the word go and the E38, this was in the mid 90's.

**davebullet** · 7th March 2011, 14:28

Let's do some math on driver attention to driving:

Fiddling with Stereo - 5%
Listening to music (zoning out on the boring drive) - 10%
Checking the GPS - 5%
Reading the gauges - 10%
Distractions from passengers - 25%
Talking into their hands free - 20%
- that's 75% used up

When you add to the fact:
- Poor driving skills
- Tiredness / emotional distraction

there isn't a lot of "attention left in the tank" is there?

**mashman** · 7th March 2011, 14:28

Originally Posted by ducatilover

The screens in BMWs were all legally required to be non viewable to the driver at any more than a walking pace (can't remember the exact speed), so you could watch shit during traffic jams in you nice E39 540i etc. It must have been toyed with to override this function, as it was in the E39 from the word go and the E38, this was in the mid 90's.

It was a 2003 BMW M3. Not sure if it came as standard, but it was enough of a distraction for him to be twiddling with whilst bangin along the motorway... I didn't mind the speed, it was the, look you can watch Coronation Street... WTF!!!

**ducatilover** · 7th March 2011, 14:29

Originally Posted by mashman

It was a 2003 BMW M3. Not sure if it came as standard, but it was enough of a distraction for him to be twiddling with whilst bangin along the motorway... I didn't mind the speed, it was the, look you can watch Coronation Street... WTF!!!

Odd, why the fuck would someone drive an E46 M3 and want to even consider TV? It's a glorious car.