Remember the good old days of the Ambassador and the Premier Padmini cars? Ask anyone who has driven these beautiful machines and there is a very good chance that the person will say that those were the golden days of driving.
Moreover, whether it was the Ambassador, Fiat, Premier Padmini, Standard Herald, Gazel or 2000 or the Hindustan Contessa, a car was quite often regarded as a family member. Today, it is largely seen as a commodity.
With the cars of yesteryear, one needed skill to drive and a bit of muscle too. While driving any of the older cars, people got a thrill out of it. Comparatively, today’s cars are a breeze to drive with all the electronics and luxuries they have in them. This probably encourages irresponsible drivers to get on the road and become potential hazards.
This is the age of the connected car. The amount of electronics that goes into cars these days is mind-boggling. There is a convenience factor; it looks very cool and driving these is not very difficult for almost anyone. Today’s cars, however, have taken away the fun of driving to a large extent. The tendency is to constantly fiddle with the gadgetry in the cabin.
There is also a safety aspect to it. Imagine the risk involved when the driver is trying to change settings or access music on a touchscreen. Taking your eyes off the road for just a few moments is a recipe for disaster. With the good old-fashioned non-touchscreen audio system, the driver did not really have to take his or her eyes off the road because of familiarity. After a while, the hands become used to where the controls are and there is no need to even look and then change settings. The same goes for other things like the air-conditioner controls.
One can argue that a lot of these features can be done using voice commands, but the question is whether all cars have such advanced technologies. Having advanced features automatically drives up the cost and can be a factor in a price-sensitive market like India.
Take the case of a car having an e-SIM in it. People are already uncomfortable with companies like Google and Facebook tracking what users do on their smartphones and pushing advertisements. Would we want our vehicle movement to be tracked too?
Even a few years ago, cars had electronics in terms of the engine control unit, anti-lock braking systems, brake force distribution systems, airbag sensors and the like. However, these are necessary and technologies for safety, which are not something unnecessary.
Modern technologies like hybrid cars also require a lot of electronics. Again, this is not something that is unnecessary as it's making the cars more fuel-efficient and protecting the environment to an extent.
Back then, small mechanic shops could fix cars like the ambassador and Premier Padmini. Now, most car owners are not comfortable giving it to private mechanics. In case of a breakdown, most owners would certainly prefer to get it fixed at the company service facilities.
Technology and electronics have made cars safer and reliable, but it appears that we are going overboard with in-cabin gadgetry.