10 Car Performance Fads That Need to Go Away

 

I have a Dodge Charger with the monostable shifter. I like the car a lot, and over 3 years have had no issues with it. The eight speed transmission works well and it gets great mpg, but I really dislike the shifter. There is no tactile feedback which increases the risk when shifting of missing your target gear. Of course, looking at the indicator on the dash will clearly show you. This is the only car that I've had concerns about what gear I’m in. To really understand the shifting situation it requires driving one of these for a while to experience the problem when you think you are in park, but you are in reverse, or the other way around.

 

My '12 Jeep has the old style shifter and I understand it is what the 16's have. In the middle Chrysler went to an kind of electronic inline shifter that is now being recalled for saying it is in park when it isn't. It is said to have caused the death of an actor.


For a tow car, I like mine. When in Drive, just move sideways to up/down shift. Nice on twisty roads in the hills.


But then my fun cars have manual transmissions (is now 3 and 3).


As to displays I find that my cell phone and Torque Pro can add up to 6 readouts on each page and is easier to read than the dash with sunglasses on. That said I am only willing to pay for one subscription ($500/year unlimited talk, messages, data) so use it in all my cars (adding handsfree to the 70 was "interesting".


Do have a larger display and backup camera in my Jeep but dash is not cluttered.

 

The trend to electronically fit autos has caused quite the problem with safety lately. The actor that played 'Chekov' in the last two Star Trek movies, got crushed behind a vehicle with one of those electronic transmissions. I will not own a vehicle with electronic steering. I will not own a vehicle without a mechanical interlock that insures the transmission is in park (the XF key will not remove without it being in park, hence no walking away from a mechanically sound vehicle). Too much designed into these vehicles without proper safety interlocks!

 

Most of these things are to each their own