Quote:
Originally Posted by jamesqf
Reduced cost? I don't know about that. Sure, it's cheap to draw icons on a screen, but you have to connect those icons to electromechanical actuators somehow. So for an example, is it cheaper to roll down your window with a screen icon, a switch by the window, or a handle?
You also need to ask how many of those functions of modern cars need to be acessible (or even should be accessible) while driving. Sure, an LCD display for diagnostics &c would be a fine thing (which could be done perfectly well with a laptop or tablet), but it should hide out of sight while the driver concentrates on driving.
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It's likely cheaper for a car loaded with features to be touch-screen controlled vs mechanical switch. Take HVAC for instance. If the car has temperature control, then it's cheaper use the display to set the temperature than to have separate buttons and LCD display. As far as windows; it's probably cheaper to control by screen since transistors are cheaper than mechanical switches. Nobody uses manual cranks anymore, so that's a moot point. Every car I've had with manual windows has had at least 1 issue, either with the crank stripping, popping off, or the window falling. I've never had a single issue with automatic windows.
There are trade-offs by having most everything be controlled and displayed on a single screen, but the benefits likely outweigh the drawbacks. Besides, the vision of the Tesla is not to drive the vehicle, but to be a passenger. Perhaps the display is a bit premature, but not by much.
As an aside, the only manual control I prefer are seats. Waiting for motors to slowly wind a seat into position is frustrating. When I want the seat back, I want it back now, not 1 minute from now.
Finally, the type of people who buy a Tesla are the type that like automated design. People that want manual everything buy a 1969 Beetle.