Looking At Older Cars That Don't Have Modern Tech / Electronic Gizmos and Sensors etc......

Mildly_Miffed

I had a rental the other week with HUD and adaptive cruise.

Great... But, blimey, it was distracting focussing on the display and wondering when it'd see the car in front that I'd have already eased off for, but - hey - let's see how well this works...

I'm sure the novelty would have worn off, but probably to be replaced with complacency and laziness.

There were definitely a few points where it was doing things I most certainly wouldn't have.

ididgetwhereiamtoday

How about an early basic Dacia Sandero? They were very basic. 

FlorayG

pseudodox said:

FlorayG said:

I was recently thinking about selling my 2003 Defender and getting something smaller. Every dealer went on and on about this gadget, that gadget, it's got this, it's got that...I just wanted a car that would go reliably and stop safely. In the end I decided to keep the Defender!

Good to hear of your 2003 vehicle still giving satisfactory service.  I am taking my 2005 car for her annual service and MOT next week.  Notwithstanding minor repairs over the years (all cars need new tyres, wipers, brake shoes etc) she runs like a dream and has very little that is complicated or that that can go expensively wrong.  So having passed her last 5 MOTs with flying colours I am keeping fingers crossed as I have no intention of replacing her.  When I bought this car about the most "exciting" feature the dealer pushed was the colour choice of the upholstery!

My elderly cousin drives a 2013 Defender and because of a minor incident he was sent for a driver assessment.  He has never had a serious accident, always driven big 4WDs, towed trailers and caravans and done years of rallying and off roading in very basic stripped out vehicles.  He was so confused by the gadgets, digital displays and gizmos of the assessment car he failed & to avoid a court appearance has to have driving lessons in a small modern gadget packed car in the hope he can pass a re-test only to get his beloved uncomplicated Defender back on the road

Oh, she never passes the MOT  despite regular servicing and maintenance. Last year cost me over £1,000 but the point is, that £1,000 was to replace parts over 20 years old so they won't need replacing again in my lifetime. No rust, good engine, everything else gets replaced as it wears out. Its something you have to expect with an old vehicle and have a fund for.
I feel for your elderly cousin - I often have to drive a hire car to a work meeting and all those beeps and lights drive me insane because I have no idea what they are for. The first time I got given one that automatically cuts out the engine when you stop I called the hire company and told them it was dangerously faulty...

Ditzy_Mitzy

That_Sinking_Feeling said:

Our household runs two Ford Focuses.

Mine is a 2017 with the dreaded 'Ecoboom' engine so not what you're looking for. 

My husband's previously belonged to me, but I gave it to him and bought another when the mileage reached 170k. It's a 2012 1.6 Ti-VCT engine, which is pretty much the 1990s Ford Sigma engine with variable timing. It has had a couple of things go wrong with it over the years but they were good old-fashioned mechanical things, if that makes sense. And it's pretty tappety now, but that's not surprising with its mileage.

Neither Focus is overwrought with gadgets, IMO - you turn the lights on and off yourself, you turn the windscreen wipers on and off yourself... you get the idea. 

My other car is a 1987 Ford Sierra and I kinda miss the air con when I'm driving that! 😂

My parents have got a '15' plate Focus automatic with that engine.  It punches above its weight, size-wise, but would be better suited to a manual gearbox, I think.  That said, I still don't know what half the gadgets fitted to it do!  

My own car is the previous model Focus, which suits me better for being a bit faster and less well equipped with electronic stuff.  The Mk2, in all sorts of ways, was behind the times - perhaps it's something the OP could consider as a Rover replacement?  Mine's got nothing you wouldn't get in a 1990s car (bar a typically severe, early-2000s interior) and drives like one.  

I used to want a Sierra, but never managed to own one!  Had a couple of early Mondeos, back when they were cheap, and briefly had use of a 2000 OHC Cortina - great to drive, but heavy steering at low speed.  

Mildly_Miffed

FlorayG said:

Oh, she never passes the MOT  despite regular servicing and maintenance. Last year cost me over £1,000 but the point is, that £1,000 was to replace parts over 20 years old so they won't need replacing again in my lifetime.

Mmm. I hope you picked the parts brands VERY carefully, because there's an AWFUL lot of utter junk about, especially from a very well known LR-specialist brand. Stuff that's almost unusable straight out of the box - often, the "almost" doesn't even apply. I refuse to buy their parts for my Series.

As for "no rust" on a Defender... I do admire an optimist. Chassis, bulkhead, door frames, under-tub supports, etc etc. The panels may be ally, but that still corrodes - and there's a lot of very rot-prone steel under the surface.

Alanp

Mine has loads of gadgets, surround cameras, auto tailgate, it even parks itself, I love em, am I worried about reliability, ?, not really, it’s a Toyota ( yes I know they’re not infallible) , 

FlorayG

Mildly_Miffed said:

FlorayG said:

Oh, she never passes the MOT  despite regular servicing and maintenance. Last year cost me over £1,000 but the point is, that £1,000 was to replace parts over 20 years old so they won't need replacing again in my lifetime.

Mmm. 

As for "no rust" on a Defender... I do admire an optimist. Chassis, bulkhead, door frames, under-tub supports, etc etc. The panels may be ally, but that still corrodes - and there's a lot of very rot-prone steel under the surface.

There's a LOT of Waxoyl on mine and regularly added to! And honestly, I've got a good 'un I know

pseudodox

**I feel for your elderly cousin - I often have to drive a hire car to a work meeting and all those beeps and lights drive me insane because I have no idea what they are for. The first time I got given one that automatically cuts out the engine when you stop I called the hire company and told them it was dangerously faulty...**

Thanks FlorayG.  Yes - that stop/start really threw him.  Seemed very unfair to expect him to instantly feel comfortable in a small modern box when he is used to an elderly Defender with high seating position & clear all round vision, knows the width and length for placing it on the road, the feel of the brakes and accelerator etc.  So he got marked down for hesitation, poor positioning, being heavy on the foot controls (used to a 4WD with a caravan attached!).  But now on  a refresher course he feels more confident with the controls, gadgets and gizmos and can concentrate on the road.  However I think he will find the return to the Defender in due course will also take some re-adjustment!

It seemed so mean to chuck him in the deep end by expecting him to drive an unfamiliar car on busy unfamiliar roads.  I drive one of the smallest cars on the road - if I was suddenly asked to drive a people carrier/SUV I know I would struggle without some initial practice at handling the vehicle and would not head out onto busy roads until I felt comfortable.

I saw that programme about those irresponsible drivers with defective eyesight who killed 4 people.  It is about time that eyesight had to be verified by an optician at regular intervals, especially before you can renew a licence.  I will be due to renew my over 70s one next year and will make an optician appointment before I fill in the form.

Ditzy_Mitzy

FlorayG said:

pseudodox said:

FlorayG said:

I was recently thinking about selling my 2003 Defender and getting something smaller. Every dealer went on and on about this gadget, that gadget, it's got this, it's got that...I just wanted a car that would go reliably and stop safely. In the end I decided to keep the Defender!

Good to hear of your 2003 vehicle still giving satisfactory service.  I am taking my 2005 car for her annual service and MOT next week.  Notwithstanding minor repairs over the years (all cars need new tyres, wipers, brake shoes etc) she runs like a dream and has very little that is complicated or that that can go expensively wrong.  So having passed her last 5 MOTs with flying colours I am keeping fingers crossed as I have no intention of replacing her.  When I bought this car about the most "exciting" feature the dealer pushed was the colour choice of the upholstery!

My elderly cousin drives a 2013 Defender and because of a minor incident he was sent for a driver assessment.  He has never had a serious accident, always driven big 4WDs, towed trailers and caravans and done years of rallying and off roading in very basic stripped out vehicles.  He was so confused by the gadgets, digital displays and gizmos of the assessment car he failed & to avoid a court appearance has to have driving lessons in a small modern gadget packed car in the hope he can pass a re-test only to get his beloved uncomplicated Defender back on the road

Oh, she never passes the MOT  despite regular servicing and maintenance. Last year cost me over £1,000 but the point is, that £1,000 was to replace parts over 20 years old so they won't need replacing again in my lifetime. No rust, good engine, everything else gets replaced as it wears out. Its something you have to expect with an old vehicle and have a fund for.
I feel for your elderly cousin - I often have to drive a hire car to a work meeting and all those beeps and lights drive me insane because I have no idea what they are for. The first time I got given one that automatically cuts out the engine when you stop I called the hire company and told them it was dangerously faulty...

Worst I've had was with a Transit van hired to assist with clearing an old lock-up garage.  I was driving the thing quite happily, pressed the wrong button and its computerized dashboard started talking!  It was like being caught in the world's dullest episode of Knight Rider...  

Herzlos

pseudodox said:

**I feel for your elderly cousin - I often have to drive a hire car to a work meeting and all those beeps and lights drive me insane because I have no idea what they are for. The first time I got given one that automatically cuts out the engine when you stop I called the hire company and told them it was dangerously faulty...**

Thanks FlorayG.  Yes - that stop/start really threw him.  Seemed very unfair to expect him to instantly feel comfortable in a small modern box when he is used to an elderly Defender with high seating position & clear all round vision, knows the width and length for placing it on the road, the feel of the brakes and accelerator etc.  So he got marked down for hesitation, poor positioning, being heavy on the foot controls (used to a 4WD with a caravan attached!).  But now on  a refresher course he feels more confident with the controls, gadgets and gizmos and can concentrate on the road.  However I think he will find the return to the Defender in due course will also take some re-adjustment!

It seemed so mean to chuck him in the deep end by expecting him to drive an unfamiliar car on busy unfamiliar roads.  I drive one of the smallest cars on the road - if I was suddenly asked to drive a people carrier/SUV I know I would struggle without some initial practice at handling the vehicle and would not head out onto busy roads until I felt comfortable.

I have some sympathy, but if you're hiring a car that's decades newer than your own one, you kind of need to expect it to be a pretty different experience. Same with differing sizes and seating positions. 

That said it'd be good it the folk giving you the keys could give you a quick tour but you almost certainly get the keys from a booth nowhere near the car and the desk staff rarely use the cars so don't know either. 

It's generally good to take a few minutes to get familiar with the car first, though often there isn't really any space to do that whilst moving.