No wonder we prefer old cars.

That's a sensitive post!

 

missed an increasingly important one... the spy cam! sits at the top of the windshield and nannys your driving.

 

In our old cars, the sensors are part of the organic interface behind the wheel...

 

I've got more of a beef with CANbus vehicles than EFI in general. I want to put a window down. Why in the blue hell does it need to route this command through a computer first? One thing goes on the fritz and the whole damn vehicle is disabled.

 

This is about 30 years old. Today's stuff is exponentially more complex.

 

Yep, that is the SIMPLE version!
Back in 2004 I wrote some of the testing for the Blackwood, the Lincoln truck that they kind of swept under the rug.
It had rear view mirrors on each side. Sure. They were power. Okay. Then they were memory too. Okay. Then they tilted down at different angles when the thing was in reverse. Yes, the TCM reported the trans position to the PCM, which sent a signal to the memory module to tilt down the mirrors.
The 7 series BMW of that era had no throttle. The intake had a scroll inside a scroll to adjust the intake runner length and the intake valve opening was computer controlled allowing the PCM to take your request for throttle and determine how much to open the valves to get that engine speed. That was 20 years ago.
Now almost everything is a request and software issues are huge. Look at electric door handles, trunk and seat controls for new to 2 year old stuff. There will be deaths.

 

Makes me hungry for a magneto fired push start racer with only a kill switch and an oil pressure gauge.

 

...Absolutely!

 

A good 90's Efi is ok, but non of this "multimedia tracking your life" BS

 

Yep,
My 2010 Ford Flex had a problem where the computer thought the engine was 500° when it was stone cold and would shut down the engine.
Two dealers and two independent shops gave up trying to fix it.
Lucky I had the Y-block powered ‘54 Country Squire to drive when the new ford wouldn’t run.

 

... A little bit misleading maybe for some....
It is a lane assist camera that faces forward to read the road lane markings. It is not actually facing the driver.
This, however, does not mean that it is not capable of recording where you have been......

 

Some cameras look at the driver. DMS driver monitor systems. I will not drive any vehicle with a camera pointed at traffic, or the driver. Back up cams are Ok in my book, Do as you want but I think this shit is a slippery slope.
Dan

 

I meant it's a nanny, watching how well you're driving.

Yes, it's forward facing.

 

I, unfortunately, had to go to Oklahoma for the funeral of a fellow Marine this past weekend.
Avis gave me a brand-new Toyota Corolla. This thing had a huge screen right in the middle of the dash.
I made it to my destination before I knew how to turn on the radio.
I'm so old.

 

In the litigious world we now live in, a dash cam could be a good idea.
Just make sure it is one that you control, not one that can send footage who the hell knows where.

 

Condolences. Days like that are never good days.

 

Thank you, I appreciate it.

 

Sensors. No problem. The suck is the 20 different modules that all have to be friends in order for the car to do car things. And using electronic control to do things that have been mechanically controlled for a hundred years. Tesla door handles, I'm looking at you.
And touch screen radio and HVAC controls suck. Push a button, turn a knob, it works without having to look at it first.

 

Condolences to you and your friends family and friends.
Thank you for your service!
Dan

 

My first vehicle (‘41 Chevy pickup) had numerous sensors. My eyes, my ears, my nose, hands, feet, even my butt, all giving me feedback on what was happening with the truck while driving…

 

My 1st efi vehicle was 1983. That's 42 years ago. Doesn't that qualify for old?

 

As RodStRace said most driver inputs are a request on new cars. On lots of cars the brake pedal is no longer connected to a pushrod into the master cylinder. You press the pedal and feel resistance from the emulator spring. The computer than decides how hard to apply the brakes or in the case of electric cars it decides if it will use regenerative braking or the brakes. Press the gas pedal and the computer decides if it will open the throttle. Even steering is starting to go computer assisted. I was moving a car with a bent tie rod at work and the car didn't like that the steering wheel was not straight, it spun full lock to the left then full lock right before centering. Luckily I was only going 5mph.

 

https://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/car-technology/a34224683/how-brake-by-wire-works-safety/
Anyone who has driven a power steering or power brake car when the power part fails is probably not impressed.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=05V9XTW-Hsg
Just watch the first minute or so.
This is the tip of the iceberg. Check out door latches on I8s (samcrac), computer software updates on new cars (mattarmstrong and others), parts availability on new and 5+ year old cars.

 

I have a 2015 where I'm still pissed it doesn't have a transmission dipstick. None of that other stuff has gone wrong yet, but I been trying to modernize a little bit anyway.

 

Back in a time period, when things were more simple and more easily accessible !

​

 

Good ol' 90's technology

What about the infamous "Matty Box" United States Patent # 5,051,935 - Date Awarded: 9/24/91
It was used for bracket racing
https://patents.google.com/patent/US5051935A/en

They used a wheel speed sensor [or electric speedo drive] then it was connected to ignition retard and nitrous.
Triggered from a transbrake button and if you used a delay box a monkey could win the bracket nationals

 

I work on modern GM vehicles daily. Some of the stuff is crazy. Radio updates crippling brand new cars. I appreciate things like the 360* cameras ( our shop is wayyyy too narrow ) and the adaptive cruise is nice. But there is something about an old car that is just ‘right’. I bet I’m the only guy there that can set points beyond one other guy that I know can, but probably never will because he hates working on the owners ‘65 C10 when it comes around. It has an HEI tho

 

When i set the engine in my last build i found there were an overwhelming number of wires and sensors to deal with so changed intake and added a carburetor. Problem solved, no sensors, no ecm.

 

Outside of the big screens, my issue is the need for everything to be friends.

Why does water intrusion in a taillamp need to brick the truck?