If it's got too much tech, you can swap with mine.

Half of it doesn't work or isnt fitted.

There's different attractions between tech and lack of tech.

Most of my rail fan mates still prefer big steam to modern super efficient diesels.

Yet on steam 90% of the fuel energy goes straight up the stack, wasted, and the engineering is real hammer and anvil era.

And they spent too much time in the backshops being maintained and repaired.

But they are still vastly more interesting than today's computer controlled, emission-friendly diesels.

 

Many old (very inefficient) cars grab you more than the present cars with these Apple-mac'd systems!

But in the end most people prefer the relative luxury of the modern car and its driver pampering ways.

Had my first taste of heated front screen (great) and Front Assist today, as I approached a vehicle turning right I compensated, ie I could see the road was clear and it was starting to turn right away about 60 metres in front as I was doing about 40mph. Suddenly red warning signals and bongs from the dash made me think it had no oil or something disastrous, the brakes didn't automatically apply. I have got the manual out and will actually read it, so I can use the tech as it was designed to be used.

I really can't see why people would moan about too much tech. You don't have to use it if you don't want to. But auto headlights, fancy screens with Bluetooth streaming and the likes just makes things easier!

Its what I love about the wife's Cadillac which although 50 years old has fully electric 6 way adjusting seats, windows, auto headlights with high beam assist (although its referred to as twilight sentinel and guidematic) auto tuning radio with electric aerial and they all work! Only the climate control doesnt work due to the myriad of leaking vacuum pipes and manifolds.

I didn't pick the Octavia because of them but I will definitely make the most of these features!

Edited 17 January, 201511 yr by V6Jules

Skodas tech is pretty mundane and run of the mill anyway.

There is nothing overtly high tech on them, just the usual esp, abs, auto this auto that.

One thing I do like though is an auto box, thus keeping one hand free to drink a nice brew with ease!

Edited 17 January, 201511 yr by octavianestate

One thing I do like though is an auto box, thus keeping one hand free to drink a nice brew with ease!

I hope you're talking about tea !!!!

Skodas tech is pretty mundane and run of the mill anyway.

There is nothing overtly high tech on them, just the usual esp, abs, auto this auto that.

One thing I do like though is an auto box, thus keeping one hand free to drink a nice brew with ease!

Dunno about that to be honest...the MQB electronics in some respects are very clever.

Integration like if the car is running low on fuel and you have nav the car will ask if you want to navigate to a fuel station....you can even select some preferred vendors which is also handy if you have a fuel card that can only be used with certain branded stations.

Also xenon lights that go into tourist mode (switch to LHD mode) when the nav realises you are in a LHD region...thats pretty clever too and I dont know of many other brands that do these things.

There are people out there who are in charge of a car but they:

 cannot drive one with a manual gearbox, may not even know how gearboxes work or use those flappy paddle thingies

 cannot park a car themselves, because it always parks itself

 cannot read a map, never had to they just follow the instructions from the GPS

 never dipped their headlights manually

 never turned their headlights on manually, or the wipers when it rains

 like to see how far the car goes between the lines on motorways without having to touch the steering wheel.

 do not touch the throttle or brake on motorways, but leave it to the auto cruise

 do not brake in city traffic because the car does it for them

 do not look out the car for any traffic warning or speed signs because the car does it for them so why would they bother with such petty details

 do not know how to drive a car to the conditions because the anti-skid always fixed up their mistakes

 are more worried about making/answering a phone call than paying attention to the road

 are more worried about concentrating on their touchscreen than paying attention to the road

 have never checked the oil level, or tyre pressures.

There are probably heaps more but you get the gist of what I am getting at

 

And we wonder why an increasing percentage of our children are obese and are also unable to perform simple mathematics or spell correctly without the aid of a computer?

Do we really think that any of our current cars will actually achieve vintage status?

 

I am not a practicing Luddite, but I do worry about what sort of society and individuals we are becoming and creating.

Edited 18 January, 201511 yr by Gerrycan

Perhaps it will end up that we won't need to know anything about a car because we won't need to go anywhere for anything.

Beam me up Scottie.....................

Some technology is present in the MQB that's a given and known fact, but reading through the topics on this octavia 3 forum it appears that skoda have not really got the basics right yet, examples; booming noises inside the car, water leaks, horrific paint jobs, slow infotainment systems, poor quality stereo systems, poor handling characteristics etc etc. Tech is all very well for when the cars are dressed up in a showroom and the prospective consumer can play with a myriad of gadgets. I think it's a ploy to keep attention away from underlying design and inherrent problems of the car(s).

Since purchasing one of these cars,'it' is a frequent resident at the dealer. During these times they have given me models from the S to the vRS to drive. In my opinion they are all as bad as the one I have(had). The tech in the S is near non existent and I'm not sure what tech was used on damping the vRS..maybe lumps of iron.

Edited 18 January, 201511 yr by octavianestate

There are people out there who are in charge of a car but they:

 cannot drive one with a manual gearbox, may not even know how gearboxes work or use those flappy paddle thingies

 cannot park a car themselves, because it always parks itself

[...]

 

 

I am equally worried about drivers that got their license 20-30-40 years ago and still drive the same way as they learned back then. They also usually think they are the world's best drivers...

 

I prefer that my fellow drivers follow a GPS instead of fiddling with a map while driving.

I also see a lot of drivers that strongly benefit from the car doing a lot of the "trivial stuff" like changing gears, braking (ABS, ESC, FA, etc.), GPS, parking aids, etc etc. This means they can keep their limited attention on the traffic. 

 

I could live a happy life without new technology -- I could send letters instead of phoning my dear mom; I could write documents on my old type writer instead of laptop; I could use a camera with real film instead of a digital camera -- but why should I? 

Useful car tech:

A car that cleans itself.

A car that does not pollute.

A car that runs on a thimble full of fuel (non polluting).

Please feel free to add any further good tech ideas.

One problem maybe is the belief that if something is new, and avant garde, it must be better than the old stuff, as if all change is for the better.

Look at a Rembrandt painting and compare with Tracy Emin's Unmade Bed!!  Emperor's new clothes or what?

 

Having said that there are loads of real improvements if you choose the right car. I'm on my 4th Octavia in a row and, to me, my Mk. 3 SE is the nicest to drive. No, it is not quite the most powerful I've had, nor the most fully equipped (no 6 CD player, no cruise) but overall it feels really nice. 

Some technology is present in the MQB that's a given and known fact, but reading through the topics on this octavia 3 forum it appears that skoda have not really got the basics right yet, examples; booming noises inside the car, water leaks, horrific paint jobs, slow infotainment systems, poor quality stereo systems, poor handling characteristics etc etc. Tech is all very well for when the cars are dressed up in a showroom and the prospective consumer can play with a myriad of gadgets. I think it's a ploy to keep attention away from underlying design and inherrent problems of the car(s).

Since purchasing one of these cars,'it' is a frequent resident at the dealer. During these times they have given me models from the S to the vRS to drive. In my opinion they are all as bad as the one I have(had). The tech in the S is near non existent and I'm not sure what tech was used on damping the vRS..maybe lumps of iron.[/

The booming noise is a fault that's acknowledged and can be rectified. Paint and water leaks, hardly technology, teething problems. Slow infotainment... Cheaper Satnavs, poor quality stereo = basic system as per Octy MkII. Poor handling = basic handling. Most buyers on this forum buy a Skoda because of perceived VFM. You are buying a Golf/Audi equivalent with base tech unless you pay more. Skoda won customers with excellent Octavia/Fabia Mk I and charged a bit more for the MkIIs and now they're asking us to pay more for the latest products. Having just gone from a fairly raw but fun MkII, the MKIII appears on first acquaintance to be more refined. Handling and tech are a step up. SWMBO and not interested in cars at all has just said how quiet the new one is up to the old one. She could always hear the exhaust burbling as I drove off or particularly as I reversed in. Not sure where the comment about damping comes from, it feels relaxed and for 18" wheels, refined, there is still some wind noise at motorway speeds. If I bought an A4 / Golf with the same tech and performance it would be a lot more expensive. Ultimately you get what you pay for.

Very true. You do get what you pay for. What would one expect for roughly £25000?

I quite like all the tech in my little car, it makes my life more relaxed with one small exception......

 

When I'm hanging the arse-end out, the seat belt tightening and all the windows opening to 38mm is a little off putting as I'M A BIT BUSY, Grrrrr

When I'm hanging the arse-end out, the seat belt tightening and all the windows opening to 38mm is a little off putting as I'M A BIT BUSY, Grrrrr

Does it do that even with ESC sport activated?  :|

I'm not entirely sure, I didn't think and wasn't trying to push that hard so I hadn't activated it, I'll check on the next above 0 degree morning but, from this week's forecast that maybe some days away.

Very true. You do get what you pay for. What would one expect for roughly £25000?

Errr a Skoda. A Cupra is about the same but smaller, as is similarly specified Golf GTI, which would cost me £31k, I didn't check what the Audi costs but it would be dearer again. I did my homework and bought what I thought would match my requirements. If you can negotiate a good deal, don't worry about badges, and plan to keep it for a while, even despite higher depreciation , then I think it's worth it when compared to similar cars.

I did my homework too. I wanted a hassle free reasonably loaded family car. Not a sports car as already have this or a hatch as have one of those too.

I got all the tech i needed in the octavia for its price and are well aware to spec the same in a VW would push over £30k.

It's just a shame the tech used to manufacture said car seems lacking. It's highly unlikely I will keep the car. Pity.

I am equally worried about drivers that got their license 20-30-40 years ago and still drive the same way as they learned back then. They also usually think they are the world's best drivers...

 

I prefer that my fellow drivers follow a GPS instead of fiddling with a map while driving.

I also see a lot of drivers that strongly benefit from the car doing a lot of the "trivial stuff" like changing gears, braking (ABS, ESC, FA, etc.), GPS, parking aids, etc etc. This means they can keep their limited attention on the traffic. 

 

I could live a happy life without new technology -- I could send letters instead of phoning my dear mom; I could write documents on my old type writer instead of laptop; I could use a camera with real film instead of a digital camera -- but why should I? 

 

Regarding 'experienced' drivers, you are right about some but not ME. In fact people have said,  "That was stupid driving" so Stupid was at fault, not me.

I am an only an average driver, and I try to drive within my abilities. Trouble is most others are also average but some drive to the limit of their abilities and that is going to end in tears on public roads.

There is an aviation saying: There are old pilots and bold pilots, but no old bold pilots.

 

I think that all the safety aids and systems now available in cars are brilliant, but they are there to rescue us from when we inadvertently get it wrong. If we drive depending on them then their effectiveness is negated and we are better off with autonomous driving systems asap. Hell perhaps we should have autonomous systems in F1 cars and no drivers because they will be consistently faster and much safer, and also ridiculous.

You are right about GPS being preferable for car navigation, I was just bemoaning the loss of basic map reading skills

 

I don't mind technology, I have worked in the computer industry for over 30 years but I am also aware of some of the negative effects it has also had on individuals and society.

I have actually spent slightly longer writing a programme than it would be taken to go through the sheets manually . . . . . although the next lot of analysis took the computer a couple of seconds . . . .

Technology is useful if you know what it does, when to use it, and how to function without it!

Edited 19 January, 201511 yr by lpt100

I think the weirdest "modern" thing about my new TSi isn't anything to do with the car equipment, it is the owner's manual.

 

I'm quite literate but that manual has to be the most awkward read I have ever come across - constantly referring you back to warnings and goodness knows what.

 

Has it been written by 'elf 'n safety fanatics or something?

 

It reminds me of the early MFI flat pack instruction leaflets that apparently were translated from Chinese to Russian, then from Russian to English.

They lost a certain clarity in the process !!

I think the weirdest "modern" thing about my new TSi isn't anything to do with the car equipment, it is the owner's manual.

 

I'm quite literate but that manual has to be the most awkward read I have ever come across - constantly referring you back to warnings and goodness knows what.

 

Has it been written by 'elf 'n safety fanatics or something?

 

We live in litigious times I'm afraid so there is a lot of posterior covering happening, but are Skoda's any worse than other car manufacturer? Manuals for Chinese products are usually good fun if not very informative.

I blame the apparent outlawing of "common sense" at around the turn of the century, or did it just become unfashionable?

While I appreciate some of the new tech stuff in our shiny new cars, some I specifically ordered, the sheer number and the extent of them do worry me a bit. It's nice to have a car that does a lot of the things we might forget or are too lazy to do, but we might get to a point where we forget to do them at all. For example after owning 5 cars in row with auto headlights how many of us will enter a tunnel in a car without auto headlights and then search frantically for the switch. Gerrycans post pretty much sums it up.

I think that the danger is only taken out when ALL cars are fitted with the same "auto" stuff.

 

But the thing that really annoys me and worries me the most is the absolute obsession of car manufacturers to integrate or force our mobile phones and all it's apps and features in the car. We are rightly not allowed to text and phone (without handsfree, even though that also distracts far too much from the road) yet our touchscreens in cars get so complex that even changing songs, changing the temperature etc makes us take our eyes off the road for far too long. All stuff that we used to be able to do with just knowing where the buttons are located on the dash. The obsession to add internet to cars and all the titbits that come with the mobile phones are in my opinion counterproductive and make a mockery of the laws about road safety. And in the end the only way to make cars safe while having them is to take out the human factor and just have cars drive us automatically to where we want to go.

 

and then at the end of the day, when you want to drive a car (and not even race it) you'll have to pay to go to a racing track....

 

PS:  here's an interesting article the of satnav and how it basically changes us: http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20141119-is-tech-creating-stupid-drivers