electronic unreliable computer junk on cars should be outlawed...

yes... and force us to buy more cars, and take it to the "qualified experts" ( the dealership ) for repairs..

They not stupid... and the LAST thing they care about is your safety !

While I can understand your frustration, I really don't think the modern consumer would accept a vehicle as basic as a non-electronic model would require.

No electronics means NO abs brakes, NO traction control, NO modern safety devices, NO cruise control that works, not to mention all the cool helpful things that we cherish that are electronic in nature.

Also you'll never get away from it in so far as computerized engine management is concerned, simply because the electronics is the ONLY thing that allows the modern internal combustion engine to run efficiently enough to meet the current Government emission standards.

It smly could not be done mechanically, or with analog feedback devices. Remember how AWFUL many cars were in the 70's? Miles of vacuum tubing, tons of electromechanical gizmo's and other stuff that were ALWAYS going bad? Well that's the wonderful world of mechanical engine management.

And today's standards are SO stringent that basically vehicles would be illegal to sell or operate if it were not for all the electronics.

It has it's UP-side also, namely no more carburetors. Remember what FUN a car with a carb was on a -20 winter morning? If it even started, you had to literally sit with it for 20 minutes and baby the gas until it was warm enough to run by itself.

Another good part about electronically controlled vehicles is that many operational parameters can be changed to better suit your tastes with a simple software change, rather than many bucks worth of parts and labor.

Thank god, we need more laws.

It is how " they " keep us buring a certain fuel. Otherwise be could burn many fuels.

I will say this though, that in the case of the 'drive by wire' electronic throttle control such as is used by Toyota that is having this well publicized problem lately, that what you are actually doing when you press the gas is to make a SUGGESTION to the computer, "Hi! I'd REALLY like to go faster. Can we do that perhaps?' Then the computer consults any number of other operational factors before deciding if it care to grant you your request.

And sometimes, the computer decides that the gas pedal is going into FULL APPLY mode regardless of what you think.

That's what's going wrong with the Toyota accelerator system, but they are still in denial and dicking around with some mechanical cob-job in HOPES it fixes the problem.

And this is the same issue with the Prius brakes. It's a SOFTWARE issue that is affecting how the brakes feel, because the computer is involved in deciding which type of braking to use under any given situation, regenerative braking in which the electric motor powering the car is used for slight deceleration, or if it's time to apply the real brakes.

In the middle there somewhere in between the two systems, the pedal feels funny which is causing people the think the brakes are not working properly.

They REALLY should make these integrated drive by wire systems more fool proof BEFORE selling the cars, don't you think?

It'd be too easy to convert cars to hydrogen, nitrogen, joe cells, etc. etc. without the ECU's tightly controlling the running of the engines. Also would make all the (new?) EMP weapons to disable cars much less likely to work. Thus, it will ~never~ happen.

I'm so glad i can self service any vehicle.
Knowledge IS power.
Everything IS hackable.
Including the mind.
MWAHAHAHAHA

You must've had some crappy older vehicles--gimme an old carbureted Chevy truck over a Prius anyday!! My old Chevy started every day, even when the thermometer read 25 below zero. It had an automatic choke (electronic, but kicked out when the vehicle was running smoothly) and none of this antilock brake nonsense. And if you knew how to drive the only traction control you needed was the gas and brake pedal in the right combination. As far as vacuum tubes, if you removed most of them and kept your plugs set at .030 your car/truck would run fine and even save gas at highway speeds, so keep all your computerized junk and give me a bare-bones car.

Anytime you control the throttle of a 3500 pound vehicle by a potentiometer (which is an extremely sensitive device anyway and responds to the slightest variable, especially resistance) you're asking for trouble.

Actually, you're right. The new stuff is NOT necessarily any more complex really, it just requires a different way of thinking.

And like you said, it's all 'hackable'. It can be pretty damn cool when you learn the systems and get into them in depth.

But then they couldnt emp your car.

Fools always condemn things they don't understand, whether it's electricity, spelling, or whatever else. You fail at both.

No need to outlaw it, there's plenty of 30-40 year old cars available on Craigslist for a song. Well, maybe not in New England, but here in the Northwest they're a dime a dozen. Thank God they don't salt the roads here!

Yes by all means outlaw those evil inventions? Dude, surely you jest? Don't like the computerized cars buy a 74 El Camino. It's your choice to NOT buy something you think evil. As of now we still live in a free capitalist society. JFC! Ban this! Ban that! No different that the book burners of history.

Can tell you guys dont work on cars, the new ones are made from total crap, made to start falling apart as soon as the extended waranty runs out.

16000 miles and not a single problem. 2001 Ford. I never had a warranty on mine. Kinda blows your theory.

CORRECTION:


160000 miles and not a single problem. 2001 Ford. I never had a warranty on mine. Kinda blows your theory.

1972 Datsun, 300,000+ miles, no problems that I couldn't fix in an afternoon. And it's exempt from smog testing due to its age. Let's see if your Ford even still exists 30 years from now.

Toyota's new slogan, "There's no stopping us now!"

No smog testing in my state and the body probably won't last that long because I live in a temperate zone.

my friend had a 4 speed 1970 Toyota Corolla and it needed occasional tune up, occasional tires, a new battery every 2 or 3 years. it did not need a lube job .. it was basic transportation 4 cylinders and got 30 mpg ... it needed a new radiator by age 7 yrs old.anda new altanator .. A new clutch 7 yrs later with 70,000 miles on it. It needed a new head light and tail lights after 7 yrs. It needed new hoses and belts as needed and new windshild wipers as needed as they showed wear . do you see how economical this car was to maintain.. folks always gently pumped the brakes on slick roads to avoid car wrecks anyway ,, all without the fancy computerized braking system . .. Any man can see that the upkeep on this car was mimimal .