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[Pullstart 71,088]

The S10 got a new windshield today.  For $265, it’s well worth it!

 

 

[Handy Don 17,315]

8 minutes ago, Pullstart said:

The S10 got a new windshield today

No sensors or cameras needing special alignment or windshield wiper heating zones needing electrical connections. JYBW (just your basic windshield!)

[Pullstart 71,088]

22 minutes ago, Handy Don said:

No sensors or cameras needing special alignment or windshield wiper heating zones needing electrical connections. JYBW (just your basic windshield!)

In other words, perfect!

[953 nut 68,468]

6 hours ago, Handy Don said:

No sensors or cameras needing special alignment or windshield wiper heating zones needing electrical connections. JYBW (just your basic windshield!)

It has gotten to the point where a bachelor of windshieldology is needed on the newer vehicles.              

[Handy Don 17,315]

24 minutes ago, 953 nut said:

It has gotten to the point where a bachelor of windshieldology is needed on the newer vehicles.              

I take your point, though I must add that I’m enamored of rain-sensing wipers, auto-dipping high beams, wiper de-icing, adaptive cruise control, and collision warnings all of which require certain windshield specs! 

My wife’s windshield had a stone chip that was repaired in about 20 minutes and it’s all but undetectable

[ebinmaine 80,267]

1 minute ago, Handy Don said:

 I’m enamored of rain-sensing wipers,

 

 

NOT a fan of these in a Freightliner. 

I strongly dislike the wipers being constantly on low or high speed with no intermittent or pause or driver control.  

 

1 minute ago, Handy Don said:

 

auto-dipping high beams, wiper de-icing, adaptive cruise control,

 

 

^^^^^  These are very good. 

 

 

 

1 minute ago, Handy Don said:

and collision warnings

 

Also incredibly annoying and I honestly believe unsafe in a commercial vehicle because they aren't set up well yet.  

 

EVERYTHING causes a loud buzzer and lights and even occasionally a sudden unplanned severe slowdown of the truck!!

[Handy Don 17,315]

I’ve have five cars with some sort of wiper sensor/intermittent. This car is the first one with sufficient control to actually wipe only when needed!

I’ve had the collision thing go a couple of times. Only once was I not already onto the brake myself--maybe it saved a collision or maybe not, but it was a fair assessment by the car!

The one for backing up is a mite sensitive, though. Backing into a steeply pitched driveway, or one with shrubbery hanging over, can set it off. That said, the beep is better than a “crunch” so I’ll not disable it. 

[lynnmor 9,008]

I had the windshield replaced on my F250, what a fiasco!  Went to their shop and they ordered the glass saying they would be replacing it in my barn.  They did just that but when done I noticed it had the wrong windshield that didn't have the margins blacked and all the guts in the pillars were exposed to the public.  They ordered another and asked me to bring it to their shop and leave it.  They removed the dash cover so they had a clear shot at tossing their power tools on the dash.  I didn't go into all the gory details but I will never have a windshield replaced until it is so bad that it can't be driven.  If you ever watched the process it is worse than seeing sausage being made.

[Pullstart 71,088]

22 minutes ago, lynnmor said:

If you ever watched the process it is worse than seeing sausage being made.

I really enjoyed the company of this service tech, and he took the time to explain things and show me tricks of the trade.  It was an enjoyable experience for me!

[adsm08 5,006]

21 minutes ago, lynnmor said:

 I will never have a windshield replaced until it is so bad that it can't be driven. 

 

Unless of course the inspection mechanic says it fails.

 

We have a mobile guy that comes around to the shop and he does them pretty slick and easy. Usually takes him about 20 minutes, and we never have any of those issues.

 

 

[adsm08 5,006]

47 minutes ago, Handy Don said:

I’m enamored of rain-sensing wipers, auto-dipping high beams, wiper de-icing, adaptive cruise control, and collision warnings

 

I have yet to have someone explain to me, in a way that makes sense, how any of those things are preferable to just paying attention to driving while driving.

 

What I have seen in practice is that those systems enable the people who already don't want to pay attention to be even less attentive to the driving part of driving.

 

The only exception might be the wiper de-icing.

Edited 22 hours ago by adsm08

[adsm08 5,006]

43 minutes ago, ebinmaine said:

EVERYTHING causes a loud buzzer and lights and even occasionally a sudden unplanned severe slowdown of the truck!!

 

I think the worst one I've ever run across is the GM rear collision alert. They don't beep, or flash, the seat vibrates. The first time that happened to me was in the shop and I almost wrecked the vehicle because it startled me.

[Handy Don 17,315]

17 minutes ago, adsm08 said:

I have yet to have someone explain to me, in a way that makes sense, how any of those things are preferable to just paying attention to driving while driving.

Generally, you are correct.

I often do the wipers myself--saves wear and tear on the blade, the motor, and the windshield! The best sensor use case is a drizzle where passing cars are throwing up spray that the Rain-X isn’t able to bead and clear--when the camera cannot focus through the windshield, it swipes the wiper. Over a multi-hour drive, manual gets tedious. 

Auto high-beam dipping reacts faster than I can, usually, and if you are in a sparse, hilly suburban area as I am, with occasional streetlighting, I like having the highs as much as possible. Auto keeps me from manually switching every minute or two. 

The possible collision I avoided was a lifted F150 with elaborate modified running lighting that came to a sudden stop to enter a parking lot in dim lighting and had no brake lights! (When I circled back the driver didn’t believe me until I insisted he see for himself--“Man, I wonder how that happened?!” but no apology or thanks)

[8ntruck 9,216]

We've got a '22 Pacifica van with all of the bells and whistles.  Bought it used.  I didn't know it had auto wipers until we had to replace the windshield this summer.  Finally found how to turn them on - about 3 layser deep in the vehicle settings menu.  I kind of like them - now that I've gotten them activated.

 

I get a chuckle out of the various collision and parking warnings when going through one of the local drive through tellers.  The clearances are close enough that they all seem to go off, seemingly screaming 'LOOK OUT, WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!'.

[adsm08 5,006]

1 minute ago, Handy Don said:

Generally, you are correct.

I often do the wipers myself--saves wear and tear on the blade, the motor, and the windshield! The best sensor use case is a drizzle where passing cars are throwing up spray that the Rain-X isn’t able to bead and clear--when the camera cannot focus through the windshield, it swipes the wiper. Over a multi-hour drive, manual gets tedious. 

Auto high-beam dipping reacts faster than I can, usually, and if you are in a sparse, hilly suburban area as I am, with occasional streetlighting, I like having the highs as much as possible. Auto keeps me from manually switching every minute or two. 

The possible collision I avoided was a lifted F150 with elaborate modified running lighting that came to a sudden stop to enter a parking lot in dim lighting and had no brake lights! (When I circled back the driver didn’t believe me until I insisted he see for himself--“Man, I wonder how that happened?!” but no apology or thanks)

 

I dunno. I work on these things for a living. The ADAS stuff is a giant pain in the butt, until you get way back into the early days of just audible park aides, and even sometimes those throw me. So many of the problems are software driven, and not an actual mechanical issues that I can actually fix, but every day I see more and more people just flat out not paying attention, expecting these systems to take up the slack, with no concept of the limits of the system (most adaptive cruise or collision avoidance systems will not actually bring the car to a full stop).

 

Meanwhile I'm over here still driving my 87 Ranger and 04/05 Explorers with none of those systems, and I've never been in an accident where one of those systems would have made a lick of difference. I have been "at fault" for four accidents in the last 25 years. One may have been prevented by a park aide or backup camera of some sort. I had a cap on the truck, all the windows on it were iced, and I backed into a white car in a snowy field.

 

One other I took off in a merge lane while watching the lane I was merging into. The car in front of me did more of a "staying still" type maneuver. 

 

The other two involved sliding through sharp turns in low-traction events. 

 

Every other accident I have ever been in the other car, or the deer, hit me, usually because they weren't paying attention.

 

[953 nut 68,468]

13 hours ago, Handy Don said:

auto-dipping high beams,

My 1963 Buick had that, nothing new there.

12 hours ago, adsm08 said:

I have yet to have someone explain to me, in a way that makes sense, how any of those things are preferable to just paying attention to driving while driving.

 

What I have seen in practice is that those systems enable the people who already don't want to pay attention to be even less attentive to the driving part of driving.

A few days ago I was approaching an intersection on a four lane divided highway (55 MPH) where the cross traffic had a stop sign. A pick-up truck stopped at the sign then pulled out to cross the highway just about a couple hundred feet ahead of me. I managed to avoid a collision by crossing into the oncoming lane's left turn lane which had no traffic at the time and then going into the median. All of the collision avoidance systems in the world can't make up for a driver paying attention.

Oh, by the way, the other drier didn't stop to say thanks for not killing me!

[Handy Don 17,315]

5 hours ago, 953 nut said:

My 1963 Buick had that, nothing new there

Actually quite different.

In ’63 only a photocell needing bright oncoming light would dim the highs. Often oncoming low beams would not be enough. 

In ’22, camera and software identify oncoming lights, even DRLs, notice street lights (high beams amid street lighting is illegal in many jurisdictions), and mine also use the radar to dim when following a car ahead that would have the highs blinding them. 

5 hours ago, 953 nut said:

pulled out to cross the highway just about a couple hundred feet ahead of me

Ayup, until the software can detect incipient stupidity and stop it, an alert driver with good reaction time (and sometimes luck) is still needed. 

 

I don’t think any serious person thinks these “collision warning” systems are foolproof (as you note, Fools are exceedingly clever, after all). Even the BEST current “self-driving" vehicles are only Level 2.5 out of 4. And these are geo-fenced to areas where they have voluminous data about the roadways.

Still, in bumper-to-bumper, slow traffic I can set the adaptive cruise to 20mph and the car will move when there is room and stay a safe distance behind when the car ahead slows or stops. Yes, attention still needed. But yes, lessens strain and fatigue. 

[Pullstart 71,088]

 

[Pullstart 71,088]

Got a call about an hour ago.  Little girl in tears.  “Daddy I did something really bad!”  “Are you ok?” Was my response.  She’s fine, we’re on the way.

 

It hasn’t been running amazing, and has stalled a few times still.  It stalled in the intersection, she maybe panicked, the transmission snapped something inside.  We’ll be looking at a 5 speed swap soon… 

[953 nut 68,468]

3 hours ago, Handy Don said:

an alert driver with good reaction time (and sometimes luck) is still needed. 

I will go along with the LUCK part, we could have broadsided the truck if I hadn't taken evasive action. If the other driver hadn't stopped he would have broadsided us.

[ebinmaine 80,267]

3 hours ago, Pullstart said:

Got a call about an hour ago.  Little girl in tears.  “Daddy I did something really bad!”  “Are you ok?” Was my response.  She’s fine, we’re on the way.

 

It hasn’t been running amazing, and has stalled a few times still.  It stalled in the intersection, she maybe panicked, the transmission snapped something inside.  We’ll be looking at a 5 speed swap soon… 

 

 

Sounds like a Park Pawl bit the dust. 

Toss the slush box and flip a stick in there!