camelot-forum.co.uk

https://cleantechnica.com/2022/08/07/mg ... ust-25995/

Getting there with the smaller and less expensive new EVs

As an MG5 owner and very happy with it, I suspect the MG4 might replace my wife's Zoe next year when the lease is up.

As you say Dan, getting there. But I do feel there is further to go.

Do we really need all the "tech"??

"All models have a 10.25’’ floating infotainment screen, a 7’’ driver display with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto connectivity"

"The lower two trims get Active Emergency Braking with Pedestrian and Bicycle Detection, Lane Keep Assist (LKA) with Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS), Traffic Jam Assist (TJA), Intelligent Speed Limit Assist with traffic sign recognition, Intelligent High Beam Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), and Driver Attention Alert. The Trophy Long Range trim also gets Blind Spot Detection (BSD), Lane Change Assist (LCA), and Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA)."

In my opinion the big screens that seem to inhabit all modern cars are a long term liability. 10 years time - if they last that long - they will be prohibitively expensive to replace and the car is almost useless without it. And I am adamant that they are a distraction to the driver - hence the need for all the other add-on features to keep you in lane etc! Ditch the un-neccessary tech - it will make the car cheaper and I suspect more reliable long term.

We're looking closely at the MG ZS EV. 72kWh battery, so getting into genuinely long range. Want something that will do a trip from Edinburgh to Brittany!

BYD, who are massive, are getting into the European market. Not sure if scheduled to serve the UK yet, but that will increase the supply of lower cost EVs yet further (BYD have really clever LFP batteries).

Well if you are looking to do it in a single drive with no rest & recharge stops, consider "p155-jugs" for djs's compost heap & leave them in a pre-organised layby.

If / when we drive to Chamonix, we will be making our stops regardless of battery size, French supermarket / town restaurant stops are too good not to take up in our lowly but sufficient 54.5kWh?? usable battery on the already heavy SR+

I remember on our annual pilgrimage to Wester Ross as a kid, passing too many great places as we had a mileage expectancy deadline, except for the one time I remember going in the daimler as a toddler & sleeping in the glen overnight (billycan tea breakfast & bacon sandwiches) ..to this day I'm a great fan of "that looks interesting, take a break + look) ..except for national trust piles, ...I'm not dead yet.

When we fly we are invariably knackered & do the car leg in one, then find ourselves spending a day likely driving back where we came from to see something, (strangled scream) ..seriously need to get a collective grip of myself on that count with some better planning.

MM.
The mph is in the top right corner of the tesla 3 screen (the only one in the car) ..the mass of screens in the S really is overkill & more normal car odo placement.

Wife tends to ignore everything other than the chimes, reversing / turning camera live view etc, the fans latest updates are to be able to maintain that vulnerability via driver inputted dozen sitting within the screen, ..the term infotainment is a misnomer as it's only available when stopped, otherwise the screen is pretty much a substitute radio (steering control operated) & Sat nav, ..audio guide, no different to a regular car, ..the brain adjusts & ignores the screen (unless you are co-pilot passenger / guide) ..there's hype then there's the empirical reality within the kits use.

I'm still looking for a cheap leaf lcd screen replacement, ..the whole unnecessary box is £500 odd quid, ..but is still pretty much operational regardless (especially with the app in tow)

Drivers tend to drive, passengers tend to fiddle with controls in my experience.

Mr Gus wrote: ↑Mon Aug 08, 2022 12:14 pm MM.

I'm still looking for a cheap leaf lcd screen replacement, ..the whole unnecessary box is £500 odd quid, ..but is still pretty much operational regardless (especially with the app in tow)

Drivers tend to drive, passengers tend to fiddle with controls in my experience.

Your comment re: the LCD screen may apply to your Leaf but what about a Tesla with only one screen? Can you still use the car if that fails? and the comment wasn't just aimed at EV's, lot of modern cars have a large centre "multifunction" screen.
Your last comment doesn't tally with the drivers of a lot of cars I have followed. You see the drivers hand go across to the screen, then the cars starts to drift across the road as they obviously start to look at the screen to see where to touch it (no good old tactile switch!) ........ oh wait, thats why we need lane assist, and all the other "bells and whistles", all makes sense now ....... not.

A car dash needs a speedometer and a fuel gauge (petrol/diesel/battery) and a few simple on off switches and maybe the odd warning light. All the rest is unnecessary - especially if you put a big spike in the middle of the steering wheel to keep the driver concentrating on the road ahead

I quite like the idea of replacing dozens of switches, their cost, the cost of fitting them, and wiring them up, with a single screen. It fits the mantra of the best part is no part.

Our Hyundai IONIQ lights up like a Xmas tree at night, must be about 50 little blue LED lights to show where all the switches are. That's a lot of parts, cost and effort ..... and failure points.

MM,
Understood.

Short answer, if the screen goes du-lally (technical term "ahem" ) then yes the cars basic functionality / driveability still occurs doubtless helped so What by bloody apps..which i'd unusually not consider accursed in that sort of situation.

I cannot remember what the price was for a new / second-hand screen replacement however I did check both new & second-hand at the time & they must have been bordering on acceptable for us to have put the deposit down.

As the wife said "only you would put salesmen through the mill like that" ..to which I thought, & plenty of others on several forums.
when Joe's Nissan screen went faulty he got his via facebook, I'm stuck looking on eBay periodically (no farcebook) it was a simple clip in fix involving head unit retaining screw release.

As to how lightly we can tread for spares, not many are cheap regardless of modernity.

https://insideevs.com/news/515920/smash ... n-driving/

Video for MM