I've got third row seating... if you don't mind being the body in the trunk. Which can be quite fun if you're consenting.

Flash Memory Wear Killing Older Tesla's Due to Excessive Data Logging: Report

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/flash-memory-wear-killing-older-teslas-due-to-excessive-data-logging-report

"Because a Tesla is highly dependent on its electronics, once the flash memory in a Teslabs infotainment unit goes bad, it essentially bricks the entire car."

This apparently only applies to version 1 MCU's.

...and of course this is what Ford II would call "progress".

All cars are basically just rolling computers these days, but some more than others.

The rental that I drove this week had way more controls on it than I cared for. Too many screens, too many buttons, and that's from someone who *likes* technology. The lane-keeping software was LITERALLY poking me in the ass when I drifted too far to either side of the lane.

I'm no fan of BMW's "twenty thousand dollar options package" approach, but I *like* that you can still order a car from them without all driver-assitance garbage. Not so with Subaru

Well then stop drifting in your lane. You make other people nuts with that. <GRIN>

@IGnatius T Foobar, I agree, so much electronics in machines that don't need half as much.

I have noticed that really hardcore microchipheads don't want microchips everywhere, they want microchips in places that make sense. It is hipster wannabes who want computers in every doorknob.

There's a reason I keep a car from the '60s.

Besides the fact that you act older than the age of the car? <GRIN>

Environmental concerns aside, and I know I'm a massive outlier on this, but I generally don't get SUVs as a normal driving vehicle. They're easier to roll (I've seen plenty of those), and they're not as comfortable as normal cars. They're just bigger, and people seem to think bigger is better when it's the design of the thing that makes a vehicle safer not the size.

It also bugs that that most people use them as commuter cars and not as an actual sport utility vehicle - but that apparently just makes me picky.

Yup. The wife of my asshole neighbor (think about the "Real Housewives" TV show and you won't be too far off) drives an SUV, and she's usually in it by herself. I've never seen her haul anything in it, I've never seen it come home dirty, and they clearly don't need it as the "one big vehicle in the household for hauling" because her husband owns a pickup truck.

I don't understand the "not as comfortable" comment. I went from a 2002 Outback (I know, I know, it's really a wagon) to a 2014 328i. The Subaru definitely has the more comfy suspension - because it has 2 or 3 more inches of travel to work with.


I mean, the 328i sedan is preferable in every other way besides ground clearance in the snow. But still...

SUV's handle quite well if you aren't pushing them to the limits of cornering.

That said, I am really not an SUV guy. I grew up in a family that drove Volvo station wagons and regarded SUVs as kinda wasteful.

Who gives a crop? Drive what you like.

I've driven big trucks and small cars. I daily drive a RAM 1500. Do I need to? Nope. Don't care.

It's comfortable and convenient. If gas mileage were more of a concern, I'd think of getting something else. But I don't really car. Maybe if gas gets back up over $4 a gallon I will. Until then, I'm happy.

That said, I am really not an SUV guy. I grew up in a family that
drove Volvo station wagons and regarded SUVs as kinda wasteful.

My grandmother drove a Volvo station wagon for 25 years. They were built to last ... as long as you did the scheduled maintenance.

I'm not sure what the schedule means, exactly, after 200K miles or so.

And when they get to be about 25, you have to do some rather unscheduled things like inspecting for structural integrity and rust-through. My dad's cars have had the rear suspension assembly *collapse* on at least 2 occasions *that I know of.* They're around 32 years old now.

There's a reason why I don't make decisions like he does, anymore.

That said... he put 1M miles on a 122.


Which he bought from his professor in the 70s for $75-ish in 1970s dollars.

Volvo's do great when maintained. But the maintenance ain't cheap.

I don't know what happens after 25 years / 200000 miles either. What I know from my grandmother's experience is that if the maintenance schedule says to replace part X at 10,000 miles, part X will fail at 10,500 miles if you don't replace it ... but it will probably NOT fail any sooner.

Yeah, strange how precise those maintence schedules are. Only thing more precise is the written warranty. Things fail at 50,001 miles