I like my Toyota Rav-4. It’s been a reliable car, and almost no trouble. But there are some things about it that annoy me, like the tire pressure sensors. Those things are notoriously unreliable. I want to turn them off, but there’s no way to do that.
Or how about the “I will lock your doors when I think they need to be locked” function? I want to turn that off. I will lock the doors when I want to lock the doors.
Or the “your headlights will stay on after you turn off the car” function? Again, I will turn them on when I want them on, and off when I want them off.
Other people might like these “features.” Fine. They can have them. But why do I have to be cursed with them?
I can drill into my phone and turn (most) annoying settings off. But I can’t do that with my car. Why not?
I imagine Toyota would say something like “we’re doing this for your safety,” to which I say “go soak your head.” Seat belts are for safety. Locking my doors when I didn’t ask you to is just annoying.
I know this isn’t really the point, but I’m pretty sure that if you turn off your lights before you turn off the car, they’ll be off.
OMG!…I thought I was the only one who was annoyed by these immutable features. My car doors automatically unlock when the engine is turned off. That could potentially create an unsafe situation, for the sake of convenience. As well, the tire sensors are a nuisance…too sensitive.
Yet, I love Toyotas. I’ve owned several and they are very reliable cars that nearly last forever!
Definitely a safety hazard to automatically unlock the door. When we used to have to go to Detroit (Detroit proper), my mom used to freak out. I can’t imagine putting the car into park and then it automatically unlocking everything.
Agreed…I’ve learned to re-lock them immediately…but it’s still very inconvenient. It may have been someone’s “good idea” in concept but in practical terms it’s less than ideal.
I don’t like on my Honda CRV that some outside lights come on automatically even if I have all the lights on… and I have the LX model (the lowest level). What if you want to pull stealthily into some place. Can’t.
A feature that is genius: I turn on my wipers and if I put it in reverse, the rear wiper automatically comes on. I can’t think of a reason I wouldn’t want that.
Mixed feature: unlock the doors with the key fob. If you don’t open within 30-60 seconds, it locks again. Could be f*cked if you don’t know it. I can see the utility of it. You accidentally push the unlock when walking away. ( I hate the annoying horn beep–it does it if you press lock twice quickly)
The tire sensors don’t bother me as much now that I know how to manually reset them myself. But, they are sometimes untrustworthy. I remember more than once rotating tires and getting oil change, and the next day the sensor is going off.
QUOTE: A feature that is genius: I turn on my wipers and if I put it in reverse, the rear wiper automatically comes on. I can’t think of a reason I wouldn’t want that.
That reminds me of having my windshield replaced and the service shop asked if I wanted one with rain “sensors” that would cause the wipers to come on automatically. I told them…NO!…if I didn’t have enough “sense” to turn on the wipers when it rained then I shouldn’t be driving.
I have a CRV, too, and I do like that wiper feature. I also like that it doesn’t do anything dumb like automatically locking/unlocking the doors, except as you say, that it relocks if unlocked with the fob and the doors aren’t opened promptly.
Mine’s a 2015 that I bought in 2020, and so far I haven’t had to replace a tire sensor yet. Maybe the previous owner took care of it, but it wasn’t very high mileage.
My 2017 locks the doors automatically at 9mph, but yes, never unlocks. I’d say it’s my favorite car ever. I’ve had 1) Accord, 2) Fit, 3) Civic, 4) old CRV, 5) CRV
The old CRV started having problems…
Also had Firebird, some Toyota hatchback, Celebrity, Focus, Escape, Regal.
I’d say the Hondas have been much, much, much better than the Fords and GM. I’m from Detroit area. Don’t want it to be true…but it’s a fact.
Next one May be a Jeep…wife likes them. So maybe she’ll get what she wants. But if it was up to me, I’d only buy Honda.
I may be mistaken, but I believe Hondas are more likely to be built by Americans than most American-branded cars, so there’s that.
All the doors unlock when you open the driver’s side door with the engine off, though, right? I find that a convenient feature. I dislike the way the fob doesn’t unlock the passenger doors without an extra click, though. Since I usually keep the fob buried deep in my purse for safekeeping (I’ve had to buy one new one already, ouch) it’s an extra step to reach in and hit the unlock for passengers. Considering all the doors auto-lock when you hit speed, there doesn’t seem to be any practical advantage to not unlocking all the doors at once.
My latest CRV was the first American made Honda I’ve owned. All the rest were Jap made…you can tell by the first digit of the VIN number being J, whereas an American car will be in the range 1-5 (something like that)
1994 Accord – Jap
2010 Fit – Jap
2013 Civic Jap
2006 CRV – Jap
2017 CRV – US (Ohio, I think)
Someone did a study and if you look at the whole of the car… like where parts are sourced, then Toyota was the most American-made. A car might be assembled in Detroit, but has an engine from Mexico, transmission from Canada, electronics from …
“someone did a study”–read it on the internet or heard on radio
All my uncles in Detroit try to convince me that the quality of US cars is on a par with the Jap automakers…and I say, “man, the Lions/Tigers/RedWings sure are sucking….”
At least the profits of the Detroit makers used to stay in the US…but I guess with Daimler owning Chrysler…idk.
Detroit used to be 4th biggest US city and really awesome until 1965… riots, white flight, oil embargo in 70s, rising gas prices, and Americans discovering Japanese cars were made better (using techniques from an American (Deming)).
Oh, and whoever designed the “check engine light” was sadistic! It’s perpetually on.
Probably an O2 sensor. $10 part— $700 labor.
EXACTLY!!!