Car Wish List

[cjsmith]

What I want in a car. This is mostly for my own reference.

[LJ_CUT TEXT="Here you may clicky to see how I'm picky"]

CLIMATE CONTROL

- Heat and air conditioning controls should trigger the heater or air conditioner, and do only that. No weird interlocks with a "defrost" button or something.
- When I direct airflow to certain vents, the airflow should be directed, and only that. No weird interlocks with the heater or something.
- Side vents near the door should be able to be closed. Fully closed. I hate drafts.
- Recirc is a must. No weird interlocks with the vents or the heater, no "recirc only exists when the fan is on", none of that crap. I require a recirc control that switches cabin-air intake from the outdoors to the indoors and does only that.

STUPIDITY

- No timer turning the rear window defrost off for me!
- No locking or unlocking anything on the car except by direct user command!

LIGHTS

- Ideally, hazard lights would be easy to use and easy to stop using again. Most newer cars I've seen seem to pass this test.
- No headlights that are technically legal but make me an asshole on the road. Sorry. Nobody wants to see cars like that coming at them, and I don't want to be the kind of consumer who will buy one.

SEATS AND VISIBILITY

- Headrests have to be either completely removable or completely comfortable for a short chick with a ponytail. This is not negotiable.
- I must be able to see all dashboard indicators. It's incredible how many cars fail this test.
- I must be able to see well enough out the rear left and rear right, by turning my head and looking out the windows, to feel safe changing lanes.

SEAT BELT

- Sure would be nice if I'd stop getting red scrapes on my neck from the seat belt.
- No automatic seat belts. Cars made in 1990 are right out.
- Sure would be nice if the physical layout of the seat and steering wheel put me that last quarter inch over the line so that I could legally disable an air bag. I don't want to be on the borderline.

CONVENIENCES

- Must be able to play cassettes and CDs.
- Must have at least one cup holder. I've seen cars that fail this test.
- Ideally, the rear seats should fold down for trunk access.
- Intermittent windshield wiper capability would be nice.
- Must have the ability to pop the trunk and the gas cap cover from the driver's seat. A keyfob whose trunk control is disabled when the key is in the ignition does not count.
- I don't prefer, but would be willing to put up with, electric locks.
- I don't prefer, but would be willing to put up with, electric windows.
- Automatic transmission. Snotty comments about this will be deleted -- this is MY wish list.

SIZE

- 4-seater. I don't want to be the kind of driver who says carpooling to lunch is someone else's problem.
- Must be able to fit in my small garage next to rfrench's Toyota Solara and leave room for me to open the door and get out. This puts me pretty solidly in the subcompact range; it means a four-door; it probably also precludes adding a right-side rearview mirror.
- Must have enough trunk space to fit all the square dance calling equipment. Ideally, would have as much trunk space as a 1989 Toyota Corolla. It's incredible how many cars (larger cars, even) fail this test.

HANDLING

- Sharp turning radius. I don't have a measurement on this, but most cars' inability to turn well can really piss me off after driving my Corolla.
- When I push the pedal it should go. Here's where my current car has trouble.
- When I push the other pedal it should stop. Early anti-lock braking systems would annoy me, so they're out.

Comments

[eichin.livejournal.com]

http://calcars.org/priusplus.html is the particular mod set I had in mind. True, the basic electric-only-mode is just a matter of turning on a feature that is *already* on in non-US prius models; the far more interesting bit is adding a bunch of LiIon cells in some dead space (and that avoids the weight issues too.)

Just as the normal prius *isn't* primarily about fuel economy (otherwise a TDI jetta would be competetive choice, at least in earlier model years), it's about low-emissions, a wall-charged prius isn't really about being cheaper (the price of the mod isn't even going to pay off for a long time - although the Rav4-ev rated "100mpg" price-equivalent, ie. you paid as much for the electricity as you would for gas if it got 100mpg), it's about not burning oil outright, or at least that's my take on it.

[joedecker.livejournal.com]

...it's about not burning oil outright, or at least that's my take on it.

That depends on where your wall electricity comes from. But yeah, it's a
lot more than just a price thing for me, emissions is important, and I do
drive an awful lot (26K miles the first year), and I do think that oil
prices will go up over the next handful of years--but quiet is important,
and driving the technology curve is as well for me. Many of these things
apply as well (to to full-electrics.)

The PriusPlus conversion looks good so far, and when/if it's offered, I may very well
look into taking a conversion myself, depending on where it ends up on
cost, weight, and any impact on cargo space. Thanks for the link!