Anyone else hating new auto climate

[DD4ST]

See below! It’s really what I personally like, but there are issues like that below, as well as lots of complaints by automotive writers. And in my case, I bought my M3L/R not because of the nearly complete screen control, but in spite of it. Fast car, good looks, moderate price, excellent range, best charging options. I think most would agree those attributes exceed the touch screen desirability. As I said, to each his own. But that’s how I “justify it.”

Agree totally. I believe most EV adopters today bought into it because they were already technically and IT inclined. But more important to mainstream America isn’t that a car is set up like a computer but the entire driving experience. If that means you don’t want buttons then Rivian and Tesla are for you. But most people that still drive ICE are used to buttons and knobs. My first EV was (is) an Audi eTron which looked very much like Audi’s ICE versions. I bought it because of the Audi ride quality and the wicked torque of an EV. I wasn’t even looking for an EV at the time. I don’t think I would have transitioned to the Rivian big screen experience without the Audi as an onramp.

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[richguess]

Similar article to the above reference in the WSJ 9/29/24. I really believe it’s dealers choice.

 

[bigsky]

I refuse to buy old-style cars with buttons and knobs. It was a major factor for Rivian against Ford and Chevy. Screen only please.

Could not agree more.
Not long ago, I drove a Ford Edge. I counted no fewer than 50 knobs and buttons strewn about all over the dash and on every possible real estate available on the steering wheel. I strongly believe that the Ford Edge dash design team finished ahead of schedule and with all the time left decided to go all out on buttons and knob clutter. Unbelievable!

To me, knobs, buttons on a car dash are so passé , so ICE, so absolutely no way, thank you.

 

[SwampNut]

But most people that still drive ICE are used to

Oh, that reminds me of the stupidity of disabling regen and hold. Glad that's just being removed from EVs. Evolve or die.

 

[DD4ST]

Rivian needs to sell more vehicles. Saying “do it my way or else…” ain’t the way to do it. A lot of folks on this forum have that attitude. Those that cite Tesla as an example should recall that Tesla was able to tap into 100% of essentially a niche market to build volume. Rivian doesn’t have that luxury.

 

[emoore]

Rivian needs to sell more vehicles. Saying “do it my way or else…” ain’t the way to do it. A lot of folks on this forum have that attitude. Those that cite Tesla as an example should recall that Tesla was able to tap into 100% of essentially a niche market to build volume. Rivian doesn’t have that luxury.

I don't think putting a bunch of physical buttons is the way to sell more vehicles either.

 

[f1racer328]

I think the new auto climate controls were implemented very well.

Low, Med, and High are just fan curves. It's still variable. Medium seems to be basically the same as the old "Auto" mode.

The truck is still going to vary the speed as the temperature changes in the cabin, and as you change the desired temperature, but it will take more/less time to achieve that target temperature.

It also works very well in my R1T. I have had zero issues with the climate control, and I live in a very hot climate. I understand the R1S is different, so I won't comment on that.

 

[beatle]

For the no-button and all-button extremists, note that the right thing is usually somewhere in the middle. It's nice to have buttons for frequently used tasks since they can be operated without looking, and there is haptic feedback from actuating them so you know your input was registered.

Having everything as a button limits customization (present and future) since you may only have a few options now, but later you may want more. Buttons also cost money and increase the cost to design and build the car, and too many of them can be off putting or confusing since they may only have a small icon to tell you their function.

To see one extreme, look at how Tesla has gone overboard with their lack of physical controls. It's actually why I abandoned them after owning two Model S. PRND controls, horn, turn signals, and windshield wiper speeds should have tactile feedback and be easily accessible.

It'd be nice if Rivian offered the ability to map the right scroll wheel button to do something, or if you could remap other wheel buttons. Right now the right button it's a waste of a precious limited physical interface.

 

[DD4ST]

I don't think putting a bunch of physical buttons is the way to sell more vehicles either.

No where in my comments did I argus for a “bunch” of buttons. Instead I alluded to functions that are overly complicated by requiring a computer screen, especially while driving. My “nit” was vent alignment. I prefer being able to manually adjust vents instead of guessing if I got it right while looking at a computer screen while driving. But why not why not provide both options, both presets and manual adjustment. As far as buttons, I think SwampNut had the right solution in his first post. Provide some user-defined buttons (my add - on the steering wheel) for customization to each person’s liking. One I’d like to see is the ability to quickly switch to camera mode With the push of a button. The Rivian does this of sorts with the steering wheel buttons, but does not have enough versatility to be truly user-defined.

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