“Learn This One Simple Trick That Will Reduce Your Insurance Costs 100X!” 
I prefer not to take my eyes off the road to see where the button I need to press is on that flat touchscreen.
Would be cool. Still, normal physical controls are better (for me, I agree).
Tesla revolutionizes the whole car buying experience, too. There’s a great Planet Money podcast episode on why the auto business in the US sucks so horribly for the consumer AND the manufacturer, and why franchise law makes it so hard for upstart companies (like Tesla) to change.
As for the driver UX, yeah… it’s like driving in a dream of the future.
Why haven’t vars got Head Up Displays yet?
What’s so special? o_O It’s just a car.
Given that a simple 6 disk CD player still costs like a warp engine in a dealership, such a display would cost more than the car itself.
The first head-up displays appeared in military planes in the 1950s. I don’t understand why cars still don’t have them 60 years later with all the improvements in electronics and LEDs we have had since.
It’s true, it’s just a car.
Here’s my experience: You can fire up the air conditioner from your iPhone, before you leave the restaurant. Door handles are flush with the doors. The car senses when the key is near, and slides open the handle as you approach.
No ignition switch – rather, the car senses when you’re sitting in the drivers’ seat and that you have the key. When you sit down, it starts the “motor” (which you don’t notice, because it’s just an electric motor sitting between the rear wheels).
The center console is an enormous touch screen with nav (maps), car controls, phone, etc. at your fingertips. Transmission shifter (P/R/D) is a simple switch off the steering column, about the size & location of a windshield wiper.
Operation is totally quiet, yet it’s crazy responsive and powerful. Whether you’re going 20 or 60, it’ll stick you to the seat if you step on it.
It reminded me of using a Mac for the first time, after using a PC forever… “wow, that was REALLY NICE.”
Don’t take it personal, but mention of iPhone, Mac and Tesla in one post makes me think the positive review is pre-conditioned by the marketing, not by the practical value of any of these 3 things.
I feel what Tesla is good for at this moment is to show off.
There is no a practical reason to buy a full-electrical yet, is there? Resale price is unknown, reliability is unknown, extra conversion from natural fuel to electricity only increases the energy losses in the large picture, so no eco value (save for very local: less polluted air in the immediate vicinity of the car)…
According to Wikipedia… we just drive cheap cars. Rich folks have them (Mercedes C, Audi, …).
Apple products are more than just marketing. Dismissing it as just marketing is doing yourself a disservice. You should understand why they are popular (marketing is a small part of that answer). Even if you come away still convinced that they aren’t for you, it very well could teach you something about your own products and services.
A big part of it is that they choose a target audience and make sure to blow their socks off. That’s something most companies claim to try to do, but so much is lost in meetings that always add features and never even consider taking them away. If the Apple products aren’t for you that’s fine. That’s part of the design. But for those that Apple does target, it’s not just marketing, it’s a product that was designed explicitly for them.
We’re starting to get some information about resale value for the time frames in which full-electric cars have been around. That’s admittedly limited, but that’s the best we can get for now. Reliability is in a similar boat, but we get a little more info from the stress tests they do at the car company. Those things aren’t perfect by any stretch, but we know a lot more these days than we did in the early days of gas cars.
The eco value is where I really want to comment on though. Going full-electric is consolidating the problem into one source. Let’s say that we found a perfect solution to our energy problem today. We replace ONE power plant and suddenly all the all-electric cars are completely clean, the hybrids are noticeably cleaner, and the gas cars are the same. Moving to electric vehicles is drastically shortening our energy switchover when we get to a point where we have something to switch onto. It’s prep work. As long as it’s not noticeably worse, it’s probably the right long-term move.
Ha, no offense taken. They all have a design & usability that resonates with me. Maybe there’s a marketing effect in there too.
Plus, I’m an unashamed Elon Musk fanboy… Solar City, SpaceX, and Tesla are each aligned with a very specific (disruptive) vision of how things ought to be in their specific industries, and for the most part they’re each progressing according to plan. I find it admirable.
Not to interrupt the Tesla/Apple/Hitler discussion, but I had a question that you guys may have input on as well.
Anyone else notice the massive decline in bootstrap/startup articles on HN in the past 6 weeks? Like a lightswitch was flipped on July 31 or something. Now it’s all programming language love fest articles, obscure scientific research and the occasion YC job announcement/PR article. But most of the other stuff has largely vanished and it used to be a really good source for that.
Anyone know why?
I never followed HN all that much but I remember reading a couple comments that the quality of discussion had deteriorated. It could also just be the circle of life.
I’ve had 2 cars so far with heads up displays 
maybe you’re just doing it wrong over there in the UK!
But yeah, they are rare. They’re not as helpful as you might think though they’re also kinda dumb. Just the speed and navigation. I’d like a more true heads up display that was watching incoming traffic, could alert to a guy who looks like he’s going to run a stop sign, etc.
(BMW 5 series and my current Mazda 3 FYI)
I didn’t know there were any commercial cars with HUDs. I stand corrected!
Cool! I just pre-ordered.
This is useful and practical. Not like Tesla.
Reading Twitter while you are driving sounds like a recipe for disaster.
True. I want to see the driving directions right in front of me, phone calls there, too, time, engine information and whatnot.
Twitter? I see it as fad.
Maybe I’m wrong but I think I’ve already seen them: