this post was submitted on 28 Feb 2025
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European New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) — an independent and well-regarded safety body for the automotive industry — is set to introduce new rules in January 2026 that require the vehicles it assesses to have physical controls to receive a full five-star safety rating.

While Euro NCAP testing is voluntary, it is widely backed by several EU governments with companies like Tesla, Volvo, VW, and BMW using their five-star scores to boast about the safety of their vehicles to potential buyers.

“The overuse of touchscreens is an industry-wide problem, with almost every vehicle-maker moving key controls onto central touchscreens, obliging drivers to take their eyes off the road and raising the risk of distraction crashes,” said Matthew Avery, director of strategic development at Euro NCAP, to the Times. To be eligible for the maximum safety rating after the new testing guidelines go into effect, cars will need to use buttons, dials, or stalks for hazard warning lights, indicators, windscreen wipers, SOS calls, and the horn.

The Euro NCAP’s safety guidelines aren’t a legal requirement, however, car makers take safety ratings pretty seriously, so any risk of points being docked during such assessments is likely to be taken into consideration.

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 2 weeks ago

I think Euro NCAP ratings would have more teeth if it was mandatory for manufacturers of standard passenger vehicles to submit a reference model for testing. Voluntary testing doesn't work since manufacturers would be averse to submit cars for testing if they thought they'd get a bad score. And while Euro NCAP does sometimes buy cars for testing, they don't do it for every make and model.

And if the cheapest dogshit cars on the road (Kia Picantos, Dacia Sandero's etc) can have buttons, dials, wipers and indicators then so should everything above it. Companies like Tesla remove controls to cheap out on having to make a part, but they attempt to pass this off as innovation when it puts people's lives at risk.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 2 weeks ago

More physical controls is great, so I see this as a win. For navigation and media, I don't want to be without the screen, but I hate that my ventilation controls are 50 % hidden under touch controls, meaning I usually don't bother to change them while I drive, because it requires looking away too much.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

Less screens? Why does a car even need one screen?

[–] [email protected] 11 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

The mandatory in EU reversing camera.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Holy smokes. That's nuts. I'm glad I font live there then.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 weeks ago

The United States, Canada, and Japan have the requirement, too. Australia's takes effect in November 2025.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

You can prise my windscreen from my cold dead hands.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

You afraid of getting bugs in your teeth? Coward. ^/s^

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 weeks ago

The rate of decline of insects in the last few decades is quickly making that a non-issue.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 2 weeks ago
[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)
[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 weeks ago

Those things would be way more useful if they had a wider FOV. I hate how most people now use them as the only way of checking behind them when backing up, because you really can't see shit well enough for that. It's meant for seeing something small and close that even physically turning around to look, you wouldn't see it. Like an animal or a child directly behind you.

All they've done is make people drive less safe because so many people just stare at the fucking camera screen instead of actually turning their head and checking their blind spots.

[–] [email protected] -5 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

They are called rear vision mirrors/ side mirrors, and neck muscles.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

If you’d used one you would know they show you angles you can’t see otherwise.

[–] [email protected] -5 points 2 weeks ago

If it works for you, all good. It's not for me though 👍

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

You can't see something small right behind you with that.

[–] [email protected] 46 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (4 children)

Before anyone forgets, this all started with Tesla. They lacked the skill, talent, know how, money and manufacturing capacity to make a decent center console. They then decided to move everything to the touchscreen because software is cheap to add to cars, thousands of small precision engineered objects are not. It was a margins game by the man "with the most knowledge on manufacturing in the world". The rest of the industry followed because the bougie idiots made the brand so popular "they could not be doing something wrong, right?". Queue the competitors copying that absolutely regarded idea. Everyone calling this regarded, was screamed into oblivion by tesla fanboys and design savants: "You're just too dumb to understand minimalist design". And here we are, turns out designing something that makes the driver take their eyes off the road on a 2000Kg murder machine is actually NOT good design.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Tesla doesn't have that excuse. The original Roadster, Model S and Model X all had fairly conventional controls. They deliberately undermined the safety of their vehicles over time by aggressively removing physical controls in the model 3 and Y and revamped S. It probably saved them a few bucks, but at the cost increased risk to human life. If they get penalized in safety tests for their penny pinching then so be it.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 weeks ago
[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

~~regarded~~ r.tarded, right?

Edit, .lm-censoring

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 weeks ago

Yes, and I know that because I too am highly regarded.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

Also it accelerates the design-to-manufacture cycle of a new model - just slap a huge touch screen on it and start building the car, and hope the software is ready in time. If not, well, just ship it as is and patch it later.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 weeks ago

Builds in a very expensive replacement component too.

A control button breaks? New button is a (still over-inflated) $75 to replace.

A Tesla control screen breaks (and they do, just as often as buttons) - $1500.

https://www.greencarfuture.com/electric/tesla-screen-replacement-cost-process#Cost

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