Take a car with an internal combustion engine and replace everything that is needed for an electric car. Now you have a no-nonsense car.

Instead, we have a rolling data center that feels like a smartphone.

Why are there no normal electric cars instead of gimicks on wheels? is probably the first question.

There aren't no nonsense gas powered cars anymore. Everything is computer controlled.

Anti lock brakes, collision avoidance, controlling the fuel injections. You have to go back to the models that used carburetors to get what you want. Then the federal goverment requires tons of expensive safety equipment and testing to keep new companies from entering the market.

But to answer the question, profits. The production line for low price gas cars are already built and optimized with statistical process control. There aren't high profits in the low priced autos. They will only switch when nobody buys their current models.

Just look at the big three turning their nose up to electric.

Meanwhile Hyundai is rolling out a super cheap model in china.
https://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/hyundais-new-ioniq-v-undercuts-the-cheapest-ev-in-america-by-over-10000/

FYI: Companies are getting your message and vibe. But so far it's just for farm tractors.

https://wheelfront.com/this-alberta-startup-sells-no-tech-tractors-for-half-price/

In the past the marketers were likely convinced that EV drivers wanted something different, that looked different, that everyone would see as different, that would stick out. Because why else would you possibly want an EV?!? It's obviously because you want to stick out. It's called product differentiation and the product developers are all over it. Nowadays it's also like that but along a different wave, now you have to differentiate with more screens! More gadgets! Have to differentiate from normal cars or why else would anyone buy from us instead of them! It's funny one business podcast I listen to says of Tesla "they haven't updated it in years! It feels old! It's a failure!" They feel the need to one up every time and differentiate and now we can't just buy a normal car.

Welcome to Car Industry Protectionism 101.

You want a no nonsense electric car at an affordable price point? Tough shit. Your country's politicians love those car industry kick backs.

I think that that's kind of a problem with almost all new cars, not just EVs.

Slate's a pretty stripped-down EV. It's got a mount where you can stick a phone or tablet if you want, but nothing built-in.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slate_(vehicle)

No cell radio. Doesn't even have power windows in the base configuration; it comes with air conditioning and air bags and that's about it.

Note that the range is shorter than, say, a Tesla Model 3 or something.

old man shakes fist at cloud?

It's got a mount where you can stick a phone or tablet if you want, but nothing built-in.

I believe that is a mistake, carplay and android auto are designed to work well when driving, my phone automatically removes all text message notifications and makes me not even notice getting texted to prevent me from getting distracted.

I would like a stripped down car that still has Carplay/Android Auto.

It's all cars. It's more profitable to sell fewer cars at a higher price. The tech bloat is used to justify the high price. Regulations requiring the tech bloat are designed to keep competitors from entering the market. Regulations are paid for by bribes lobbying.

The range is shorter than a Tesla but the price is about a third so it's not so bad when you factor that in. I wish Slate success I really like their approach to the automobile, they remind me of Framework computer on wheels.

I drive an Opel Corsa E. It's basically just a normal Opel Corsa with an electric engine.
Or is that not what you had in mind?

I firmly believe, at least in the US, but it's probably true for the rest of the world as well, that as soon as somewhat crackdowns on what is allowed to be gathered for data is done, that a model or two after that you will start seeing significantly less smart features in vehicles and it will only be more convenience and safety items, I believe personally that a lot of our infotainment system style designs will go away because the primary reason for running those style designs is to allow for data collection.

And that's because there's a lot of money in data collection. Be it law enforcement buying it for location data on someone or the onstar wanting it for analytics of where cars are going or how they're being used to insurance agencies wanting to know how often an individual goes over the speed limit.

It's also incredibly useful even for the first party and knowing what features are used the most in the vehicle for research and development.

But yeah, once the financial incentive is significantly neutered, I believe you will fairly quickly see a lot of these features becoming optional add-ons or no longer offered period

You can install head units into older cars easily to do this. Did it with my old Ute. Android auto for a song.

Estimated range: 205 miles.

You can buy Hyundai, Renault, BMW, VW. .. all pretty good "normal" electric cars.

They couldn’t build them fast enough if there were, they would run out of batteries.

People buying cheap basic cars aren’t going to pay extra for it, or mess around with putting in L2 charging at home.

Why make 2 budget EVs and make $5k each when you can make 1 expensive one and make $10k?

My issue is that a lot of manufacturers have tried, incorrectly, to mimic Tesla in ways they don't understand.

Tesla have a 16" screen in their car.

Ford: We put a 17" screen in our car!

Tesla: You can watch movies, play video games, browse the internet, etc. when you're charging (as it used to take a long time - but we've kept the big screen).

Ford: You've got a bit ole screen! It's bigger than a Tesla's! Your driving map is huuuge. When you're charging you can watch it charge - in HD!

Because the overlords want data. So data collection must be in everything because top dollar is being paid for it.

There aren't no nonsense gas powered cars anymore. Everything is computer controlled.

Anti lock brakes, collision avoidance, controlling the fuel injections. You have to go back to the models that used carburetors to get what you want. Then the federal goverment requires tons of expensive safety equipment and testing.

I don't think OP is referring to any of that. More so the infotainments systems, touch controlled dashboards etc.

that as soon as somewhat crackdowns on what is allowed to be gathered for data is done

I hope I'm just cynical, but that seems like a mighty big if right there

your statement goes well outside just cars too. all house appliances to start.

I owned an Opel Corsa once. I don't ever want to get reminded again.

With switches and knobs? Without a touch screen?

I don't know so many details, sorry

I haven't bought appliances in a while. I get the feeling the high end stuff has mandatory tech crap on it, but the low end stuff is still mercifully free of it; I feel like it would be easier to by a fridge that does not spy on you than a car.

Idk, just because a car doesn't have a touchscreen doesn't mean the computers aren't tracking you. Anything with ADAS (advanced driver assistance systems) is going to phone home, and vehicles are required to have a lot of the systems now.

OP is drinking the oil industry Kool Aid. All cars come with the same sensors and send the same data home. It has nothing to do with the engine.

We should have laws against it, but it certainly isn't limitteed to EVs.

Buttons and dials are coming back, at least.

Not sure where I read it, but the story goes that loads of manufacturers used touch screen controls "because Tesla" but Tesla didn't do it because it was cool and fancy, they did it because it's cheaper. Spinning up entire supply lines to get plastic buttons and switches just wasn't feasible for them in the startup days.

It's literally the opposite of premium.

I find the Opel Corsa Electric and Renault Zoe to be pretty alright, regarding knobs and buttons. They still are very much tablets with wheels though.

While I hate the dimensions, shape and pretty much everything else about it, I belive the Citroën e-C3 is available with just a phone mount in the center, and no smarts whatsoever. I've only ever driven the model with an infotainment system though.

Not everywhere. BMW stupidly are nixing more controls in favor of touch bullshit.

And that stupid tablet in the middle design seems to only ever quicken its pace.

I think that’s part of the reason BYD does so well in Australia.

Their cars look like normal cars.

What frustrates me most about my wife’s Kona is that the shift stick is gone & you have to use buttons. That & how confusing it was to figure out how to open the charging unit when she first got it.

I have Seat Mii electric, it is dumb as a rock. I love it.

Maybe if you're thinking about a 1957 Buick Special, then yeah. That's a frame, driveline, seats, and a radio. ICE vehicles since the late 00s have been smart devices that phone home.z

I think the answer to your question is that it's more profitable to sell a vehicle that continues to generate value by collecting and sending data home which can be sold.

We're about to get BYD cars in Canada, they're half the price of anything else on the market. If they can resist our winters and evil road salt I'm totally game for one to replace my gas-guzzler.

I was hit by an Opel Corsa once, it hurt like hell but I killed the car.

There's one in Mexico

This would be solved by putting space in the dash for people to install their own head units.

Are you a deer

When i was looking for a replacement for my last car, i was aiming at an EV. Market hat nothing even close to my needs. Had to buy a conventional car instead. Get me something similar to my seat alhambra, but electric and at a realistic price, an i'll have my next car.

Not anymore!

How many ICE cars can you do that with? It’s an industry problem, not a power train problem

Toyota BZ. There's a touchscreen in the center of course, but it's amazingly low tech otherwise. The turn signals and other lights on the dash are literally incandescent light bulbs behind an arrow shaped hole (like all cars had in the 90's).

Interesting. Android auto always makes me more distracted vs if the phone was just normal.

If you drive a normal less than an hour commute to work, you may not need L2 for normal every day charging. Of course it is nice, but you could always get the car first and put in L2 at a later date or never.

Not really, unless you mean giant SUVs. Where are the regular cars and hatchbacks? I hate this constant bigger and bigger vehicles nonsense that just puts people at risk.

Once you understand how cheap the components (battery, electric motors, some servos, some steel, a LOT of plastic...

If they don't make them fabulous the fabulous people won't buy them. As it is some wide track golf cart/pickup trucks would be far superior than any of the sleek stuff turned out. Better "volt" mileage too.

Today's larger cars are actually safer... but for their occupants only. In a sea of trucks and giant SUVs it's a little scary so everyone wants a big car. Even small cars are big now, look at a Fiat 500!

For sure, but blaming that on computers in general is a bit dumb

The batteries aren't cheap. That's still the expensive part of an EV, even though it's nowhere near as expensive as it used to be.

But overall, the same issue plagues all new cars. There have been very few great innovations in the last decade or so, so now they just have to cram more techy tech into cars to get people to buy a new one. I mean no real innovations aside from the electrification itself of course.

Go look at high-end cars in 2016. Carplay/Android Auto was already a thing, though optional in most cars, and not available in all yet. Safety features like automatic braking, adaptive cruise, lane keep assist were already available. Massage seats were old news. There was just nothing new to add to a car to differentiate it from others. Tesla had just come along a few years ago with a slick UI and over the air updates, and people were blown away with it. What do you do? You start imitating the success of Tesla, going too far (too much tech) instead of integrating only the good things (actually responsive screen, for example).

Hell, I maintain that you can get 90% of what you'd ever want from a car, if you're willing to own ICE, from a well-equipped 2005-2013 Mercedes S-Class by upgrading it with a AA/Carplay module. There's little in its 2014-2020 successor that makes it truly a better car - only a slightly nicer infotainment system, better transmission (even that only in the facelift) and different (some better, some worse) engine options. So in 2020, with the new model, they went crazy with screens, making the interior actually uglier than the old ones. The electric equivalent, EQS, was even more screen-focused, only because it came out a year or 2 later, not because it's electric.

Once we get to cheaper cars, however, it's even harder to add any real new innovations. MB's Magic body control (camera controlled hydraulic suspension that knows when to soften up for a pothole) is super expensive. 4 wheel steering is expensive. A large touchscreen is not expensive. A sim card for online services is not expensive.

Not necessarily true. Bigger car doesn't necessarily mean a safer car. It's complicated and SUVs have made car accidents more dangerous because they are heavier and are much more likely to flip compared to a car with a low centre of gravity. They also are far more dangerous AGAINST sedans and hatchbacks due to the mass difference

https://www.drive.com.au/caradvice/are-suvs-safer-than-smaller-cars/

Here's an article that looks at some of the research.

SUVs do provide perceived safety because drivers are higher up and in a bigger car but that's not valuable whatsover in an accident.

I don't know about the rest of the world but in Australia SUVs were treated with less restrictive emissions standards as sedans or hatchbacks so car companies pushed them very hard, some fleets completely removing sedans and hatchbacks from their line up and replacing them with Compact SUVs.

I'm pretty certain most of the SUV craze is just very effective marketing.