More on software in cars

(Blogless) Fro sent me this over the course of a few emails:

It's funny that you've had that comment on Ubiquitous Computing in vehicles. It's already there for the higher range vehicles: Dynamic Stability Control, Active Yaw Control, Traction Control, Anti-Skid Braking, etc? And then look at who has that in their cars already, to what level: Merc, BMW, VW, RX-8, etc...

Now look at every review of these vehicles, and how all the journos talk about how to turn it off, and how some of them can't be turned off (Merc?) or have stages of being turned off (RX-8?).

The technology is starting to be there already, and people (users?) are expressing that it interferes with what they want to do, and how they want to do it. Now think about that darned "MS Paperclip-Office Assistant" thing, and how much it pisses off every MS Word user in the world...

I made the comment that the current Lexus GS430 copped some flak in the recent Wheels for being too intrusive with it's "driver aids". Fro said:

It doesn't surprise me at all that the Lexus cops that sort of stuff. The ones that concern me are the BMW M3/Mazda RX-8/350Z, etc. A Lexus isn't meant to be sporty, well not too sporty, anyway. An M3 or RX-8, however, is meant to be a "drivers car", a surgical tool to be experienced and felt. If electrickery is dulling that feeling, or worse, obviously interfering, what's the point in the car?