Are new technologies such as adaptive cruise control, blind spot warning, auto brakes in newer cars worth it? 20k for 2017 corolla le with 30k miles or 25k for brand new corolla le?
Posted Dec 15, 2023, 6:16 AM UTC
Yes. Twice over the last few years my car swerved out when people were trying to merge into me. A couple of times it hit the brakes hard when people in front suddenly stopped. I might have been able to do these things myself but its reaction time was much better.
When traveling long distances on the freeways a simple lane assist helps immensely with attention reduction from boredom and being tired.
A HUD is really nice as well, you don't need to take your eyes from the road to look at the dash.
Android Auto / car play are game changers as well. You have all your history, trips, maps, calendar, music at your car screen, integrated with steering wheel, with decent voice control. No need to use a phone holder or deal with crappy car stereo interface.
Shoulder check helps with blind spots but sometimes you forget. It's nice to have a backup.
Like all of these systems are not strictly needed at this point. But when they work it's a really nice backup in case you make a mistake or don't notice something.
It really depends on the implementation, I had a 2021ish Santa Fe that worked amazingly. The systems felt very tightly integrated in a way that it was just a natural extension of the driver. My 2022 Corolla was an absolute nightmare and exhausting to drive. It was constantly fighting my inputs.
Toyotas and Lexus to be honest are very far behind in tech, because they don't like to upgrade to it for a while because it can be less reliable.
I noticed this too. I'll usually get a Hyundai rental for work trips and use the lane keep and adaptive cruise for 90% of the drive without a second thought. Was helping my mom shop for a new car this year and was thoroughly unimpressed with Toyota's version of these systems. They just felt like they couldn't keep the car in the middle of the lane reliably, especially through corners or over patches highway that didn't have clearly painted lines.
Yeah, I've had most of these features since around 2015 myself, and I think that most people will have stories like yours if they drive enough. Having the car be aware of the road hazards is really a no-brainer and it is amazing how resistant people are to such great technology.
Don't pay 20k for a 2017, that's insane...
Tech aside, the curent gen drives much more pleasant.
The 2017 probably cost $21k new!
My buddy paid $18K new for a SE.
Right I found a private party 2020 SE for $16K $20k for an LE is a rip off
Yeah, only $5k more for 0 miles and brand new with a warranty? It’s a no brainer to go for the new car.
Blind spot detection and ACC is very much worth it. Emergency braking has only been false positives for me, but maybe someday it'll save my ass.
When I lived in a huge, dense city and had almost no need to go on the highway etc I thought ACC was a waste of money. Now that I have a highway commute tho, god it's such a great feature to have.
Adaptive cruise control with lane centering is brilliant if you take a lot of long drives on highways. Takes a lot of the stress and fatigue out from all of the little corrections you normally have to make. I'm never buying a car without it again.
AEB has only kicked in once for me. A BMW (of course) cut right in front of me on the interstate. The automatic braking beat me to the brake pedal by a fraction of a second.
BSW is also nice. I don't rely on it alone. If it's on, I know I just can't merge right then, so I don't have to spend the time checking my blind spot.
Rear cross traffic alert is great. Big fan.
None of them are substitutes for careful driving, of course. They're just an extra set of eyes.
I have my blind spot monitor in my heads up display on my Mazda 6. That is my favorite tech feature of my car. I can look straight ahead and know if someone is in my left or right blind spot without having to gaze at my mirrors.
Really depends on who you ask. I went from a 20 year old truck without ABS to a brand new Subaru with all the features. I was for sure a holdout on technology with the truck.
I love the blind spot detection and things like auto-dimming mirrors. The self-driving feature on the eyesight is something I didnt think I would every use, but i love it. You cant take your eyes off the raod for long periods, but it reduces the cognitive load of long trips by like 90% as long as the roads are decent.
The safety stuff like auto brakes is a nice to have. It hasnt saved me completely yet, but definitely beeped at me when I happen to glance in the wrong direction and got me to look back at the road to brake myself.
All this stuff is really nice to have. I really regret not upgrading a lot sooner. I wont have a car more than 10 years old ever again. As long as the tech keeps progressing as quickly as it is.
If they are well implemented (and this is a big IF), they can be helpful.
My car (2019 Mazda 3) used to brake automatically and violently on clear sections of road, randomly. This has since been fixed by Mazda.
Blind spot monitoring got me out of some pickles a couple of times, I think that's the most useful one yet.
Adaptive cruise control is pretty crappy on my Mazda, I never use it.
I guess it all depends on the car, so try to test drive it and see how well these driver assists are implemented.
It only has to work once to pay for itself.
The tech features you mention are helpful safety features and will get you a better insurance rate (not sure how much better) but if I was shopping for a used car and it did not have those features I would not care at all but I've been driving for a very long time and consider myself a good 'analog' driver.
I think it’s worth the difference. I have a 2005 Acura and my Dad has a 2021 and when I drive his with all the driver aids and extra features, it really is nice on road trips. I’m waiting until the wheels completely fall off my car but I will for sure go for the new tech when they do.
I'm a not so good driver and has two vehicles with all the features and now drive 12 Corolla with no features. The other two vehicles were much faster than my current Corolla so those features really helped. But I drove slow w my Corolla and never needed these features while driving it lol
Yes. Lane centering/following and FSD/Super Cruise/HDA I & II/BMW's version. Once you have it, you will NOT go back. It's amazing
I use my adaptive cruise control all the time, even on city streets sometimes. The extra 5k would be worth it to me to have a car 8 years newer (the 2017 was probably purchased in 2016) with warranty. Even better, see if they have a corolla hybrid. I have the Corolla Cross and love it.
I have all the bells and whistles in one of my cars. The only thing I really care about is the blind spot detection. But can obviously do without.
I wish I could get something with just the basics. All I’d want is an efficient AWD with 3 rows and 8-10 inches of ground clearance, heat and AC, And a place to dock my phone for music and navigation…and safe. Thats it. 20-25k out the door. Tired of all the bullshit.
I mean it depends on your budget at the end of the day
It’s nice to have for sure
acc is great as well as blind spot monitoring. Lane keep assist is hit or miss. The auto breaking has been false positives for me.
Depends on who you are. My current car has the blind spot monitoring and back up car. Transitioning to it has made me less aware when I temporarily drive something that doesn't have those things. Have to be more cautious. However, I do enjoy it. It's much better in my opinion to have the newer technology.
In my opinion yes. Those safety features really do prevent accidents and save lives.
More tech = more potential failure points for the electrical gremlins to find .
Look at the stories over on GM or Ford subreddits where over the air software updates for these systems have rendered users cars inoperable 😬😬😬
I suppose it depends, but I would say a huge yes.
I’m a car enthusiast, and you’ll hear a lot of people act high and mighty about “not needin no driver assists”, but the truth is that I turn them off when I’m driving to drive, and turn them on to assist when I want to commute somewhere. You get the choice to use the convenience or not. It’s worth it.
It's not that I don't need them, it's that they're awful and make the driving experience much worse. I don't want my car to turn off at every red light. I also don't want to push a button every single time I get in the car to turn off that feature. Same with lane assist. It's always buggy and ends up fighting you when you're trying to make quick lane changes. Radar cruise will maintain a distance of about 3/4 mile between you and the car in front of you, and every car in the middle lane will be jumping out in front of you on the highway.
The most tech I want in my car is Bluetooth and a backup camera. I refuse to buy a car made after 2021 with that mandatory auto start/stop, lane assist, etc bullshit on it.
I’d maybe avoid the absolutely awful cars you’ve been driving, then, lol
The features work amazingly in my car, and mean I can relax on the highway while the car cruises comfortably at the distance I set, keeping me in the lane until I choose to change lanes.
Are you trying to change lanes without signaling? lol. It kinda sounds like you’re telling on yourself a bit here
I drive a Porsche, of course I'm changing lanes without signaling
What’s a backup camera? I drive a 2012 jetta. Just rely on the old neck turn when backing out.
Mid and rear engine cars are usually difficult to see out of.
That sucks. I use the shit out of my VW's features. I love them all and they're all great.
I actually use I-stop in the MX-5 Quite often, the engine turn off is done really well in the car. Leave it in neutral and foot off clutch it shuts the engine off. As soon as you start pushing the clutch in the engines ready to drive. By the time you shift to 1 you're already good to go, so all it does is save some gas.