I think this is another example of what I was trying to say.

The wipers are automatic and initially (like 18 months ago) they weren't good. But instead of asking "why couldn't they put simple tactile wiper controls" a much better question was "Why can't they train a neural net and make the car smarter so the wipers work better than manual controls?"

And the answer was, yeah they could. And they did and today the wipers are quite good.

I'm a Model 3 owner who loves the underlying drivetrain technology, and a fair number of Tesla's design decisions, but am largely in the camp of the GP (I've posted on this before: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21173756 , which received some valid counterpoints and a correction ). It's funny you mention the wipers, because just a couple of days ago I was frustrated by the lack of tactile wiper controls; even the auto-wipers on the next-to-latest software version handled the mist poorly. There's certainly a significant degree of subjective weighting in terms of peoples' preferences. "OTA UX updates" would not be something I would care about in car that was more conventional in its controls, nor do I want or trust the ad-hoc "Autopilot". Moreover, I would really like Tesla to meaningfully commit to giving the user strong privacy and access controls regarding the data Tesla collects and access they have; I'm sure many people love Tesla having remote root on the car, but it bugs the hell out of me and I think it's much harder to do user-rooting on the Model 3 than the S/X (haven't been following this topic lately).

I get that I am an outlier compared to most Tesla owners who weigh things differently. I'll just be glad when there are alternatives at the level of battery, drivetrain, and mechanical & aerodynamic efficiency of a Tesla that take a different tack on controls, interfaces, and remote access.

But I agree with @null_turkey - after the Model 3, it's clear any vehicle I would buy next for daily or near-daily use would not have a pure ICE drivetrain; at a minimum, it would need to be a plug-in hybrid.

>Having to tell everyone to stop talking so you can turn the wipers on is just plain bad design.

My S and X both have "normal" wiper controls on a stick attached to the steering wheel, although I almost never use it since they are set to automatically turn on and change intensity depending on rainfall.

Don't get it twisted - the Tesla should be your personal haven - don't let anyone encroach on that :)

Wiper controls use the standard column stick just like any other car. Same with lights.