Also I think we've done enough damage to the world with the (British accent) "what about the children" arguments...
And I'm left wondering: have these people ever been in a modern car? Just sitting in it blocks out more of the environment than my open-backed earbuds. If I can drive one of those without causing an accident, surely I can listen to podcasts on my (much slower) bicycle without causing an accident too!
I see it now where people bellyache about headphones and runners and don't really get it. I don't have the volume jacked up and I know where to look for traffic.
On a bike I don't want headphones just because I'm mixing with so much more traffic and want that awareness.
Are children really harder to hear? Old cars were louder. How much sound did they cover up just with noise? How much more could you hear in an old car compared to a modern electric car?
That's more o an issue of the big German car manufacturers having outsourced their HW and SW development to suppliers who compete on cost so UX was never in the budget.
Still, I do prefer having physical switches for the critical functions of a car regardless of how polished the touch UX is.
If you're like me you just want a car that get's you from point A to point B reliably and safely. You're probably thinking they will always be an option for a straightforward mechanical machine.
But that may not be the case. Regulators are increasing demands for more and more electronics and a lot of that is driven (I assume) by car industry lobby.
Essentially, the best thing a car industry can achieve is to turn your car into a computer or iphone. This way they can release new models every year and increase the the pressure to buy more.
Right now a 20yo car is still good to drive around and not that much has improved, but what are you going to do it the new software update is no longer compatible with your car? :)
And obviously, more higher complexity.higher failure means more profits on component sales.