I drive a 3yo Corolla. While it does have the touch screen, it also has physical buttons both on the steering wheel and on the panel.

Well, the volume knob for the car audio, while physical, is actually digital so it's uncomfortably laggy.

I only use the touch screen to interact with the navigation (it integrates with Android via USB).

They just don’t die. My 16 year old one seemed end of life 10 years ago and when I holed the sump, I was resigned to getting it wrecked.

After driving it for a few months it didn’t die so I took it to a mechanic. I got told off for my dry sump technique and told not to do it again. It got a new pan and some oil, that was it. It’s done 5 or so years of light service since. It’s been stolen, carried masses of firewood, too many dogs and too much concrete.

Great car.

Heh ye I would also be a bit moody as a mechanic if someone gave up over such a simple repair and kinda did 10 year of motor wear in 4 trips.

To your defence it is kinda hard to know what problems are simple problems.

Next time just glue a piece of aluminium on the inside of the old sump with JB Weld or a similar type of heat-resistant epoxy. Been there done that after my wife holed a few too many sumps by driving her Skoda over overly high obstacles. The first time she did this I could follow her track in the tractor to where she parked the car for me to tow it homes, the other times were out in the bush - she's a veterinarian which takes her to places where roads are afterthoughts. I just swapped between sumps, repairing the freshly broken one in wait for another turn. That car has been sold and she has not yet managed to hole the current one but I know from experience this works just fine.

Is there anything you can’t fix with JB weld? The stuff is amazing.

> They just don’t die

Because they only have features of 90s car, not 2020s car. It's just shockingly bare. A lot of times coupled with dull drivers so must be some confirmation bias too.

No-one:

Manufacturers: "Did someone say heated seats-as-a-service?"

This one is just silly since it's not making any serious money to manufacturer.

That said we shouldn't stop car evolution because one shitty manufacturer fucked up. If you wan't one - you can always buy a Lada, they were perfect since 70s...

OK, how about Stellantis (Jeep, Citroen, Vauxhall etc) introducing adverts every time you stop your car?

https://m.slashdot.org/story/438631

My mother used to drive a 1989 Corolla until 2005, when she bought another Corolla. Both are working without issues to this day.

You mean she's not had to, checks notes, "upgrade the operating system" in all that time? /s

I mean, my 9 year old Clio drives fine with pretty basic software. Whereas when I see a Tesla on the road I try not to get too close out of fear it will do something random and dangerous.

It sort of feels like Internet connected toasters. If the add-on fails, I'd like to still toast my bread (read drive my car).