Why modern cars feel so lifeless to drive

Richard Parry-Jones, former CTO of Ford, said:

Some in the company would say, "Richard why are you doing that? Spending all the money on chassis and steering? Customers never ask about things like that." But they were wrong. People got into a Focus and said, "I really like driving it." You'd ask why and they'd say, "I don't know; I just do." Understanding why they like it is our job. I tracked customer satisfaction against attributes like steering, brakes, spaciousness, and so on. To people's amazement, I was able to prove that steering was the most strongly correlated, because bad steering is tiring.

This article is not arguing for manual steering, since that's pretty tough for big cars, but I had a Miata for 28 years with manual. Wow, what a difference! But I have to say, parallel parking was quite an effort.

I had the opportunity a while back to drive a 1970s Buick that was entirely analog. It had none of the bells and whistles that modern vehicles have. It didn't even have fuel injection. The experience was revelatory! It was like taking a powerful drug for the first time. The car felt like an extension of my mind and body, whereas modern vehicles make me feel like I'm inhabiting someone else's world.

I grafted an electric power steering unit into my 240z. It was well worth it, the low speed maneuverability is way easier. I just need to figure out a way to use a speed sensor that will reduce the assist input at speeds higher than 10mph, this should give me the regular rack feeling back in the car.

It feel sketch to drive with a steering column that you put together yourself lmao.

This is so true. On modern sports cars (like the Audi R8 and Ferrari 458), it feels like they injected the steering rack with Novocain. Try driving a pre-1995 sports car if you want to get a feel for the difference.

Interestingly enough, my EV is so much more enjoyable to drive (especially in the mountains! it's so pleasant!) than any of the old diesel stick-shift cars I drove back in France. Feels like this is another of those "I liked doing things the hard way for no reason and I miss it" articles.

> for now, an emphasis on steering is the preserve of expensive brands like Porsche.

Anyone know of other makes getting steering right nowadays?

Electric steering need not sound the death knell for fun driving.

The 2004 Honda S2000 has electric steering and it is so good, it’s difficult to tell until you are really at the limit. I also happen to have a 2008 Boxster S with hydraulic steering. If you drive them back to back, you might give the Porsche a small edge, but it’s small. The weight balance and lower to weight ratios are similar, but again at the very threshold of adhesion in a corner, the Boxster has a slim edge.

Honda just nailed it out of the gate, proving that it’s possible without much technology.

I also drive an Ariel Atom with some regularity, which has no power steering and can confirm that this is another level of road feel, similar to a 2006 Lotus Elise.

Having driven all these incredible machines only serves to reinforce Honda’s achievement.

Driving is lifeless. You’re locked in a pod. You see your surroundings through a windshield, you are not apart of them. Try walking or bicycling.

I think you can make a good electric steering without compromising the sensations of driving. Just decreasing its power with the car speed it would work fantastic.

Probably the problem here is the amount of time and money required to do that, and is easier to just set the servo at a fixed amount of torque when the user turn the steering wheel.