Coming soon to a showroom near you
Tuesday, December 11, 2007 
As an existing Audi owner, I have just received a brochure for the new A4 which comes out in February. It looks great but I can't help thinking that today's cars are becoming the automotive equivalent of the nanny state.
For example, the new A4 offers something called 'Audi Adaptive Cruise Control' which not only programs the car to travel at a constant speed (admittedly useful with all those average speed cameras around) but also "lets you set the distance you wish to keep between you and the vehicle in front".
There's 'Audi Side Assist' that "alerts the driver to vehicles moving into the blind spot" when you are moving in excess of 40mph. And there's 'Audi Lane Assist' which alerts the driver before you unintentionally wander out of your lane. Presumably, if you intentionally change lanes (ie overtake) it emits a piercing scream. Last but not least, the new A4 has headlights that "automatically switch on in poor light conditions".
Like the nanny state, these features come at a price. Thankfully they are all options (ie you have a choice) otherwise the cost of a standard A4 (£24k) would be a lot more. My fear is that politicians will see these innovations and make them compulsory. (Why? Because they can!)
Anyway, when was the last time you "unwillingly changed lanes" or were caught out by your blind spot? (Sure, it happens, but is it worth an extra £2-3,000 on the price of your car?) As for "poor light conditions", I can decide that for myself, thank you very much. Mind you, the new daytime running lights look very pretty - damn the expense!
Reader Comments (3)
I'd like to see Jeremy Clarkson's comments on this. I'm sure he'd agree with you. Mind you with all these safety features, it'll be much safer to light up a fag.
Does it have an ashtray or are cars now being built without them?
I have proposed on the Jeremy Clarkson site that he stand for Government and ultimately for the PM job, he could then make James May Chancellor and Richard Hammond Secretary of Transport. It would then be perfectly safe to smoke and drive and also perfectly safe to drive at a reasonable speed along any road, subject to current weather conditions, which is, after all, the most sensible way to drive, rather than with eyes glued to the speedo!