A clear view of the obvious
Recently, I had to rent a car again after a long time. I like to do that from time to time. Apart from the need to get to my destination, it also helps me not to lose touch with modernity when the latest car I own is 25 years old.
In this case, Hertz presented me with a brand-new Nissan Quash... Qaqush... Quaakqu... a brand-new Nissan, which was of course equipped with all the latest electronic driver assistance systems: Distance beeps, lane change jolts and speed-up jingles - which of course always beeped, jolted and jingled the most when there was nothing at all to beep, jolt and jingle.
But the full magic of modernity was only revealed in the drizzle on the highway. It was too little to keep the windshield wipers running continuously, because the hyperactive sensor was constantly rubbing them across the semi-dry windshield. But too much to be able to completely dispense with the occasional wipe. So every two minutes, the lever on the right behind the steering wheel was raised once and then lowered again.
And every time, really every time, two messages appeared in quick succession on the dashboard replacement screen between the speedometer and rev counter: "Windshield wipers on" - "Windshield wipers off". Well, you don't say, car. I certainly didn't accidentally stumble across it while driving straight ahead. It was similar with parking lights, low beam and high beam. Oh yes, and with cruise control.
I would still understand if the car drew my attention to points of interest along the route. But to some banalities that I triggered myself? That's a bit overprotective. Or are modern drivers really so stupid that they can no longer make the connection between reaching for the windshield wiper switch and a moving windshield wiper?
Since then, I have enjoyed driving my "modern" car even more. Because I have realized that it has a characteristic that is often ignored when judging cars: It doesn't get on my nerves. I can rely on my car to know what it's doing. And my car can rely on me to know what I'm doing. We get on so well together. So far, I've never failed to notice that the windshield wipers were on.
