EV Stupidity Checklist: https://hypercritical.co/2026/05/29/ev-stupidity-checklist

[adamrice@c.im]

@hypercritical The Tesla Robotaxi* has neither a rear window nor sideview mirrors. How does Tesla get away with this in the USA? Laws don’t apply to Elon.

* They’re using some Model 3s for robotaxis. I’m talking about the purpose-built vehicle.

[jontringham@mas.to]

@hypercritical my 2021 VW ID.3 scores 10/12. The two minus points are touch sensitive fan/heat controls, and touch sensitive steering wheel buttons. The 2026 Neo model fixes both of those and scores 12/12. It’s a great little car, and I’ll get the latest one whenever it’s time to replace mine.

[aaronbushnell@mastodon.social]

@hypercritical I was so desperately hoping these were actual checkboxes when tapping them! Great post, though!

[amethyst@toots.n7.gg]

@hypercritical my beloved Mach E checks *most* of these boxes, but the doors still have silly electric buttons on the outside instead of real handles, and still uses the touch screen for HVAC.

[karanj@mastodon.social]

@hypercritical the Polestar 4 fails so many more than the last one, but that's the one that annoys me least (and I'm generally happy with the car, but I'd definitely go with most of this checklist for next car.)

[karanj@mastodon.social]

@hypercritical but also... they're coming out with the P4 Wagon soon, and I suspect that would tick off most of the exterior annoyances (including handles, rear mirror & window)

[siracusa@mastodon.social]

@adamrice I don't know what the rules are for "autonomous" vehicles. And also, as you noted, laws don't currently apply to Elon…

[runoutgroover@cloudisland.nz]

@hypercritical My MG 5 checks all of these, although it doesn't have *any* buttons on the steering wheel.

[jay@oldos.me]

@hypercritical @glyph this is exactly why I got an F-150 Lightning instead of a Rivian. One felt like a truck that happened to be electric, but had all the comforts you'd expect from a company that's been making vehicles for such a long time. The other one felt like an iPhone.

[dexter@bsd.network]

@hypercritical Um, tried a Nissan LEAF?

[danielg@techhub.social]

@hypercritical My good friend is an Engineer and worked in the motor industry for many years. He would agree 100% with you on this, as we’ve had this discussion many times as we see the car industry getting worse.

He says it’s extremely expensive to design and build a proper dashboard with physical dials and controls which is why they all followed Tesla’s design.

However, the good news is that European car manufacturers are reversing course, at lease when it comes to physical climate control buttons, because they’ve realised how dangerous touch controls are.

This is definitely the stance of the VW Group and hopefully we’ll see more of it.

[tvaziri@mastodon.social]

@hypercritical My 2020 Bolt EV scores 13/14 what do I win

[a@pdx.social]

@tvaziri @hypercritical We have a Bolt, too; I gave it half credit on the fan/temperature controls.

[ezekiel@hachyderm.io]

@hypercritical my Toyota fully scored all of these except the glove box because it doesn’t have one. Great car.

[akrumeich@social.cologne]

@hypercritical First impression of that photo: “that’s a weird looking SIM tray”.

[marcintosh@mastodon.social]

@tvaziri @hypercritical 13 points!

[passing_by@kafeneio.social]

@DrChris @Colman @hypercritical you don't mind i prefer the original, do you?

[siracusa@mastodon.social]

@dexter Bad news about the door handles on the 2026 Nissan Leaf.

[janne_o@mastodon.social]

@DanielG @hypercritical while I see the argument for physical controls, I’m amazed how people are so gung-ho about physical AC controls. I set the temperature once (21c, cool in the summer, warm in the winter), and I then never touch it, and let the automatic AC do its thing. One thing I occasionally do is to turn on defroster before I start the drive, but that’s about it.

[overlordspock@masto.ai]

@Janne_O @DanielG @hypercritical There are so many that just don’t have a good concept of how automatic climate control works. I have a friend that is constantly fiddling by with the dial to adjust temperature. I asked her why. She said she’s adjusting how hard the fan is blowing on her. I guarantee that she’s not alone in that.