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Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

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Re: Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

#61
post #54

Driving without a rear window isn’t a big deal - see, for example, nearly every cargo delivery van on Earth. I have to imagine the stubborn refusal to add standard physical controls back to the cockpit has more potential for trouble than an impeded rear view. I wonder if there’s NHTSA data on this specifically for passenger cars? Maybe incidents caused by blocking the driver’s rear view (with furniture or people or w…

100% agree on this. What I'd really like to see is less software in an EV, complete isolation between higher and lower functions, normal physical controls and an ability to run the thing entirely disconnected from the manufacturer's dragnet. It should be able to charge and be driven with all critical instruments working fully disconnected from anything and without software updates. My colleagues who drive EVs regular…

Wow youre missing out, car is such a fundamental freedom enabler - of movement

Re: Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

#62

I can switch the camera in my car to replace the normal mirror. This is useful when the trunk is full. I hate it, though, because it forces your eyes to quickly and repeatedly adapt to short vision (the image is close to you), then again on the road etc. There is no such a problem with the normal mirror which shows objects far away so you you don't need to adapt when switching between forward and back view

Interesting and well spotted

Re: Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

#63
post #45

It also disallows drivers behind the vehicle to see through it to see what’s in front. Of course there are plenty such vehicles on the road already (trucks, RVs, etc), but it would probably be detrimental to road safety if this feature becomes popular among automakers.

Many SUVs' rear glass are already so high and tinted out of the factory. I rarely get to see what's beyond these vehicles when I'm in traffic. Nothing beats having a proper following distance for safety.

Actually, this got progressively worse over time: older cars have really big and non-tinted rear windows, so no problem to "see through" (but I wouldn't want to land on the roof after an accident with one of those). Newer cars, even non-SUVs, are already worse in this regard (smaller windows, often tinted, bigger headrests). If you add SUVs, pickups, vans etc. to the mix it gets even worse.

Re: Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

#64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aside from regulation, I've had a few (rare) occurences in a Tesla where it's lagged or a camera has glitched out for a few seconds. Those few seconds could be critical on a road at speed.

Strange mental leap. Are you speeding in reverse?

Sounds dangerous when someone is overtaking you if one of your "mirrors" is lying to you about where the car is.

Re: Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

#65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aside from regulation, I've had a few (rare) occurences in a Tesla where it's lagged or a camera has glitched out for a few seconds. Those few seconds could be critical on a road at speed.

Strange mental leap. Are you speeding in reverse?

It isn't unusual for drivers who are actively maintaining situational awareness to monitor traffic behind them in advance of planned lane changes, etc.

Re: Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

#66

> Polestar says this allows for "a new kind of immersive rear occupant experience" where passengers are "cocooned" away from the world That sounds awful. (But then I always take the window seat in trains.)

You probably don't spend a lot of time staring out of the rear window though. The windows at the side are still there and the glass roof now goes further back.

Re: Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

#67
post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

100% agree on this. What I'd really like to see is less software in an EV, complete isolation between higher and lower functions, normal physical controls and an ability to run the thing entirely disconnected from the manufacturer's dragnet. It should be able to charge and be driven with all critical instruments working fully disconnected from anything and without software updates. My colleagues who drive EVs regular…

Wow youre missing out, car is such a fundamental freedom enabler - of movement

Yeah I hire one if I need it. Which is about 4 times a year max. I live in London UK and have a really damn good public transport system that stops outside my house, a bicycle and a massive airport on my doorstep. Incidentally I'm actually on a bus on the way to pick up a hire Polestar at the moment because I have a funeral to get to on Monday...

Re: Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

#68

> Polestar says this allows for "a new kind of immersive rear occupant experience" where passengers are "cocooned" away from the world That sounds awful. (But then I always take the window seat in trains.)

> "a new kind of immersive rear occupant experience" where passengers are "cocooned"

I am familiar with this design, the passenger is cocooned by a ceiling height designed for a person less than 5'6 (because the car looks way cooler on the outside). If you are any taller you get the transformative experience of a ride in "landscape mode" with your head rotated 90 degrees.

Re: Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

#69

Driving without a rear window isn’t a big deal - see, for example, nearly every cargo delivery van on Earth. I have to imagine the stubborn refusal to add standard physical controls back to the cockpit has more potential for trouble than an impeded rear view. I wonder if there’s NHTSA data on this specifically for passenger cars? Maybe incidents caused by blocking the driver’s rear view (with furniture or people or w…

my 2024 rav 4 has a mirror but by default uses a camera... I could not have a rear window and not notice tbh

Re: Polestar eliminates the rear window in latest electric car

#70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or, they could "solve" it by installing extra screens on the walls showing ads for package holidays. Of course, that would raise the temperature inside, but it's something that could be solved with extra AC, which would need large batteries and more frequent stops, but that could be solved by... seems to be the way of "innovation" these days, we no longer fix what's broken, but break what works and charge extra for i…

Are you inventing dystopian scenarios just so you can be angry, or do you have access to Polestar's internal plans?

Do you realise Uber and Lyft are already doing this, right?
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