Carmakers are equipping their latest models with fancy touchscreens, but that could cause problems with Europe’s largest car safety authority.
The European New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) is revamping its rating system starting Jan. 1, 2026 to mandate that five of a car’s primary controls — its horn, windshield wipers, turn signals, hazard warning lights and SOS features — will need physical buttons or switches.
Car models will have to comply to get NCAP’s coveted five-star rating. The scheme is voluntary but is heeded by most automakers because it’s closely monitored by consumers.
Belgium-based NCAP says that purely digital controls are a potential safety issue.
I think they need to be super explicit to stop the likes of Tesla weaseling out or doing the bare minimum:
- Wipers, speed settings, auto on/off should be on a stalk for front and rear wipers
- Indicators should be on a stalk with
- Hazard lights must be a physical button
- Horn may be on the wheel or a button
- Lights on/off/full beam/dip/auto must be a dial or a stalk
- Demister / heated window must be physical buttons
- Gears must be a physical rocker, lever or dial
And button / dial etc here means an actual push up/down button not some haptic / touch sensitive shit.
Because at the moment Tesla are basically cheaping out of providing physical controls to save money. It doesn’t matter if someone crashes their car fiddling to set the wiper speed because Tesla saved $20 on a stalk and that’s all that matters.
Bit pedantic but a stalk + assembly could cost closer to $200, I’m not sure about design and manufacturing though
That may be the price if you buy a spare part. OEM for manufscturing it’ll be much lower.
I recently had to buy a hose for my car. At the dealer it was 170€. At an online diwcout parts store it was 14€. Name brand, Gates.
On a 30k+ car. Fuck your 200.
Chill tf out no one said I agree with it
And, for the love of dog, please require that the volume knob not rely on software! I hate trying to turn down/off the radio and then wait while the car decides whether I’m serious.
When I first start my car, the screen has to go through the boot up sequence and safety warning before the volume knob starts responding. The music starts playing right away, though, at whatever volume the previous driver deemed appropriate.
Eh. I don’t think you need to specify “stalk”. I would be fine with physical buttons anywhere within easy reach. If they want to make a racing wheel that has 30 switches on it, I think I’m fine with that.
I appreciate that SOME things don’t have buttons now: getting into a BMW with that has the same number of buttons and switches as the cockpit of an airliner is ridiculous.
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I’ve been in a Tesla where the hazards are in a touchscreen. It made me wildly uncomfortable
Wow, have any car manufacturers actually tried changing these functions to touch buttons? I know Tesla got rid of the stalks, but my understanding was they still had physical buttons on the wheel to replace them.
My father has a relatively late model Toyota Avalon. It has a touch screen infotainment system; there are physical buttons on the steering wheel for most functions and a physical volume knob on the dashboard.
The HVAC controls have their own panel, but they’re touch sensitive. So you can’t feel for the knob or button you want and then interact with it. That shouldn’t be legal.
Yeah I’ve seen plenty of HVAC and other auxiliary functions like radio moved to touch (and absolutely agree it shouldn’t be legal), but never the five they’re legislating in the article (horn, indicators, wipers, hazard, SOS). Imagine touchscreen indicator buttons! The market would rip them apart.
I thought Tesla put handbrakes on the touchscreen as well, which seems all sorts of crazy to me… Might as well make a list of stuff we really dont want on there now I guess.
Some new tesla you change drive controls by swiping on a tablet. That seemed bit too much.
There’s also buttons (I believe capacitive, but not 100% sure), but they aren’t as convenient to use.
It’s not only touch screen though.
Got very happy seeing the title, but we’re just talking about the bare minimum like horns and windshield wipers. A tiny step in the right direction, but not much else
Wtf is a lime horn? Driving in Europe must be wild
Tbh I much prefer traditional lemon horns, but very hard to get them in new cars
It’s stopping it getting worse for a start. Bloody negative Nancy.
Make the world a better place or get a vasectomy.
Don’t forget to tip your landlord today!
Car models will have to comply to get NCAP’s coveted five-star rating. The scheme is voluntary but is heeded by most automakers because it’s closely monitored by consumers.
Bollocks. F*ck this shit. Make it mandatory and take those ticking time bombs of the road. They are endangering OTHER people’s lives. Voluntary my ass.
This is faster than passing a law. Do this first then work on legislation in parallel.
Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
Don’t let morons operate deadly machinery, FTFY.
EU being based as always. I have to admit it’s pretty damn rare they let me down.
This is just the Euro NCAP guidelines, not actual EU regulation, but still a positive development.
And I agree that the EU have been on an amazing streak lately, they seem to be the only governing body actually fighting for consumer rights.
aside from a rear view camera, theres no reason to have a screen in a car
Especially because I’ve seen cars where they die due to temperature changes.
Hard disagree. Modern dash displays give tons of useful information that would be very hard to display legibly with dials. The flexibility they offer is good too, often having more than one dash layout. Nav screens are also extremely useful. Going anywhere and never getting lost? Get outta here.
And rear camera? Don’t get me started on how a little dirt destroys your rear view until you pull over to clean it or how they represent a more difficult scenario for your eyes, increasing the amount of time you don’t have your eyes on the road every time you check it. Unless you mean a back up camera and not a replacement for a rear view mirror, in which case yes those are super awesome.
I have a rear camera instead of my mirror for a few years now. I don’t know what you are talking about. Never had the issues you talk about. The only time it gets dirty, is when it sits for a while out in the open. You check it the exact same as you do a rearview mirror. The only issue with them is when it’s raining, but then you can turn the screen off and just use them as a regular rearview mirror anyway.
With a mirror, you do not have to refocus your eyes to a close distance and then refocus back to a farther one. The time it takes to do this is palpable and adds to the time you’re not as aware of your surroundings as you could be. At 70mph, it’s a lot of distance you’re flying blind.
My rear-view camera only works while being shifted into reverse. Didn’t even know there are manufacturers that scrapped the mirror… why would they do that?
It’s not scrapped, it is mounted in it. Especially useful on transport trucks where you don’t get a rear mirror anyway.
Having upcoming signs / crossing and speed limits displayed on a small screen between the gauges is something I found quite handy.
The big display in the centre console is something that’s only really usefull for maps / Spotify tho, not the rest of the car controls.
Navigation system? Music controls? I think what the NCAP is doing here is a good thing, but this is a bit too far to the other extreme.
Phone does navigation better
I use my phone but it is connected to the car so it displays on the bigger screen. Much easier than a little phone screen in a cradle.
What about the wind screen?
Listen here you little-
Well, I like it for showing me what song is playing and to have my navigation up - but other than that - I don’t want to be touching or interacting with it at all.
edit: grammar
well you could design it so, that vehicle just has a hud [heads-up display], or maybe a second passenger screen too, that way engaging with them could be more safety oriented and more aesthetic.
I for one don’t want to be looking through something like a HUD when I’m driving. I also don’t want a touch screen. A screen that shows me what’s on the radio, my nav, and backup is fine, and it needs to have easy to identify and press physical buttons.
industry is shifting towards tesla’s interior design because it’s much more cheaper. advantage is that they can change it’s ui with an update in future. you’re probably gonna be okay with 2010’s cars tho
Also can you please ban piano black from interior?
mandate that five of a car’s primary controls — its horn, windshield wipers, turn signals, hazard warning lights and SOS features — will need physical buttons or switches.
Would love to see cruise control added to that list.
Didn’t even occur to me that it was missing - I can find the cruise control buttons to turn it on/off, and set or change speed, with my eyes closed. Which is the whole idea. Eyes nowhere near the buttons, muscle memory takes over.
Man, I haven’t got to the sci-fi cars yet. I’m still driving older tech (2003).
I can’t even glance at my phone to change a song on Spotify. I know I won’t do well with a screen. It’s too dangerous for me.
And what about handbrake and shifters?
weirdly Tesla Cruise control is a physical stick. just about everything else is touch screen, but indicators, gears, and cruise. (i think the new models it’s actully all screen though)
Can’t wait to get enough money to buy a car before 2005
Why 2005?
Probably the get last time touchscreens weren’t in cars
I have a 2014 Nissan Sentra (base model), and it doesn’t really have any tech. No touchscreen, no wireless (it doesn’t even have USB audio, only 2.5 mm), and not even cruise control. So 2005 is a lot older than touchscreen dominance.
Ok then. My 2012 Prius had a touchscreen and everything else you mentioned. Op may have just been exaggerating though
Yeah it depends on what you get but there are definitely options in the last 10 years if you dislike touchscreens (I do, I wish there were more newer cars that don’t slurp up data to sell).
I’m not arguing with you, just wanted to add my own little info in the most applicable place (and to complain about touch screens :)
My 2017 Honda Civic doesn’t have a touch screen but I did specifically have to get the “lower end” LX model. All the EX models I looked at were touch control.
Paying less money to ensure I don’t get garbage I hate? Don’t threaten me with a good time.
EDIT: I enjoy how I managed to accidentally format the “not arguing” bit in huge font so I’m screaming at you for some reason… Sorry
I love living in Europe.
Except for the blatant racism, i could do without that.
racist cowards be downvoting
I’m sincerely appreciative of everything they do for consumers as a whole. Not everything makes it across the pond but at the very least it sets precedent and a lot of the groundwork is done if our politicians ever decide to get their shit together and give us a ground to stand on against corporations and lobbyists.
A guy can dream.
I hope that happens too.
So say we all.
As long as you’re not fr*nch
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except of course for the blatant racism against non-western people, the current shift towards neofash politics (meloni etc), the militarization and the impeding economic collapse.
how do liberals manage to ignore problems so efficiently?
except of course for the blatant racism against non-western people, the current shift towards neofash politics (meloni etc), the militarization and the impeding economic collapse.
All of which already happen in the US, but worse.
The entire world sucks, can’t we be happy of living in a place that sucks a bit less?
i do acknowledge that that things are worse in the us, but that doesnt make the deficiencies in europe any better. one shouldnt just accept that the world sucks, but start fighting for a better one. just look at cubas success
We are fighting for a better one. All those recent EU regulations are doing exactly that.
I’d love if we could address those issues you’ve listed too, since they’re obviously more important, but it seems really hard until the european left actually wakes up and starts promoting actual candidates.
Racism? Sure there is some racism but Europe is hella diverse bro.
I live in the UK and I’m proud that Manchester is multi-cultural. Don’t listen to the headlines, most of us ain’t racist.
Where you from dude? Just wondering if you should or should not be throwing stones at glass houses.
im living in central europe but am of eastern european descent. due to looking “white” i usually get less discrimination than my turkish and arab friends, but its still way harder to get a job or higher education for non-native people, as higher pay positions are almost exclusively reserved for westerners. it is also harder to get a decent apartment with a foreign sounding name and in case of legal matters you can bet that the cops will rather believe the word of a native than yours.
It’s going to be funny when there’s an entire decade of vehicles no one wants to buy on the used market. I’m looking forward to it. These touchscreens are terrible.
It would be excellent if Europe forces manufacturers to replace old touchscreens at their own expense.
I don’t understand the touch screens in cars, I would expect them to be more expensive than physical buttons. Are there that many people who think it’s fancy that it’s a selling feature?
Buttons and dials aren’t cheap. Even in economy cars it probably costs the manufacturer a few bucks for each one, accounting for the switch itself and all the trim that goes with it.
It only takes a handful to outweigh the cost of the typical LCDs used in car systems.
Don’t speculate about what you don’t know about - the world is full enough with BS.
Think of it this way. Cars already need an LCD panel for infotainment these days. New cars that lack them get passed over. At the very least, people want CarPlay and Android Auto for maps and music.
Secondly, physical switches and gauges haven’t been dumb analog or electric circuits for years. They all communicate with the car’s onboard computers.
So, if the car already needs a touch screen, and all the garages and switches are digital behind the front end anyway, it’s going to be cheaper to make the gauges out of software than plastic.
And with display panels getting cheaper and cheaper, you can slap a bigger panel in the car, and still save money on manufacturing.
I’m happy with a Bluetooth connection to the stereo. I have maps on my phone.
Fuck carplay/android auto in the ear.
I hate getting a rental car and I just want my music, but it tries to hijack and download my whole phone.
I want to get in, connect my phone and go. Not 20 minutes wrestling it for control.
Digital displays are fine. It’s just a display. But controls should be manual (buttons, dials, etc) that can be operated with eyes on road.
Download your phone?
You wouldn’t download a phone
Not the whole phone obviously. But syncing all my contacts, recent calls etc.
I don’t know what cars you’ve driven, but I’ve never driven anything with CarPlay or AA that stored contacts or calls on my head unit. Moreover I’ve never had to wrestle with the head unit for 20 min. It usually initializes in a few seconds.
Were you using an old Android phone that had to download AA?
The car was the slow part, I have an S23+.
The wrestling was figuring out getting BT audio ONLY.
And until I reset the head unit to factory previous users, contacts, radio stations and destinations were all stored there.
Not great on a rental car.
When you try to connect a CarPlay or Android auto device there is usually a permissions dialog that appears. It asks you if you want use the projection software, or use the vanilla usb or Bluetooth connectivity. Perhaps you accidentally confirmed the Android auto connection, then couldn’t find how to revoke the permissions.
My understanding was the screen itself is the expensive part. In the US, it’s required for a backup cam. At that point it’s cheaper and easier to assemble, just having everything on the network and doing software. Physical controls take more build time
Fucking good. Long overdue.
I love some EVs, but I drove a Polestar 2 and a Model 3 on road trips for work in California. Never again. The nighttime driving experience is miserable imo, and the issues with the lack of stalks and buttons is real.
The Polestar is the only car to ever make me so angry I had to pull over. It had some kind of sensor issue, and decided the right way to notify my at 80mph on the highway was to A) cover my gate cluster with the error notification B) disengage my cruise control suddenly, at 80mph, and C) begin beeping.
I almost drove my rental into the Pacific Ocean out of spite.
Zero dog in the game (I own a Mazda3) but I rented a Polestar and found it very enjoyable. Different, absolutely, but good enough that I was glad there is an alternative EV to Tesla if I wanted to get one.
I am glad there are other players in the market but the user experience was just miserable for me. Between the lack of buttons for all the climate control and the error messages, as well as subpar android auto support in favor of their own janky android OS (not great for rentals).
Maybe Polestar 3 will fix all this. Maybe.
All of the functions described in the article are already on physical buttons and stalks in the Polestar 2 (I have one), so not sure how this is going to change anything? I’ll agree that some of its error reporting and collision avoidance in particular are almost dangerous in their implementation, but that has no bearing on the physical buttons thing.
No buttons for climate control / fans, and Android auto on it is also kinda jank.
