That's an interesting perspective, but I'm 74 and have wrestled with the technology since about 1992 when I got the first IBM PS 1 with 1 gig of ram, and the first edition HP "desk jet" printer, for arund $3,000 for both. Wow! (Still have them !) So for computers I grew up with 7.5" floppies from Digital Equipment, 3.5" floppies for the IBM PS 1, and then the PS 2, and then the next generations with real drives and a CD disc. But privacy has been totally shredded everywhere, and I have no aps on my old Blackberry except what it came with.
I don't do any social networks. I have been in business since 1973, and went from reading a map while driving by yourself (more dangerous probably than texting while driving), and using pay phones to tell a customer I would would be 20 minutes late, and when you finally found a payphone and a place to park you were an hour late!
So the fax machine in the early 1980's,Japanese copy machines, the first "brick" cell phones Hertz had in their Chicagoland cars, and the original Magellan GPS Hertz used were all "magic" for business people, and saved us huge amounts of time. I paid over $1000- for the first Magellan GPS system at Costco, but I had already learned how to use it, thanks to Hertz! I still have it! Fast forward to today and that all looks like the original model T Ford technology to the kids.
So the level of High Tech now in the cars do require, as you point out, more than a single reading of the instructions on how to use it all. And if you don't use it all for months, you may not remember all the details without the book. But OK. I was among the first several hundred thousand of GM vehicles that had the XM radio and "on star" back in 2002 with my 2003 Yukon, and it was great to travel long distances and "never lose the station." Had two antennas on the roof, along with my magnetic antenna for the Magellan sytstem going up through the moon roof.
I think trying to integrate the blue tooth into the Yukon's system will be hard enough, and probably can't even do it with my existing Blackberry. But my wife's Android phone will probably work with it and she will like it. Voice activation sounds good. But who is really listening and recording everything said? Alexa ET AL I think are always listening and recording ANYWAY no matter how you try to not have them do that. Not for me....
So I don't think I will be playing any movies in the car in the back seat and listening to NPR on the radio in the front seat. If they want to ride with me, put down the texting phones and start having real conversations again one on one! It's going to be a lost art! And I might not be able to even figure out how to do it anyway.
But the real issue now appears to be some kind of a warranty plan. I had one originally for my 2003, but lost money with it, and got 325,000 miles from the vehicle! I used Mobil 1 from day one with it. But the Dexos synthetic oil (new in 2011 from GM) and 91 octane gas also seem to be important, as well as changing all the fluids. In the old days it was kind of "unamerican" to say you read your car's instruction book. Pretty basic stuff everyone knew.
But not today.
I read about the many problems on this site that people have, and wonder if they are really engineering defects, poor workmanship, or improper oils, gasoline, or lack of maintenance. From what I read, that FTM system requires the DEXOS or equivalent synthetic oil with frequent changes. And maybe even the 91 octane. (I wonder if I filed up every other time with 91 and 85 octane and that would save money and stil probably have enough of the right additives, and not knock. But maybe not).
Thanks for your comments. At the moment, it's a GREAT vehicle, and I enjoy all the comments from people who have a lot of experience and expertise and are willing to share it.
