Old age driving - A race against time and technology - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: ez24
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 03:41:17 am
content: Since there are two topics on Uber AV cars going on, I thought I would try this topic.I am almost 70 ( I do not know how it happened consisting my past life) and I noticed that there are other old people here.One of the things that most old people lose is their driving license. I am trying to extend my days of being able to drive. I am counting on technology to help me.I do not expect AV to be of help to me (I will be long gone), so I have to come up with a car that will help me and that I can afford within the next year. I think if I beg and steal, I will be able to get up to 25k US.As of today the most exciting car for me is the 2019 Toyota Corolla Hatchback with TSS-P 2.0 that will come out in Sept. Unfortunately Toyota salesmen are dumb as bricks when it comes to safety features, most do not know what TSS-P is.Another problem, safety features are not a standard. For an AEB example, Nissan stops working at 50 MPH and Toyota at 100 MPH. I had to read Nissan's owner manual to find this out.Is there anyone else here looking for a car with high tech safety features? Even high cost cars - I could at least study them.TIA

author: Nusa
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 05:54:47 am
content: Safety features are valuable for oh-shit situations, but most of them to date aren't intended to replace your own ability to drive. If you actually find yourself relying on those features simply to function, you probably shouldn't be driving at all anymore.That said, simple age isn't a problem, except maybe for insurance rates. It's your health, which admittedly may be age-related. So long as your body and mind continue to work adequately for the task, there's no reason you shouldn't be able to drive.My mother lost most of her night vision in her 60's and gave up driving at night, but was fine behind the wheel up until her death at age 86.My father has some trouble walking now, but so far as driving goes he's still going at age 87. We did a cross-country road trip together recently, and I saw nothing wrong with his driving skills.

author: JPortici
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 06:10:35 am
content: the new Volvo Vs may be of interest (we had a fully featured V90 for a week or so to make tests on, apparently the ABE worked at 130 km/h or so.. a cyclist went in the middle of the road, the car saw it -headlights moved to the point-, pulled the safety belts and began to brake)altought i agree that these are for true emergencies. nobody should rely on these features as they tend to reduce your ability to drive and more important your awareness level

author: Towger
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 07:16:32 am
content: There are also cars such as the Ford Focus with an automatic parallel parking.'Old age' driving really depends on your health. I had a relation who only started to drive after her husband died. She got her first car, lessons and passed her driving test in her 80s and lived to be over 100.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 01:27:23 pm
content: Quote from: ez24 on March 27, 2018, 03:41:17 amOne of the things I've seen on some cars (Mercedes IIRC) is a signal in the mirror indicating a car is next to you so you can't change lanes. IMHO stuff like 'stay in your lane' and adaptive cruise control which keeps enough distance from the car in front of you are handy features to have.BTW I'm not that old yet but done driving. I'm estimating AVs will be for sale somewhere in the next decade. Probably sooner than an EV with a reasonable range.

author: coppice
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 01:33:09 pm
content: Quote from: nctnico on March 27, 2018, 01:27:23 pmThose blind spot systems just let you be sloppy about adjusting the door mirrors. If you see them sensibly you can see a car in the next lane before the alert lights up.

author: CatalinaWOW
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 01:55:57 pm
content: Everyone's problems with age differ. So what a car needs to help you may be very different from my needs. For all of us more mature types the best option is maintaining health so investment in a gym membership might make more sense than a car.But back to the car thing, so far, for me the two biggest driving issues I have is glare issues at night and stiffness that makes head swiveling for backing up and extreme angle turns difficult. I am not aware of any car solutions for the first problem, which will mean that as the problem progresses I will have to give up driving at night. But the other problem is universally helped by the backup cameras now required in all vehicles. The other partially remedy for this is actually useful to all age groups. Select a car that has good visibility and good seating. Defects in these feature require more physical effort to overcome.Automatic transmissions, power brakes and power steering also enable those weakened by age to carry on, but all of us should be aware of reaction time loss with age and give up driving when it goes too far. I have lost 30 milliseconds of reaction time from my youthful numbers, but am still below the overall population average. But when my reaction time climbs to some value over 300 milliseconds ( I haven't decided on the specific number) I will have to give up the car keys.In my observations of elderly relatives and friends (elderly means something different to me now than it used to) the biggest problem is cognitive loss. Which by definition can't be evaluated by the person involved. So the most important step for all of us is to arrange someone close enough to evaluate this and tough enough to enforce the decision. Trust me, you will fight the answer when it comes.

author: Mr. Scram
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 02:11:14 pm
content: If you doubt your ability to safely drive a vehicle without aids, please don't drive at all. I've been preventably hit by elder drivers twice. They simply didn't notice me and failed to give me right of way. The incidents cost me time and money, destroyed classical vehicles and caused a hit to my health. I've been quite lucky to not get hurt in a way that's life altering. I can understand it's massively painful to give up the freedom a car grants you, but you're gambling with people's precious items, wallet, safety and lives.

author: rstofer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 04:26:03 pm
content: Quote from: ez24 on March 27, 2018, 03:41:17 amI'm 72 and I still drive like it I stole it! I may lose my license but it won't be from senility. It will be from hot-footing it. I still enjoy making the back end break lose around corners. I eat speed for breakfast!It is nice to be able to disengage things like traction control and engage things like 'Sport' mode. Now we're talking! Stand on it!I am the originator of the "Punch It and Fry 'em School of Driving". Just ask my grandson, I taught him to drive and he's doing pretty good. His parents wanted nothing to do with teaching him to drive! Leave it to the old guy, his 'best used by' date is long past.

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 07:42:35 pm
content: Quote from: coppice on March 27, 2018, 01:33:09 pmMy company vehicle is a 2017 Ford Transit Connect, nicknamed the ice cream truck. I have electric mirrors, built in concave mirrors and a damn blind spot system. It goes off when there is nothing there, it goes off going over small bridges with concrete abutments and if I am moving to the right hand lane, sometimes the trees that are 50-60 feet back from the road will set it off. It even goes off on the driver side when I back out of the driveway because there is a tree next to the driveway on my left. I would be happy to rip out the light/buzzer combos on each A pillar but it is a company vehicle. I do, however, like the built in concave mirrors. I have added them to our personal vehicles, I like them that much.I'm 61 myself and, thankfully, I am still able to drive fine. In fact, I do most of the night time driving because SWMBO's night vision isn't the best, coupled to the fact that she is short and the oncoming headlights hit her right in the eyes, no matter how high she adjusts the seat in the car. She's fine in our van, but that is more for her business than anything else.

author: metrologist
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 07:52:09 pm
content: Quote from: ez24 on March 27, 2018, 03:41:17 amThat is terrible! It means your avatar pic must have been from a long time ago. What could be worse?But I think Uber can still take care of you...

author: ez24
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 08:19:39 pm
content: Quote from: GreyWoolfe on March 27, 2018, 07:42:35 pmI wished Transits had AEB, if they did I would buy one and hit the road. Ford really lags behind in these type of safety features so I expect to be dead before Transits have AEBI feel sad every time I see a high top Transit, I wish Toyota made them.

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 09:11:59 pm
content: Quote from: ez24 on March 27, 2018, 08:19:39 pmI don't have one of the big high tops, I have the little toy truck. What I wish was that Chrysler Fiat didn't discontinue the Ram Tradesman cargo vans for the Promasters. I had a 2013 that was way better than the Transit Connect. If they didn't, that is what we would have gotten as replacements. As it is, I bought my retired vehicle at about 1/2 of the KBB book value. Very convenient to have. I WILL NOT be buying the Transit when it gets replaced. We got the Transits first in 2010, when they first came out. They were so bad, the company renegotiated the lease and got them replaced before the lease was up and went with the Rams. The 2017 is better, at least it doesn't drive like a crappy truck, it is fairly comfortable, not counting the stupid blind spot monitoring. Maybe Toyota is being smart about it. Too many players in the field already with Ford, MB, Chrysler and Nissan. My biggest complaint would be the linear cargo space. I can carry 4 X 8 sheets of plywood. Try that in the small Transit or Promaster. You can in the Metris but I hear that the reliability is bad.

author: tpowell1830
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2018, 09:31:20 pm
content: Ez24, please forgive me for not answering on topic, but I had a segway (in my mind) there when you started talking about your age. Since almost everyone who responded has stated their age, my age is getting very close to 65 (at my age what's a few months?).The thought I had, I wouldn't really call it an epiphany, is that there are a lot of us greybeards here on the forum, why is there not a greybeard perma-thread? We could get threads going about 8 track tapes, ham or CB radios, and PDP8s. Mostly tell stories.. yea, that's the ticket.Again, Ez24, I apologize for the off-topic comments.

author: TimFox
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 28, 2018, 01:50:48 am
content: When choosing a location for our retirement, my wife and I both decided to stay in a large city with public transportation, since we can’t drive forever.

author: Rick Law
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 28, 2018, 01:59:53 am
content: Quote from: Mr. Scram on March 27, 2018, 02:11:14 pmI've been hit by kids more often than I've been hit by the elderly.I would suggest it depends on the kind of aids required. I am a little leery of stuff like brakes on hand-operated paddles but some handicap persons really need that and they use that aid to drive as well as most on the road. Even needing eye glasses to drive is needing an aid, and I am sure you don't mean that should disqualify a glass-wearer for drivering.I am old too (mid-60's) but I support license renewal requiring tests more frequently for the older folks, myself included. If they can pass the same test a 17 year-old could, they are as good reaction-wise. They are probably better drivers than that a 17 year-old given the lengthy experience.Personally, I found good head-lights, automatic transmission, power steering, and power brakes are great help. I love my 5-speed manual, but at times, it seem weather related muscle pains at times makes it hard to drive a manual. The others (head lights, power steering, power brakes) are obvious, I think.

author: thermistor-guy
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 28, 2018, 02:29:04 am
content: Quote from: ez24 on March 27, 2018, 03:41:17 amPlay video games:https://blog.ted.com/7-talks-on-the-benefits-of-gaming/According to researcher Daphne Bavelier, gaming improves your eyesight and your ability to track objects and multitask; all of which are useful for drivers. Aim for competitive levels in, say, Overwatch and Rainbow Six Siege. Yeah, seriously.If you want to take it further, take Creatine Monohydrate and Acetyl-L-Carnitine daily. These are neuroprotective, because they promote better functioning of the mitrochondria in your brain cells. They'll also help you with gym training (skeletal muscle mitrochondria), but that's another topic. Anyone over 50 should be taking these two compounds.