When Cars Stopped Feeling Different

I keep wondering whether we're making cars more advanced without necessarily making them more enjoyable.

There was a time when getting into a particular car felt like entering a world someone had carefully designed. The weight of a button, the placement of a dial and the angle of the dashboard gave it a personality.

I don't work in automotive design, so I can't tell you why manufacturers make every decision they do. I'm approaching this as someone who enjoys cars and pays attention to the experience of using them.

Screens can be genuinely useful. I like technology when it helps. What interests me is the trade-off: when functions move to a touchscreen, what happens to the little gestures that once made driving feel familiar?

Maybe the answer isn't to reject technology. Maybe it's to ask what deserves to remain physical. That's a question I'd like to keep exploring.