this post was submitted on 04 Jun 2026
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Privacy
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If old means 20 year old to you, I would recommend buying used from around 2015 ish. That seems to be the time things started going "smart". Some not too recent cars can be software modded by good techs/tuner shops to disable stop-start and similar. Probably other annoyances too, but I would assume it's very dependent on make, model etc.
https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/nhtsa-announces-final-rule-requiring-rear-visibility-technology
That's because backup camera law just passed in 2014, effective 2018. Which means that screens of some kind became mandatory in all cars.
Once you have to have a screen, might as well throw a few features in to make use of that expensive screen since it's just a couple bucks here or there to add things like an infotainment.
Now that people need the touchscreen anyway for the infotainment, might as well get rid of those expensive buttons and just do everything with a touchscreen menu.
As long as we have all that other stuff, might as well throw in a cell modem and get some $$$ from the insurance companies and data brokers to get some ongoing revenue from these cars we sold.
And as much as I don't like having to look at the camera to back up, it does seem to have a wider FOV and the backup sensors see things even further out, and the rear end of cars are just so high and back windows are so small (I think these are now all this way for rear end crash and rollover reasons) that you just can't see out the back like you could out of an older car. It's pretty much just how it has to be with the safety requirements these days.