iDrive on the 458?

Looking at this head-on photo of the 458 dash, with the squared-off steering wheel and symmetrical "towers" on either side, I am reminded of an early-'60s Chrysler or Imperial with push-button transmission! Sorry, it just looks that way to me. If the steering wheel were transparent plastic, and the rearview mirror were planted on the top of the dash, the effect would be complete. Fred

 

Hey people...if you guys critique a ferrari by his displays, you have now idea what ferrari is for.......

 

Here's the dash in high-res.

The 3 buttons read: MAIN ON/OFF, MENU SETUP and BACK VIEW (for the people who are bad at parking?)


Anyway what I read about iDrive is that it takes a bit to get used to it, but afterwards it seems to be a great system. It's just journalists bashing about.

 

BACK VIEW?

So that's mean there will be a camera at the back instead of those ugly parking sensors.

I would like to see the front lift system button too.

 

i drive is one reason I still have my old 2000 540i. The other is the ugly design of the new crop of BMWs to us old die hards.


"Hey people...if you guys critique a ferrari by his displays, you have now idea what ferrari is for....... "

With regards to this, you have a point only to a degree- to some of us/most of us the design of the car (exterior AND interior) is a big part of the Ferrari allure. To me it's art on wheels and that is a big part of what I love about the car before even getting in and turning the key. I think there is a point of too much electonics in the presentation to the driver- by that I mean the displays and controls (i-drive like controls, digital gauges vs analog), not the actual technology of the car (suspension settings, F1 control, etc) The balance is tough as Ferrari is marketing the cars to new buyers, not the 3rd or 4th owner buying the car used like me...maybe the new buyer wants the "latest and greatest". Too many electronics presented in a digital way like idrive control or video is not to my liking, but again I'm old school...the max I'd want is analog gauges with maybe a digital readout in a Ferrari. I don't even like the digital gas gauge in the 360 I'm focused on

 

You may be reading too much into a picture.
If it really is what you are thinking, man would that ever be a clunky/non-ergonomic interface!

Sure hope you are incorrect.

 

I'm not saying anything specific about 458 interior, but only in general:

For a $250-300G+ car out the door, I'm not giving any car manuafacturer any break on ergonomics because other parts of their car are the greatest.

When a manufacturer tells me in so many words to suck it up and deal with some poor design in their car, that is an arrogance which will catch up to them shortly after the bleeding-edge buyers are emptied out of the sales pipeline.

I can make a distinction between a design tradition that basically works (i.e. gated shifter) and an eccentric design we have all seen that would quickly go away if the company bothered to listen to customer feedback, and not be so stubborn. The old cartoon of the design of the swing is still a lesson some designers need to learn.

http://www.uoregon.edu/~ftepfer/SchlFacilities/TireSwingTable.html

Mike

 

Thanks for the pic. I think you are reading this incorrectly... Looks like the 3 buttons have 2 input features per button. MAIN (with a secondary: ON/OFF) , MENU (secondary: SETUP) , BACK (secondary: VIEW). I'm sure this user interface will be as simple to master as your typical new cellphone.

 

media releas:

In the run-up to the official unveiling of the Ferrari 458 Italia at the Frankfurt Motor Show on the 15th of September, enthusiasts can find out more about the car on www.ferrari.com. There they will find the first photographs of the 458 Italia’s interior and of the steering wheel and instrument binnacle which represent a significant step forward in the concept of the ergonomic interface between driver and car.

In fact the main commands are now grouped on the steering wheel, the secondary commands are handily set in two satellite pods either side of the dash and there are now comprehensive instrument displays on the panel ahead of the driver. These solutions represent an important safety aspect, enabling the driver to concentrate fully on driving. Similarly this layout ensures maximum control of the car in highperformance driving, an uncompromising approach that derives directly from Ferrari’s F1 experience.

Working closely with the Ferrari Styling Centre, the engineers have thus reinterpreted the positioning of the major commands to provide a truly driver-oriented cockpit. All steering-column mounted stalks have been eliminated, with the indicators, full beam, flash and windscreen wiper functions now being activated by buttons on the steering wheel boss. The button to select the shock absorber setting is now positioned next to the ‘Engine start’ button where it falls readily to hand. Behind the wheel are a number of secondary functions, such as the stereo, while the gearbox paddles are now longer making shifts even easier from any steering angle.

The right-hand satellite pod on the dash incorporates controls for the infotainment, the Bluetooth connection, sat-nav, digital speedo and rear parking camera. Clustered on the left-hand satellite pod instead are the optional cruise control, buttons for choosing the video setting of the left-hand dash TFT screen and the on-board computer interface. The latter controls the trip computer, the Vehicle Dynamic Assistance and the display of the car’s set-up.

The Vehicle Dynamic Assistance monitors the operating parameters of the most important areas of the car - engine/gearbox, tyres and brakes. The VDA is enabled in the following manettino settings – Race, CT off and CST off – and provides visual confirmation of the status of each component based on an algorithm from parameters reading lateral and longitudinal acceleration, revs and speed. This enables the driver to assess the ideal operating conditions for the car. There are three status settings: WARM-UP (operating temperature too low), GO (ideal operating conditions) and OVER (one or more components are no longer at their optimum level and need cooling).



HD pictures here http://www.netcarshow.com/ferrari/2011-458_italia/



IN the left side is a switch "pit speed" optional cruise control?

 

Theres a front lift??!?!

 

So the passenger has no access to the radio controls?

 

Good call--and so far, the only real issue I have with the car, though the jury's still out on the slit between the hood/lights and the styling of the stitching/pattern on the seats.

I'll have to see it in person and from within the car to off my own final judgement but I'm certainly accustomed to traditional looking "round" vents for HVAC. They look and work perfectly. At least in the pics, the Italia's odd tower shapes seem contrived, like they're trying to become a bit too "50/60's modern".

 

who is the boss in a ferrari?! the driver, no more no less, even for the radia (to be able to switch it off to listen to the exaust)

 

Waaay too much 'stuff' .... ............ I always admired the simplicity of the 'older' F-cars ........ like the F40's crank windows, 'rope' door latch and simple toggle switches ............ I guess that is not what the 'new' buyers want ............

 

this is a street car and not racing/track car, but I bet 458 will be faster than most of them on track...

 

You're correct

But it's indeed a sort of iDrive button.



I personally like the dual thumb horn button on the wheel, a real sign of made in Italy

Drove a Lancia at vacation in Italy and just couldn't resist horning back to all those crazy Italian horners and having the horn at your thumb is excellent for fast corner hornering.

At the smaller villages they even have roadsigns like this.
Aaah don't you just love Italy

 

If he is reading incorrectly, why there is in the media text released next thing : ""The right-hand satellite pod on the dash incorporates controls for the infotainment, the Bluetooth connection, sat-nav, digital speedo and REAR PARKING CAMERA.""

 

The F40 is a 'street car' also .......... it doesn't matter how fast the 458 is on the street or track ..... the interior IMO ....... still looks ...... far too busy ......

 

The air vents on the inside remind me of something you would see on Darth Vader's Tie Fighter. I could be wrong there but didn't they steal that design from George Lucas?

 

... Sigh.

I'm glad 'JimF' understands that I was merely pointing out that the buttons red two separate commands integrated per button... and to be clear, I was not insinuating that he could not read. I'm a fan of this interior design, and have no quams whatsoever with this button layout. I'm sure Ferrari designed it to get the driver to his option as fast (efficiently) as possible. Multi-media interface design has and will continue to evolve (and simplified) and I'm very much a fan of this solution. I invite you to refer to the following competing 'I-Drive' style layouts used on Audi and BMW... (both of which have REAR PARKING CAMERA options )
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To me, the vents look like something from a japaneese car, not a Ferrari. Digital speedometer? Oh my...

The idrive in 2 back to back loaner cars pissed me off so much I never bought another BMW just kept my old one (and I didn't like the styling or lack of driver feedback of the 2004+ 5-series). But all was/is not lost- the money I was going to spend on upgrading to a low mileage last M5 of my body style (2003) I have instead put aside towards an eventual 360, deciding to keep my 540 for many more years! I'll get there....

Anyway, I love the looks of the 458 exterior. I'm sure the actual interior will look much nicer in person- it's kind of tough to tell in the pictures, but I do know I won't like the setup of the gizmos- I miss the round vents and analog gauges!

 

a lot of complaints about idrive/mmi/etc

but everyone in my generation seems to like it

anyway....i don't mind this stuff at all, but i really like very analog interiors on sports cars......like the koenigsegg interior, etc. with just a few big chunky gauges, toggle switches, etc.

i enjoy all the electronic goodies in a luxury car, but in a ferrari i'd prefer a more spartan design.

that whole post seemed contradictory. oh well.

 

I don't understand this thread - we want progress, but only on some things?

I had to fit a Tom Tom to my Scud - would certainly have rather had it integrated. And I have to look away from the road to change songs/playlists on my Ipod or answer a phone call - yes even in a Scud sometimes one does want music or handsfree (even if they're not great).

So we live in an ever evolving world where music means selecting from thousands of songs, we've got handsfree phones and getting lost is avoidable - so if these guys can integrate all of this in an easy, user friendly way - I'm all for it.

For those of you who don't like it buy an F430 or a Scuderia - you'll enjoy the traditional interiror and wont be at all short-changed on fun and power. Me, I may keep my Scud anyway, but I've got my deposit down for a 458.

Sol