Truth About Touchscreens in Cars: A Safety Warning

Modern cars almost always come with touchscreens. Research shows that 97% of new vehicles released after 2023 have a touchscreen on the central dash area. Most people don’t realize the safety risks these sleek interfaces create. A Swedish car magazine’s study revealed a stark difference in control methods. Drivers need more than 20 seconds to complete simple tasks with touchscreens. Traditional knobs and buttons let drivers finish the same tasks in under ten seconds.

Car touchscreens pose real dangers. The numbers tell a clear story. A driver using a touchscreen at highway speeds (68 mph) can travel almost a mile without looking at the road. Physical controls paint a different picture. Drivers using buttons cover just 1,004 feet during identical tasks. Research continues to stack up against touchscreen dashboards. Studies prove they take up to four times longer to handle simple functions compared to button-equipped vehicles. This piece will get into why car makers keep building touchscreen vehicles despite these risks. We’ll look at options for buyers who want cars without touchscreens and explore solutions to this growing safety issue.

Why cars with touchscreens are still being made

Car makers keep adding touchscreens to vehicles, and with good reason too. The business case is clear—touchscreens cost less to make. Manufacturing them at scale works out cheaper than making physical controls. This helps create simplified processes that cut down expenses.

The numbers make sense to car companies. Touchscreens are “an auto industry bean counter’s dream” because they provide “more perceived feature value at marginal cost”. Software-based digital interfaces cost nowhere near what it takes to design, make, and put together physical buttons and switches.

Buyers want these screens too. Research shows much interest in larger displays, with many customers looking for 10-inch or bigger screens in their cars. Touchscreens are everywhere now—95% of new cars sold worldwide in 2023 had at least one LCD touchscreen. That’s up from 40% in 2015.

These screens let manufacturers fix bugs and add features through over-the-air updates without changing hardware. This saves money by cutting down repair visits while making the car look more tech-savvy—something that sells well today.

The hidden dangers of touchscreens in cars

Research shows touchscreens in vehicles pose more dangers than we thought, and the evidence keeps piling up faster. Physical buttons let drivers feel their way around, but touchscreens just need full visual attention. This forces drivers to look away from the road completely. Studies show it takes almost 16 seconds to punch an address into navigation.

To name just one example, see what happens when you type an address while driving at 22 km/h—you travel 12 meters without seeing the road at all. Even a quick 2-second peek to change your music at 63 km/h means you’ve driven 30 meters blind. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s data paints an even scarier picture: looking away for five seconds at 55 mph is like driving a football field with your eyes closed. These distractions don’t just raise the risk of fender-benders – they can cause serious collisions with life-changing consequences. For drivers who have suffered harm in distracted driving crashes, ConsumerShield has resources to give you clarity on how to manage medical costs, resolve insurance disputes, and facilitate long-term recovery.

The problems don’t stop at visual distractions. Drivers’ reaction times and spatial awareness take a big hit when they try to juggle multiple touchscreen functions while watching the road

Age makes a big difference too. AAA’s research found that older drivers (55-75) needed 5-9 seconds more than younger ones to do simple tasks.

Money adds another headache to the mix. Touchscreen repairs can burn through your wallet, sometimes eating up 30% of your car’s price. Some cases get really extreme—replacing a central OLED display in a $40,000 car could set you back $15,000.

What’s being done to fix the problem

Regulatory bodies worldwide are taking action about the risks of in-car touchscreens. The European New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP) has put stricter rules in place to review how distracting these screens can be when rating vehicle safety. Car makers now need to think about how their screen interfaces affect driver attention to keep their high safety ratings.

Some car companies see these problems and are changing their approach. Volkswagen used to lead the touchscreen revolution but has now gone back to physical controls for important functions in their newest models. Mazda has stuck with physical buttons and smaller screens, putting safety ahead of tech trends.

New solutions are coming up to replace touchscreens in cars. Better voice control systems help drivers keep their eyes on the road. Touch feedback technology gives physical responses that make screens more user-friendly without looking at them.

Consumer groups are pushing harder to raise awareness. The American Automobile Association’s research shows touchscreen dangers and teaches people about safer options.

Head-up displays might be the best solution yet. These systems project key information onto the windshield right where the driver can see it. This technology lets drivers access important details without looking away from the road, and it could be the perfect mix of function and safety.

Conclusion

The evidence against touchscreen-dominated dashboards keeps mounting in today’s automotive technology era. These sleek interfaces create major safety hazards that require visual attention, increase cognitive load, and take longer to perform simple functions. While manufacturers push touchscreens for cost savings and market appeal, we can’t ignore the safety risks.

Hard facts paint a clear picture—drivers cover much more distance with their eyes off the road when using touchscreens versus physical controls. The repair costs of these complex systems often leave owners stunned, sometimes reaching 30% of their vehicle’s purchase price.

Change is coming slowly. Regulatory bodies have started to acknowledge these dangers and implement stricter guidelines. Some progressive manufacturers like Volkswagen and Mazda now bring back physical controls for critical functions. Head-up displays, better voice controls, and haptic feedback technologies show promise as alternatives that blend functionality with safety.

Safety should take precedence over technological trends in automotive design. The interface’s impact on your attention while driving deserves careful thought before you buy your next vehicle. A car’s true value lies not in its screen size or digital features but in its ability to get you safely to your destination. The perfect dashboard combines physical controls for key functions with well-designed digital interfaces for secondary tasks.