+1 to all of Bloody Knuckles’ comments.
The “high-tech problems” that some people apparently live in fear of have never happened to me, or to anyone whom I know.
Admittedly, my previous car didn’t have anywhere near as many electronic “bells and whistles” as my new car does, but the previous car logged ~130k miles over the space of 11 years without any problems involving the ABS, Vehicle Stability Control, Traction Control, automatic climate control, electrically-applied e-brake, backup camera, touch screen, power seats, power windows, power door locks, or power mirrors.
Oh trust me, I have 2 vehicles with crank windows and one is a hatch, it is a PITA to lock and unlock all the doors on the hatch as well as rolling window up and down… The ONLY reason we wanted crank windows was cause my wife was using the vehicle for her work and I was getting tired of replacing window regulators on multiple different vehicles due to the amount of times the window went up/down in a few hours time when it was really cold or raining, we get a lot of rain… lol
My Hot Rod has cranks but that is normal…
And BTW: It will really tick you off if you need to use your key to unlock your door and it is frozen from the freezing rain…
But other than windows and door locks, I’m good with being a Luddites…
For those who fear computers–and other electronic components in cars–you will have to go waaaaay back in order to avoid the things that you are trying to avoid. This is an ad from 1969, and while VW may have been the first with this feature, it is clear that modern electronic technology has been present in cars for far longer than some of the folks in this forum believe to be the case.
“One of the earliest attempts to use such a unitized and automated device to manage multiple engine control functions simultaneously was the created by BMW in 1939 Kommandogerät system used by the BMW 801 14-cylinder radial engine which powered the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 V5 fighter aircraft.”
I watched one of those TV news magazines (60 minutes IIRC) where the interviewee showed a large screen TV that showed the location of almost every car on the roads in the SF Bay area. Cars before a certain date did not show up, but all cars made since a certain date are required to have a tracking device.
The tracking device does not ID individual vehicles and can’t be used to find your car if stolen, but it is there for the future when all new vehicles will be self driving. Every vehicle will know the exact location of every other vehicle and its direction of travel so as to avoid collisions.
This was a few years ago and I have not seen anything in the news or even on the internet about this since. Maybe I just had a bad dream.
I happened to be behind a CX-5 at a stop light, noticed an emblem saying "SkyActive ". What does that refer to? It’s a little worrying to me if my car is engaging in activity coming from the sky. Hackers and the like.
Don’t think any new (21+) car fits your [reasonable] requirements but since you are looking for 5-6yo, there is choice but Toyota.
Actually, I managed to disable telematics on my '21 Rav4 Hybrid so it is possible with newer models.
Being concerned about “connected technology” in cars is a valid concern. There have been governments considering “geofencing”, especially during the peak of the pandemic. Basically your car is programmed to not let you go a certain distance outside your home area. It could be a county, state, or radius from your home. Also, there have been proposals to include kill switches in cars. Yeah, this can be used for good but I am sure you can think of plenty of abuses.
Sometimes these tech companies act like the judge, jury, and executioner. It isn’t right, especially if what is going on is free speech or some other legal activity. Here is a classic example with Amazon. Shut Down by Amazon Following False Accusations of Racism
Don’t even get me started about Facebook and PayPal. Talk about crooks and biased crooks at that.
On the other hand, there have been cases were where connected technology worked for good. Tesla temporarily has allowed cars to charge their batteries to a fuller state and allow their discharge beyond what they prefer in order to extend the range of their electric cars so that those impacted by hurricanes and other disasters can evacuate without having to charge. There is a slight expense to battery life by doing this of course.
Some of the tech in new cars is distracting or not as easy to use. I much prefer push button radios because you can tune them without looking away from the road.
I own a 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage DE which is the most basic one. It does have power windows, bluetooth, drive by wire, and a chip key so isn’t super low tech but no technology to communicate information built in, at least that I know of. The Nissan Versa of the time was more basic. You could still get crank windows and the keys are purely mechanical. Of course the reliability of the Mitsubishi was much better than the Nissan at this time. The CVT transmissions were pretty much garbage in both of these when I was buying mine. I think they have greatly improved but I opted for a manual. I don’t think the Mirage still offers a manual in new models. In certain years the CVT was a 120,000 mile transmission so be aware of this.
I don’t know if disabling such tech on certain cars is even possible. You would likely void the warranty and might disable some other part of the car or make it not run. I would rather just not have it.
I would give it one last try at going undercover. get the Hyundai ‘solution’, then have a body shop do two things, one is install a hidden engine kill switch. I understand your concern of unsuccessful attempts at stealing a Kia/Hyundai, so make it not a Kia/Hyundai! They can get another brand nameplates and replace your factory nameplates. Crooks aren’t generally the brightest people and won’t waste their time on a questionable success.
SkyActive is the high compression, high efficiency engine technology that improves power and fuel economy without resorting to hybrid technology. The SkyActive G is gas powered and runs a 14:1 compression ration while the SkyActive T (turbo) runs a slightly lower compression ration that is boosted by the turbo (12:1 I believe).
In other markets Mazda has the SkyActive X, which is a compression ignition engine that runs on regular gas and not diesel. It’s pretty slick but not strong enough for the acceleration hungry buyers in the US.
Mazda is finally moving into the hybrid and electric markets, but SkyActive technology has kept them competitive and environmentally friendly for a decade now.
My parents had several Hondas when I was growing up, then they decided to checkout Mazdas when the Honda prices kept going up and the nearby dealer wasn’t willing to deal. The ended up with a string of several Mazdas and they were always a great car. I kinda think I preferred them over the Hondas. Neither one really had any problems. Mazda seems to be up there with any of the other top Japanese makes like Honda or Toyota for reliability if you ask me. Everyone I know with one seems quite happy as well. The same cannot be said for Nissan which seems to be hit or miss, especially with the transmissions.
Another thing about the Mitsubishi Mirage is that it was considered one of the top 5 “greenest” cars when I bought it and the only one that isn’t a hybrid. I have had basically no problems with the car but the brakes do wear out quickly which is a common complaint. Brakes can be upgraded using junkyard parts from newer models but these used parts sell for a huge premium because people upgrade the calipers with them on older models with undersized brakes.
These cars do have a tendency to be totaled for small accidents because they are cheap to start with. Low-mileage totals are easily found for parts and replacement engines, transmissions, etc. can be found surprisingly cheap. Mine would have been totaled for hitting a deer with less than 3000 miles on it had insurance known the extent of all the damage. The oil for the first change was in a jug in the backseat. I hadn’t even changed the oil yet. Anyway, the initial estimate was not a total but they found more stuff once it was already being repaired so fixed it. I have had no issues since then with the repairs. The car was drivable after the deer incident but the fact it was cheap to start with was the main reason for it being a possible total.
Another concern about buying this or any cheap car used… People tend to not take care of them. It is often a first car or people cannot afford basic maintenance like oil changes. Of course my experience with this type of person is that they always have money for beer, lottery tickets, cigarettes, etc. Give any used examples a good looking over. Make sure maintenance has been done, especially on the CVT transmission if you go that route.
Both my girlfriend and I own a 2015 Mirage. Besides being pretty basic and no frills, I cannot complain about the car. It has been as reliable as the sun coming up each morning. Oh, I forgot that the basic stock radio is junk. A $100 replacement worked wonders on improving that for me. My GF still has the stock radio and the buttons don’t work right as mine was doing and the main reason I dumped it.
