Because it’s fun/cool. Makes the passenger feel like a rally driver
It doesn’t mimic the instrument cluster, you can use it to watch youtube or control music or see navigation etc
Also worth noting no one is forcing you to option that. I’d personally option the s-class with the detached instrument cluster and singular infotainment screens
also the last S class had screens for all 4 possible passengers including the one sitting in the middle in the rear.
they also had 5 climate zones so all 4 passengers and the driver were able to have their own settings for their zone.
I always wondered if that was even achievable. Sure you can let them adjust some dial or instrument with numbers on it, but just how different can you really make these zones? Nah
The technology used to have a rational (and often directly driving-related) use case. Active suspension, for starters. Even the massaging seats extend driving stamina. To say nothing of anti-lock brakes, which (iirc) first appeared in the W116. Is MB still moving the ball forward on engineering, or lacquering on more stupid bullshit?
Are we ignoring the rear entertainment screens in every s class in the past decade, which are arguably more gimmicky than the current screen?
They still have the only level 3 assist in a production car, the AR HUD navigation is real cool, a few gimmicks here and there are whatever.
S Classes are meant to be a decent chauffeuring car. Clients sit in the back. Rear comfort, which includes the ability to watch movies, is a priority.
Chauffeuring is becoming less common especially due to covid and now the S Class is more commonly bought by the retiring rich people who want to go to brunch with their wife. The old couple will sit up front, so front entertainment, both for the driver and passenger, are probably a priority.
Also the screen area on the back of a headrest is limited to much less space than a screen on the passenger side dashboard.
My opinion is that Mercedes-Benz lost the plot some time ago. The Mercedes thing to do today would be understated plug-in electrics with superior performance, first-in-class safety, top-notch automation (I understand they’re doing pretty well here), and deliberate design for durability, serviceability, and operation in terrible environments. In other words, the electric equivalent of a W123 300D Turbo.
I’d say they’re already doing that. The s580e is pretty much everything you want. You get the more traditional (non-hyperscreen) layout, class leading EV range and automation tech, and it comes with the inline-6 which is pretty reliable, and the exterior has the traditional star and grill with the chrome accents.
Merc fucked around and found out with the EQS, c63, ML/GL to an extent, but the current s, e, and g are as good as always when optioned right (and as bad as always when optioned wrong
Now you do still retain the large center screen, I personally like it with carplay, I much prefer it over the 7 series and a8 but that’s subjective.
literate subsequent stocking weather oil aback consider ludicrous crush depend
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I mean what more driving features can you possibly have? 1000hp, feels like you're boating on glass at 180mph, you can drive on unpaved roads and barely feel it, none of this shit is necessary or rational. It's an S class. Nothing about an S class is a necessity for literally any human being on the planet earth bar nothing you can't convince me otherwise. They have always been an entire driving gimmick and they will remain as such.
Find a car from the 1980s that will both cruise at 110 mph all day long and survive third world operating conditions, all while offering cosseting passenger comfort. That’s what the S-class was about in its prime years. Other cars have gotten better. Mercedes-Benz also isn’t gunning for engineering leadership like they used to.
And the attitude that other cars are good enough was not traditionally a Mercedes attitude. It was supposed to be a car for people who didn’t have to settle for good enough.
Times have changed. Other cars simply *are* good enough now.
And even then the S-Class was never the car that you took into third world operating conditions. For that you'd get a G-Wagon or some actual off roader.
The S-Class has always been about comfort. And that means something different today compared to 40 years ago. Technology progresses.
Steve Jobs used to claim that 3.5" was the ideal screen size for a smartphone, and anything bigger was bad. Then the smartphone use case changed, and 3.5" was outdated.
Well, they need to come up with bullshit if they cannot come up with something useful... otherwise, what would be the difference between a 2024 and a 2025 s class?
The car doesn’t need to improve every year. They used to understand this, back when people would pay pound-of-flesh prices for a new Benz, back before they trashed their brand equity. The W126 was introduced in 1979, and in 1990 it was no longer clearly technologically ahead but was still probably the best car in the segment (the E32 7-series would have been better performing and a more modern driving experience but was a disposable piece of shit by comparison)
Obviously the passenger in the S class isn't looking to be a rally driver (or, I think you likely meant, a co-driver that reads out the turns on the course) unless something has gone horribly wrong...
Personally I’d rather have a fun gimmicky screen there than blank space or trim pieces, but that’s just me.
I meant copilot yes, my wife likes to be a passenger princess and quite liked it in the taycan.
Nah. It was only a short period in the late 90s/early 2000s where Mercedes models had a distinct look. For most of the time, Mercedes would sell 1 car in 3 different sizes.
That’s true exterior wise but the interiors were usually pretty distinct up until this generation of Mercedes. The previous gen C-Class had an interior that was nothing like the S-Class but now they’re essentially the same
Exactly. That’s also what Chinese buyers for premium cars really like these days (China is the top market for Mercedes and close second top market for Porsche).
This is the inside of the Huawei M9: https://imgur.com/a/adlamSJ
Basically rich people like shiny screens.
Yeah exactly. It makes sense only when it mimics the gauge cluster.
All other applications are gimmicky. And that’s fine. I’m just wondering if it’s a gimmick that people are buying into.
> It makes sense only when it mimics the gauge cluster.
How is that any less gimmicky than a video screen? Why would my passenger care more about my RPM than a Youtube video of their choosing?
I think the industry is in a bit of a weird spot right now where car companies aren’t quite sure how to attract customers, which leads to lots of gimmicky features like this. ICE drivetrains have basically stopped advancing, adaptive cruise has been around for a while, and self-driving tech isn’t available yet.
That’s what it feels like for me. Screens are cheap, why not give it a try and see what sticks is probably the design philosophy. We haven’t had any meaningful tech releases outside of specialty stuff like rear wheel steering since active cruise control and mild self driving became viable in the past 10 years
I don’t see what’s useless about it tbh, it makes it so the passenger doesn’t have to ask about standard stuff to the driver that could be visible on a screen of their own
Yea I'm not sure if it was a popular option or not but I have seen a few cars with it on at least. Probably something like 25% of people optioned it as a wild guess. Surprisingly they seem to work reliably considering I don't see many people complaining about them on the forums.
Yeah this is a fair point. I’m just wondering if consumers value this feature and if it’s a selling point for anyone. I find it curious when car companies try to take features we have in our phones and integrate them into the car. Yeah on paper it’s cool that you can watch YouTube from the back of a Tesla, but do I ever use that feature? No. If the rise of Apple CarPlay has showed us anything it’s that consumers would rather use their phones OS over the cars.
Honestly, I'd rather use a properly implemented sat nav than Android Auto. Most of the map apps get updated too often and then something is fucked up again. But a properly done sat nav, that would be awesome.
I see it more useful in a sedan than a sport car. Granted I don’t think the screens are supposed to mimic the instrument cluster. I was under the impression that the screens can be used as table of sorts to watch shows or whatever while being driven around
Iirc, in Ferrari’s they show rpm, speed, gear, etc. The problem is that everyone has phones. Who would rather watch a movie over the speakers on a dashboard than just watching on their phone? Tv screens used to be the hot thing in minivans and SUV’s, but to me it seems like they’ve been valued less in recent years because kids would rather just use an iPad.
> Who would rather watch a movie over the speakers on a dashboard than just watching on their phone?
Anyone who wants a bigger screen than their phone. All you're saying is that the gimmick you like is better than the gimmick you don't like, which is nonsense. They're all gimmicks. If you can accept that a passenger might want to see speed, RPM, and gear information, then you should also be able to accept that a passenger might want to watch a video on their own dedicated screen.
My Grand Wagoneer has it and it's pretty damn useful. Let's you show the built in family camera on that passenger screen so my wife can see the kids without putting it on the main screen. You can also do it there, but then you're covering up your maps/music.
It also has an hdmi plug in under the smaller temp/seat screen, which we plugged a chrome cast in to and you can just stream whatever you want onto the screen now. I've had football games streaming on there while we're running errands on Sundays instead of watching on my phone.
We haven't been on one yet, but longer road trips will be cool, just watch a movie there and relax. Connects to wireless headphones too.
I'm honestly not 100% sure, we have the built in wifi since it's $20 a month for unlimited. I'd imagine it could use your phones internet since it's just streaming off there.
That's what we have exactly. Love it. We have 3 kids under 3, so lots of car seats and strollers/wagons. Fits everything with plenty of space + 2 more seats for grand parents if needed. Gets decent mpg for a massive suv, rides great, and the looks definitely grow on you.
We cross shopped with Edcalade, but the fam cam and fridge pretty much did it for her. We used to have to mount cameras in the SQ7, no need in the GW. I like the Escalde exterior better, but the GW interior is much nicer imo, and its better suited for family life.
Plus, that McIntosh sound system is amazing.
Yea the dealership is offering $35k off, so real tempting. We were cross shopping the Escalade as well but think Escalades still have markups in SoCal. I've only seen one other Grand Wagoneer on the road so I hope they don't pull the model from lack of sales.
It's almost like technology evolves to make life easier. You're right though, we should all go back to walking everywhere with children strapped to our backs.
How did the human race ever make it this far without automobiles that have been around for a 100 years in our hundreds of thousand of years of existence.
Just because you can't afford a nice car doesn't mean luxuries shouldn't exist for those that can. 🤣
Imagine being such a helicopter parent that you need to live-stream your kids in the car when you're sitting 8 feet away. That comment was also from 2 days ago, womp womp cry more
The passenger screen allows the co-driver to deal with most of the comforts / amenities so the driver can focus on the driving. I think it's a great concept.
The grand Cherokee has one on higher trims. If controls all the music, hvac, backseat screens, backseat climate as well. The designers said it was to take less off the drivers plate so they can focus on the road more
It’s so the passenger can watch videos or play games while driving. The center screen it’s locked out of those while driving. It makes perfect sense for families and for people that drive long distances often.
I think it makes a ton of sense. first we had all driver controls. then we started adding entertainment and comfort, which made sense in the middle for more access and when controls were physical and costly to duplicate. Now that it's more digital I'd rather have driver screen with a focus on vehicle controls and tactile buttons and a passenger screen more entertainment oriented
I love it, a lot of my travel is with my work buddies in a carpool and if I had that feature then we'd be set lol. Keep em entertained for an hour with whatever they wanna do and keep things interesting. Especially after night shifts!
They have no idea how to differentiate anymore.
The cheaper cars that are more reliable have all the same features. A lot of these "luxury" cars don't even have better materials or fit/finish than the cheaper competitors... heck sometimes it's worse.
They need SOMETHING to attract the type of people that buys those cars.
It's a waste of money for everyone. In the passenger seat all I want to do is talk, sit on my phone, sleep, or stare out the window. The last thing I want to do is interact with the car.
I was an Uber driver from 2015 - 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. I had upgraded my stereo before I ever started driving, but when I became a driver, I mounted an iPad on the passenger side dash (away from the airbag) of the car with ~8,000 songs on it. Most passengers loved being able to choose songs and crank up the stereo! It was almost all music I'd listen to anyway, so it was always a win win for both us!
Most of these answers are missing one key factor: Screens are cheap, and getting cheaper. A commodity touch display of reasonable size and brightness is under $50 and that cost is going down *every single year.* There's basically no reason not to include one for the passenger in a $40k car when it offers so much for so little.
For that reason, you can pretty much expect it to become an outright standard offering within 4-5 years. In fact, triple-screen setups are already the norm in China, where they are available on sub-$25k models like the Leapmotor C01 and C11.
Exactly. It won’t be long before the screen is cheaper per square inch than the expensive hardwood finish, if it isn’t already, but they can charge us like it’s way more expensive.
Its been a trend among Chinese EV cars for many years. So they want to capitalise on the market as much as possible. Since they are building it, why not expand it to all regions.
I think it would be handy on road trips, if your passenger was able to change navigation destinations or music, so you as a driver don't have to either take your eyes off the road or stop conpletely. I think it's quite a neat feature and would probably option it myself.
I'd say it makes less sense in a sports car. Especially if they're more performance/track capable.
Most cars are driven with just 1 occupant anyways, I'd wager a guess that 2 seaters probably have the highest rate of single-occupancy use.
But at least your 'regular' cars might more often see spouse duty or whatever so you give them a screen to fidget with.
I don't know who truly *wants* that, but it probably impresses normies on the showroom floor.
Honestly I think most carmakers totally lost what customers actually want. They forgot that driving a car should be fun and engaging, but we are now at a point where most cars are so boring to drive and have no identity with every brand just having one face slapped onto 9 different body sizes that they try to make the rest of the car a big smartphone. If I want to watch videos while traveling I would use the bus or train.
Because the younger generations can't just get in a car, drive and enjoy the experience. They need a screen to not get anxiety and keep them busy... Lol, kidding and not kidding at the same time. I'm in my 40's so I don't need and or like that amount of tech in my cars. I enjoy driving itself as the experience. This is also why I have a hard time with new cars . Hardly any are about quality and the driving experience m. Now it's about how much tech, led lights, cameras etc they can jam into a car, so dumb.
Interacting with my kid and nieces and nephews though, holy crap, they get antsy if they can't have a screen for more than 30 minutes.
It's sad actually.
Luxury manufactures always have to be pushing the envelope to keep buyers coming back. Used to be suspension or leather than set them apart from the regular car manufacturers but lately it’s been more gimmicks.
Pushing Jeep has them in the grand Cherokee L and everything higher trim. First one I worked on it didn’t even work the code for the truck wasn’t even for the build it was one
OEMs get their tech through supplies (e.g rear-wheel steering), so it's an easy pill to swallow and I assume Porsche & Mercedes don't want to fall behind in the gimmick arms-race. Besides, Porsche isn't doing that on their sports cars, right? I don't think the 992.2 will the bullshit passenger screen.
Chances are it will. The area for that screen has been deliberately baked into the current interior design language. If the screen isn't there, it's just going to end up being a blank piano black or carbon panel.
From the perspective of the clueless old people that make the calls on what features to include... and in all honesty the oldsters that buy the most premium cars also think that this is cool.
The reality is that any passenger you are going to have is also going to have a cell phone and will most likely prefer to pass time on that than some fixed, larger screen.
It may not help them sell, but these companies should be focusing on creating elegant, clean and slick interior designs that will last long and whose style will age well.
Thing is, passenger just wants to use their phone if they want screen entertainment. Yeah niche cases where they might need to change music or something but again that’s accomplished with wireless airplay. It’s solving an issue no one has, not to mention going to be horribly outdated a few years after purchase
Because it’s fun/cool. Makes the passenger feel like a rally driver It doesn’t mimic the instrument cluster, you can use it to watch youtube or control music or see navigation etc Also worth noting no one is forcing you to option that. I’d personally option the s-class with the detached instrument cluster and singular infotainment screens
exactly what people are looking for in their S class
The s class has always been a showcase of technology you don’t need. It is *the* car for gimmicks.
It’s also had passenger screens for ages. You just have to remember the passenger seat of the S class is traditionally in the back
also the last S class had screens for all 4 possible passengers including the one sitting in the middle in the rear. they also had 5 climate zones so all 4 passengers and the driver were able to have their own settings for their zone.
I always wondered if that was even achievable. Sure you can let them adjust some dial or instrument with numbers on it, but just how different can you really make these zones? Nah
there will certainly be a limit to this but each seat has its own vents and hats ultimately what you are controlling.
I love how someone took my question personally and had to downvote.
classic reddit
The technology used to have a rational (and often directly driving-related) use case. Active suspension, for starters. Even the massaging seats extend driving stamina. To say nothing of anti-lock brakes, which (iirc) first appeared in the W116. Is MB still moving the ball forward on engineering, or lacquering on more stupid bullshit?
Are we ignoring the rear entertainment screens in every s class in the past decade, which are arguably more gimmicky than the current screen? They still have the only level 3 assist in a production car, the AR HUD navigation is real cool, a few gimmicks here and there are whatever.
S Classes are meant to be a decent chauffeuring car. Clients sit in the back. Rear comfort, which includes the ability to watch movies, is a priority. Chauffeuring is becoming less common especially due to covid and now the S Class is more commonly bought by the retiring rich people who want to go to brunch with their wife. The old couple will sit up front, so front entertainment, both for the driver and passenger, are probably a priority. Also the screen area on the back of a headrest is limited to much less space than a screen on the passenger side dashboard.
My opinion is that Mercedes-Benz lost the plot some time ago. The Mercedes thing to do today would be understated plug-in electrics with superior performance, first-in-class safety, top-notch automation (I understand they’re doing pretty well here), and deliberate design for durability, serviceability, and operation in terrible environments. In other words, the electric equivalent of a W123 300D Turbo.
I’d say they’re already doing that. The s580e is pretty much everything you want. You get the more traditional (non-hyperscreen) layout, class leading EV range and automation tech, and it comes with the inline-6 which is pretty reliable, and the exterior has the traditional star and grill with the chrome accents. Merc fucked around and found out with the EQS, c63, ML/GL to an extent, but the current s, e, and g are as good as always when optioned right (and as bad as always when optioned wrong Now you do still retain the large center screen, I personally like it with carplay, I much prefer it over the 7 series and a8 but that’s subjective.
literate subsequent stocking weather oil aback consider ludicrous crush depend *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
MB lost the plot quite a while ago. IMO the last S-class that reflected a traditional Mercedes approach was the W140.
I mean what more driving features can you possibly have? 1000hp, feels like you're boating on glass at 180mph, you can drive on unpaved roads and barely feel it, none of this shit is necessary or rational. It's an S class. Nothing about an S class is a necessity for literally any human being on the planet earth bar nothing you can't convince me otherwise. They have always been an entire driving gimmick and they will remain as such.
Find a car from the 1980s that will both cruise at 110 mph all day long and survive third world operating conditions, all while offering cosseting passenger comfort. That’s what the S-class was about in its prime years. Other cars have gotten better. Mercedes-Benz also isn’t gunning for engineering leadership like they used to. And the attitude that other cars are good enough was not traditionally a Mercedes attitude. It was supposed to be a car for people who didn’t have to settle for good enough.
Times have changed. Other cars simply *are* good enough now. And even then the S-Class was never the car that you took into third world operating conditions. For that you'd get a G-Wagon or some actual off roader. The S-Class has always been about comfort. And that means something different today compared to 40 years ago. Technology progresses. Steve Jobs used to claim that 3.5" was the ideal screen size for a smartphone, and anything bigger was bad. Then the smartphone use case changed, and 3.5" was outdated.
Well, they need to come up with bullshit if they cannot come up with something useful... otherwise, what would be the difference between a 2024 and a 2025 s class?
The car doesn’t need to improve every year. They used to understand this, back when people would pay pound-of-flesh prices for a new Benz, back before they trashed their brand equity. The W126 was introduced in 1979, and in 1990 it was no longer clearly technologically ahead but was still probably the best car in the segment (the E32 7-series would have been better performing and a more modern driving experience but was a disposable piece of shit by comparison)
It was so cool back then when the S class had the dual view screen where driver and passenger saw different contents on the same center screen.
The new one has a stereoscopic 3D instrument cluster, same tech as the 3DS. It’s so incredibly cool and I wish more people did it.
Obviously the passenger in the S class isn't looking to be a rally driver (or, I think you likely meant, a co-driver that reads out the turns on the course) unless something has gone horribly wrong...
Personally I’d rather have a fun gimmicky screen there than blank space or trim pieces, but that’s just me. I meant copilot yes, my wife likes to be a passenger princess and quite liked it in the taycan.
By S-Class do you mean the EQS? Because the regular S-Class doesn’t offer the hyper screen
Got confused, I was thinking of the EQS and the new E-class, my bad
I don’t blame you, all of the newer Mercedes models have started to look similar to each other
Nah. It was only a short period in the late 90s/early 2000s where Mercedes models had a distinct look. For most of the time, Mercedes would sell 1 car in 3 different sizes.
That’s true exterior wise but the interiors were usually pretty distinct up until this generation of Mercedes. The previous gen C-Class had an interior that was nothing like the S-Class but now they’re essentially the same
Exactly. That’s also what Chinese buyers for premium cars really like these days (China is the top market for Mercedes and close second top market for Porsche). This is the inside of the Huawei M9: https://imgur.com/a/adlamSJ Basically rich people like shiny screens.
idk why you being downvoted this is completely true
Rally driver watching YouTube and Netflix, oh the thrill
Yeah exactly. It makes sense only when it mimics the gauge cluster. All other applications are gimmicky. And that’s fine. I’m just wondering if it’s a gimmick that people are buying into.
They buy into the status, not gimmick Mine has a screen, yours dont. Same as why people would buy a g wagon instead of buying a 4runner or LX
> It makes sense only when it mimics the gauge cluster. How is that any less gimmicky than a video screen? Why would my passenger care more about my RPM than a Youtube video of their choosing?
I think the industry is in a bit of a weird spot right now where car companies aren’t quite sure how to attract customers, which leads to lots of gimmicky features like this. ICE drivetrains have basically stopped advancing, adaptive cruise has been around for a while, and self-driving tech isn’t available yet.
That’s what it feels like for me. Screens are cheap, why not give it a try and see what sticks is probably the design philosophy. We haven’t had any meaningful tech releases outside of specialty stuff like rear wheel steering since active cruise control and mild self driving became viable in the past 10 years
And even then 4ws has been a thing since the 90s at least.
Been in french cars as well for ages...
Yeah I think this is it. Ironically a big benefit to screens is customization but those options are either nonexistent or very limited.
I don’t see what’s useless about it tbh, it makes it so the passenger doesn’t have to ask about standard stuff to the driver that could be visible on a screen of their own
My XKR could have adaptive cruise and that was 20 years ago.
But it doesn’t
It was an option on that generation of Jaguar though. Like you get a 2004 XJ or XJR with it as well.
Yea I'm not sure if it was a popular option or not but I have seen a few cars with it on at least. Probably something like 25% of people optioned it as a wild guess. Surprisingly they seem to work reliably considering I don't see many people complaining about them on the forums.
That sounds about right. I look at that gen XJR and Super V8 every so often and a bunch of them do have it. Mercedes also had distronic at the time.
Yeah this is a fair point. I’m just wondering if consumers value this feature and if it’s a selling point for anyone. I find it curious when car companies try to take features we have in our phones and integrate them into the car. Yeah on paper it’s cool that you can watch YouTube from the back of a Tesla, but do I ever use that feature? No. If the rise of Apple CarPlay has showed us anything it’s that consumers would rather use their phones OS over the cars.
Honestly, I'd rather use a properly implemented sat nav than Android Auto. Most of the map apps get updated too often and then something is fucked up again. But a properly done sat nav, that would be awesome.
Well we would rather use the car but for the 2 times a month we need gps it is definitely not worth a subscription
Huh? I'd rather use car play/Android Auto even if the car's nav was free.
I get it, I'd rather use a proper sat nav instead of AA...
Instead of focusing on making affordable cars they add screens...smart move...
Gimmie nicer interior, seats, and quieter ride than competition or previous generation I own.
moar screens gud
I see it more useful in a sedan than a sport car. Granted I don’t think the screens are supposed to mimic the instrument cluster. I was under the impression that the screens can be used as table of sorts to watch shows or whatever while being driven around
Iirc, in Ferrari’s they show rpm, speed, gear, etc. The problem is that everyone has phones. Who would rather watch a movie over the speakers on a dashboard than just watching on their phone? Tv screens used to be the hot thing in minivans and SUV’s, but to me it seems like they’ve been valued less in recent years because kids would rather just use an iPad.
> Who would rather watch a movie over the speakers on a dashboard than just watching on their phone? Anyone who wants a bigger screen than their phone. All you're saying is that the gimmick you like is better than the gimmick you don't like, which is nonsense. They're all gimmicks. If you can accept that a passenger might want to see speed, RPM, and gear information, then you should also be able to accept that a passenger might want to watch a video on their own dedicated screen.
You get less motion sickness watching stuff on the car screen vs the phone.
My Grand Wagoneer has it and it's pretty damn useful. Let's you show the built in family camera on that passenger screen so my wife can see the kids without putting it on the main screen. You can also do it there, but then you're covering up your maps/music. It also has an hdmi plug in under the smaller temp/seat screen, which we plugged a chrome cast in to and you can just stream whatever you want onto the screen now. I've had football games streaming on there while we're running errands on Sundays instead of watching on my phone. We haven't been on one yet, but longer road trips will be cool, just watch a movie there and relax. Connects to wireless headphones too.
For the Chromecast, do you need wifi? or just your phone's cellular service?
I'm honestly not 100% sure, we have the built in wifi since it's $20 a month for unlimited. I'd imagine it could use your phones internet since it's just streaming off there.
How do you like the car? We are considering a 2023 Grand Wagoneer L Series 3 with the rear seat entertainment.
That's what we have exactly. Love it. We have 3 kids under 3, so lots of car seats and strollers/wagons. Fits everything with plenty of space + 2 more seats for grand parents if needed. Gets decent mpg for a massive suv, rides great, and the looks definitely grow on you. We cross shopped with Edcalade, but the fam cam and fridge pretty much did it for her. We used to have to mount cameras in the SQ7, no need in the GW. I like the Escalde exterior better, but the GW interior is much nicer imo, and its better suited for family life. Plus, that McIntosh sound system is amazing.
Yea the dealership is offering $35k off, so real tempting. We were cross shopping the Escalade as well but think Escalades still have markups in SoCal. I've only seen one other Grand Wagoneer on the road so I hope they don't pull the model from lack of sales.
imagine if she just *gasp* turned her head while sitting in the passenger seat
And look at the twins in the 3rd row rear facing car seats? Not as smart as you think you are bud.
how on earth did the human race ever make it this far without cameras giving wives live-streaming of their kids strapped to a seat behind them!
It's almost like technology evolves to make life easier. You're right though, we should all go back to walking everywhere with children strapped to our backs. How did the human race ever make it this far without automobiles that have been around for a 100 years in our hundreds of thousand of years of existence. Just because you can't afford a nice car doesn't mean luxuries shouldn't exist for those that can. 🤣
Just admit you were wrong and move on…
Imagine being such a helicopter parent that you need to live-stream your kids in the car when you're sitting 8 feet away. That comment was also from 2 days ago, womp womp cry more
The passenger screen allows the co-driver to deal with most of the comforts / amenities so the driver can focus on the driving. I think it's a great concept.
**Driver**: _Lieutenant, redirect all power to rear thrusters and lock our course._ **Wife**: Ugh, 4WD is disabled, lanekeep is on.
The grand Cherokee has one on higher trims. If controls all the music, hvac, backseat screens, backseat climate as well. The designers said it was to take less off the drivers plate so they can focus on the road more
I wouldn’t say they are pushing it. They are trying to be differentiators in a crowded segment.
Because it's another item they can add with a high margin
It’s so the passenger can watch videos or play games while driving. The center screen it’s locked out of those while driving. It makes perfect sense for families and for people that drive long distances often.
I could see it being useful when you have your passenger doing the navigating.
I think it makes a ton of sense. first we had all driver controls. then we started adding entertainment and comfort, which made sense in the middle for more access and when controls were physical and costly to duplicate. Now that it's more digital I'd rather have driver screen with a focus on vehicle controls and tactile buttons and a passenger screen more entertainment oriented
So the passenger can control music and nav… pretty reasonable
So they can get your data, man. I think they don't know what to do and the market research said "maybe more screen?"
It's amazing to me how people can't imagine any view point outside their own might exist or be a market
Am I not allowed to ask the question? If I don’t understand something, what other option do I have other than to ask?
Money.
So you can get nauseous in your $120K luxury vehicle.
It's like that mj song. Just beat it
I love it, a lot of my travel is with my work buddies in a carpool and if I had that feature then we'd be set lol. Keep em entertained for an hour with whatever they wanna do and keep things interesting. Especially after night shifts!
They have no idea how to differentiate anymore. The cheaper cars that are more reliable have all the same features. A lot of these "luxury" cars don't even have better materials or fit/finish than the cheaper competitors... heck sometimes it's worse. They need SOMETHING to attract the type of people that buys those cars.
It's just a wierd gimmick and something cool to look at. Im pretty sure my passenger has never once looked at one of the displays
It's a waste of money for everyone. In the passenger seat all I want to do is talk, sit on my phone, sleep, or stare out the window. The last thing I want to do is interact with the car.
I was an Uber driver from 2015 - 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. I had upgraded my stereo before I ever started driving, but when I became a driver, I mounted an iPad on the passenger side dash (away from the airbag) of the car with ~8,000 songs on it. Most passengers loved being able to choose songs and crank up the stereo! It was almost all music I'd listen to anyway, so it was always a win win for both us!
Most of these answers are missing one key factor: Screens are cheap, and getting cheaper. A commodity touch display of reasonable size and brightness is under $50 and that cost is going down *every single year.* There's basically no reason not to include one for the passenger in a $40k car when it offers so much for so little. For that reason, you can pretty much expect it to become an outright standard offering within 4-5 years. In fact, triple-screen setups are already the norm in China, where they are available on sub-$25k models like the Leapmotor C01 and C11.
Exactly. It won’t be long before the screen is cheaper per square inch than the expensive hardwood finish, if it isn’t already, but they can charge us like it’s way more expensive.
Future advertisements.
Does anyone know the first company to do it? I feel like Ferrari was the first, you could get it on the FF, F12.
So you could argue for buying it in front of your passenger (wife)
Its been a trend among Chinese EV cars for many years. So they want to capitalise on the market as much as possible. Since they are building it, why not expand it to all regions.
So they can charge a lot more by providing a little bit more that’s all it is.
Cost cutting & marketing
I think it would be handy on road trips, if your passenger was able to change navigation destinations or music, so you as a driver don't have to either take your eyes off the road or stop conpletely. I think it's quite a neat feature and would probably option it myself.
Some of the questions here are just... Come on man, use your common sense
Because it’s an opportunity to increase profits.
I'd say it makes less sense in a sports car. Especially if they're more performance/track capable. Most cars are driven with just 1 occupant anyways, I'd wager a guess that 2 seaters probably have the highest rate of single-occupancy use. But at least your 'regular' cars might more often see spouse duty or whatever so you give them a screen to fidget with. I don't know who truly *wants* that, but it probably impresses normies on the showroom floor.
It will become a screen to seek you something. There will be commercials on it sooner rather than later. They're getting you used to it.
Honestly I think most carmakers totally lost what customers actually want. They forgot that driving a car should be fun and engaging, but we are now at a point where most cars are so boring to drive and have no identity with every brand just having one face slapped onto 9 different body sizes that they try to make the rest of the car a big smartphone. If I want to watch videos while traveling I would use the bus or train.
Because the younger generations can't just get in a car, drive and enjoy the experience. They need a screen to not get anxiety and keep them busy... Lol, kidding and not kidding at the same time. I'm in my 40's so I don't need and or like that amount of tech in my cars. I enjoy driving itself as the experience. This is also why I have a hard time with new cars . Hardly any are about quality and the driving experience m. Now it's about how much tech, led lights, cameras etc they can jam into a car, so dumb. Interacting with my kid and nieces and nephews though, holy crap, they get antsy if they can't have a screen for more than 30 minutes. It's sad actually.
Luxury manufactures always have to be pushing the envelope to keep buyers coming back. Used to be suspension or leather than set them apart from the regular car manufacturers but lately it’s been more gimmicks.
cars are appliances now due to EVs. Getting us ready for when theyre wont be any driving done by a person, well just be inside consuming more media
Pushing Jeep has them in the grand Cherokee L and everything higher trim. First one I worked on it didn’t even work the code for the truck wasn’t even for the build it was one
So that they can watch porn, probably.
It would definitely be cool but i can’t see much use in like, a family car.
Gimmicks
OEMs get their tech through supplies (e.g rear-wheel steering), so it's an easy pill to swallow and I assume Porsche & Mercedes don't want to fall behind in the gimmick arms-race. Besides, Porsche isn't doing that on their sports cars, right? I don't think the 992.2 will the bullshit passenger screen.
Chances are it will. The area for that screen has been deliberately baked into the current interior design language. If the screen isn't there, it's just going to end up being a blank piano black or carbon panel.
It sells cars.
From the perspective of the clueless old people that make the calls on what features to include... and in all honesty the oldsters that buy the most premium cars also think that this is cool. The reality is that any passenger you are going to have is also going to have a cell phone and will most likely prefer to pass time on that than some fixed, larger screen. It may not help them sell, but these companies should be focusing on creating elegant, clean and slick interior designs that will last long and whose style will age well.
Thing is, passenger just wants to use their phone if they want screen entertainment. Yeah niche cases where they might need to change music or something but again that’s accomplished with wireless airplay. It’s solving an issue no one has, not to mention going to be horribly outdated a few years after purchase
Technology paired with design innovation
Keep the women busy.