Bring Back the Buttons: Drivers Push Back Against Touchscreen Overload

The future was supposed to be sleek and seamless, especially behind the wheel. Touchscreens promised a sci-fi driving experience. In reality, you’re squinting through the windshield, jabbing through menus to find the climate control while a roundabout rushes toward you. Then the system freezes. Just like your nerves.

Enter Start Rescue, a UK roadside assistance provider fed up with the touchscreen circus. Their message to automakers is short and sharp: bring the damn buttons back.

Today’s dashboards look more like a mashup between an iPad and a LEGO set than a safe driving interface. If you have to wade through three menus just to clear fog from your windshield, something’s gone seriously wrong.

Start Rescue’s managing director Lee Puffett puts it bluntly: “People aren’t calling us because their engine died. They’re calling because the touchscreen froze. Completely. No heat, no navigation, no logic. One customer thought he’d wiped his car’s software just trying to skip a song.”

And it doesn’t end there. More and more drivers are reporting steering wheel vibrations triggered by overzealous lane assist systems or fatigue detection “helpers.” Imagine your car shaking you for looking at a traffic light too long.

Now even safety experts are joining the analog rebellion. From 2026, new Euro NCAP testing standards will require physical access to critical functions like heat, defogging, and emergency options. Less menu surfing, more eyes on the road.

Thankfully, automakers are starting to listen. A growing wave of models are rolling out with real, tactile buttons again. Yes, buttons. Remember those? It's a revolution.

Start Rescue is pushing for a hybrid dashboard: digital screens where they make sense, physical buttons where they matter most. Their wish list includes:
Rotary knobs, toggles, and dedicated climate controls;
No burying safety features under layers of menus;
Adjustable warning alerts, so your car doesn’t scream every time you brush a lane marker;
And software that doesn’t freeze like a cheap tablet left out in the cold.

So next time your screen throws a tantrum, don’t swear and call for help. It might be a glitch. Or maybe your infotainment system has gained sentience and refuses to play your playlist.