With Ford’s soccer mom throttle control (no engine braking on any Ford car I’ve driven recently), lack of direct control over every gear in its new 6 speed autos, the completely ruined Focus, no SVT product, and now this, they are pretty much giving up on the enthusiast market. And don’t talk to me about the Mustang – it’s a bloated pig of a car for sentimental baby boomers, despite the wonderful 4.6 engine.

Don’t get me wrong- I’ve been a Ford booster since growing up in a Ford family. And my 97 F150 is the single best overall vehicle I have owned. But they are squandering their goodwill with me with every move they make.

The assumption that kids who were raised by strict parents lose their minds the moment they move out of the house is something that’s based on stereotype and some ‘good girl gone bad’ fantasy.

Personally, I’d rather have iron fisted parents who kept their kids in line over lassez-faire parents who have no idea the kind of trouble their kids were getting into.

P71_CrownVic :

My guess is that knowing it is a Ford development…it will fail, and them some parents will sue Ford for killing their kids.

watersketch :

It’s about time. This is much better than a governor.

There, see what I mean?

Yes and no. It’s a fine point, but one that’s played out every time kids who live under iron-fist parents move away for the first time in their lives. There’s a reason why a significant number of kids who end up pregnant or in detox in frosh week are the ones who were part of top-down abstinence groups in high school.

I’ll admit that I wasn’t an angel in my teens, but I also scared myself just enough to know where the line was. I can think of a lot of friends who weren’t quite that well, ah, educated and suffered as a result.

MyKey is actually not so bad in this respect, but it’s not a real substitute for, say, giving a child emergency driving lessons. Or better yet, enrolling them in a light racing course.

How long before a rental car company charges you extra per day to not have the nanny key?

No one seems to have ‘hacked’ Passive Anti Theft systems. I doubt they’ll do it here, either.

If you haven’t realized yet that the robustness of your automobile is orders of magnitude better than that of throwaway consumer junk like iPhones and PS3s, then you probably shouldn’t be commenting here.

You make it sound like MyKey only delays the inevitable—that your son is going to go bananas behind the wheel as soon as you toss him the keys.

The way I see it, it’s merely an extension of my parental obligations. We know they won’t try any hoonery when you’re right there in the passenger’s seat, this just makes sure they don’t try it when you’re not in the passenger’s seat.

It’s a start, but what I really want is a key that can limit the audio volume of the rapper’s car next to mine at the stop light.

Maybe each will get about 1/2 mile down the road before losing it. Don’t forget to make each car explode in a huge ball of flames as they go tumbling off the mountainside!

Big and slow wasn’t enough for me, as I still had a V8 and RWD (79 Cutlass Supreme Brougham 260). The big backseat was what worried my girlfriend’s dad…probably because he met his wife in the same car (albiet new in those days).

That’s true, but restricting the hell out of kids without explaining to them why you’re going to do it (or generally treating them like real people) is going to result in them unwinding in a big, ugly way as soon as said restrictions are removed. Put it this way: I’d rather my son be slightly stupid in my own car, then me lock him down, only to have him cut loose like maniac in the first rental, parents or unrestricted car he gets in.

You have to give children a little risk and consequence to help them understand it. Just saying “No” until they move out is a recipe for disaster when they do move out.

What? that thought didn’t occur to some of you right away? Then you are not paying attention

Or you could, you know, treat your kids are real people and talk to them about this kind of stuff, like, you know, responsible parents.

My parents talked to me about this stuff and in the end, I still drove like a madman, with luck being the only reason I’m not six feet underground. Teenagers are inherently rebellious and incapable of recognizing the limits of their driving abilities or the vehicles they operate. Merely talking to them is simply not enough. If this helps keep them from driving like mad fools, then it’s just what the doctor ordered.

This is literally increasing the “freedom” of car owners by adding optional functionality. Unless it is the 16 year old brat laying down the $17,000 for a brand-new Focus, I suggest any whiny little snotnoses better shut up and keep it under 80, if they think they can possibly ever do so. (Boo hoo! Doesn’t daddy know I gotta fly?) The chimes are irritating, for sure, but why do we all forget that driving is not a right, but a privelege? Especially for horny, distracted, consequence-ignoring self-obsessed teens?

I have seen these kids driving around, and I’ll be the first to support restricting their access to vehicles and subsequently their ability to kill themselves or me.

My kids won’t be dirving for a while (5 & 2 years) and I would rather deal with it on the communication/responsibility level it might be nice to have the option if needed.

Need to think about this.

Bunter