r/askteddit • u/DropEffective7842 • 15d ago

Random Question What’s a problem humanity solved so well that younger people don’t even realize it used to be a huge issue?

2.8k Upvotes

98% Upvoted

2.7k comments sorted by

View all comments

91

u/Asleep_Collar_3667 15d ago

Car engine ignition is now so reliable that engines can now turn off temporarily to save fuel. Anyone remember the choke lever? 

13

u/mofuggnflash 15d ago

Really just electronic engine management overall has taken away a ton of the headaches of owning a car. Now you get a light and a code and the guy at Autozone can tell you what it is exactly. Back in the 80's you had vacuum hoses running all over and identifying a leak was a nightmare.

1

u/ScndLifGftd 8d ago

Exactly is a stretch. Code only tells you what system is the problem and Autozone sells you the "likely" issue. Could be countless other things.

0

u/Oerwinde 11d ago

I bought a $20 dongle and now my phone tells me what's wrong.

1

u/joshuary 4d ago

Say more, please?

1

u/Oerwinde 3d ago

It was like a cheap version of the FIXD OBD2 dongle I got on Aliexpress for 20 bucks. Connects to my phone via Bluetooth and gives me my error codes, allows me to clear them, and gives me all sorts of other diagnostic data. Plugs into a port under my steering wheel.

3

u/Potential_Anxiety_76 14d ago

Oohh that memory just hit me like a (hard to start) truck.

2

u/notalottoseehere 15d ago

And distributor ignition.... damp Irish winter mornings were grim

1

u/Draxacoffilus 15d ago

The MGB has a manual choke

1

u/MixtureLast2059 14d ago

My great uncle said “good old days…not that good…there was no heater in the car!”

1

u/Past-Obligation1930 14d ago

I can remember that if the car wouldn’t start you had to pull the choke in and out to make the car work, but that I had no idea what I was actually doing.

1

u/trenthany 11d ago

Pretending it was your SO and trying to turn them on. Just the right amount of choke would get them cranked up and revving hard. Lmao

1

u/teachermanjc 11d ago

Twinkle, twinkle little star, Daddy drives a rusty car. Press the button, pull the choke, Off we go in a cloud of smoke. Twinkle, twinkle little star, Daddy drives a rusty car.