I just came across this ad for Ford’s new Flex. It touts that the Flex can be outfitted with a “refrigerated console”.
Does anyone else think this is a bit crazy? Refrigerators in limos are one thing, but with all the problems we have with DUI (and I realize BUI is also a problem — as in, biking under the influence), is this really a responsible thing for Ford to do? Especially a company that is at this moment begging for taxpayer money to help it survive?
Would love to hear what you think….
Thanks for reading.
BikePortland has served this community with independent community journalism since 2005. We rely on subscriptions from readers like you to survive. Your financial support is vital in keeping this valuable resource alive and well.
Please subscribe today to strengthen and expand our work.
I know Ahearne sells a flask holder, but I’m disappointed that other bicycle makers aren’t following this lead! Bikes need cupholders and refrigerated consoles too!
good point about the Flask holster Elliot. I agree the alcohol/bike thing is a topic that needs to be discussed.. and I believe it’s a problem… however drunk biking is nowhere near the problem that drunk driving is in this country.
the other thing that this ad made me wonder about is how superflous, added options like this weigh a car down… thus decreasing fuel efficiency.
Jonathan
a refrigerated console doesn’t immediately make me think of beer, so I’m not so critical of this unless their marketing shows a beer chilling in the console (couldn’t see one on my screen).
However, I’d love to see more serious discussion of drunk driving here. There’ve been some minor discussion in the posts on BikePortland associated with some summer altercations, etc., but a feature would be very appreciated by this reader. JM- have you covered this topic before and I missed it?
I absolutely dispise drunk driving, I lost a friend and team mate many years ago (1997) and I know many in the OBRA community have not forgotten KH.I never have. Since then, I’ve been aware of have been many other tragedies and near tragedies to cycliss, pedestrians, other drivers caused by impared drivers.
I wish that there was more outrage associated with DUI on this forum, in this city, in this state, in this country. Sadly, I feel that most people just don’t take the responsibility of driving seriously – “heck I just had a couple of beers…” seems to be a pretty acceptable phrase. So, society behaves as if it’s acceptable, there are not sufficient penalties – prison for example is how Norway handles it – drink, drive, get caught, go to jail – pretty effective. We just keep doing it and not even really talking about it – I figure we have to at least talk about it more openly before we can even begin to organize and take action.
So, thanks for raising the issue related to the Ford ad.
b
Just one more reason why Fords are crap…
A refrigerated console seems to me like it could be a nice feature. Obviously, it can be used for other things besides beverages; sandwiches, snack veggies, fruit and so forth. For a long haul driver, this is probably less distracting than having to reach over into a cooler on the passenger floorboards, behind the seats and so forth.
I’d have a concern about Ford’s refrigerator option if the chill feature was for an individual upright can or bottle. But really, I don’t think drunks give a damn whether their alcohol is chilled or not.
By all means, let’s work to kill the notion that being drunk-stupid is a cool thing to do. The Eric Davidson, Jeremy Jordan round-a-bout this year should be a wake-up call to some of the pleasure drunks out there.
The weight shouldn’t be too bad, but I’d be more worried that it would run the battery down when the car was parked. I mean, you don’t move the car for a couple days, and then you go out to use it, and it doesn’t start, so you need to jump the car. Not to mention that I’d keep milk in that thing, (have you ever bought gas station milk on a road trip? Bad idea,) would have gone bad and it would be smelling up the car.
Although, I suspect the sort of person that is buying a brand new car from a car company that will be bankrupt very soon drives every day, (and drinks soft drinks instead of milk,) so they probably don’t have that problem.
The water in my bottle was a perfect 37 degrees when I got to work this morning…
Wait, it gets the same mileage as my Subaru WRX, holds 3 more, AND chills my Caldera IPA 6-pack? Sold.
/sarcasm.
bArbaroo,
I’ll second the request for a serious discussion of alcohol and road use. I have a real problem with it too.
Here’s my take:
We (as a society) despise drunk drivers. We’ve made them a ‘they’. They kill children. They kill family members and friends.
The problem is, we (as a society) also encourage people to drive while drunk. We have work parties with open bars, where people are expected to have a drink or two, then get themselves home. When we go out to dinner, the waitress pushes beer and wine, then always offers another when you’re running low.
In addition to that, we base a person’s ability to operate a vehicle on a measurement of the percentage of alcohol in their blood. It’s an imperfect way to measure imparement, and much worse, it’s nearly impossible for most people to measure.
How many of you know your BAC right now? at noon on a thursday, I’d bet we’re all pretty close to zero.
Let’s say you stop for a beer on the way home… What is your BAC then?
What if you get talked into a second beer? What’s your BAC then?
What if you have an appetizer? Or a full meal?
Most likely, you don’t have a breathalyzer with you, which means you’re left to make a judgement call… when your judgement is impared by alcohol. Breaking most laws is a gamble. You may or may not get caught, and there may or may not be consequences. Breaking this law is a double gamble. In addition to being caught, you can’t really be sure whether you’re breaking the law or not.
I suggest two things.
First, we should require all bars to provide an accurate breathalyzer on site. This could be one of the requirements to hold a liqour license.
Second, we really should have a zero tolerance policy. Anytime your BAC is over 0.0, you can’t get on the road. This is problematic, because some foods and gum and mouthwashes can give a very slight BAC reading, so I’m less convinced of this law’s practicality.
It’s pretty clear that something needs to be done though. It’s pretty clear that our current method of punishing drunk drivers rather than trying to help people not drive drunk is not working.
these have been available in various cars since at least the 1980s. definitely in camping vehicles.
its silly, but in the end, its no different than carrying a small cooler in the space between the front seats, which is something my parents have done on vacations for as long as ive been alive. you just cant hop out of the car and take the cooler with you.
and elliot #1 – my old bike had more cupholders than any vehicle in its class. 16, to be exact. wish i still had the pictures…
foote
thanks for adding to the conversation – I do think it fits here since as bicyclists we are all vulnerable. Thanks too for saying what I was thinking in a more articulate way.
I agree that mixed messages are sent:
– it’s illegal to do but you can get caught 3 times before your misdemeanor becomes a class c felony.
-“we” all agree that it’s a bad idea but we aren’t proactive about reducing influences that add to the problem: the examples of servers pushing more, office parties etc.
-we ask folks to be responsible but then fail to take responsibility for making sure that we know how impared we are, knowing how to ask a friend for their keys when they are impared.
This option costs 760 dollars, people who have this “feature” added to their cars are bailing out Ford practically single handedly.