Premium car features you would pay extra NOT to have

[lyndhurst25]

Or, even worse, just a spray can of emergency tyre puncture sealant gunge. Very much not a premium feature and makes a simple tyre repair impossible.

Not sure if that is true. After asking them to clarify this matter, I have an email from Holts, who make the stuff, saying that using it does NOT prevent punctures from being repaired. Of course it makes the job of repairing the tyre quite messy as you have to clean all the gunk out from inside, so it is unpopular with tyre repair places, who would rather sell you a new tyre in any case as it is more profitable for them. It does clog up TPWS pressure sensors though.

My car has no room for a spare tyre and came with a can of sealant gunk, that thankfully I have never had to use. I also carry one of those black-goo-soaked-string-plug puncture repair tools, which I have instead used to successfully seal a nail hole in one of my tyres.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Some of the issues people are reporting with things like Lane Departure Warnings and auto-dip headlights explain exactly why things like full self-driving are still decades away from being a reality, rather than months or years as Tesla-simps keep insisting. I don't want a car that second-guesses me or thinks it knows the situation better than I can identify with my two mk1 eyeballs.

 

[swt_passenger]

My last two cars have had lane warning and assist, but in neither case was it on by default. I think it’s useful on long motorway journeys where there’s a real risk of drifting away from the middle of a lane, but it would be a nightmare if left enabled when on the narrow country roads where I live.

 

[66701GBRF]

You could probably work around that by getting a buckle from a scrappy and just leaving it permanently in the socket.

Why get another buckle when you can just plug in the actual seatbelt?

 

[Bletchleyite]

Why get another buckle when you can just plug in the actual seatbelt?

Because you'd have to sit on top of it?

My reply was to someone who is medically exempt from wearing it.

 

[66701GBRF]

Because you'd have to sit on top of it?

My reply was to someone who is medically exempt from wearing it.

You sit in front of it, which really isn't a problem.

 

[Bletchleyite]

You sit in front of it, which really isn't a problem.

Sitting on top of (horizontally) a seat belt would to me probably affect seat comfort. Each to their own though.

 

[Trackman]

You could probably work around that by getting a buckle from a scrappy and just leaving it permanently in the socket.

Some make of cars have 'cheat codes' to permanently disable the alarm. Some more complicated than others.
I cant be doing with them, it's not as if it's law.

 

[MattA7]

You could probably work around that by getting a buckle from a scrappy and just leaving it permanently in the socket.

Never thought of that. Some cars it only bongs for a few minutes other ones it can be a nightmare. Occasionally the dealership will turn off the alarm once I have informed them of the fact I’m exempt, others are hesitant to do so for liability reasons

Some make of cars have 'cheat codes' to permanently disable the alarm. Some more complicated than others.
I cant be doing with them, it's not as if it's law.

Yes I believe BMWs and other German cars have third party apps that allow you to customize your vehicle including turning off various bongs and warnings. Not sure how that could affect warranty, insurance etc though and how straight forward they are to use.


Back to the subject of undesirable car features the oversized touch screens are also pretty ridiculous some even take up most of the center console area. It could also be potentially distracting for some drivers. I don’t mind a small screen for satnav radio/music etc but the actual car controls should be totally separate.

Rear Parking sensors are often more of a distraction than a help in my opinion but they can thankfully be turned off in most cases.

 

[8A Rail]

Back to the subject of undesirable car features the oversized touch screens are also pretty ridiculous some even take up most of the center console area. It could also be potentially distracting for some drivers. I don’t mind a small screen for satnav radio/music etc but the actual car controls should be totally separate.

Rear Parking sensors are often more of a distraction than a help in my opinion but they can thankfully be turned off in most cases.

In my car, I have the sat nav screen in between the speed and rev counter dials, as well as the option to have it on the Centre Console if need be. Rear (and front) parking sensors having their uses for sure, as mine only go off within a certain short distance of the possible obstruction. I have already worked out the 'distance' of when they go off including more frequent sound as you get nearer to the obstruction which helps to know how much additional room you have.

 

[DustyBin]

The weight sensor checks if someone is in the seat. A microswitch checks if the buckle is in and locked. You're looking to fool the latter if you have a medical exemption from wearing one, not the former.

On a related note, some airbags won't deploy if the seatbelt isn't fastened. If all you've got in the passenger seat is a bag of groceries, you don't want it/them to deploy for obvious reasons....

 

[Kite159]

Re the last point, I used to own a 2008 bottom of the range Golf which had a handy feature, holding down the lock button on the remote for a few seconds closed any open windows. No car I've had since has had the same feature.

My old Fabia (2011era) had a similar function, also worked in reverse to allow you to open the windows from the remote which was very handy in the summer time as it allowed hot air to escape before you got there.

Sadly doesn't exist on my 2017 era Fabia

 

[bspahh]

My old Fabia (2011era) had a similar function, also worked in reverse to allow you to open the windows from the remote which was very handy in the summer time as it allowed hot air to escape before you got there.

Sadly doesn't exist on my 2017 era Fabia

My 2012 Mondeo does it too. It was fine. Then the key fob started to get stuck with the key folded in. I got a replacement for the blank key on eBay, got the key cut and swapped over the electronics for the immobiliser, for a fraction of the cost of a replacement key from Ford.

The problem was that the buttons on the new key would activate more easily in my pocket. It would leave all the windows open, which was not great if it had rained. I got an auto electrician to turn it off.

 

[Harpers Tate]

You can keep that. Definitely in line with the subject of the thread!

It's not my (or anyone's) place to expect nor insist another to share my/their opinions. On this subject - mine is, I love it. It's as easy as an easy thing to use, and I can't understand anyone thinking otherwise. As with so many things, it is different, and we all know different is bad - until it's not different any more.

 

[JohnMcL7]

If you're speaking about e-brakes then it's nothing to do with it being 'different', the reason I don't like them is they're much more complex than a normal handbrake and seen a few of them that have needed multiple garage visits to resolve and when they don't work as intended, they make something simple a lot of hassle as I've had a couple of occasions where it refused to release itself making a reverse hill climb start much more difficult. It's fine most of the time but for me doesn't bring any advantages for the potential hassle it can cause, it's one of the features I'm glad not to have when I go back to driving my own car.

 

[DustyBin]

If you're speaking about e-brakes then it's nothing to do with it being 'different', the reason I don't like them is they're much more complex than a normal handbrake and seen a few of them that have needed multiple garage visits to resolve and when they don't work as intended, they make something simple a lot of hassle as I've had a couple of occasions where it refused to release itself making a reverse hill climb start much more difficult. It's fine most of the time but for me doesn't bring any advantages for the potential hassle it can cause, it's one of the features I'm glad not to have when I go back to driving my own car.

I'm inclined agree with you; it's automation for the sake of automation in my opinion. It makes an already incredibly straightforward task, which takes a split second and involves pressing a button and moving a lever, that bit more straightforward....

Our current cars now all have manual handbrakes but with hill start assist. Fortunately in all cases it can be turned off, and stays off permanently!

 

[Bletchleyite]

If you're speaking about e-brakes then it's nothing to do with it being 'different', the reason I don't like them is they're much more complex than a normal handbrake and seen a few of them that have needed multiple garage visits to resolve and when they don't work as intended, they make something simple a lot of hassle as I've had a couple of occasions where it refused to release itself making a reverse hill climb start much more difficult. It's fine most of the time but for me doesn't bring any advantages for the potential hassle it can cause, it's one of the features I'm glad not to have when I go back to driving my own car.

To me they just have no benefit and lots of disbenefits. Just like electronic boot catches (except where you can wave a foot under the car and it releases and lifts, which is a benefit if your hands are full).

My Kuga has hill start assist without any need for an electronic handbrake, it's done through the footbrake circuit.

 

[dangie]

A know little about motor vehicles, but regarding electronic brakes, haven’t larger vehicles such as lorries, buses, coaches etc had them for many years?

 

[Bletchleyite]

A know little about motor vehicles, but regarding electronic brakes, haven’t larger vehicles such as lorries, buses, coaches etc had them for many years?

Buses, coaches, lorries etc normally have pneumatic (air powered) handbrakes controlled by a physical air valve, though some newer ones may well be electronic.

 

[DustyBin]

A know little about motor vehicles, but regarding electronic brakes, haven’t larger vehicles such as lorries, buses, coaches etc had them for many years?

They're air operated. The compressed air actually overcomes a spring which applies the brake, so they're failsafe in the event of a loss of pressure. Prior to this they were generally mechanical, but used rods and levers as opposed to cables. The exception was HGV trailers which used cables to operate the parking brake, tightened by a ratchet (basically a larger version what's used in cars etc.).

 

[bspahh]

I'm inclined agree with you; it's automation for the sake of automation in my opinion. It makes an already incredibly straightforward task, which takes a split second and involves pressing a button and moving a lever, that bit more straightforward....

Manual handbrakes were easy and simple for cars with rear drum brakes, with the cable pulling the same brake shoes as would be used for the hydraulic foot brake.

I think the issue is that if you brake hard and then park the car, the brake pad for disc brakes will be hot and could then distort the disc if you used the same pad for the parking brake.

Some cars with disc brakes have an extra drum brake for the parking brake. Others have an extra caliper on the disc. Its not then much worse to use electric actuation instead of a cable. It also helps with the packaging.

I haven't worked on cars with rear disc brakes. I'm not sure which are the most common approaches with modern cars.

 

[dangie]

Buses, coaches, lorries etc normally have pneumatic (air powered) handbrakes controlled by a physical air valve, though some newer ones may well be electronic.

Thank you.

 

[DustyBin]

Manual handbrakes were easy and simple for cars with rear drum brakes, with the cable pulling the same brake shoes as would be used for the hydraulic foot brake.

I think the issue is that if you brake hard and then park the car, the brake pad for disc brakes will be hot and could then distort the disc if you used the same pad for the parking brake.

Some cars with disc brakes have an extra drum brake for the parking brake. Others have an extra caliper on the disc. Its not then much worse to use electric actuation instead of a cable. It also helps with the packaging.

I haven't worked on cars with rear disc brakes. I'm not sure which are the most common approaches with modern cars.

You've got to be pushing extremely hard for warped discs on the rear to be a problem; it's never happened to me even following track use (in a powerful and reasonably heavy car). It's theoretically possible (just like the discs contracting as they cool and releasing the handbrake) but in reality it's not an issue.

There are as you say multiple ways to incorporate the handbrake into a rear disc setup including separate drums and shoes, an "inverted" drum and shoe that utilises the centre of the rotor, a second calliper, or simply a mechanism incorporated into the main calliper. As for which is the most common I couldn't say; I only really work on my own cars these days which all employ the latter.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I would probably say just using the main caliper is most common. The potential issues (which I've never experienced) don't depend on whether it's a cable pull or electronic.

 

[DustyBin]

I would probably say just using the main caliper is most common. The potential issues (which I've never experienced) don't depend on whether it's a cable pull or electronic.

Probably, although some major manufacturers use a secondary drum setup across their range, so they're more common than you may think.

 

[Tetchytyke]

They're air operated. The compressed air actually overcomes a spring which applies the brake, so they're failsafe in the event of a loss of pressure.

Not always. The Citaro has a function which holds the foot brake on electrically. And then disengages if you turn off the engine using the hard switch in the engine bay. As one unfortunate Bus Vannin driver found to his cost when his Citaro rolled back into a bungalow, having not used the compressed air brake when parking.

As for the brake hold in my Qashqai, it holds the foot brake on, not the handbrake. The handbrake is also electric, and engages automatically when the engine is switched off at the switch (which means I have to have the engine running in many car washes). But the brake hold isn’t the handbrake.

 

[Dr_Paul]

My car has a display which tells me which gear it thinks I should be in, despite having no knowledge of what's ahead. I should really fork out for a bit of black tape to hide it as I find it annoying and distracting.

My own motor hasn't got one of them, but when it was in the garage I hired a motor which kept telling me over a loudspeaker that I was in the wrong gear. And the reason why my motor was in the garage was because the electric window mechanism had broken. I never had problems with manual windows, and I found them perfectly alright to use, but I've had both front electric windows break, costing me £150 each time to get it fixed. So I'll add to the list electric windows.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 13 Apr 2023 ==

I appreciate that I am almost certainly in a minority of one, but my current car was chosen specifically because it does not have electric windows, and I would happily pay to have manual winders on any future car. It's not entirely irrational: I became infuriated by having to go through a distracting sequence of nudge down-down-down-up-down-up-down-up-all the way down-all the way up-down-up-down to get my gap of choice at the top of the window. The number of times that I have forgotten to close windows before taking the key out also has a bearing.

To add to the fun, sometimes both front windows open fully when I lock my motor. I have to unlock the motor, put the key into the ignition, press the window buttons, then remove the key and lock the motor again.

 

[MotCO]

My own motor hasn't got one of them, but when it was in the garage I hired a motor which kept telling me over a loudspeaker that I was in the wrong gear. And the reason why my motor was in the garage was because the electric window mechanism had broken. I never had problems with manual windows, and I found them perfectly alright to use, but I've had both front electric windows break, costing me £150 each time to get it fixed. So I'll add to the list electric

But electric windows are useful when trying to exit a side road, nd the side windows are steamed up, covered in raindrops etc

 

[Stewart2887]

As I understand it, handbrakes on disc brakes become less effective as the disc cools and contracts, reducing the braking effect. Drums cooling and contracting tightens the brake. Lots of Citroens with rear disc brakes ran away while parked some years ago.

I love my electronic handbrake, convenient and you can feel the switch to proper handbrake when you turn the engine off, as it was held by the footbrake. 2022 Golf btw

 

[LucyP]

Cars have had rear disc brakes, with the handbrake working on the rear brakes, for decades without any problems. The Citroen problem was nothing to do with that. The mistake that Citroen made was to put the handbrake on the front brakes, instead of the rear. The rear discs do very little work compared with the front, and don't get very hot, so they don't expand much, whereas the fronts do, and then they cooled and contracted, that is why the Citroens that were not left in gear ran away. Had Citroen out the handbrake on the rear discs like normal manufacturers do, there would not have been a problem.