10 Irritating Automotive Features That Should Have Been Awesome

We love forward-thinking automotive innovations, but many turn out to be nothing more than annoying gimmicks. These are the features that CTzens find incredibly irritating...
10 Irritating Automotive Features That Should Have Been Awesome

Adaptive cruise control

Suggested by Remco: Billy Bob
Suggested by Remco: Billy Bob

“Some cars just slam the brakes instead of releasing the gas when a car pulls in front of you. It gets annoying.”

Parking sensors

Suggested by: SpoolingTurbo (Jeroen Reyns)
Suggested by: SpoolingTurbo (Jeroen Reyns)

“They annoy the f* out of me. They’re cool for the first week, but after you get used to the length of your car, they’re annoying as hell!”

Automatic windscreen wipers

Suggested by: Dinkelberg
Suggested by: Dinkelberg

“When I want them to work they don’t, and when I want them to slow down they go ballistic!”

Plastic engine covers

Suggested by: Kai Häßlein
Suggested by: Kai Häßlein

“Any ‘stylish’ plastic cover in the engine-bay. Especially the the ones you have to remove to change a ruddy light bulb!”

Electric seats

Suggested by: Nolan Lockhart
Suggested by: Nolan Lockhart

“Electronic moving seats are so slow! I’d rather just do it manually.”

Automatic volume control

Suggested by: Johnny_D
Suggested by: Johnny_D

These systems seem like a great idea, but the volume never quite adjusts how you want it to…

Stop-start technology

Suggested by: MikeEM
Suggested by: MikeEM

The early systems could be a little jerky, but the majority of manufacturers have perfected their stop-start tech. So we don’t fully agree with CTzen MikeEM.

Pop-up headlights

Suggested by: FLixy Da Madfox
Suggested by: FLixy Da Madfox

“Whenever you press the button, your fuel mileage goes down! (Insert hate comments here.)”

Electronic parking brake

Suggested by: Max Schröder
Suggested by: Max Schröder

We genuinely feel sorry for the teenagers of the future. They will never get to experience the pure unadulterated joy of pulling massive skids around their local car-park. And good luck impressing the ladies with your electronic parking brake!

Passengers

Suggested by: Mateusz Dluzniewski
Suggested by: Mateusz Dluzniewski

Not really a ‘feature’ as such, but we were surprised to find out how many CTzens would rather ride alone!

So, do you agree with your fellow CTzens? Are there any features you think we missed? Let us know in the comments below! You can also find our original community question here.

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Comments

The Stan

Lmao passengers

04/11/2016 - 11:39 |
0 | 0
Heisenberg
  1. Parking sensors are incredibly handy when you drive a lot of different cars.
  2. Automatic windshield wipers always work perfectly for me, you just have to put them in the right setting.
  3. Electric seats are brilliant. They often come with adjustable everything so you can set them up perfectly. You can also save your preferred driving position so you won’t get mad everytime someone else drives your car and messes with your seat.
    Agree with the rest of them though
04/11/2016 - 11:41 |
262 | 8

My windshield wipers used to work like heaven, I mean if i truck came the other way and splashed my window they wood instantly start working but after a while they became slow. Replaced the sensor, works great now. Also I agree with the parking sensor and I don’t drive many different cars, ofc I know my car’s length but they help you a little more when parking in tight spaces, I feel that I can park more quickly because of them as my attention is in the right/left mirror not where the car ends. They tell me to stop at about 10 cm of the obstacle, then I back up just a little more. Sensors are very useful because they speed up your maneuver .

04/11/2016 - 13:05 |
6 | 2

I love the way people moan about having to remove the engine cover to remove a headlight bulb, anybody who knows Clio’s and Megane’s knows it’s a bumper off job. French engineering at its finest!

04/11/2016 - 13:17 |
86 | 0

parking sensors are ridiculously useful if you don’t want to scratch your car on some wild random object or knock on your neighbours kids or your neighbour himself.. regardless of how annoying they are

04/11/2016 - 13:56 |
10 | 4
Rally Maniac (ThePeugeotGuy)

In reply to by Heisenberg

By automatic wipers he means the automatic setting. So not MANUALLY adjusting the speed. And the seats. Well, i can also adjust mine in every possible direction manually. And i bet its quicker and lighter

04/11/2016 - 14:23 |
0 | 2

Parking sensors can be a bit overkill on most newer cars, since it’s now law for them to have backup cameras. One of mine has both and it’s the most annoying part about driving the car.

04/11/2016 - 14:35 |
4 | 0
GuilhermeRS

“Ejecto Seato Cuz!” lol

04/11/2016 - 11:42 |
68 | 2

Weight reduction bro!

04/11/2016 - 11:55 |
4 | 0

Did you know that in the Tesla it’s called “Electro Seato Cuz!”

04/11/2016 - 14:06 |
24 | 2
Anonymous

Lol passengers

04/11/2016 - 11:43 |
0 | 0
Anonymous

Dude I hate passengers. Top four things I say.
1.)Put your feet on my dash and I will kill you
2.)slam my doors and I’m gonna reap your freaking soul.
3.) Hell no you can’t eat in here!
4.) Please don’t don’t get anything dirty I just detailed it.

04/11/2016 - 11:48 |
64 | 2
DeLeon

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Lol my best friend always tells me to clean my car but I dont have money. She even cleaned my mirrors ;DD
And the best thing: she started respecting my car and doesnt slam the doors. Best passenger ever.

04/11/2016 - 13:30 |
4 | 2
Jack Sixxx

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

1.) My wife does that, so, from time to time I have to remember that the airbag would pop from under her legs… and I still want her to teach how to ski.
2.) Had a friend slam my door and so I slammed the doors in his house. See how he likes it.
3.) Also, don’t smoke in here either.

08/27/2016 - 12:18 |
4 | 0
NyteetyN

I agree about the passengers, lol. Especially when they eat there (my friend was once waiting almost an hour at a train station, then got into my car and started eating a baguette…REALLY?). Also they distract me and finally…weight reduction!

04/11/2016 - 12:03 |
8 | 0

Yeah I also had a passenger who was eating a f*cking baguette…

04/11/2016 - 14:13 |
0 | 0
Paul Lindorfer

Just a question: Is it possible to just remove the plastic cover permanently from the engine or will there be problems if you do so?

04/11/2016 - 12:23 |
4 | 2

It can cancel your warranty. Other than that - no problem.

04/11/2016 - 12:35 |
2 | 6

I did that on my Peugeot 407 (not because the Diesel engine looked cool but it just pissed me off) and nothing happened. Weight reduction Bro! Sold the car, still have the engine cover lol:))

04/11/2016 - 13:06 |
4 | 0

Depends on the vehicle. Some vehicles actually incorporate the cover as a cooling technique, to funnel air. Had a friend that removed his, and he started overheating on the way to work. First time it has ever happened to him.

04/11/2016 - 14:01 |
4 | 0

My sonata uses it for a bit of noise reduction, so there’s that

04/11/2016 - 14:43 |
2 | 2

A lot of mercs have their air intakes and filters built into the engine covers, so no you can’t for some cars.
But it really isn’t an issue, they’re clipped onto rubber ball things and you just simply tug it off if you want to get to something underneath.

04/11/2016 - 15:01 |
2 | 0
kgga

Electronic e brakes wont happen for teens. I mean. The best car I would maybe ever get is a rustbucket E36 or E34…

04/11/2016 - 12:32 |
2 | 2
Anonymous

The only complaint I have is stop-start. That feature is pointless. Doing damage to the engine isn’t worth it to lower emissions a tiny little bit.

04/11/2016 - 12:57 |
22 | 4
Nass44

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Especially because it’s too sensitive. “Hey, you stopped for a sec there so I turned off the engi-OH BOY BETTER START THE ENGINE THE LIGHT’S GREEN”

Most of the time the engine is shut down too quickly, sometimes at a stop sign or a busy Crossing.

04/11/2016 - 14:10 |
10 | 0
Anonymous

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

I personally like how with my car, which is from 2000, long before stuff like that, the revs drop REALLY low, to the point where it’s barely running at idle. That’s the best way to do it, in my opinion. Idle just enough that it doesn’t stall out, little more, then you have immediate throttle. No waiting for it to re-start and it’s still lighter on gas than a high idle.

04/11/2016 - 15:31 |
2 | 0
Anonymous

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Doesn’t damage the engine since it is working only on warmed engine.
Plus, different technologies of Stop & Start exists. Peugeot & Citroen are sued to using the best technology on the market (no joke) which allow kinda a semi start, very smooth, protecting the engine, allowing an extra fast restart (in opposite of those shi* VW, or, I’m sad to tell, BMW)
Great technologie in my opinion, especially when shutting down the engine at low speed when arriving at a traffic light.

04/11/2016 - 18:38 |
4 | 2
Griffin Mackenzie

Stop start feature

AKA cooking the engine for better fuel economy

04/11/2016 - 13:26 |
4 | 0