# Let's build the perfect car! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 14, 2016, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905 "2016-09-14T02:11:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ken001](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/43a26b/32.png) [@Ken001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ken001)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/21 "2016-09-15T02:06:24Z")
> [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > Wheels that turn 90 degrees so parallel parking is simply a matter of driving straight in Honda made a version of the Prelude which could sort of do that. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/sldOdWYzW7U/hqdefault.jpg "Honda Prelude 4 Wheel Steering") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sldOdWYzW7U) ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/22 "2016-09-15T02:17:47Z")
I want a steering wheel [that is like my bicycle](http://www.hpvelotechnik.com/images/produkte/sm/gte/smgte_links_mitzieher_reise.jpg), which will be a challenge to integrate wth the doors: the seats will be attached to the doors so that, to get in and out, you rotate the entire assembly 90° and step straight in/out. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/23 "2016-09-15T02:22:33Z")
> [@Ignatz](#): > > But then how will you find your car? You don’t understand. They’re on EVERY car. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/24 "2016-09-15T03:08:20Z")
I want the["electroluminescent" dashboard lights, instrument dome and pushbutton transmission](http://classiccarpicturesalmanac.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/1962_Chrysler_NewportCoupeRestoMod_440ci_V-8_ofBB_Dash.jpg)from my 1962 Chrysler. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/25 "2016-09-15T04:57:15Z")
My dad had to replace the dash coil on a 65 Charger because the electroluminescent paint had stopped luminescing. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/26 "2016-09-15T11:50:40Z")
Four wheel drive Rolls-Royce pickup truck with a belt-fed fully automatic 10 gauge shotgun mounted in a rotating turret. ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/27 "2016-09-15T12:23:22Z")
My, we’re a vindictive bunch, aren’t we? Gun turrets, bird-killing lasers, tar guns…I love it! My husband says he wants his car to have a rear window that slowly becomes reflective the longer someone is riding his tail or doesn’t turn their high beams off. That way the regular drivers can pass him with no problems but the Amazing Wonder Assholes will slowly become blinded. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/28 "2016-09-15T13:39:24Z")
I want floor fresh air vents back along with the window vents. When the Toronado was introduced, one of its highly touted features was its flat floor, front and rear, without the transmission tunnel taking up interior space. Same for the rear-engine Corvair and '61–'63 Pontiac Tempests, which had a front engine with a rear transaxle long before any Porsche. Now that most cars are FWD like the '67 Toronado, what do they do? They put in huge consoles where the transmission tunnel would have been! ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/29 "2016-09-15T19:13:18Z")
BMW already makes (well, _made_) the perfect car. The e30. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2016, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/30 "2016-09-16T04:04:00Z")
Retractable 3-foot spikes that you can extend from the front as needed, usually around dusk. Because that deer is going to die anyway, why let it damage your car? ---
**Author:** ![D.E.S.K.Top668](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f07891/32.png) [@D.E.S.K.Top668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D.E.S.K.Top668)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2016, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/31 "2016-09-16T12:41:09Z")
> [@Doctor\_Jackson](#): > > When my wife and I were going about replacing her car a year or so ago I asked her to describe her ideal vehicle. When she finished I said “You have just described a compact SUV convertible.” She thought a moment, smiled and said “Yes, that would do!” Well, that lowers your options to pretty much [this](http://www.thecarconnection.com/cars/nissan_murano-crosscabriolet#image=100420013) I’m slowly (re)building my perfect car. 1999 Civic. No power anything; brakes, steering, windows, locks. 5-speed manual. No radio, minimal computer. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2016, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/32 "2016-09-16T13:18:29Z")
> [@inscrutable](#): > > Spring-loaded bumpers, so half the car doesn’t collapse in a 10mph collision, we had those, (actually 5 mph) in the late '70s/early '80s. they were enormous and heavy, and didn’t make cars any safer. if “10 mph” collisions are a problem for you, you might want to re-evaluate your driving skills. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2016, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/33 "2016-09-18T01:17:45Z")
Just bumpers, old-fashioned ordinary bumpers so that hitting a car whie parallel parking doesn’t result in several hundred dollar repair bills. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/34 "2016-09-19T09:58:49Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I think this is going to turn out like Homer’s newly invented car. [We can only hope](https://vimeo.com/121710409) ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/35 "2016-09-19T10:01:34Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > I want the["electroluminescent" dashboard lights, instrument dome and pushbutton transmission](http://classiccarpicturesalmanac.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/1962_Chrysler_NewportCoupeRestoMod_440ci_V-8_ofBB_Dash.jpg)from my 1962 Chrysler. Am I the only one who misses those skinny steering wheels that didn’t have 12 feet of padding or leather around it? ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/36 "2016-09-19T13:53:09Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > Just bumpers, old-fashioned ordinary bumpers so that hitting a car whie parallel parking doesn’t result in several hundred dollar repair bills. how about “Don’t hit other cars while parallel parking?” ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/37 "2016-09-19T20:55:21Z")
> [@D.E.S.K.Top668](#): > > Well, that lowers your options to pretty much [this](http://www.thecarconnection.com/cars/nissan_murano-crosscabriolet#image=100420013) Sorry, that won’t do. I forgot to mention the requirement that it have 4 doors. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/38 "2016-09-19T23:15:59Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > Am I the only one who misses those skinny steering wheels that didn’t have 12 feet of padding or leather around it? You are not. There are even people alive today who miss the steering wheels that did not have a suitcase-sized blob of airbag in the middle of them. But I still think side-stick/underseat steering would be an awesome improvement. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/39 "2016-09-19T23:40:55Z")
Bacon. The Perfect Car must be Bacon-centric. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2016, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-build-the-perfect-car/765905/40 "2016-09-20T00:40:50Z")
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