# Stupid "features" they keep adding to passenger cars. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 16, 2013, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443 "2013-10-16T22:59:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Throatwarbler_Mangrove)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/21 "2013-10-17T11:54:15Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > BMW iDrive and all other touchscreen interfaces. > HATE 'em. But BMW iDrive doesn’t use a touch screen? 😕 It’s a great choice for people who hate touchscreens. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/22 "2013-10-17T11:54:43Z")
> [@Roland\_Orzabal](#): > > my downstairs apartment neighbors get the joy of being wakened at three in the morning, and I get the adulation naturally due the asshole who shines his lights in your window at zero dark thirty. Don’t they have curtains? Too many idiots drive around in their silver cars in the pouring rain with their lights off, so I am completely behind the idea of lights that come on automatically when it’s dark enough. Have a veto button if you must, I guess, for letting your neighbors sleep, important undercover stakeouts, and driving by an ex-girlfriend’s at midnight, but it needs to be an opt- **out** option. I don’t think you can trust people to turn on their lights when they should. I’m with you on the seatbelt beep, though. Hearing a beep for 5 minutes straight isn’t going to make me reach over and buckle in my library books. ---
**Author:** ![Cyros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Cyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyros)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/23 "2013-10-17T12:09:14Z")
> [@Roland\_Orzabal](#): > > I absolutely love the 2009 Pontiac Vibe I bought in February (don’t be fooled by the label; the '09 version is a Toyota Matrix with a split grille and AWD)…except for two particular “features”. > > The first of these endearing facets is the inability to turn off the headlights. I’d experienced this once before when renting a car in Canada, but I’d never once expected it in the US, and didn’t even think to check it before I bought the car. When driving at night, it is quite literally impossible to turn your lights off, meaning my downstairs apartment neighbors get the joy of being wakened at three in the morning, and I get the adulation naturally due the asshole who shines his lights in your window at zero dark thirty. > > The second is the passenger safety belt indicator, a series of intermittent beeps triggered by the detection of a certain weight in the passenger’s seat. A wise idea for the safety-conscious passenger unaware of the existence of seat belts, to be sure, but for the bachelor(ette)s among us, this function spends the vast majority of its time dutifully protecting the wherewithal of our milk jugs and roasted half-chickens. I’m sure those things appreciate the effort, but still, somewhere around the 50th consecutive beep the system ought to become convinced that the vehicle’s occupants have either gotten the message or never will. > > Anyway, it’s a lovely car, I’d sincerely recommend it, and if I ever meet its engineers, I’m going to greet them with a roundhouse kick to the face. I would just like to chime in and say I completely agree with every sentiment expressed in this post. I spent a good week trying to find out how to turn the headlights off as I couldn’t believe that they would not include that as an option. I guess my days of drive in theatres are over for the foreseeable future. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/24 "2013-10-17T12:26:03Z")
> [@Antigen](#): > > I’m with you on the seatbelt beep, though. Hearing a beep for 5 minutes straight isn’t going to make me reach over and buckle in my library books. Hey, I’d rather they not get propelled all over the place by the airbag in the wreck 😃 That seat IS a convenient package shelf. I guess the answer then is to just keep the passenger seat belt buckled all the time. > [@Cyros](#): > > I spent a good week trying to find out how to turn the headlights off as I couldn’t believe that they would not include that as an option. I guess my days of drive in theatres are over for the foreseeable future. Or go ony in good weather when you don’t need to have the engine running (some models only turn on the DRLs when you are actually in gear; but the more basic ones just are always-on). ---
**Author:** ![aNewLeaf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ac91a4/32.png) [@aNewLeaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aNewLeaf)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/25 "2013-10-17T12:38:18Z")
> [@Cyros](#): > > I guess my days of drive in theatres are over for the foreseeable future. I don’t think there’s a drive-in theater in my state. There’s one in Texas that shows porn, I saw the billboards. ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/26 "2013-10-17T13:13:36Z")
> [@Cyros](#): > > I would just like to chime in and say I completely agree with every sentiment expressed in this post. I spent a good week trying to find out how to turn the headlights off as I couldn’t believe that they would not include that as an option. I guess my days of drive in theatres are over for the foreseeable future. The parking brake solution should work for the drive in. ---
**Author:** ![tonyfop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/85f322/32.png) [@tonyfop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tonyfop)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/27 "2013-10-17T13:13:44Z")
> [@Cyros](#): > > I would just like to chime in and say I completely agree with every sentiment expressed in this post. I spent a good week trying to find out how to turn the headlights off as I couldn’t believe that they would not include that as an option. I guess my days of drive in theatres are over for the foreseeable future. Have you tried pulling the emergency brake? That usually works to cut the lights off while not moving. I was also told that pulling the E-brake up 1 click would turn the lights off without actually engageing the brake, allowing you to safely drive like that. I never tried it, as I don’t want to burn my e-brake out. ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/28 "2013-10-17T13:23:54Z")
> [@aNewLeaf](#): > > You ought to check all four if one is low. Telling you which one isn’t the safest behavior. Agreed. But on mine it’s always the rear driver side tire. Why? Because the damn sensor connection leaks air. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/29 "2013-10-17T13:35:45Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > Hey, I’d rather they not get propelled all over the place by the airbag in the wreck 😃 That seat IS a convenient package shelf. I guess the answer then is to just keep the passenger seat belt buckled all the time. I wonder if you could just go to a junkyard, find a wreck with the same seat-belt buckles, buy just the male part and put that in the buckle in your car. ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/30 "2013-10-17T14:00:12Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I wonder if you could just go to a junkyard, find a wreck with the same seat-belt buckles, buy just the male part and put that in the buckle in your car. That sounds like a lot of work when you could just buckle up the seat belt and leave it that way. Either way when you do have a passenger they’re going to need to undo the seatbelt before buckling themselves in. ---
**Author:** ![Cyros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Cyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyros)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/31 "2013-10-17T14:13:52Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > The parking brake solution should work for the drive in. I have not tried that. I will give it a go tonight. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/32 "2013-10-17T14:26:23Z")
> [@Encinitas](#): > > Both my cars have low tire pressure indicator lights; which I thought was cool. But what is not cool is that they don’t tell you **which** tire is low. They already have the sensors installed. How hard would it be to program it to tell you which sensor is complaining? How would they tell which one? If the sensors were coded left rear for instance, what would happen when you rotated your tires? They’d need a sensor at each wheel and I don’t think they do it that way. If they do, shame on them. ---
**Author:** ![somepumpkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@somepumpkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/somepumpkin)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/33 "2013-10-17T14:32:22Z")
> [@Roland\_Orzabal](#): > > The first of these endearing facets is the inability to turn off the headlights. I’d experienced this once before when renting a car in Canada, but I’d never once expected it in the US, and didn’t even think to check it before I bought the car. When driving at night, it is quite literally impossible to turn your lights off, meaning my downstairs apartment neighbors get the joy of being wakened at three in the morning, and I get the adulation naturally due the asshole who shines his lights in your window at zero dark thirty. My Subaru does this and, though i didn’t like it at first, I’ve grown to love it. Heck, I haven’t had to touch my light switch in a week (it’s been cloudy/rainy here for about 10 days). So, the work-around I found for the problem that **Roland** mentioned is to click just one notch of my parking brake. This turns-off the headlights of my Subaru, and with only one-click on the P-brake, it’s not causing any damage (esp at the slow speeds that I perform this miracle). Anyway, something to try. ETA… I can’t remember if I have to have the selector on “parking lights” instead of headlights to get this to work. In any event, YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/34 "2013-10-17T16:58:41Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > The parking brake solution should work for the drive in. :smack::smack::smack: Now I’m kicking myself over that rainy night last year at the drive-in, when the car kept getting all humid and the windshield kept fogging up, and I thought I couldn’t turn on the AC without the headlights coming on. ---
**Author:** ![BrickaBracka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c5a1d2/32.png) [@BrickaBracka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickaBracka)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/35 "2013-10-17T17:23:04Z")
> [@BubbaDog](#): > > Agreed. But on mine it’s always the rear driver side tire. Why? Because the damn sensor connection leaks air. :smack: It’s saying: “Help! Help! The air is escaping and I can’t stop it! It’s slipping right through my fingers…I’m not strong enough! Help!” ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/36 "2013-10-17T17:49:46Z")
> [@Encinitas](#): > > Both my cars have low tire pressure indicator lights; which I thought was cool. But what is not cool is that they don’t tell you **which** tire is low. They already have the sensors installed. How hard would it be to program it to tell you which sensor is complaining? Some of these systems don’t actually sense the pressure, they count rotations of the wheel through the Anti Lock Brakes. If one wheel rotates faster or slower than the others, the light goes on. It could be overinflated, underinflated, the other three could be overinflated or underinflated, or you could just have a different size tire on it. The system doesn’t know. For me, it’s the “I’m too busy to put the key in the ignition” system. I’ve heard too many stories of people being stranded or otherwise screwed over by these systems, in ways that are impossible with a keyed ignition system. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/37 "2013-10-17T17:57:37Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > BMW iDrive and all other touchscreen interfaces. > HATE 'em. > > Last winter I rented a car, some American sedan I don’t remember the model and make of but you had to use the touchscreen in the center of the dash to turn on the damn heated seats. It was 3 levels deep in the menu and I nearly crashed trying to turn it on or off. Eventually I decided to live without it or pull over to mess with it. > > How the hell is this supposed to be better than a simple set of buttons? I’ve heard reviews on cars with everything piled into touchscreens - that was exactly the complaint, that it was too onerous to try to find anything in those screens. > [@Antigen](#): > > \ > I’m with you on the seatbelt beep, though. Hearing a beep for 5 minutes straight isn’t going to make me reach over and buckle in my library books. Mine turns off after a minute or so (but still a pain in the ass while it’s beeping). My peeve is with the “door is open” beep - I never need to know that my door is open. If it’s open, it’s because I opened it because I’m doing something like cleaning out my car while listening to some tunes. We’ve had daytime running lights as standard in Canada for some time now, and I don’t get all the complaints about it. I don’t find it bad at all; in fact, I turn on my actual headlights every time I drive anywhere (small silver cars are invisible to everyone else, apparently). ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/38 "2013-10-17T18:23:59Z")
> [@GaryM](#): > > How would they tell which one? If the sensors were coded left rear for instance, what would happen when you rotated your tires? They’d need a sensor at each wheel and I don’t think they do it that way. If they do, shame on them. Somehow they can - because my car not only tells me which tire, it also tells me the pressure in each tire. There’s a little diagram of a car on the display with numbers at each tire position. Green is proper pressure,amber is either too high or too low. Came in very handy one day- I heard the “bing” and because I _saw_ how quickly the pressure was dropping I knew to pull over before I \*felt \*any difference ---
**Author:** ![2gigch1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/2gigch1/32/3313_2.png) [@2gigch1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2gigch1)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/39 "2013-10-17T18:47:52Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Pull the DRL fuse from the fuse panel. Piece of cake. FUCKING GODAMMIT THAT WAS EASY! 1999 Suburban work truck. I have hated that feature for the last 6 years. Twenty seconds after reading this it was gone. May the heavens rain blessings upon you! ---
**Author:** ![aNewLeaf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ac91a4/32.png) [@aNewLeaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aNewLeaf)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2013, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443/40 "2013-10-17T18:49:39Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > Some of these systems don’t actually sense the pressure, they count rotations of the wheel through the Anti Lock Brakes. If one wheel rotates faster or slower than the others, the light goes on. It could be overinflated, underinflated, the other three could be overinflated or underinflated, or you could just have a different size tire on it. The system doesn’t know. My ABS light comes on every now and then. Mechanic and I decided there’s a bit of cruft interfering with the rotation sensor. Nothing wrong with the brakes, just once in a while the computer decides to turn off the ABS feature. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-features-they-keep-adding-to-passenger-cars/671443.md?page=3)