Not every step forward is actually a step forward. The auto industry has produced plenty of features that were pitched as improvements and landed closer to a downgrade. These aren’t cheap or broken components. In many cases they represent real engineering effort, and somewhere between the concept and the customer, the effect on daily driving got lost.
Every item on this list had a defensible rationale: fuel economy, safety compliance, a sleeker look, a lower parts count. The reasoning made sense in a meeting room and didn’t survive contact with drivers using these cars every day. Here are ten features that took something that already worked and made it more annoying, along with what you can do about each.
Electronic Parking Brakes
Replacing a manual handbrake lever with a small electronic switch was supposed to free up console space and add automatic engagement. On many vehicles it also swapped a simple mechanical cable for motorized actuators at the rear calipers, and those cost more to replace than a cable ever did. The lever gave feedback you could feel through your hand. The switch gives a dashboard light, and its behavior varies between manufacturers. Some release automatically when you pull away, some need a foot on the brake first, and the emergency-stop function usually means holding the switch rather than tapping it. Check the owner’s manual for how yours behaves with a dead battery, since some will not release without power. Before a rear brake pad job, check whether the system needs a service mode to retract the caliper pistons, because forcing them back can damage the actuator. If you are shopping used, work the switch several times and listen for a strained or grinding motor.
Haptic Steering Wheel Buttons
Flat, touch-sensitive pads on the steering wheel look cleaner than raised buttons and cut the wheel’s part count, but there is no click to confirm a press by feel. That means a glance down to check whether the volume changed or the cruise speed went up, on a control whose whole purpose is to be used without looking away from the road. Touch pads also register accidental brushes. A palm sliding across the spoke during a turn can skip a track, change a display, or switch on a heated wheel. If your car has them, see whether the settings menu offers a sensitivity or haptic feedback adjustment, and learn the voice commands for the functions you use most. If you are shopping, test this on the drive: set the cruise control, change the volume, and skip a track while moving. Also check whether another trim or model year uses physical buttons instead, since it can differ within the same model line.
Continuously Variable Transmissions in Performance-Oriented Trims
CVTs help fuel economy by holding an engine in its efficient operating range, and in commuter cars most drivers barely notice them. In a car marketed around driving enjoyment, the mismatch shows up quickly. Floor the pedal and the engine climbs to a high rpm and stays there, droning, while the car’s speed catches up. There is no gear change to mark your progress, which is the sensation the sporty trim was supposed to deliver. Many CVTs now simulate stepped shifts under hard acceleration and offer paddle-selected ratios, which helps the feel, though the steps are programmed rather than mechanical. On a test drive, do the things the trim is sold for: a full-throttle highway merge, a climb up a long grade, and a run through some corners using the paddles. Ask for the fluid service schedule too, because CVTs use their own specific fluid. If the same model offers a manual or a conventional automatic, drive it back to back before you decide.
Motion-Activated Trunk Releases With No Manual Backup
Kick-to-open trunks are a thoughtful idea for anyone carrying an armful of groceries. The sensor sits under the rear bumper and looks for a foot moving in and out while the key fob is in range. On some vehicles it is finicky enough to take several tries, and it tends to get worse when the bumper is caked with road salt, mud, or snow. When there is no plain button or handle on the lid as a fallback, a feature meant to save effort makes opening the trunk slower than it used to be. Technique matters: one straight kick under the center of the bumper and back out, not a sideways sweep, then step back so the lid has room. Keep the underside of the bumper clean in winter. Know your backups, which usually include a button on the fob and a release inside the cabin. When shopping, try the kick sensor five times in a row before you count it as a selling point.
Auto-Hold Brake Features With Inconsistent Release Timing
Auto-hold keeps the brakes applied at a stop so you can take your foot off the pedal, which is a real comfort in stop-and-go traffic. The complaint is the release. Some owners report a slight delay when they press the accelerator, others an abrupt let-go that makes the car lurch, and the behavior can differ on a hill. That beat of hesitation is easy to live with in a queue and unnerving when you are pulling into a gap in fast traffic. The feature is usually a button near the parking brake switch, and in some cars it has to be switched on again every time you start. Learn it somewhere quiet first. Practice a few stops and starts in an empty parking lot until you know how much pedal it takes to release cleanly. Turn it off for tight parking maneuvers, where you want the car to creep, and in an automatic car wash that needs the wheels free to roll.
Interior Trim Made From Piano Black Plastic
Glossy black plastic trim looks striking for about the first day of ownership. After that it collects fingerprints, dust, and fine scratches that show under almost any light, and it sits in the places hands touch most: around the shifter, the cupholders, and the window switches. Most of the scratching comes from cleaning. A dry paper towel or a dusty rag drags grit across the surface and leaves swirl marks, the same way it would on black paint. Blow or brush loose dust off first, then use a clean, damp microfiber cloth with light pressure. Light swirls can often be reduced with a fine plastic polish applied by hand, though deep scratches will stay. On a new car, a clear protective film cut to fit the console is the best protection, and pre-cut kits exist for many popular models. If you are choosing between trims, look at what covers the console. A matte or textured finish needs none of this upkeep.
Automatic High Beams That Misjudge Oncoming Traffic
Automatic high beams use a camera to switch between high and low beams depending on whether other vehicles are present. The idea is sound. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s headlight research found that only 18 percent of drivers who were isolated enough to use their high beams actually did, so a system that switches them on helps. The annoyance comes from the misjudgments. The camera can be slow to pick up a vehicle cresting a hill or coming around a bend, and smaller light sources such as a motorcycle or a cyclist are harder for it to read, so the other road user gets a moment of full glare before the lights drop. Reflective signs and streetlights can make the beams flicker between settings. Keep the windshield clean in front of the camera, which usually sits near the rearview mirror. Learn how to override the system with the stalk, and take over yourself on hilly or winding roads where it reacts late.
Seatbelt Chimes That Escalate Regardless of Context
A seat belt reminder is a real safety win, and the evidence favors the persistent kind. Current federal standards require only a warning light and an audible warning lasting four to eight seconds, which the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety says is too short to be effective. Its own seat belt reminder ratings ask for an audible alert of at least 90 seconds. The trouble is the systems that escalate without regard to context. The front passenger seat uses a weight sensor, so a grocery bag, a backpack, or a dog can set off an urgent alarm for an occupant who does not exist. The simple fixes are to put heavy items on the floor or in the trunk, or to buckle the empty passenger belt before you load the seat. Skip the dummy buckle clips sold online, since they silence the reminder for real passengers too. A chime that sounds with nothing on the seat points to a faulty sensor worth having checked.
Oversized Touchscreens Replacing Simple Physical Switches
Consolidating dozens of functions into one large touchscreen looks modern in a showroom, but it means a task as basic as adjusting a mirror or changing the drive mode now runs through a menu instead of a dedicated switch. Every function moved into software takes longer to reach while driving. The Swedish car magazine Vi Bilägare timed drivers in twelve cars doing simple tasks, such as changing the radio station and adjusting the climate control, at 110 km/h. A 2005 Volvo V70 with physical buttons was fastest, at ten seconds for the full set. The slowest car in the test, the MG Marvel R, needed 44.6 seconds, during which it covered 1,372 meters. You can soften the problem in your own car. Set the temperature, mirrors, and navigation before you move. Pin the functions you use most to the home screen if the system allows it, and use voice commands for the rest. When shopping, try changing the fan speed and switching on the defroster without looking down.
Frunk Designs With No Drainage or Weather Sealing
Front trunks on electric vehicles are a clever use of the space where an engine used to sit, but not every one is built like a rear trunk. Some are sealed tubs with a gasket around the rim and a drain plug in the floor. Others are open-topped bins under the hood, where the weather seal and drainage are less thorough, and some owners have reported finding water pooled inside after heavy rain or a car wash. Before you trust a frunk with anything that matters, look at it closely. Check for a rubber seal running the full way around the opening and for a drain hole or plug at the lowest point. After the next heavy rain or wash, open it and feel the corners for moisture. Clear leaves and grit from the seal channel when you wash the car, since debris there lets water past. Until you know it stays dry, keep luggage, paper goods, and electronics in the back.