Features on cars that you no longer see but you miss

[Baryonyx]

tankplanker said:

Bench seats in the front. The ability to have hot air out the vents in the foot well and cold air out the vents on the dash, wasn't amazingly common on older cars but more seemed to have it than now.

This. Sometimes I want a cool face and warm feet but it's beyond most modern cars.

[skyrover]

V8 engines in everyday cars

Large, reasonably priced RWD saloons.

[Rsdop]

ch108 said:

Orange front indicator lenses. Easier to see from most angles and different weather conditions than an orange bulb in a clear lens.

Front indicators separate from the headlamp and preferably at the corner of the car, not hidden away in the inward edge of the headlamp.

This has occurred to me recently, and the rear indicators too. Not that long ago most cars had a rectangular rear light unit of some description with the indicator at the end, and a front indicator separate from the headlight. So much easier to see than the modern stuff with complex units of various different shapes.
Saying that most people don't bother using them anyway so doesn't really make a difference!

[tiger.banana]

Putting the key in the door to lock the car...at least that way you knew the car was locked!

[DoctorX]

My old Escort had a separate high intensity brake light and a combined rear light/fog light in its clusters. Normally, the brake and rear light are combined with a separate fog light. Always seemed quite sensible to me. Was this a thing back in the early 90s? - don't recall seeing it on many cars. Why don't they do this nowadays?

[Willy Nilly]

mud flaps

[Digby]

Regular, warm, comforting, gentle fade in and out indicator bulbs. I like something inbetween on and off instead of all this only on or only off clinical LED stuff.

With that in mind, I also miss cars not coming towards you looking like something from the final scene of Close Encounters.

I want my yellow, single candle power lamps back. They had character!

[ch108]

tiger.banana said:

Putting the key in the door to lock the car...at least that way you knew the car was locked!

Although I don't miss not getting into the car in icy weather in the winter, because the locks were frozen!

But yes, the amount of times I've walked away from the car and can't remember whether I've pressed the remote button.

[Klippie]

I really miss sunroofs...the best of all was the VW steel one simple wind back thing it was with the little flip up wind deflector.

Standard air-con killed them off....I'd like to have both.

[phib]

Klippie said:

I really miss sunroofs...the best of all was the VW steel one simple wind back thing it was with the little flip up wind deflector.

Standard air-con killed them off....I'd like to have both.

This, something like 6 Audi a6's out of 500 ( less than 3 years old) for sale had a sunroof when I bought mine.

Wouldn't have bought mine without but have loads of friends that wouldn't have bought with !

Phib

[Shakermaker]

skyrover said:

V8 engines in everyday cars

Large, reasonably priced RWD saloons.

Yup.

I'm a fan of fhe vauxhall Carlton and senator for this reason. Less so the omega though I had one, but there is just something about the Carlton/senator that is so right. Not going to get it today

[RocknRollOutlaw]

Programmable intermittent wipers. My first car had this and I've never seen it since.

[Lefty]

Yes. Yes, a thousand times yes. What he ^^^^ said.

fking electric hand brakes.

[Wills2]

GravelMachineGun said:

I'll start then.

Downward pointing exhausts on diesels.
I was just walking around town on my lunch and walked past an E46 330d with downward pointing exhausts. I don't know why but this looks so much cooler than the new fake exhaust tips.

But a new F30 330d doesn't have fake exhaust tips?

[Trixxz]

Oddly my Brand new ST has a temp gauge, my last 4 cars just a red "I have already cooked myself" light

Also Boost/oil temp/oil pressure albeit all ECU driven and not "proper" gauges.

I miss being able to do your own servicing without having to faff about with service resets and laptops.

[mosstrooper]

Foot operated dip-switch

[bristolracer]

Rear windows big enough to see out of

[outspan]

Anti-static strips or what do you call them (preferably on the back of a 1980s mitsubishi galant) - just because nostalgia
Large parcel shelves to dump stuff on (my small brother used to sleep on ours during long trips!)
Large side windows to look out of
Thin, uncluttered steering wheels - I love the feeling of letting a large thin-rimmed steering wheel slip through my fingers when unwinding lock
Manual window winders (I have car that still has them and i love the feel)
Steelie wheels
Family park bumper stickers (slapped on during your visit)


Also surprised nobody mentioned this soon to be extinct feature:

[DoctorX]

Bronze tinted glass, usually French cars with posh trim levels, maybe Fords too. Used to quite like it, never seem to see it any more.

[Coatesy351]

Shakermaker said:

skyrover said:

V8 engines in everyday cars

Large, reasonably priced RWD saloons.

Yup.

I'm a fan of fhe vauxhall Carlton and senator for this reason. Less so the omega though I had one, but there is just something about the Carlton/senator that is so right. Not going to get it today

Yes and now dead in Australia too. I don't know what I can buy next