With each model year, cars are getting more and more advanced. Car engineers are trying not only to introduce faster and more efficient vehicles but also to present more comfortable interiors with better usage of space, advanced materials, and features.
It looks like the battle for customers is no longer fought with horsepower and engineering but with samples of interior leather and infotainment systems. Modern cars are just appliances, which means that in-car features are more relevant to most buyers than 0-60 mph times.
Today, cars have evolved to the point where the features that once came standard in all vehicles now became something that almost no one remembers. In fact, features that we once couldn't live without in our cars have now become useless to the point of comedy.
So, to remind ourselves about these interesting and peculiar features that decorated our cars for so long, here's a list of the 15 most common and prevalent car features of the past.
15 Bench Seats
Remember when you could have two more persons next to you in the front of the car on the bench seat? Well, those days are history since no one offers a sedan or wagon with this feature anymore. Apparently, having three people in the front is not exactly safe, and this is what killed this cool feature.
14 CD Players
The CD players were the ultimate '90s car accessory, but as soon as the world turned digital, they disappeared. Today, most car manufacturers don't even offer CD players as part of the standard equipment, and if you want to listen to music, better have your phone and Bluetooth connection ready.
13 Quarter Glass Window
Remember the front quarter glass windows? Once upon a time, all cars had this feature. It was very convenient and provided passengers with a flow of fresh air. However, since the A/C is now standard in all cars, quarter windows are history.
12 Roll-Down Windows
Remember manually rolling your windows down? If you do, then you probably also remember how annoying and ridiculous it was to perform the movement of mincing meat in order to get some fresh air. And if you never felt this struggle, consider yourself lucky because there was a brief period in time when having power windows meant you were balling.
11 Hood Ornaments
Back in the day, most cars had big shiny hood ornaments proudly sticking out of the top of the grille. Although it looked amazing, this feature was abandoned some time ago. Apparently, having a big chunk of metal on the front of the hood can be extremely dangerous for pedestrians!
10 Carburetors
No wonder the millennials don’t know about carburetors since the last carbureted vehicle was sold in the United States in 1991. For those who don’t know, the carburetor is a device that mixes fuel and air and feeds it into the engine. Now, all cars are equipped with fuel injection systems or electric motors.
9 Parking Brake
Handbrakes (parking brake) still exist, but handbrakes are disappearing at an incredibly fast rate. These were located between the seats, but now they are just a button on the dashboard marked with "P." Yes, it is hard to do a "proper" U-turn now.
8 Power Antennas
Back in the day when radio was all of the infotainment you got, you needed a big antenna in order to get a reception. Today, antennas are hidden along with the GPS receivers are hidden on top of the windshield, and there is no need for big, pointy antennas no more.
7 Cigarette Lighters
In a relentless quest against smoking, car manufacturers decided to stop installing cigarette lighters years ago. Ashtrays became storage spaces, and lighters turned to 12V sockets.
6 Automatic safety belts
In the late '80s and early '90s, some American and import cars had safety belts that automatically buckle up when you enter the vehicle. The idea wasn't bad at all, it was just that the system was prone to breaking and, in the end, was abandoned by all companies.
5 In-car Phones
Once upon the time, having a phone in your car meant that you were a big shot. In-car telephones were a costly accessory, and only a few models had them as the standard feature. Today, this technology is obsolete in every way.
4 T-Tops
The T-Top craze lasted from the mid-'70s till the early '90s, and it was a great way to drive a car with open-air feel of a convertible but still keep the torsion rigidity and comfort of the hardtop. Just remember all those cool Pontiac Trans Ams. However, today there is not a single T-Top car on the market!
3 Pop-up Headlights
We could sit behind the wheel of a classic sports car and watch pop-up headlights go up and down for ages. Unfortunately, those things are almost banned today. Concerns about pedestrian safety and aerodynamics made manufacturers abandon it for good.
2 Hubcaps
For decades, hubcaps were gorgeous pieces of pressed aluminum or steel which really complemented the overall design of the car. Then, the cheap plastic ones arrived. Now, it only serves as decoration on the service station wall. Too bad, since we liked them very much.
1 Woodgrain side panels
The woodgrain side panels were typically an American design detail, which was introduced in the '50s and lasted all the way till the mid-'90s. The faux wood panels become a mandatory feature on upscale wagons and the décor of so many suburban driveways.