Doug DeMuro is a well-known automotive journalist in the car world. He previously wrote for Jalopnik and now writes for Autotrader, both popular automotive publications. DeMuro also runs a popular YouTube channel that has 1.7 million subscribers and over 418 million total views. He has a seemingly endless stream of content, which partly stems from the string of wild and exotic cars he has owned. DeMuro has owned, among others, a Ferrari 360 Modena, a Skyline GT-R, an Aston Martin, a Range Rover, a Hummer H2, and a Mercedes AMG wagon. Most of these cars are unique and provide for interesting ownership experiences as well a wealth of intriguing articles.

Doug DeMuro’s reviews are some of the most interesting ones available to the automotive community. He provides thoughtful insights into every car that he reviews, and these show in the form of interesting and nuanced writings. Rather than thrashing a car around a track and deriving entertainment from that, he goes into detail about the smallest features of the car that most people would normally ignore or gloss over. From this comes the focus on quirks and features. Demuro’s videos, often longer than 20 minutes, discuss the weirdest quirks and features of the cars that he reviews rather than just gushing about how much horsepower the car makes. This list explores some of the weirdest quirks and features that DeMuro has discovered, and will enhance your appreciation for both his journalism and these cars.

20 Third Person View - Rolls-Royce Phantom

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The 2018 Rolls Royce Phantom has many quirks, but perhaps one of the most unusual of these is the $35,000 “Phantom Package”. Doug remarks that you could actually buy a base Audi A4 for that money.

This package includes normal items such as a Rear Theatre Configuration, Rear Picnic Tables, Rolls Royce Monogram, and 22-inch forged alloy wheels.

It also has driver assistance systems, which include helpful cameras. This is where it gets crazy… the Phantom has a 360-degree camera that shows the outside of the car from a third-person viewpoint, and it shows what is around the car in real time. This is a truly odd and amazing feature

19 Windows Don't Roll Down - Spyker C8

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The Spyker C8 is a very unique supercar that was produced in the Netherlands. Only a few hundred were ever produced, and as a result, not too many made it to the U.S. The C8 has a nifty window configuration that is frameless, topless, and in the shape of a U. There are shiny chrome support bars that run through the middle of the side windows, but it gets weirder.

Only the lower half of those windows roll down. That’s right – you can’t roll down the windows in your Spyker. There doesn’t seem to be much explanation for this, but it’s certainly an interesting, albeit weird, feature.

18 Center Controls - Porsche 918

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The Porsche 918 is perhaps the pinnacle of modern automotive design, blending advanced engineering with style, luxury, and hybrid technology. The 918 is chock-full of cool features, but one of the weirdest and most interesting is the center infotainment console. All the controls and buttons are touch-based, much like Teslas.

There are two dials that are used in conjunction with the touchscreen, which is pretty neat. It keeps the interior looking clean and simple, as all of the controls do not show up when the car is turned off.

This is a fairly unusual feature, and drivers either love it or hate it.

17 Hidden Umbrella - Rolls-Royce Phantom

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This feature is perhaps more of the well-known ones included in the Rolls-Royce Phantom, but it is worth including because it is odd and unique. Included in each rear passenger door of the Phantom is a Rolls-Royce branded umbrella for use by the passengers.

It pops out of its sheath with the push of a button, eloquently presented to you. Doug suggests that the button configuration, coupled with the rear-hinged doors, is made this way so that a practiced chauffer can open the rear doors to let passengers out and present them with the fancy umbrella in one smooth motion.

16 Four-Wheel Steering - R34 Nissan Skyline GT-R

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The R34 Nissan Skyline GT-R is lauded as one of the best older sports cars that one can buy, and so few are available in the U.S. because of import laws.

There are many weird features on the R34, but the car’s four-wheel steering system is one of the neatest. This is a very rare feature, especially for the time.

Doug explains it well: at low speeds, the rear wheels turn slightly in the opposite direction as the front wheels, creating a smaller turn radius that helps this car get around corners quicker. At high speeds, the rear wheels turn at the same angle as the front wheels to allow you to make high-speed lane changes and other maneuvers quicker.

15 Propeller Steering Wheel - Spyker C8

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Spyker has a history in aviation, and this is reflected many times in the C8. The company’s logo is a propeller, and aviation-inspired styling cues are found all over this car. Even the gas cap looks like a propeller, and the blades are actually used as leverage points to twist it off.

These styling cues found their way to the steering wheel, which is designed to look like two propellers crossed on top of each other. This is perhaps one of the coolest modern steering wheel designs, although it has one drawback – the steering wheel doesn’t have an airbag. Quirky? Yes. Terrifying? Also, yes.

14 Detached Front Fenders and Wheels - Plymouth Prowler

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The front wheels of the Plymouth Prowler are probably its most defining feature, setting it apart from every other car on the road. They are disconnected from the body of the car, as are the fenders. Both of these unique features are incredibly unusual, as is how the fenders interact with the wheels.

When the wheels turn, so do the fenders. You can even see this odd feature in action when you’re driving.

This leaves a lot of important mechanical parts exposed, which may not be ideal if you’re parking in an area that has a chance of harboring mischievous kids.

13 Lack of Headroom - Plymouth Prowler

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Taller drivers and passengers are no strangers to the struggles of low-slung rooflines. Many people can’t get into certain cars without hitting their head when the car goes over bumps or messing up their hair as it brushes against the ceiling.

Doug, who is 6 feet 3 inches tall, suffers the same problem in the Prowler but in a more exaggerated way. With the retractable soft-top up, his head actually presses up against it, enough so that it can comically be seen from outside of the car. This is a weird quirk, and it is surprising that this car was not designed with adequate headroom in mind.

12 Rear-Hinged Doors - BMW i3

The BMW i3 is an interesting little electric car that runs with the classic German premium price tag – starting at roughly $50,000. For this price, one would expect the i3 to be finely crafted, but it has lots of odd quirks that cheapen the car.

Doug takes particular issue with the rear doors. They are rear-hinged doors, which are unfortunately necessary to fit into the car’s tiny backseat. Even stranger, the doors’ windows don’t roll down, essentially trapping passengers in the car.

This quirk is not as interesting as it is infuriating, as such an expensive car should not have these quirks.

11 Weird Storage Compartments - Lamborghini Diablo

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The Lamborghini Diablo is quite an interesting car when it comes to the driving experience, but the same can be said of the interior design. For starters, the quirky Diablo doesn’t even have a glovebox. There is, however, a storage compartment behind the driver’s seat that can only be accessed by leaning the seat forward.

There are small slots on the doors that also don’t hold much, as you’d expect. There is one more, above the rearview mirror, that has space for something as big as a pair of sunglasses, and Doug laments that it cannot hold much more than that.

10 Four Headlights - Ferrari F40

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The Ferrari F40 is an iconic supercar that now can sell for over a million dollars, and the one that Doug reviewed is on sale for $1.3 million. Who knew that one of the quirkiest things about this insane car would be its headlights?

The F40 has a normal set of headlights, complete with indicators and flashers. However, it also holds another quirky feature that has become extremely coveted – pop-up headlights.

That’s right, the F40 has not two, but four headlights. This allows for the brights to be flashed even if the pop-up headlights are down, making for a quirky but intelligent design.

9 Power Window Switches - Mazda RX-7

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The Mazda RX-7 is a famous Japanese performance car from the 90’s that has reached almost cult status amongst tuners and enthusiasts alike. Better known for its performance rather than its quirks, the RX-7 has plenty of both. The following is Doug’s self-proclaimed favorite quirk about this car, so of course, it had to be included in this list.

The RX-7 has automatic power windows and once pressed, the switches stay pushed down as the windows roll down. When the window is fully down, the switch returns to its normal position, ready to be pushed again. This feature, while not particularly useful at all, is a nice little detail that is worth emphasizing.

8 Gigantic Mirrors - Ford F-250 Platinum

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One of the weirdest features of the Ford F-250 Platinum is its massive side mirrors. This truck has large proportions in general, with a wheelbase that is as long as an entire Ford Focus. Its wheel wells are big enough to fit a head into, with room to spare.

The mirrors, as presented by Doug, are insanely big. They are just a little bit bigger than his 15-inch MacBook Pro laptop, which is mind-blowing.

They stick out pretty far from the body, as well. While this size is certainly a result of having such a large vehicle, it’s still weird to think that you are driving around essentially with two laptops sticking out from your truck.

7 Exposed Gear Shifter - Spyker C8

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Doug is of the opinion that the Spyker C8 has the coolest gear shifter of all time, and he isn’t wrong. This nifty feature scoffs at the Ferrari’s gated shifters. The shifter is mounted on a large metal bar that sits in between the passenger and driver seats.

The linkage that lets the shifter change gears is exposed, and you can see every shift that you make. Doug remarks that this feature has a very satisfying mechanical feeling, and this is echoed throughout the design of the car. You can also hear every movement that the gears make as they shift.

6 Remote Controls - Mercedes-Maybach S600

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The Mercedes-Maybach S600 is a crazy luxury sedan that comes with its fair share of quirks, the first of many being that there are three small remote controls available to passengers. This may seem odd, but the Maybach is a passenger-focused car. After all, the upgraded trim adds 8 inches of rear-seat legroom, and the rear doors actually are longer than the front doors.

The remotes do a lot – they give all passengers the ability to control the rear infotainment screens, as well as the front infotainment screen.

Doug remarks that this could turn into a massive war when all three passengers and the driver are able to have input on the GPS, temperature, and radio.

5 Retractable Doors - BMW Z1

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The BMW Z1 is full of odd quirks and features, but perhaps the most in-your-face one is the set of retractable doors. These doors don’t open outwards, they aren’t rear-hinged, they don’t swing up like a Lamborghini, and they aren’t gullwings.

The doors astoundingly retract down into the body of the car. Doug suggests that there is no mechanical or performance reason that BMW did this – they just wanted to be strange and cool. Clearly, they succeeded. The window even comes up automatically with the door with just the push of a button on the outside of the car. You can even drive around with the doors in the retracted position!

4 Heated and Cooled Cupholders - Mercedes-Maybach S600

You’ve heard of and used either heated seats or cooled seats, and those, of course, are found in the Maybach. They are actually found in all manner of simple cars, which is nice for common drivers like ourselves. However, it’s unlikely that you’ve seen heated and cooled cup holders. How unique and quirky is that? Luxury cars are almost famous for their quirks and odd features, and it’s nice to see that this Mercedes is no exception to that rule. This feature is truly a luxurious one and one that just about everyone is going to be envious of.

3 Extra Door Hinge - Mercedes CL65 AMG

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The Mercedes CL65 AMG is an expensive, powerful coupe that has mind-blowing performance. One of the problems with coupes is that they often have longer-than-normal doors, generally to accommodate entry to their small rear seats. Anyone who has ever driven a coupe like this knows that opening the doors without bumping them in tight spaces is a chore, and is something that you really want to avoid on this expensive of a car.

Well, the Mercedes has you covered. It has a mechanism that pulls the door forward several inches. This provides a wider opening to enter and exit the car.

The quirky feature is incredibly practical and useful and is unique to this Mercedes.

2 Front Trunk Divider - Bugatti Chiron

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The Bugatti Chiron is certainly a quirky car, but not in the way you’d expect. In North America, it is required by law to have an interior trunk release handle if the uninterrupted cargo space is over a certain volume. This means that anyone who gets stuck or trapped inside the trunk is able to escape by pulling the interior release hatch.

However, Bugatti didn’t want to change the body construction for just the North American market, so there is a rather hideous metal trunk divider that causes the uninterrupted trunk space to be smaller than it was originally. Because of this nifty quirk, the Bugatti is exempt from the interior release handle regulation.

1 Touchscreen Key Fob - BMW M760i

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The BMW M760i is a masterpiece in luxury, quality, and technology. The car itself has plenty of neat quirks and features, but this is the first one on our list to have a feature that doesn’t involve the car itself – it is about the key fob. The key fob is nearly as big as an iPhone, and has a touchscreen on it, in addition to the regular buttons. For example, you can see if the car is locked, if the lights are on, if you’re due for a service, and how many miles of range you have left.

You can even use the key to pre-ventilate the car if you know when you’re getting ready for a drive. Perhaps coolest of all, the key can be used to start the BMW and will move the car forward or backward.

The general purpose of this is so that you don’t have to deal with squeezing in and out of small parking spots.

Sources: YouTube, Auto Trader