10 Obsolete Car Features That Used to Be Standard
Once considered cutting-edge, these obsolete car features were once standard in vehicles but have vanished due to evolving technology, safety regulations, and changing driver preferences.
- Alyana Aguja
- 4 min read
Vehicles have come a long way since they were invented, shedding previously loved components that were initially thought to be indispensable or trendy. From pop-up headlights to cassette decks, these anachronisms became extinct as a result of the advancement of technology, safety measures, and evolving consumer tastes. While some are remembered nostalgically, others make us realize just how far motor vehicle innovation has advanced.
1. Pop-Up Headlights
Image from Slate Magazine
After being a signature feature of high-performance sports cars such as the 1986 Chevrolet Corvette and the Mazda RX-7, pop-up headlights were once a fashionable solution to lowering aerodynamic drag while providing vehicles a futuristic appearance. They lost favor, though, because of issues with pedestrian safety and tighter emissions regulations. They had vanished by the early 2000s, with the 2004 C5 Corvette remaining one of the last mass-production vehicles to use them.
2. Front Bench Seats
Image from The New York Times
Traditional American sedans, such as the 1970 Chevrolet Impala, featured a complete front bench seat with room for three people to ride side by side. With advancements in safety rules, bucket seats and center consoles were standard, enhancing driver comfort and handling. The final mainstream vehicle to have a front bench seat in the United States was the 2013 Chevrolet Impala.
3. Manual Window Cranks
Image from Shutterstock
Before power windows became the standard, drivers rolled down their windows manually with a crank handle, as found in vehicles such as the 1993 Ford Ranger. Although they were never broken by electrical failure, they were a hassle, particularly for back-seat riders. By the early 2000s, even low-cost vehicles such as the Toyota Corolla had largely adopted power windows.
4. Ashtrays and Cigarette Lighters
Image from Reddit
Vehicles such as the 1985 Cadillac Fleetwood had ashtrays and cigarette lighters installed as standard, a testament to the earlier smoking fashion of smoking in cars. When smoking rates plummeted and public health awareness heightened, manufacturers started replacing them with 12V charging power points for electronic devices. Now, if you wish for an ashtray, you usually need to purchase an aftermarket accessory.
5. Retractable Radio Antennas
Image from Bob is the Oil Guy
Older luxury sedans, such as the 1992 Mercedes-Benz S-Class, had retracting power antennas that came out when the radio was activated. They looked cool but were likely to break in car washes or inclement weather. Current vehicles employ shorter, fixed antennas or concealed shark-fin designs, which are tougher and better-looking.
6. Headlight Wipers
Image from CarParts.com
Luxury European vehicles such as the 1988 Volvo 740 and Mercedes-Benz W124 boasted small windshield wipers on their headlights for removing rain or snow. They served their purpose well but made service vehicles more expensive and complicated. Nowadays, high-pressure headlight washers are utilized in most cars, which are less expensive and less faulty.
7. Handbrake Levers
Image from Wikipedia
The pleasing mechanical tug of the old handbrake, felt in vehicles such as the 2005 Subaru WRX, is being replaced with electronic parking brakes. Although electronic ones are space-efficient and convenient, they removed the driver’s immediate control that enthusiasts and rally drivers enjoyed. Most manufacturers, such as BMW and Audi, have discontinued the old lever for buttons.
8. Carburetors
Image from Britannica
Before the takeover of fuel injection, vehicles such as the 1987 Chevrolet Caprice used carburetors to blend air and fuel for burning. Simple to fix but inefficient, difficult to start in the cold, and troublesome with emissions standards, all manufacturers eventually abandoned carburetors by the mid-1990s. The 1994 Isuzu Pickup was one of the last models sold in America with a carburetor.
9. Floor-Mounted Dimmer Switches
Image from ThirdGen.Org
In vehicles such as the 1975 Ford F-100, high-to-low beam shifting was accomplished using a small floor pedal near the driver’s left foot. Although it was convenient without removing your hands from the wheel, it became inconvenient with contemporary interior configurations and more constricted footwells. By the 1990s, most makers had relocated the headlight dimmer switch to a steering column stalk.
10. Cassette Players
Image from Team-BHP
For decades, car stereos included cassette players, with models such as the 1991 Honda Accord providing them as a default audio source. However, when CDs became popular later in the ’90s and were ultimately phased out in favor of AUX inputs and Bluetooth streaming, cassette decks began to disappear from new vehicles. The 2010 Lexus SC430 is credited as the last vehicle to hit the market with a factory-built cassette player.