17 Old-School Road Trip Essentials That Are Extinct
Here's a nostalgic list of road trip items that have quietly disappeared from our dashboards and glove compartments.
- Alyana Aguja
- 5 min read
The great American road trip once relied on a colorful array of analog gear that shaped the experience just as much as the open road itself. From fuzzy dice to cassette tape organizers, these now-extinct essentials carried more than utility — they carried a sense of freedom, family, and sometimes, chaos. Revisiting them reminds us how much travel has changed and how much we once packed into the journey itself.
1. Fold-Out Paper Maps
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Before GPS, every glove compartment had a stack of road maps that unfolded like origami from hell. Families argued over routes while Dad squinted at tiny print and Mom tried to refold it neatly. Rand McNally was practically a co-pilot in the ’70s and ’80s.
2. TripTiks from AAA
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You’d walk into your local AAA office and get a custom TripTik — a spiral-bound flipbook with turn-by-turn directions. It even included restaurant suggestions, gas station locations, and construction alerts. These were the closest thing to a curated road trip experience before smartphones.
3. Cigarette Lighter Plug-In Coolers
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Before USB ports and electric coolers, there were plug-in mini-fridges that drew power from your car’s cigarette lighter. They hummed weakly and barely kept your soda cold, but they felt futuristic in a very analog way. You usually brought them more for novelty than practicality.
4. 8-Track Players
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If your car had an 8-track player, you were either super cool or hopelessly stuck in time. The chunky tapes often got stuck or clicked mid-song, but hearing Fleetwood Mac on a loop made it worth it. They were a snapshot of a time when audio fidelity took a backseat to freedom.
5. CB Radios
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Citizens Band radios let you eavesdrop on truckers, shout road updates, or just feel like a rebel using a fake handle. “Breaker 1-9” was code for “let’s talk,” and every kid dreamed of getting their own lingo down. Before smartphones, it was the closest thing to roadside social media.
6. Fuzzy Dice Hanging from the Mirror
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No road trip car was complete without a pair of fuzzy dice swinging from the rearview. They didn’t serve a purpose but added character and told the world you didn’t take life too seriously. Eventually, laws against windshield obstructions made them fade away.
7. Kodak Disposable Cameras
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You’d buy a handful before the trip and snap grainy photos of landmarks, awkward meals, and blurry roadside signs. You never knew how the pictures turned out until they were developed. Half the charm was the surprise waiting at the photo lab weeks later.
8. Bench Seats in the Front
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Bench seats allowed for sliding over to your crush or making room for an extra kid with a bag of snacks. They made the front row feel like a couch on wheels. Now, separate bucket seats and strict seatbelt laws have made them disappear.
9. Dashboard Compass
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This little wobbly ball told you vaguely which way was north, assuming you weren’t near power lines or metal structures. It bobbed and spun and rarely helped, but it looked cool on the dash. Before GPS, this was the closest thing to orientation in the wilderness.
10. Roadside Diners with Payphones
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You’d stop for a greasy burger and use a quarter to call Grandma from a payphone outside the diner. Sometimes the cord was sticky, sometimes it smelled like mildew, but it was the only link back home. Now, payphones are relics, and most roadside diners have Wi-Fi.
11. Portable Cassette Tape Organizer
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These zip-up or plastic cassette cases held your mixtapes and store-bought albums like treasure chests. You had to dig through stacks just to find your favorite Springsteen tape. The satisfying click of a tape going in beats any digital playlist shuffle.
12. Gas Station Free Maps and Souvenirs
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Back then, gas stations gave away state maps for free, usually with a tiny plastic dinosaur or oil company mascot printed in the corner. Kids begged for snow globes or state-shaped magnets while parents pumped gas. Now, it’s mostly snack aisles and lottery tickets.
13. Manual Roll-Up Windows
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If you wanted air, you had to crank it. No buttons, no auto-down — just elbow grease. It made the car feel more alive, and kids in the back would race each other rolling them up and down.
14. Seatback Snack Trays
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Some cars had plastic trays that folded out like airplane tables, perfect for a sandwich or coloring book. They wobbled, snapped easily, and weren’t very safe, but they made lunch breaks in the car a lot more fun. Eventually, safety regulations phased them out.
15. Travel Bingo and License Plate Games
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Kids passed time spotting cows, red barns, or license plates from faraway states on reusable cardboard bingo cards. These simple games were the antidote to boredom before screens took over. If you filled a whole card, it felt like a personal victory.
16. Rolls of Quarters for Toll Booths
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You never hit the highway without a sock full of quarters ready for unmanned toll booths. Sometimes you’d toss them into a giant metal basket, hoping they’d all make it in. EZ-Pass and auto-pay systems have made this small ritual obsolete.
17. Window Shades with Cartoon Characters
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These sunshades stuck to your window with suction cups and usually featured Looney Tunes, Garfield, or a random sports team. They didn’t block much sun, but they made the backseat feel like your personal clubhouse. Over time, UV films and sleeker shades replaced them.