Interesting details in cars you like.

[Silver Arrows]

There's a couple I've noticed:

The most famous one being the hood mounted tach on late 60's and 70's GTO's (And probably a few other derivative vehicles in GM's stable that were based off the GTO, I know the Buick GSX has one as well)

One that is maybe a bit less known is on the Escort RS Cosworth. Instead of the speedo going up in multiples of ten (or twenty for KP/H) it instead goes in multiples of thirty.

 

[TheCracker]

One that is maybe a bit less known is on the Escort RS Cosworth. Instead of the speedo going up in multiples of ten (or twenty for KP/H) it instead goes in multiples of thirty.

10 - 30 - 50 - 70 - 90 - 110 - 130 - 150 - 170

Your maths don't add up

 

[Danoff]

The E46 has first aid kits (required in Europe) which can be mounted under the driver's and passengers seats for extra storage. The US cars don't come with any, but they are available for purchase.

 

[Obelisk]

Mazda's current Infotainment system leaves in the Navigation applet for car trims that don't have GPS features. It displays your compass heading instead of a map.

Of course, you can bring the car in and enable the navigation for a fee.

 

[SPhilli911]

Mazda's current Infotainment system leaves in the Navigation applet for car trims that don't have GPS features. It displays your compass heading instead of a map.

Ford does the same thing, at least the current Fiesta does.

I dunno if this is interesting or not but I always found it weird. The Subaru STI (the US market 2004-2007 models I can say for sure, I'm not certain on later models) has a water spray for the intercooler you activate with a button on the dash. Not sure how useful it actually is, but I can't think of any other cars with this.

 

[MoLiEG]

My car (2004 Renault Clio) has a feature I've loved from day one and that so far has never been matched by any car I've seen or driven:

That little thing the guy on this pic is touching is the radio control. I find that kind of control more useful and comfortable to opperate that the ones located on the steering wheel.

 

[buickgnx88]

The E46 has first aid kits (required in Europe) which can be mounted under the driver's and passengers seats for extra storage. The US cars don't come with any, but they are available for purchase.

Along these lines, ever notice the hump on the back of the Nissan Xterra? It's a first aid kit!

Also, the oddity of the spare tire on the Isuzu VehiCross, which was mounted on the back door, but was accessed from the inside in order to keep it out of the elements!

 

[Michelin Man]

Wacky and weird little details are something French car's; particular Citroen's and Peugeot's, are very good at, which is why I've always been partial to a bit of French metal

One example was the neat little keypad immobiliser system that was fitted to Peugeot's and Citroen's in the 90s

(Car in the pic is a Peugeot 106, but they were fitted to others like the 306, and Citroen's like the Saxo, Xantia and ZX etc)

And of course, Citroen who have alway's been good with the weird and wonderful, with their legendary single spoke steering wheels being a great example:

There's plenty of little features like this I could pick out, with one being the centre console mounted radio's in the Citroen CX and SM, or the steering wheel in the C4, but you get the idea.

 

[Silver Arrows]

Another one I distinctly remember from most of Ford's trucks and SUV's in the early to mid 2000's: keypad activated keyless entry.

In fact, I'm fairly certain that the 2017 Raptor has this as well.

 

[RocZX]

Another one I distinctly remember from most of Ford's trucks and SUV's in the early to mid 2000's: keypad activated keyless entry.

In fact, I'm fairly certain that the 2017 Raptor has this as well.

Ford had the keypad entry since the '90s

 

[Adamgp]

Another one I distinctly remember from most of Ford's trucks and SUV's in the early to mid 2000's: keypad activated keyless entry.

One of my favorite features on my 2012 Escape.

Ford has had that for decades, my dad had a '92 Lincoln Continental with a keypad.

 

[SPhilli911]

Another one I distinctly remember from most of Ford's trucks and SUV's in the early to mid 2000's: keypad activated keyless entry.

In fact, I'm fairly certain that the 2017 Raptor has this as well.

My dad recently got a 2016 F-150 and I was surprised to see a keypad on the door. Thought it was a 90s thing.

 

[INEEDNAWZZZ]

I like the cover for the boot / trunk space in the MR2 Spyder.

 

[GT6champNK_69]

I like the cover for the boot / trunk space in the MR2 Spyder.

View attachment 628054

Why, I can imagine a heat-engine burnout with that ridiculous motor cover. I don't see those cars I my country, figure why. Lol, good thing the Lads Samara didn't had that, but only totally rusted out. By the way I like MR2 from early 90s, the 1990 SW20 MR2 G-Limited:tup:

Edit!, my bad, the car is a mid-engine. In that case, great idea

 

[VXR]

The Skoda range has some neat features.

The Superb and Octavia have featured their model name within the headlights. Several of them have a little clip on the a-pillar to hold a parking ticket in place. They have blinds to fill the gap between the sun visors and the Superb has a built-in umbrella. Just really nice additions.

 

[Obelisk]

What about the Jeep Renegade with all of its little easter eggs? Yeti in the back windshield, Willys in the front windshield, spider on the gas cover, paintball splatter as a redline marker...

 

[MedigoFlame]

It's a small thing, but ever since I sold my 1995 LS400, I miss having the small sun visor that goes above the rear view mirror. How is this not standard!? You don't realize how much it helps until you don't have it anymore. Sucks when the sun's shining just above your rear view mirror and the normal two visors don't help.

Couldn't find a better picture....

 

[-Fred-]

Ford had that keypad thing since the 1980s, I seem to remember my grandpa had a 1986 or 87 Taurus with that feature on it.

 

[05XR8]

My 2005 Odyssey had sunshades in the sliding doors.
Also, the little seat in the second row, is foldable and stows away in a compartment in the floor.

My '04 EP3 Si with the gearstick on the dash.

My '92 Passat GL had reclining and sliding rear seats.

My '88 Jetta GLI 16V didn't have indicator arrows. It just had a green light flash in the middle of the cluster.

 

[ilikewaffles11]

Something that's nice on all old 4WD Toyota models is the clutch start cancel button, which is nice for when you need to start your truck and put stuff in it or when you need to clean the windows off and don't have to crawl into it to press the clutch in to start it.

The altimeter in the Land Cruisers and 4Runners is also cool

And in the MK2 Supras and MK3 Celicas you could get seats which had a hand pump on the side which filled an air bladder to adjust lumbar support. There's three buttons on the left side of the seat to bleed the air out. I've had a lot of people who asked about my Supra ask me if it has the air pump seats since they used to have a Celica/Supra and they loved the seats.

Another thing I like on my Supra but can't find any photos, but there's a prop rod for the spare tire cover so you don't have to hold it up when removing it or checking the air.

 

[Aerocoupe]

Always thought that the dual needle speedometer on early 3rd Gen Camaros looked pretty nifty.

 

[Joey D]

The altimeter in the Land Cruisers and 4Runners is also cool
View attachment 628071

I've been trying to find one to mount in my truck but every one that comes up for sale is $300+ and it's not worth it to me for the sake of a cool retro gizmo. I also don't really know how to set it other than I'm guessing it works off of barometric pressure since they're from a time before GPS was in civilian vehicles. But I'd figure it out though, even if my Hema Map tells me exactly what my altitude is at any given time.

The newer FJ's have some similar in them but not nearly as cool:

 

[Silver Arrows]

What about the Jeep Renegade with all of its little easter eggs? Yeti in the back windshield, Willys in the front windshield, spider on the gas cover, paintball splatter as a redline marker...

I can confirm that there is a Willys on the front windshield on the Jeep Cherokee as well

 

[CarBastard]

Ford does the same thing, at least the current Fiesta does.

I dunno if this is interesting or not but I always found it weird. The Subaru STI (the US market 2004-2007 models I can say for sure, I'm not certain on later models) has a water spray for the intercooler you activate with a button on the dash. Not sure how useful it actually is, but I can't think of any other cars with this.

It's actually very useful and, though scarce on production cars, it's quite frequent on tuned vehicles. The reasoning behind it is that cooling the intake charge means more power and this comes really useful when your turbocharged car experiences heat soak. Heat soak basically means that your intercooler isn't getting enough cool airflow to actually reduce the temperature of the compressed intake charge (remember that an intercooler is just a radiator but for air instead of water) and, thus, gives you VERY reduced engine power. The first time I felt heat soak in my car I thought "🤬, I broke something, I ruined it. I'm a 🤬" but once I was able to drive an uncongested stretch of road it felt as powerful as it normally is once again.

 

[ilikewaffles11]

I've been trying to find one to mount in my truck but every one that comes up for sale is $300+ and it's not worth it to me for the sake of a cool retro gizmo. I also don't really know how to set it other than I'm guessing it works off of barometric pressure since they're from a time before GPS was in civilian vehicles. But I'd figure it out though, even if my Hema Map tells me exactly what my altitude is at any given time.

The newer FJ's have some similar in them but not nearly as cool:

Yea they are incredibly expensive, I've been looking myself as my 4Runners has a chip on the top. I'm not really sure how you know where exactly to set it, but there's little knobs you can adjust each dial with if that's why you mean. I'm not sure the procedure for getting them perfectly zeroed out for the tilt gauges and altitude meter though.

The FJ Cruisers is cool, but I agree, the older one is a lot cooler. The FJ Cruisers reminds me of the one that came in the Dodge Raider/Mitsubishi Montero.

 

[Aerocoupe]

Amusingly, Toyota also had that altimeter setup available in the 4WD Tercel SR5.

 

[-Fred-]

The first and second gen Honda CR-V came with a picnic table hidden in the hatch floor. I'm not sure the feature is still part of the newer CR-Vs. Not the biggest table in the world, but it's nifty if you're out camping or fishing.

 

[Doog]

It's a small thing, but ever since I sold my 1995 LS400, I miss having the small sun visor that goes above the rear view mirror. How is this not standard!? You don't realize how much it helps until you don't have it anymore. Sucks when the sun's shining just above your rear view mirror and the normal two visors don't help.

Couldn't find a better picture....

Mine just hangs down all the time and cuts off some of the visibility. lol

 

[Murcie_LP640]

I can't remember if Subaru pioneered this or not, there's a coolant reservoir further back near the turbocharger and no radiator cap.

This is actually so that when you turn the car off it uses convection to cool the turbo so you don't need to let it idle after a hard drive or a turbotimer. This is my engine bay and on the driver's side next to the headers is the reservoir.

 

[SVX]

I can't remember if Subaru pioneered this or not, there's a coolant reservoir further back near the turbocharger and no radiator cap.

This is actually so that when you turn the car off it uses convection to cool the oil lines leading to the turbo so you don't need to let it idle after a hard drive or a turbotimer. This is my engine bay and on the driver's side next to the headers is the reservoir.

View attachment 628151

A not so fun fact is that, at least on the third generation Legacies, there is actually a slight curve towards the firewall allowing for coolant to puddle there and in turn eventually cause it to rust. A common thing you'll see amongst the third generation.