Power steering is not terribly expensive, complicated, nor much of a weight gain in a non-track car. If you live in a place where every corner is a 90-degree angle, then a lack of power steering is a chore (I've driven several cars without it). For one day, fine. A week without P/S is frackin' annoying for commuting and running errands.
Air conditioning is a
must in a southern summer. It's also nice to block out humidity and rain even when it's not hot outside. Wiping the inside of the windshield while driving is about as unsafe as it gets without the pleasure of alcohol.
As much as I like my tunes, it's not absolutely necessary, but it's hard to imagine being stuck in traffic or on an interstate for 8 hours without some music/news, especially when alone (never mind...been there, done that). Real life is rarely an open road to enjoy the sights, the wind in your face, and the accompanying sounds.
Power windows barely add any weight. Windows still need frames and regulators, and the motors weigh about 3-4 pounds each. Of course, it's something that is bound to fail on a car within 5-10 years. Power mirrors add about the same amount of weight, but the motors are usually infrequently used, unless multiple owners of varying weights and measures use the same car on a frequent basis. Given that they are pretty much universal add little to complexity and weight, there really is no going back. Again, they are not necessary, but if you're going to scotch the A/C, it's a lot easier to roll down the passenger-rear window with a remote master switch, than leaning over back and to the left/right.
Power door locks and their actuators prevent others form taking your minimalistic rides. Throw in the actuators and immobilizer computer (if separate from the engine computer module), then that's another 20-30 pounds.
Power brakes are probably one of the greatest safety advances to the modern automobile, save seat belts. So the booster weighs 20-30 pounds, the master cylinder another 20 pounds, round it up to 100 at most with the wiring, hoses, and lines.
ABS, traction control, and airbags are not necessary for the proper function of an automobile at all. But they're almost all mandated by law: If the Big Three lobbied to have them removed, the press would call them baby killers.
So what cars offer a minimalistic palette? Mostly low-priced non-performance cars, errand-runners, rental fleets, 25-year-old cars, or purpose-built track-cars with no frills. It's hard to go back, for most people... Or:
It has power windows/locks/mirrors, four airbags, a 2-DIN radio, and power steering. It does not have ABS (er, I think), traction control, automatic gearbox, power seats, sunroof, or many luxuries. Curb weight: 2630 pounds. Even with my frame, a full gas tank, and a Mag-Lite, that's under 1.5 tons.
Automakers offer what they feel they'd lose out to the competition to: If the competition offers power seats, you have to offer it. The same with bigger wheel sizes, navigation, leather, bigger size, larger engines, beefier brakes, torsional rigidity, crash/rollover resistance, et cetera.
But it has its useless stuff, as well. My car has two map lights in addition to the dome light...they're not necessary, since the dome light is within easy reach. But there's zero bling, except for the fussy headlights. The A/C system uses less than one pound of R134a, so it is likely a small assembly of parts (probably 100 pounds of weight, with the control head). Everything is made of plastic, TPF-type rubber, or cloth inside. I'm sure there's a few pounds that could be shed, but not much. Putting it back to its original exterior (xA) dimensions might make it 2400 pounds again.
The other problem is that small cars have not resonated well with the American public; I think there's that perception that a fully-loaded Ford F150 or school bus is going to careen into you at any moment, and therefore, there's the thought that a small car gets pancaked, unlike a truck or large sedan. There's no concept of energy-absorbent materials or energy dissipation, because few people have studied basic physics, let alone mechanical engineering, so they do not have even the slightest grasp of those concepts. There's mostly a jungle mentality when it comes to the crossing of an elephant and a mouse.
Sure, lots of small cars do sell well, but they'd all gown in size in response to demand. Every two generations, a small car tends to grow up the size of the car that was once a step ahead of it. I always privately called it the "CivAcc-Theory"; as I noted in my youth how the Civic tended to grow to the size and luxury of the Accord within two generations. A whole other smaller generation of cars has returned, and they will probably follow in the same footsteps. Sure, there's the boutique nature of the Smart cars, the past demand for the xB, and other little niche cars, but will they remain popular? If we see rising gas prices, then yes, we might.
Convince people, or a coming generation, that smaller and lighter is better on the wallet, potentially beneficial to the environment, potentially reduces the impact of wastefulness, can potentially increase the enjoyment of driving, and then success for smaller cars may abound. Or...just tax the heck out of everyone with a truck or SUV or barge with an arbitrary weight cap, and you'll merely see more angry owners, who will then add a one-ounce bumper sticker, bitching about the said levy. With capitalism being the ultimate vote, their sales (in addition to their actual usefulness) will not wane if demand still exists.
