10 Incredibly Useful Classic Car Features We Want Back In Modern Cars
By: Gray Van Dyke (HotCars)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
10 Incredibly Useful Classic Car Features We Want Back In Modern Cars
Gone but not forgotten, these are the features that made classic cars cool and could make modern cars more appealing.
With each model year, new cars are marketed as the epitome of progress, touted for their advanced designs, cutting-edge technology, and state-of-the-art safety innovations. Logic dictates that these advancements should make driving not only safer but also more efficient. But let's face it. The reality is that, as our vehicles have become increasingly reliant on software and electrical signals, they've also become increasingly prone to bugs and other issues. Remember, Tesla did issue 15 recalls in 2024 alone.
Now that's not to say that we're set in our Luddite ways or are against the development of modern solutions to common driver problems. On the contrary, we're all for evolution — especially if it makes for better driving. Still, there are a number of innovations from back in the day that failed to withstand the inevitable march of time, and we feel that they deserve a place in today's vehicles. Keeping this in mind, we rounded up 10 incredibly useful classic car features that we want in modern cars. Read on to see what we've picked.
10. Foot Dimmer Switch
Call us old-fashioned, but there's something captivating about switching on your car's high beams with a flick of your foot. We'll admit that it's an imperfect system — prone to weather damage, among other issues — and a pick that's nostalgic at best, but it's one that we wouldn't mind seeing in new cars all the same. If anything, maybe more drivers would actually be able to find the switch for their brights with a large button under their foot.
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9. Ignition Key
In the age of push-button starts, there's something especially satisfying about the click of a key and an engine turning over. It's a tactile experience that signals the start of the drive. Keyless entry systems came into fashion around Y2K, and with those, the need for an ignition tumbler has been made increasingly redundant.
Though we can understand that a push-button system makes sense for folks with arthritis and other mobility challenges, there's something about a traditional key that just works. Being both easier to hack and more expensive to replace, electronic fobs bring unwanted headaches of their own.
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8. Hideaway Headlights
As much as we'd like to make a case for the merits of pop-ups, we recognize that they fell out of fashion for a reason. Instead, we'd like to propose that hideaway headlights make a comeback, as (if nothing else) they're useful for their aesthetic benefits. Be it a Camaro Z28, a Dodge Charger, a Ford Torino, or a Mercury Cougar, the combination of an uninterrupted grille and some flip-out bulbs is an instant value-add in our book. Of course, advances in lighting design have made large lamps redundant (just look at the thin strips dominating car design today), but we still feel that hideaway headlights would translate well to the EV age. Think Dodge's Charger Daytona EV but with some added mechanical pizzazz.
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7. Hood-Mounted Gauges
For all of their flaws — exposure to the elements, potential for theft, you name it — hood-mounted gauges like those found on Pontiac's GTO Judge are useful, if only because you can keep your head up and your eyes on the road in front of you. With neo-retro designs ever on the rise, we'd love to see a hood-mounted tachometer or speedometer incorporated into a low-slung open-topped roadster. Even if it's a feature that's not fit for modern cars beyond the concept stage, it's a piece of classic automobilia that's so quirky it's cool .
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6. Drip Rails
Once upon a time, drip rails ran along the perimeter of a car's roofline, directing rain and snow down the A-pillar and away from the interior. You'll still see these on some boxier SUVs (like the Jeep Wrangler) today, but they have generally been phased out in favor of more aerodynamic body designs. Nevertheless, we'd be willing to make some concessions when it comes to drag and wind noise for the ease of roof rack installation. Nothing beats the simplicity of popping a set of brackets into your vehicle's rain gutters.
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5. Headlight Wipers
The Swedes first made a statement with headlight wipers on Saab cars back in the 1970s, and they were eventually offered on more upmarket vehicles from the likes of BMW, Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz, and even Range Rover. Though the feature eventually gave way to pressurized fluid applicators, we can still make a case for mechanical blades in some climates. After all, assuming that your headlight lenses are caked in snow and mud, a set of wipers makes for a much more efficient cleaning solution than spray alone. Admittedly, we'd like to see these return as much for their novelty as for their utility, especially because improvements in manufacturing would mean that they would at least be better looking — if not also more effective.
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4. Front Bench Seats
Though you'll occasionally find bench seats in fleet vehicles and large pickup trucks today, there was once a time that they were offered as a common option on consumer cars, too. Now, bucket seats are obviously far superior from a safety and drivability perspective. However, there's something to be said for the flexibility and convenience that a three-abreast configuration enables. Clearly, a handful of automakers feel similarly, as Road & Track reports that Chevrolet, Land Rover, and even Hyundai are planning on reintroducing the front bench seat. Until we see the layout offered in cars, though, we don't see it as having made a comeback.
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3. Dual/Auxiliary Fuel Tanks
Chevrolet and Ford built a number of pickup trucks during the '70s, '80s, and '90s that boasted an auxiliary fuel tank to extend range, and it's a feature that would obviously still pay dividends now. Now, the application — of course — depends on the powertrain, as you could make a case that hybrids and other energy-generating vehicles can be seen as having a backup fuel supply. Had Tesla not pulled the plug on its Cybertruck range extender, that too would have been a modern analog. As ICE powerplants are here to stay, bi-fuel vehicles could offer another expression.
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2. Wing Vent Windows
Okay, so even though the drag from forward-mounted wing windows did a number on a car's fuel economy, they were excellent at funneling fresh air into the cabin. As such, we feel that they deserve a place in modern vehicles — especially retro-inspired releases like the Ford Bronco and Volkswagen ID.Buzz — as you can't beat the feeling of opening up your windows and taking in the sights. After all, if you're looking to maximize your MPGs, air conditioning is usually the answer.
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1. Manual Handbrake Levers
The disappearance of handbrake levers is a fairly new phenomenon, but it's a trend that we would like to stop all the same. For one, electronic solutions are prone to faults, and a failure usually means the lock-up will leave you without a roadside fix. Arguably more 'tragic,' though, is that we'll no longer be able to execute well-timed drifts and handbrake turns. Even recognizing that few among us actually use a manual handbrake for such purposes, this is one piece of the car's interior that could have just as easily been left alone.
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Some of these are pretty good ideas IMO. Thinking aobut the foot dimmer switch, it was never a problem and I learned aobut the automatic dimmer when my father bought his 1960 Cadillac. However it would need an override switch to signal an oncoming driver who forgets to dim his headlights.
As for the front bench seat, it's best so your honey can cuddle up to you while you're driving, but that could be dangerous. However, with a bench seat it should have a pull-down right arm rest. But where do you put the hand-brake lever with a bench seat? To the left of your seat?
I never really liked the hand lever parking brakes, they take up to much room right where you'd like cup holders. I always preferred the old-style foot emergency brake as you can put more force to it in an emergency. I don't like the new automatic parking brakes because you need a expensive diagnostic computer to shut them off in order to do rear brakes, on some that only have two wires going to the rear brake caliper you can unplug the caliper and use a jumper wire to collapse the caliper (it has an electric motor in it that applies or releases the brake for parking just by reversing polarity) but some cars might still sense it and throw a brake code so you might still need a diagnostic computer to cancel the code. Just too much bull in my opinion. I also miss Vent Windows you crack it just a little and they give great airflow with much less noise than the regular window and what noise there is isn't right in your ear.
I thouight the vent windows were a good thing as well.
If you turned them fully in, you had plenty of airflow to cool off when it was hot and as an added benefit your practice of enhanced driving skills needed when the occasional bumble bee or hornet gets scooped into the cab.
My father had an '85 F250 with dual tanks. Combined they held 25 gallon. The same truck with a single tank held 25 gallons. I'm not entirely sold that it "increased range".
Maybe the dual tanks your father had were different from the ones the author wrote about.
That may be the case. I had an '03 F150 with the 25 gallon tank and it had less range than the older models.
I'm all for bringing this back. Newer cars have the automatic brake function that is frustrating. Both my 2020 Explorer and my wife's 2019 Volvo have this function. In general it's nice. You don't have to worry about engaging or disengaging the park brake. The system will do it automatically.
It made maintenance, such as changing the brake's, a freaking nightmare. I've the auto brake function engaged while trying to change brake pads and broke several tools and damaged calipers. I've spoken to some mechanics who had the same problem many times and in some cases it causing injury.
These were very popular with the "muscle cars" as the article states. To bring them back for some of the same models that originally had them could mean a complete redesign of the car. The Charger looks nothing like the original models. (I refer to them as "RE-Chargers" due to the very drastic differences (coupe vs. sedan, etc.)).
On the con side, they do add a mechanical working that could cause problems and on new cars getting to the headlight just to change a bulb is a fairly large task. A friend had to remove his fender, fender well and grill just to get to the mounting bolts to change a bulb on a 2024 Silverado.
Even with the popularity of the keyless entry and start, the physical key is still a bit of a necessity. With most key fobs, if you open it up, there is a key that can be used to open and start a vehicle in the event the fob ceases to operate.
I understand the pro's and con's of it. Lets face it, most of us that had to rely solely on a key are getting up there in age so the physical requirements to use a key becomes difficult. As far as losing keys, it's just as easy to lose the key fob.
When it comes to cost, IMHO, physical keys are the better choice. I can get a key fob for my car fairly cheap, but programming them can be on the expensive side. (Wife just spent $50 for the key fob and $200 for Volvo to program it.)
This is an "old school" function. Certain items in a vehicle were in the same location regardless of the make and model of a vehicle. This one was always on the left side of the floor and elevated to avoid accidental activation. With newer vehicles, I don't know how many times I've "flashed" somebody because I accidentally pushed the lever trying to turn on my turn signals.
During my time in the military, I had to explain the foot dimmer switch in some military vehicles. The look of confusion on younger Soldiers was both amusing and frustrating. They had never seen anything like it.
A function I do like in new cars is the automatic high beam function. Both my cars have this function. When circumstances are right the high beams come on. As soon as I'm behind somebody or an on-coming vehicle approaches, they automatically dim.
Not long ago I watched the movie The Pelican Brief (for the umpteenth time) and there were a couple of instances of a car bomb being used, as there was in The Godfather. I wonder if the electronic start (push-button?) would provide the same opportunity for someone to plant a bomb in the car.
It would all you need is some function that completes a circuit and design the bombs triggering mechanism accordingly. I don't have any experience making car bombs, but I think most were wired to the starter itself specifically the wire from the ignition to the starter solenoid. These modern cars with the start button just send a message to the computer and the computer starts the car pretty much the same way as older cars by triggering the solenoid so that same wire is still there. In reality almost any electrical function that you turn on/off in your car could be used it's just the starter wires are the easiest thing to use since they are accessible under the car which is where the bomb is usually placed. I don't recall the name but there's a movie where a Russian guy gets blown up by a car bomb that was triggered by his cigarette lighter but that must have been pain to wire up.
After multiple deployments, I wouldn't be surprised. These terrorists made bombs out of a lot of different materials. The electric start on a car would be the best triggering device to take out a target.
Thie struggling sound that the starting car makes is consistent in the movies. I imagine that not too many people who cause it to happen are around to talk about it.
Since I no longer have a car or drive at all I'm not going to worry about it.
My Charger has hideaway headlights, wing vents and floor dimmer switch. The hideaway headlights work on vacuum, along with AC controls and power brakes. When I put the 440 6 pack motor in, I had to add an electric vacuum pump to make them work right. Some Mopars had a vacuum reservoir that looked exactly like a tin can tomato juice came in.
I remember those and they really were just a tin can.
I noted that the article author specifically mentioned a Charger.
Here the headlight doors on my Charger were stuck open
As soon as I saw that kind of headlight I assumed they could get that mechanical problem. Your Charger's looking pretty good - good enough for an article about it.
good enough for an article about it.
yes we should do that
Waiting.
Ah, there was a reason for that avatar!
Absolutely.
I’m a huge fan of the floor mounted high beam switch. To me, it seems dumb to move this to the steering wheel, so you have to disrupt your grip just to lower the light. The times when I most use this function is on unlit curvy roads, and I’m doing a lot of steering.
The hidden lamps looked cool, but they almost never worked right on those old cars.
If your car has power steering (and I believe most do) you wouldn't have trouble controlling the wheel with just your right hand, but I agree that it's a lot safer to keep both hands on the wheel, especially driving through a curve.
There's one thing I miss that's not mentioned and that's Chrome Bumpers. I love the look of a Chrome Bumper and I wouldn't care if it was just a foam backed glued on piece of polished aluminum trim to make it look like a bumper. I've seen a lot of these retro cars that look pretty good but there's just something missing and it's the shiny bumpers.
Why not? No reason cars can't look beautiful.
Just a few comments.
Dip Switch, I was sorry to see them go, just one thing less for your hands to worry about !
Bench Seats. Great for creating an additional passenger seat.
Dual Fuel Tank. I remember my father's 1930 Plymoth had a spare fuel tank in the front engine compartment, very handy on long night trips when service stations did not open at night. (In fact the law then banned petrol stations opening after 6pm !!!!! ) This design was banned after a few head on collisions, with the sparks causing causing fatal fires.
Vent Window. Great for withdrawing fumes from the cabin if you had a smoker on board.
As soon as I saw your words "... a spare fuel tank in the front engine compartment..." I knew that was really dangerous, but I was thinking about heat from the engine. Why not put it in the trunk (boot?)? Of course then it someone rear-ends the car even that's not so good.