Every car has its “quirks.” Even the most boring of automobiles can sometimes let loose and give you a little taste of weirdness. For this list, I’ve compiled the five coolest or weirdest features I’ve seen in some of the cars I’ve driven. Some may be functional, some may be purely aesthetic, and some might be present on other cars. Regardless, they’re all unique enough for me to single them out.
5. Fjord Blue Carpets – Volvo C40 Recharge
Carpets in cars are normally afterthoughts. They’re either the same color as your seats, or they’re a standard black, which in the case of a lot of cars, is both. But, for the Volvo XC40/C40, the Swedes decided to have some fun. With select exterior and interior colors, you have the option to get either Fjord Blue or Lava Red carpets. Do they do anything functionally? Nah. Do they look cool as hell? Yes.
4. A Sketch Pad – Ford Mustang Mach-E GT
Huge screens in cars are not new. For most of them, they’re loaded with gimmicks and other useless stuff to make you feel like the screen actually does more than something 70% smaller. For Ford’s Sync system in the Mach-E, this is no exception. While completely useless in most situations, the built-in sketchpad is a fun thing to use if you have kids, or are bored during a phone call, I guess. Plus, it gives you the ability to write controversial, yet correct, statements.
3. Spaceship Noises – The Mercedes EQS 580
Every automaker has implemented some form of “noise” to play when you accelerate hard in an EV. While I am sure that there is something out there that may sound cooler than this, having the option of “Vivid Flux” in the EQS makes the four-second acceleration seem even faster. I mean, it literally sounds like you’re driving The Jetsons’ car. What the hell could be cooler than that?
2. The Mono-vent – Honda Accord
This might take the cake for dumbest feature to be mentioned. If you think the Fjord Blue carpets were useless, this is even more so. Most new Honda models now come with what I like to call the ” mono-vent” which is one unbroken vent spanning the length of the dashboard with smaller individual real vents built into it. You can control the vents with these tiny little knobs, but however you play with it, the vent still looks the same. I love this thing so much. I’d buy an Accord just for it and it alone.
1. AR Navigation Arrows – BMW iX
I guess we should crown the list of interesting features with something actually useful… maybe. In the world of VR and AR technology, auto manufacturers have been trying to find ways to implement it in a way that doesn’t make your life miserable. With BMW, they might have actually done something. In the new iDrive 8 system, the view from the camera on your bumper will be overlayed with these big virtual arrows and projected onto your center screen. Think of this as a real-life version of a virtual racing line. While not groundbreaking by any means, the way in which this is implemented is super slick, and crucially, the system doesn’t force you to use it. Hallelujah. Thank you, BMW.
So, what was your favorite feature? What was your least favorite? Should I stop writing these listicles at 10 p.m Sunday night?
Zander Drives Cars 
Leave a reply to admitchll Cancel reply