8 not-so-useful car accessories

The equipment below, in reality, is more for "showing off value" than providing a better experience for the people sitting in the car.

1. Dashboard screen

Many people want to watch news and movies while driving on the road, so they often install screens in their cars. However, this often brings many dangers because the sounds and images on the screen will cause distraction, affecting the safety of the driver as well as other traffic participants.

For that reason, many states in the US have banned the installation of this device in cars and if anyone violates it, they will be forced to remove it with quite heavy penalties.

2. Steering wheel cover

Most steering wheels are made of leather and have strong stitching. Over time, it can take a long time for the leather and stitching to wear out. However, many people choose to cover their steering wheel with a new leather cover, hoping to prolong the life of the leather steering wheel.

This is unnecessary, and thick steering wheel covers in some cases will make it more difficult for the driver to control, even causing the steering wheel to slip.

3. Sport driving mode switch button

This is probably the most "showy" car equipment.

With sports/performance cars, the sport mode switch often changes the character of the engine, transmission, suspension, steering wheel and many other factors such as engine sound and safety systems, to provide a truly sporty driving feel.

On the contrary, on many popular and even luxury cars, the sport mode switch only helps the automatic transmission shift at higher rpm. In fact, shifting gears late does not make the car stronger or sportier, but only makes your car noisier.

4. Steering wheel paddle shifters

The paddle shifters behind the steering wheel were created to give the feeling of driving a manual transmission on automatic transmission cars. However, in reality, this equipment rarely works. "Clutch out, gas in" is a feeling that is difficult to "imitate" through the paddle shifters.

In addition, most models using automatic transmission have an electronic component that automatically jumps to a higher gear when the engine speed is too high, so the gear shift paddle does not give the "throttle-down" feeling like on models using manual transmission.

5. Electric control seat

If your car has this feature, think back to the last time you used the control button. It was probably when you bought the car and adjusted your seat to your preferred position. After that, the driver rarely needed it again.

Electric seats are probably a worthwhile luxury when your car is frequently used by multiple people, and have the ability to remember multiple seat positions.

6. Mini fridge for car

Most people who have used this device have complained about its insufficient cooling capacity and inconvenience. The refrigerator is only really “cool” when the car has been running for a long time, not to mention maintaining the operation of the refrigerator, which inevitably consumes fuel and directly damages the battery…

Besides, the economic aspect compared to buying water along the way is also considered by some people. Some people give the opinion that when traveling long distances, you have to stop to rest anyway so it is really unnecessary.

7. Steering wheel lock

Sometimes, steering wheel locks are advertised as the best-selling products and you also buy one to prevent car theft. But in reality, with modern cars, thieves can still disable the steering wheel lock and drive your car easily, or simply cut it in a few seconds.

8. Panoramic sunroof

Modern, luxurious, classy, ​​bringing airy space... are many beautiful words used when referring to panoramic sunroof. However, in Vietnam's climate conditions, in addition to the rare opportunity to open the sunroof, a glass roof also causes a lot of trouble in hot weather.

The materials used to make sunroof shades are also often not very good at insulating, so this premium feature is more of a "look" than a useful feature for the occupants of the car.