The "Small nuisances that I hate about my car!" Thread

[cawimmer430]

I'm happy with my car overall, but one thing that really bugs me is on/off status indicator for the auto wiper mode. It's hidden behind the steering wheel and impossible to see from my driving position. When I turn it on, a little green light is activated. But I can't for the love of the imaginary lord see this light. I need to physically lean over the steering wheel and check out the right stalk on which it is located. Sometimes, on longer rainy journey's I might actually forget if I turned it on/off, especially when the speed is set to slow (one wipe every few minutes if it senses some droplets on the windshield). Even when the system is activated, it might not engage the wipers due to there being no droplets on the windshield.

It's not really a big deal, but it's just one of those small things that bother me.



Standard view when driving. Can't see the on/off status of the auto wiper mode...





Still can't...





Basically, I need to learn over and to the side of the steering wheel to see the on/off status.









Aha! Turn the wheel and you can see it! 

[Northlands]

My daily driver is almost 13 years old. I could probably write a book at this point. But it still runs.

[MexicoCityM3]

My cars share exactly the same problem. Yes, it's a nuisance that you can't see that indicator.

[Soup DeVille]

Ehhh, if the wipers are working, on my car these big black flappy things wave around in front of the windshield. Can't miss them!

[280Z Turbo]

My car is lurchy between all gears. The only way to complete a smooth shift is to slip the clutch a lot.

Wondering if an idiot PO put in a lightened flywheel.

It's so irritating I almost want to sell it.

[ifcar]

Since we're talking about small nuisances, mine is a cheap brittle-feeling turn signal stalk on the Focus. Every time you push it it makes a sound like it wants to snap off.

Oh, and weak high beams.

[Gotta-Qik-C7]

The gas filler is on the passenger side!

[Soup DeVille]

I have six ashtrays but no cup holder.

[SVT666]

Infiniti G37 = Road noise (though mostly cured with Goodyear Eagle LS2 tires) and transmission wants to shift when I don't want it to, or it refuses to shift when I want it to.

Explorer = backseat passenger side headrest blocks entire rear side window.

[Laconian]

Soggy shifting AT at low RPMs.
No native A2DP.
I can't find the spare key anywhere.

[veeman]

The most irritating incessant "boing" sounds when the seatbelt is off or the door is ajar in my 2007 Sonata.  When the car is in Park with the engine on and I take my seatbelt off, why does it need to "boing"?

[hotrodalex]

Turn signals don't always turn off on their own.
Car shakes when engaging clutch from a stop about half the time.
Brand new alternator belt is making a whirring noise above 2500 rpm.
Gas mileage sucks.

[Xer0]

When I pair up Google maps with my Bluetooth and someone calls me, the Honda's informant system will hang up the call at least half the time.  It's frustrating.  If I do Google maps through USB nothing goes wrong.

[thewizard16]

The gas filler is on the passenger side!

^This

And:

• The light monitoring system is really finicky. If the left (only the left) turn signal has been on for a long time, say two or three cycles going through a long line at a light, sometimes the bulb out indicator will come on and the screen will say "Left Tail Bulb Not Working!". (The left tail light is the same set of LEDs as the turn signal, just lower intensity.) That's annoying, but what is more annoying is it turns off power to that component, presumably to protect against a short or some such thing, so then although your LED tail light was always working to begin with, now doesn't work at all because it got confused and actually turned the damn thing off. Have to restart the car to reset that. Seems to happen more in lower temperatures, but can happen any time. Interestingly the turn signal function is totally unaffected, it just kills the left tail light. Passat forums revealed this to be a common problem.
• If you overfill your tank... like, even a little bit over when the nozzle on the gas pump shuts off... then it can overflow and foul up something related to the EVAP/carbon filter/some weird thing and the car will take forever to start and will then run really rough for a few minutes. If you've done it several times then the whole EVAP system gets mad and it'll rough start (you may have to try 3-4 times to start the car) every time the gas cap is opened. Only solution is to replace the EVAP valve, or god forbid the whole filter assembly by the fuel nozzle, and then never fill it over when the nozzle clicks off. Reason that is annoying: People with OCD or OCD trait like even dollar amounts on the fuel receipt. Also, some gas pumps are really conservative and shut off way too early. I've had the tank underfilled by as much as an 1/8 a tank before because I didn't dare fill it anymore after the nozzle clicked off.
• The AC will sometimes just decide not to give you cold air. This happened most often when the temperature dial is set to the coldest setting, which is what most people do when it's 100+ outside and your black interior is hotter than fires of hell. Sometimes turning the fan all the way off and back on will fix it, but most of the time you have to turn off the AC button, let it blow hot air at you for a minute, then turn the AC button back on. Solution to the problem my mother discovered accidentally when she was driving it: Just set the temperature dial to 72 and it works perfectly every time. Wtf?
• Who the hell decided 5w-40 "european" synthetic was what this thing needed? Almost no traditional shops carry it in the non-diesel-truck formulation. A quick call to the dealer confirmed that the infinitely more common 5w-30 synthetic was just fine and some brands of it were even covered by warranty since so many owners were having problems getting 5w-40 oil...
• I don't like the little clicker on top of the wiper stalk to adjust the intermittent speed- I strongly prefer the style where you rotate the end of the stalk to change the timing of the wipers.
• I need to have a spare key made but the stupid fob is something like $300+ and apparently when the battery inside it eventually dies it has to be replaced by the dealer at a high cost.
• It's stupid expensive to repair anything on despite not being a luxury brand. Timing belt job cost almost $400 more than the Lexus did.
• The change in the series of engine in 2008 means shops are always confused about which version of the 2.0T mine is and causes delays in getting pretty much anything done since they have to call me.
• Gas mileage is kind of mediocre for a 4 cylinder but it's quicker than the equally thirsty V6s I had been driving so I forgive that.
• I have no idea what I'm supposed to put in the strange little slide-out drawers on either side of the hazard button. This picture shows coins but I did that once and since the thing angles back in when you close it the coin fell out the back and got stuck behind the drawer and rattled around until I removed the whole assembly to get it out.

That looks like a lot. Don't get me wrong, I still really enjoy this car, but it's quirky attitude and very specific maintenance/parts issues can be quite annoying.

[thewalrus]

Driver's seat is incredibly tough to adjust.
Turn signals don't automatically return to neutral after a turn.
Wipers need to be pushed down manually after use.
fan belt makes a chirping noise when heated - likely a dying water pump.
takes forever to warm up (and protests greatly while driving it before then)
heat provided by heater is largely psychological
door locks work intermittently
dash lights only work when you shine a flashlight on them.

[Raza]

Guys, just so you know, the fuel filler belongs on the passenger side.  Might as well complain that the steering wheel is on the driver's side. 


And for me, it's that neither of my gloveboxes lock.  And that you can't really reach the second glovebox without leaning really far towards the passenger seat.  So, if you have a passenger, it's going to be awkward. 

[Raza]

• I don't like the little clicker on top of the wiper stalk to adjust the intermittent speed- I strongly prefer the style where you rotate the end of the stalk to change the timing of the wipers.

Sigh.  The clicker is infinitely better.  It can be operated with one finger, whereas the rotating stalks mean you have to take your hand off the wheel to grip the stalk.  Silly rabbit. 

[Lebowski]

One thing I absolutely hate about the 4runner is the stupid sliding cargo tray in back.

[Lebowski]

Gas filler belongs on driver side hello.

[Madman]

Okay, I hate to be That Guy, but we did this just last year.

http://www.carspin.net/index.php?topic=29065.0


And both times it was Wimmer complaining about the very same thing!

[Payman]

Gas filler belongs on driver side hello.

Yes. It's easier to drive up to a pump and gauge your distance when the pump is on the left. More importantly, why the hell should I have to get out and go around to the other side of the car to pump my gas? Much easier to get out, insert my card and pump gas right there on the driver's side.

So yes, this is one annoyance with my '13 Focus. A bigger one is the awful lurchy 7 speed tranny when I'm crawling along in city traffic.

[CALL_911]

Oh man, I don't even know where to start. Overall I love the car, but there are some really small things that do piss me off about it

[Rupert]

Sigh.  The clicker is infinitely better.  It can be operated with one finger, whereas the rotating stalks mean you have to take your hand off the wheel to grip the stalk.  Silly rabbit.

No, it's a Passat.

[Rupert]

Explorer has shitty high beams, no one-wipe wiper function... I think that's it. 944 has a really weird ventilation system that I can never remember exactly how to control.

[Rich]

I'd like to weld in a couple bars from the cowl to the rear bulkhead somehow.

And more torks/a fuller hp curve at the bottom end.

[Byteme]

CLK:
No aux power point.
CD changer in trunk.
No lock on console


6:
No aux input for the radio


F150
No complaints.

[Rupert]

944 also has silly window switches.

[Gotta-Qik-C7]

Gas filler belongs on driver side hello.

Yes. It's easier to drive up to a pump and gauge your distance when the pump is on the left. More importantly, why the hell should I have to get out and go around to the other side of the car to pump my gas? Much easier to get out, insert my card and pump gas right there on the driver's side.

So yes, this is one annoyance with my '13 Focus. A bigger one is the awful lurchy 7 speed tranny when I'm crawling along in city traffic.

My point exactly!!!!

[Lebowski]

I would like to hear Raza's reasoning. I can't think of a good reason passenger side would be preferred.  Unless you make your wife pump the gas maybe.

[Rupert]

Something something German cars.

You know, I really don't care which side the gas cap is on, so long as I can remember it.