Anyone else dissatisfied with new car interiors?

[Tomsriv]

OK, I need to get some things off my chest. Let me know if you agree with me on any of these things.

I've driven lots of different cars from different eras and all I can say is that the interiors are getting worse and worse. My main gripe is that it takes so much time to operate all the different controls. They have gotten more complicated for no reason. Like BMW's I-drive, why the F would you want to control everything from one knob? How can you drive when you are scrolling through menus!

My main gripes
Climate control -
Automatic climate control systems are a pain in the butt. Everytime you roll down the window to talk or grab a ticket the AC fan speeds up so you have to manually turn it down so you can talk. Why not just have a knob, its much easier and faster. I used one with buttons the other day and you have to wait a second after you push the button for the unit to react. It drove me crazy.

Radio Controls - What's with all the unique factory stereos in modern cars? What do you do when the CD player breaks? Spend $800 on a new factory unit?
What was wrong with one knob for volume and one to tune? It takes much longer to turn down a button radio than it would to just twist a knob. Its dangerous when you think you hear sirens and need to turn the volume down quickly without taking your eyes off the road. And its much harder to hit the "mute" button when you are trying to watch the road. Modern stereo manufactues like to put a bunch of small buttons right next to the volume control so you can hit them by mistake.

Leather only - How come I can't get a new Hemi Magnum, Mercedes or BMW with cloth? Ok, the temps in my area only go between 37-97 but I still hate how leather is hot in the summer and cold in the winter. You would think that more manufactures would offer air conditioned seats. Leather is supposed to be classy, but how classy do you look with a wet sweaty back.

cheap door panels - You would think they could be just a little more creative and use more than one or two colors/materials.

Rear windows that don't roll down on 2-doors -
If I can't have a pillarless coupe can I at least roll down the rear windows. I always feel clausterphobic in the back of a 2-door.

Gauges that full-sweep, then start working-
I want to know my oil pressure when I start the car, not 10 seconds after I start it.

Center Consoles- Ok, they have their uses but bench seats are much better for dating. Plus, I can put my backpack on the passenger seat and not have to worry about it getting tangled on the parking brake when I grab it and exit the car. And what about all the crap that falls between the seats? Finally, whats the point of a front wheel drive car with a huge center console. A big selling point of the old cars was that you don't have a huge hump in the floor. Now they just put a console there.

Bells and whistles - Do I really need a headlight reminder alarm? Why not just make them turn off when you turn the key off? After 100 years of building cars we are only now seeing more cars with this feature. The door alarm drives me crazy too, I know my door is open, shut up!

Seat belt reminders - Do you ever forget to put it on and remember when you hear the bell? I didn't think so, get rid of it.

[4ss4s1n]

Seems like you only have a problem with Luxury models.I have to agree with all of those buttons though.They are getting a little crowded nowadays.Fortunately,I drive a 96 t-bird.Not many buttons,and everything is evenly spaced out.And if you do buy a luxury car,simply dont get it with all of those options.

[Tomsriv]

Thats a good point. A lot of the cars I like fall into the luxury car category. I want a rear wheel drive 4-door car and all I can find are luxury cars with all kinds of gizmos that cost to much to repair. Currently I am looking at SUV's because I can't find a car that fits my needs.

[PaulD]

with most luxury cars, the majority of the "options" come standard on the higher packages. I have an automated HVAC system on my accord and I love it. And don't even get me started on the stereo thing, on some new cars the alarm and other functions are hooked to the stereo wiring harness. What were these guys thinking.