5 modern car options that hinder more than help

In the fight for customers, car manufacturers are using different techniques: introducing active safety systems, integrating assistants on the road, and also including a number of options designed to make the driver's job easier. But not all innovations please motorists. Some bring more negative emotions than real help.

Voice Assistant

This option came to the world of the automotive industry from smartphones and other smart gadgets. It is worth noting that in 2020, voice assistants do not always work correctly even on advanced platforms such as Android or IOS. And these giants are investing huge resources in the development of speech recognition technologies.

As for the voice assistant in the car, then things are much sadder. Domestic versions of the assistant are especially affected, since the main market is focused on the Western user. Although with English or Chinese, too, not everything is so good.

The assistant often fails to correctly recognize the command. It does not activate the functions that the driver voices. This is not very annoying when the car is stationary, but on the way it can get mad. The hardest thing is to manage the voice assistant to enable the main options of the car. For example, try to control the optics or the interior air conditioning system.

Start-stop system

The basic principle of this system is to turn on the ignition with a button. Most often it is combined with keyless start. That is, the driver gets access to the car if he brings the key fob to the car. It also allows you to start, acting as a remote key.

Difficulties begin at the moment when the key fob starts to “fail” or breaks. The machine literally turns into a motionless piece of metal. It won't open or start. Such incidents could have been avoided by using the standard key.

The most difficult situation is if your key fob breaks on the way, somewhere in the middle of the highway, 100 km from the nearest settlement. This means that you will have to get to the city on a tow truck. And you will be lucky if there is an authorized dealer of your car in it who can change the key.

Lane Control

Another innovation that should bring the future closer. Lane control is a stripped-down version of autopilot. But with the amendment that the car is guided by the markings, as well as by the car in front. In theory, the car should stay on the road in the specified lane, even at turns or intersections.

In practice, things are different. The car may lose lane and move into the oncoming lane or the roadside. Lane control often fails to read the vehicles in front that are about to turn across your lane. Thus, the function not only helps, but provokes the occurrence of an accident.

In Russia, this option is also dangerous because the lanes on the road are often not visible, especially in winter. In some regions, the marking is duplicated or it is applied over the old lines. All this leads to malfunctions in the strip control system.

Foot opening trunk system

This system has been introduced since the early 2000s. It was believed that cars with a rear door opening sensor are a luxury that owners of expensive cars can afford. In theory, the door should open when a person passes his foot through the air in a certain area under the rear bumper of the car. This should be handy if your hands are full, for example with heavy bags from the supermarket.

In real life, the sensor under the rear bumper is often clogged with dirt. It stops working correctly. The door does not open or starts to close spontaneously. Also, leg swings ruin clothes. Often, drivers collect a lot of dirt from the bumper with their pants when trying to open the back door.

Standard navigation system

Few expensive luxury or business cars can boast a good navigation system. Ordinary budget or middle-class cars are equipped with rather mediocre navigation. She is difficult to work with.

The display on such machines has a low resolution, the data is difficult to read. The touch screen is tight. It displays a small number of objects. The car is often "lost", flying off the road. All this pushes drivers to buy freelance navigation equipment.