The content of the article:
- The most important automotive options
The car has never been a simple mechanism, and in 2019, the configuration of even budget cars became so complex that not all car mechanics can understand the principles of operation of some components. A special place is occupied by assistance systems and comfort functions during driving.
What options do drivers consider the most important, without which the trip becomes problematic and uncomfortable?
The most important automotive options
1. Rear view camera
In 2019, the American analytical company TrueCar conducted a survey of 994 drivers over 18 years old. There was only one question in the questionnaire - which option is the most necessary in the car? 70% of respondents answered that it is a rear view camera. In conditions of constant traffic jams and lack of parking space, the camera becomes an integral part of traffic safety.
2. System of stabilization of exchange rate stability
Russian drivers and motorists of the CIS choose the stability control system as the most necessary option for a modern car: ESP, ESC, VSC, VDC or DSTC. The system prevents the car from sliding sideways on snowy streets and highways, and prevents the chassis from slipping into a skid.
But although Russian drivers consider rear-view cameras to be a convenient function of a car, they can well do without it. For them, the size of the trunk and the convenience of folding the backs of the rear row are much more important.
3. Heated seats
It was Russian and Ukrainian drivers who called seat heating the most essential comfort function in a modern car. At the same time, such an option as warming up the mirrors, windshield and steering wheel is considered a pleasant addition to the configuration, but far from the main one. Domestic drivers have these options on the 15th place in the scale of the necessary ones.
The good news is that all new cars are equipped with the seat heating function today, and you do not have to pay extra for installing an additional system.
The seat ventilation scheme was found to be convenient, but not the main one. Not a single driver interviewed would buy a car based on this "trick".
4. Self-cleaning headlights
The self-cleaning system of head light units is considered to be very necessary for Russian motorists and professional drivers in Europe and Canada. Climatic conditions and a large number of regional routes determine the need for this option. In the USSR, for the first time, the system was tested on Soviet Zhiguli, when they decided to install external miniature wipers on the headlight units.
Modern systems are distinguished by high quality of work - the washer is no longer wasted, and drivers ceased to be nervous when the wipers, clogged with snow, stopped in the middle of the headlights.
5. All-round review. Blind Spot Monitoring
Today, premium segment cars are standardly equipped with the option of a circular or panoramic view. But even for many premium trim levels, such as Audi, the option is only available at an additional cost. Those drivers who have tested the functionality of all-round cameras note the high productivity of the system when parking in a city.
It is not clear why not all manufacturers complete their models with a system - modern technologies allow setting all-round visibility to any brand at a minimum cost of $ 50.
Rear parking sensors and monitoring of "blind spots" are also included in the list of necessary safety options - more than 60% of American drivers noted the need for a system.
Russian drivers treat parking sensors with enviable coolness, perhaps because standard systems do not always objectively reflect the situation, and many motorists have no desire to install an additional parking sensor.
6. Electric side mirror, illumination
From the first days of its appearance, the electric side mirror has become a very convenient and useful function.
Many drivers still remember what it is like to adjust and twist the side mirror almost daily for better visibility. At the same time, the adjustment could not be carried out from the driver's seat - the lever was tightened with a nut, and the drivers ran around the car for several tens of minutes, adjusting their visibility.
Russian motorists consider heated mirrors to be a convenient option, but no more, as well as illumination when opening the door. But European drivers put the backlight and heating of the mirror and windshield in first place, and the electric drive is considered an integral part.
7. Keyless access
The cost of the keyless entry system for manufacturers is no more than $ 1. It is not clear why the option that saves time was not made mandatory for all trim levels, but is still presented as a "feature" and an advantage of the model? The option appeared more than twenty years ago and was immediately appreciated by motorists as necessary.
8. Airbags
Airbags are standard equipment in almost all modern cars. But, according to Russian drivers, additional side airbags are also needed. In any case, half of the Russian motorists surveyed think so.
But their American colleagues are quite happy with the standard systems, but they believe that in addition to the standard pillow, the option of a smart pillow with a weight sensor is necessary.
The reason is that the standard tuned airbag does not take into account the dimensions of the passenger: height and weight, which means that the pillows may not protect the driver in a collision, but cause additional harm.
In addition, standard systems become useless if a puny teenager or a child of primary school age is in the front seat. Therefore, a whole scheme has been developed overseas, which obliges manufacturers to install a full set of security for each car.
9. Full size spare wheel
In the list of the most necessary options, Russian motorists have included a regular full-size spare wheel. The presence of a full-fledged spare wheel becomes necessary for Russian roads, given the distance between stations and the length of the routes.
But American and European drivers put the presence of USB connectors and a Bluetooth system in the car in the 9th place for the necessary car options.
10. Disc brakes
The rating of the most necessary systems of a modern car is completed by the presence of disc brakes. Reliable, simple and efficient discs are far superior to drum brakes. And it is not clear to the common man why manufacturers continue to use "drums" on their models.
Driver preferences and the automaker's marketing plans are completely different things. Therefore, many will still have to re-equip new cars to suit their needs, tastes, concepts of expediency and safety.
"Unnecessary" options
After listing all the necessary systems of a modern car, the drivers also noted those options that, in their opinion, are completely useless in the configuration: a car vacuum cleaner, a data exchange scheme between cars, a rear spoiler, a chrome nozzle for the muffler and a rear seat occupancy sensor.
