What do you miss about your old cars? (2011, traction control, fuel)

[StuffedCabbage]

Vent windows in driver/rider front seat windows. Best way to exhaust air from the car without unecessary draftiness, even when the main windows are down. Why they got rid of those is beyond me. Cigarette ashes fly out the vent and away from the car, never blow back in. Good for smokers and non-smokers.

[T. Damon]

Originally Posted by Fairfax Mom

I miss having something nice to lean on - the new car armrests are junky or not in the right place for a leaner.

I remember reading the manual of one of our newer cars and was astounded (well, actually in this day of rampant ridiculous litigation, perhaps not) to read something to this effect: "Do not place arms on door arm rests as potential for injury exists from deployment of side airbags"!? So maybe this has something to do with our increasingly uncomfortable and chintzy arm rest. padding these days.

[ByeByeLW]

I had a 74 Cadillac Sedan de Ville when I was in my 20s. It was already old; the light blue color was so beautiful I just fell in love with it.

The upholstery was royal blue leather in mint condition.

We called it the Cadoo. I was thankful for having such a boat of a car when I got rear ended by a huge dump truck.

The back bumper ended up in the back seat; the trunk looked like a tent.

I got a stiff neck but no other damage. Just think what would have happened in another vehicle!

[ukrkoz]

Originally Posted by arrieros81

I just replaced a 2004 subaru forester with a 2014 mazda 6; the forester was a family car and my sibling needed it.

Things I miss:
- AWD. In 10 years of AWD never skidded or burned rubber when accelerating. Just got my first taste of that within the second day of the new car ownership.

- Manual transmission. Fun to drive, and felt totally, completely, in control of the car. Also less prone to daydreaming and not paying attention to the road. The automatic in the new car is nice and less pain in the butt in traffic, but I still miss shifting manually and the sport shift doesn't simulate the manual hardly.

- Wagon height. Easy to get in and out of. New car have to squat down, and more compact dimensions means being very careful not to hit head on doorjamb. Also not used to sitting so low to the ground in a sedan.

- Simplified controls. Don't have to refer to owners' manual to figure out complicated controls on dashboard.

- Compact size. the steering wasn't that responsive but the compact dimensions compared to the new car, helped with perceived maneuverability and on narrow roads I didn't feel like I was going to brush the sides of passing cars.

Things I don't miss:
- Pronounced road noise. I suppose the rubber insulating the doors breaks down after a while. at highway speeds I can barely hear the radio and having a conversation with a person would be difficult. New car is much more insulated.

- AWD. One year, I had two instances of a flat tire, which required replacing all four tires. I had to do that twice. If i get a flat in the new car I can just replace that tire.

- Glass windows. the glass windows were completely clear with no treatment for UV or heat protection. UV shielding, at least the UVB rays seems standard now. I'll be treating the new car anyways. In the old car you could get a sunburn, though I should have gotten the windows treated and problem solved.

This didn't really bother me so much but shortly after we got the car, we were informed by a family member, who had also bought a forester, that they were perceived as the "gay" car, lol. whatever. I really miss it even though the new car is a nice one.

So truly, your post should have been:

WHAT DID YOU MISS IN SUBARU FORESTER VS A DIFFERENT VEHICLE.

[SabresFanInSA]

I miss everything about my 300. It was an '06 and in 2012 I wanted something new so I got my '10 SHO. Wish I still had my 300. I didnt have a single complaint with that Hemi.

[SoCalCpl2]

I miss the fact that u could get run over by a semi and the car wouldnt fold in on itself unlike cars nowadays

[BuenoOffenhauser]

What do you miss about your old cars?

Simplicity. They were easy to fix.

[wit-nit]

I miss the 4 on the floor and the headers that roared from the 440 engine that knocked your socks off.

[mym]

I had a mazda glc. I loved that car cuz it was close to the beach. it was a hatchback and you could stuff 6 people in it and a cooler. everyone threw in a buck or two and we'd have gas and rum for the day.

it had a choke that you could toggle with the accelerator and it kinda worked like a cruise control and you'd drive on the beach back roads puttering about at 10mph. sometimes we'd get out and run next to it for abit.

on the body there was a metal loop (for the door locking mechanism) you could use as a bottle opener.

the door lock was busted and you could turn it with a dime. the ignition as well.

you could manually adjust the clutch cable by tightening a nut and chirp tires into 2nd gear although the top speed was 56

the hood was large and the ladies could sit back on it while you puttered around on those backroads.

the radio was busted so I had a boombox wrapped up in a seatbelt on the passenger seat.

one year it got hit every month on the regular. i'd just park it somewhere and people would run into it. never understood that. it was red.

and even though nothing on it worked it still got you where you wanted to go.

[North Beach Person]

Why would one have to replace all four tires if one got a flat? Yes, with a trashed tire you have to many times, but not for a repairable flat.