Bad design bloopers

[e287yba]

Keys in locks? That's so twentieth century...

 

And yes, I think that's the sort of device being used . Clcking on "BMW" on that link is fairly illuminating as well ! But I gather it's cheap copies from China.

 

There's an easy way 'around' a Disklok (which BMW owners are beginning to use now, apparently) as well, but I've never located anything on that .

[willswitchengage]

LED lights annoy me in general, actually any excessively bright lights annoy me. I thought we had a wattage limit on bulbs because they were getting excessively bright when people were fitting 80/100W front bulbs etc? So now we have HIDs and LED rears that pale all of them into insignificance. It's bad in town but it's literally unbearable on unlit roads.

 

+ twelvety. I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but when a modern car (actually, anything less than 10 years old) comes around the corner of a B-road in front of me, I literally have nearly a second of complete & total vision black-out after the initial glare hits me. Now my eyes are definitely not defective enough to hinder my driving, and maybe 1 second of blindness doesn't sound like a problem at sensible speeds, but it properly scares me sometimes. I'd really love someone from VOSA (or whoever gets the final say on such regs) to explain to me how lights which render me unable to see anything are an actual step forward in 'safety'.

 

Talking of keys first... I can safely say that the £5 Timpsons cut that I use in my BX feels a lot more robust, high quality and substantial than the plasticy "keyless fob" that my brother's brand new 1-series has.

 

Been debating HID bulbs before on the BX forum. I've never had a problem with them on A-roads, but night time motorwaying is a dazzle-a-thon these days - especially in SUVs where they're a foot or so higher fundamentally so they reach further. Sadly I've even found myself having to honkyflash as these motorists pass me due on occasion, due to my having to try and adopt some sort of foetal position in the cabin to avert my eyes from all three mirrors. I've also noticed an alarming amount of people driving with just fogs and sides turned on - I'm guessing it looks "cool".

 

And is it just me but do all LED DRLs look tacky and shit? Aftermarket or Audi, they're far too bright and just look cheap and nasty. Please VW wasn't tempted to go down the LED path with the current Golf.

[R9UKE]

There was a similar case where dodgy Renault technicians were programming key cards to some Renaults while they were in for work, then selling them, along with the owners details to some even shadier characters who would then come and relieve you of your Vel Satis.

[Negative Creep]

I don't fully understand the science part, but apparently LEDs can have the same wattage as halogen bulbs, but appear brighter to the human eye since the output is more focused and doesn't dissipate as much

[Morgan84]

I have a feeling LED running lamps will become standard issue,and maybe even put into legislation in the future.

 

Running lamps are a good idea;the Volvo/Saab idea if having the sidelamps on all the time whilst the engine is running was a good idea,as many people are too ignorant to think about using lights when the weather turns,or it starts getting a bit dark. Dark country lanes through woodland is a prime example where its so easy to not see a dark car coming towards you,and if travelling fast,can lead to the exchanging of mirrors,or sometimes worse.

 

I agree that these LED lamps are very glaring;but is driving with front fog lamps on if they are aimed too high. I've been dazzled by more running lamps,than I have front fogs,yet the Police don't worry about these overbright running lamps,as there ( to my knowledge ) is no legislation against driving with them,even if they do glare - however they can pull you for having on front fog lamps

 

Modern lamps I agree are not as good as the older ones,as designers chose form over function;the VW rear indicator in the middle of the circular brake lamp is a stupid idea,as are indicators within headlamps - why compromise safety for style ? Another thing I think is daft is my Mito has the option of day running lamps,but only the front lamps illuminate - not the rears or the interior dials.The Mito simply has a on or off function light switch meaning you either have no lamps on,or have all on at once;well,sometimes you want to only have sidelamps on,but this daft switching arrangement prevents this.As it happens,I have the running lamps on all the time,but feel a option of "Off-Side-Headlamps " like is usually used on cars would be much better

[M'coli]

I don't fully understand the science part, but apparently LEDs can have the same wattage as halogen bulbs, but appear brighter to the human eye since the output is more focused and doesn't dissipate as much

To simplify: for the same wattage, a halogen bulb will turn more of the electrical energy into heat than the LED, thus the reason why you shouldn't touch a Halogen bulb as the oils left on the surface of the glass from your fingers/toes/etc. could cause the glass of the bulb to shatter but an LED will be cool to touch even when running; the LED will only produce light int he visible spectrum and so produce more iof it for a particular wattage.

[John F]

BINI front seats.

 

The base slides forward to let people into the back, but it doesn't return to its previous position. You either end up with your knees around your chin when you get back in or it slices off the rear seat passenger's ankles. Bloody terrible for a new-ish car.

[willswitchengage]

Modern lamps I agree are not as good as the older ones,as designers chose form over function;the VW rear indicator in the middle of the circular brake lamp is a stupid idea

 

I actually noticed this today on a new Ford kay-ay - oh look there it is indicating to pull over, oh now it's braking and I can no longer see the indicator lamp. Plus, it's a really stupid car anyway.

 

Citroen BX backrest support. Instead of moving backwards and forwards like a normal car, the whole thing rocks backwards like an office chair.

[dieselnutjob]

new Mercedes have really bright brake lights. If you have to stop behind one in traffic it hurts your eyes

[Rusty Pelican]

Followed a Honda HRV thing the other night , he braked for a bend and the high level brake light on the roof took my retinas out

[R9UKE]

^

 

The Mitsubishi Grandis is the worst for this. Thankfully they're hard to come by, but if you're ever behind one at night, you won't forget the experience. I still have sunburn from being stuck behind one at the lights.

[warren t claim]

The BMW E30 3 series estate is a finely proportioned machine that's blessed with fine lines and looks right until you open the tailgate and the sight of the miss-shaped aperture makes anyone with even a passing interest in aesthetics want to reach for the sick bucket.

[Morgan84]

The BMW E30 3 series estate is a finely proportioned machine that's blessed with fine lines and looks right until you open the tailgate and the sight of the miss-shaped aperture makes anyone with even a passing interest in aesthetics want to reach for the sick bucket.

 

Yes,as a loadlugger,its a pretty useless loading area !

[MrDuke]

Have we had underslung spare wheels yet? I know how annoying it can be having to empty your boot to access a stowed spare, but having seen a Pug 205 'lose' its spare right in front of me, the 'french' mounting system scares me a bit. It was at less than 30mph so no damage, but it could just as easily have been at 60 or 70 a bit further down the road. I suppose it's not so much a design flaw, as they're perfectly secure and practical if the wheel's centred in the cage and the bolt's been done up nice and tight... but a feature which depends on the owner having any mechanical awareness at all is not a good one IMO.

[eddyramrod]

Have we had underslung spare wheels yet?

 

Oh yes, what fun... as if it wasn't easy enough to forget about the spare when checking your tyres, they go and hide it in one of the dirtiest places it could be put, accessed by a mechanism that reliably seizes though disuse. My truck has the spare hidden under the load bed; when I first needed it I couldn't even get the f*cking thing moving! (I did in the end but it was a bit fraught.) Since then, every time I've put it back on the rack, within a few days I've had a flat and needed it again. So now it just floats around in the bed, leaping every time I go over a speed bump.

[forddeliveryboy]

Cambelts on cross-wise engines. Cambelts where there isn't at least a foot of clear space in front of the engine to work, or a radiator which comes out in ten minutes. Auxiliary belts with at least twelve pulley wheels.

 

Having grown up with engines which never needed cambelt changes, ones which didn't wreck themselves even if they did break and good old pushrods, I've never liked a glorified elastic band keeping the engine's internals rotating. Especially when a seized water pump can then wreck the engine also, or just a collapsed plastic tensioner. Worst thing is, there's no warning before they let go. Just the sound of bending valve stems when they do.

 

In the drive to lenthen service intervals, poly v-belts with a route rivalling the complexity of a London bus are everywhere, driving everything. They cost squillions, are impossible to fit at the side of the road and the engine often can't run without, unless you want to wreck it.

 

My old Merc has two blooming great chains turning things, which can stretch and wear a bit by 300,000 miles, but don't break and the engine just carries on going. I thought it was a positive move for manufacturers to be fitting chains instead of cambelts once again, until I saw the size of one in a scrapyard. Half the size of my bike chain, fit for a toy.