Most people just drive and park their cars, completely ignoring all those little buttons & switches that they’ve never really touched—but today’s cars have lots of handy features. Some of these are useful things we’ve forgotten all about, while others are things we never even realized were there. Here are thirteen car features you may be underusing. Beyond the basics, these are the features that’ll make you say, “Wait, my car does that?”
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Hood Insulation Panel
That big, fuzzy sheet under the hood isn’t just there for decoration or to cover the engine from view—it actually helps keep engine noise down and protects your hood’s paint from the engine’s heat. If it’s missing or falling apart, you should look at fixing it because it also helps your engine stay warmer in the winter and cool off more evenly in the summer. It’s one of those things people ignore until it’s damaged, and then suddenly, everything feels a bit louder.
Automatic Rear Window Defogger Timer
Most people know about the rear defogger button and completely forget they’ve turned it on, which isn’t too bad because cars have a built-in timer that turns it off automatically. However, what most people don’t know is that some cars let you adjust how long the timer stays on. You’ll have to dig around in the settings, but it’s there, and it’s quite helpful on foggy days. You should adjust it depending on the conditions in your area.
Gas Cap Holder Hook
It’s strange, but many people miss this one constantly—look at the inside of your fuel door and you’ll see a tiny hook or groove where your gas cap is supposed to rest while you fill up. Use it to keep the cap clean and stop dirt from getting inside the gas tank. You also won’t hear it clunking around when you’re driving and while it’s relatively tiny, once you get used to it, it becomes automatic.
Tap-To-Turn Signal Feature
You don’t always need to crank the turn signal all the way down, as by giving it a quick tap, you’ll get a few blinks (usually three), which are perfect for lane changes. It’s built into most newer cars, yet most people keep holding the stalk—or they decide to skip the signal altogether, even though this feature makes lane changes much less annoying. Some cars will even allow you to adjust how many blinks you want, with some cars going up to seven and stopping you from having to click-click your way out of a signal.
Hidden Sunglasses Compartment
Here’s one that’s usually hiding in plain sight, right above your head—that little panel you thought was for lights or maybe just a blank spot might be a place that’s made just for your shades. This means you won’t have to throw your sunglasses in the cupholder or glovebox anymore, especially since some versions have soft fabric lining to prevent scratches. If yours is stuck or doesn’t pop easily, you probably just need to give it a little press or a tiny nudge.
Windshield Washer Nozzle Adjusters
Those tiny nozzles that spray your windshield are actually adjustable and all you need is a safety pin or a needle to change their aim. That’s particularly useful if your washer fluid keeps missing the sweet spot or hitting your roof—it just takes 30 seconds to fix and it feels weirdly satisfying. A little movement goes a long way, though, because adjusting it too much could make the spray shoot right over the roof, so be careful with what you’re doing.
Tailgate Weight Sensor (In SUVs)
Anytime that you try to close your SUV’s liftgate, you might notice that it just bounces back, which could be that the pressure sensor in the latch area is doing its job—even a loose gym bag strap could trigger it. As such, you should be mindful of these sensors because they’re designed to prevent crushing things (or people) and they’re rather sensitive. Check if anything is sticking out, no matter how small it is, because sometimes something as small as a hoodie string is enough to make it go off.
Auto-Hold Braking
An “auto-hold” feature is far more useful than it sounds—for example, if you’re in stop-and-go traffic, you just press the button once and the car holds itself at a stop, rather than riding the brake constantly. This feature resets every drive, though, so you’ll need to hit it each time, but even so, it’s especially useful at drive-thrus or red lights. Some systems will keep holding the brake for a few seconds after you take your foot off, which is perfect if you’re still waking up.
Speed-Dependent Volume Control
When you’re cruising on the highway, the music sounds perfect, but when you slow down in traffic, it’s suddenly booming, and that’s because most cars automatically adjust your stereo volume based on speed. Thankfully, you can usually fine-tune how sensitive it is to smooth out the drive, with some cars calling it “Speed Volume” and others giving it a fancier name like “GALA” or “SDVC.” Either way, they all do the same thing and it’s well worth looking in your audio settings to make the road noise much less annoying during longer trips.
Sun Visor Extenders
The sun visor alone usually isn’t enough when the glare’s coming in from the side, so you should check to see if your visors slide out or if they have hidden extensions inside. These features aren’t always obvious until you yank on them a bit, but once you know it’s there, you’ll never go back to squinting. They usually slide sideways on a rail or flip down an extra flap, but either way, the next time it’s too sunny, give the visor a tug & check.
Steering Wheel Heat Timer
Heated steering wheels are quite sophisticated, but what’s better than that is that some cars let you program it to turn on with the remote start, which is usually buried in the settings. Turn it on so that your hands stay warm on frosty mornings without you doing a thing—you may be able to link it to your key fob or profile settings so it starts with the seat heaters too. It’s definitely useful if you live somewhere cold and once you try this, you’ll never go back to cold steering wheels.
Auto-Dimming Rearview Mirror
Look closely at your rearview mirror and if you see a little sensor on the front & back, it probably auto-dims when it senses bright lights behind you, which kicks in automatically at night. But most drivers don’t realize they’re able to turn it on or off with a button right on the mirror—some people accidentally disable it without knowing. It makes night driving more comfortable and reduces glare from high beams, so just press the button.
Cabin Air Filter Access Panel
Behind your glove box, there’s usually a small panel that gives you access to the cabin air filter, which filters out dust and other stuff coming through your vents. Most people never replace it because they don’t realize it’s easy to get to and you don’t need tools for most cars—just drop the glove box, pop off the cover, and swap it out. This is definitely something worth doing if your AC smells funky or the airflow feels weak and swapping it once or twice a year makes the air inside your car much cleaner.
Disclaimer: This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information.
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