We’ve tried it all! Car gadgets have spanned from useful to nearly insane, and some have never quite caught on, which might be a good thing.
What do you want to have in your vehicle? Are you turning your car into a living space or simply trying to get from one place to another? Nearly all convenience or comfort items in your vehicle had their first appearance on a model from years ago. Even safety items were once new to cars, but these quirky car gadgets never caught on.
When you have to go while on the go
When you drive long distances, you have to stop and use the restroom at various locations. Most of us have a favorite spot for one reason or another, but what if you had a built-in toilet in your car? In 1947, Louie Mattar created a toilet in his car and drove 6,320 miles without stopping to use the restroom. This was an idea that had been tossed around a few times, but no automaker had done it, which is probably a good thing. Despite Mattar’s success, this never caught on.
Keep your record collection in your car
Before cassette and 8-track players, most people had vinyl records to listen to music. This meant you had to listen to the radio and not your favorite record. In the 1950s and 1960s, Chrysler actually introduced record players in their cars. These players were made to spin the smaller 7-inch vinyl records, not the 12-inch records that had entire albums on them. Unfortunately, these players were prone to skipping and scratching and didn’t last long.
Keep the children in the back
The idea of a vehicle partition isn’t new and isn’t really one of the quirky car gadgets, except in the sense that this item could be used to keep kids in the back and away from the parents in the front. This idea was floated in the 1950s as a way to keep kids at bay during long car rides. Although partitions have been around for limousines and taxis since the 1940s, the idea of using this item to keep the kids in a separate space just doesn’t make sense.
Turn your car into a horse
The earliest days of the automobile made some people a little frightened of this new invention. To make some people feel more comfortable about these motorized carriages driving around, some automakers attached horse heads to the front, which made it look more like a horse-drawn carriage. These fake horse heads served to inspire confidence in people and help real horses get used to seeing cars on the roadways. This sounds odd, but it made sense at the time.
Doggie Bags
Owners of large dogs have struggled to understand how to transport these dogs. Some people don’t want them making a hairy mess inside their car, and some dogs get carsick very easily. One way to solve this problem is one of the quirky car gadgets that could be attached to a car. It was a large sack, or doggie bag, which was attached to the outside of the car to fit the dog. This prevented the dog from ruining the car’s interior, but it was too cruel to catch as a way to transport the family pet.
Where did the doors go?
If the windows in a car can roll down to open, then why can’t the door do the same thing? BWM created doors that could disappear into the floor in the Z1. This opened the door area without a swinging, hinged door in the way. The doors simply roll down into the floor, but that technology didn’t make it past the Z1 because it’s extremely complicated. These doors require several systems working together, which means more moving parts that must be maintained.
Easier parallel parking
One of the most difficult parts of driving is parallel parking. Those who can do it well might not understand this, but typically, more than 60% of drivers fail the practical test due to this issue. How could automakers make this easier and simpler? Add a fifth wheel. One of the quirky car gadgets that could help was a wheel located under the trunk that runs parallel to the rest of the car. This meant a driver could drive headfirst into the spot, and this wheel could be used to lift the car and roll the rear in line with the front, solving the parallel parking issue.
Which of these quirky car gadgets is your favorite? What would you like to see added to your car?
