We are, of course, a stylish group with our individual cars. We must be like that, right?
After all, we value cars for a living, so we’re not exactly the type of people who would buy a car without thinking twice about making a purchase.
With our personal cars, we know what we want and we go out and buy them. But that doesn’t mean we’ve all bought absolutely perfect cars.
Here, auto expert The group shares our flaws about the cars we own and what we wish we could change – or what we plan to fix.
Alborz Fallah
This might be the definition of a first world problem, but I wish my 458 Speciale had stereo. I know it doesn’t take much but believe it or not, not only does it have no stereo, it doesn’t even have cruise control!
It was a free option but the original owner had plans to make it the lightest Speciale in Australia – which he seems to have succeeded in doing as it has every piece of carbon and not even had a low-quality two-speaker stereo borrowed from a Fiat. 500. Saving for what? 8-9kg? Unworthy.
I know what you’re thinking (world’s smallest violin), but look, when I’m stuck in traffic and all I have to hear is the Novitec exhaust screeching (it wonderful sound) through a spartan interior that is as soundproof as Anthony’s motorcycle, it gets tiresome. I look forward to your sympathy in the comments below.
THAN: Why I bought a Ferrari 458 Speciale
Anthony Crawford
After giving up my 911 CS and Mustang Bullitt – all that was left in our garage was an XC40 (also tuned by Polestar) and a BMW R NineT motorcycle.
Five years on and the Volvo still looks absolutely modern, only, right now, I wish we had the new EX30 Ultra 315kW twin engine parked in its place. It will accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in just 3.6 seconds. [Ed: So your answer is you want to change the whole thing?]
Yes, I love that and the design – Volvo continues to design and build exciting and innovative cars.
I wish my BMW had a digital driver display instead of useless analog gauges that are hard to read when jumping.
Paul Maris
One thing very lacking in our Tesla is the head-up display or the display in front of the driver. It makes things like blind spot and speed monitoring more difficult than it should be.
With the Model Y not having blind spot monitoring in the rearview mirror, they mimicked the Hyundai and Kia live display systems, but instead of displaying it on the display in front of the driver, it’s on the display. main.
When Kia and Hyundai nailed the blind-spot camera, Tesla using it in the main display was fine, but it was more distracting than necessary.
They also need Apple CarPlay. The available voice recognition system is very average and makes simple things like replying to messages difficult to do.
THAN: Why I bought a Tesla Model Y
Scott Collie
I wish my Pajero had a telescopic steering wheel.
For the most part, it’s a very comfortable cruiser, with plush velvet seats and a comfortable ride, but couldn’t get the steering wheel into place for my skinny legs. Of course, I’m willing to let him cross that front because he’s about to turn 20.
While I’m complaining, the aftermarket and parking sensors are average at best. Maybe it’s time to install an Apple CarPlay head unit?
Jade Credentino
This is hard because my car is perfect for me as it is. It was the first car I paid off, it took me on the Sydney-Melbourne trip, it was there when I traveled some epic places around New South Wales.
However, if I were to buy a brand new i30, I would definitely prefer the wireless charging dock option and wireless Apple CarPlay. Now living in Melbourne, I’ve developed a reliance on heated seats and heated steering wheel, which means I’ll need to move up from the base Active model, a whole new fish.
I think that if I were to buy a brand new car today, I wouldn’t choose a basic model either, because I’m used to all the tech and mode cons that are available on cars. different today. I would have FOMO in no time if I spent some of my savings and missed out on features that I actually use every day.
I have to admit there’s something humbling about going back to my 2018 i30 Active and messing around with my wired Apple CarPlay and single-zone air conditioning haha. When I bought the car it was great to have Apple CarPlay in a car under $50,000, now see how cars have evolved to this day!
Derek Fung
Ever since we bought our used 2014 Ford C-Max, I’ve been hatching the idea of upgrading the standard Sync 2 infotainment system to a newer Sync 3 unit.
Not only does the interface go beyond usability on the road (thanks to the larger buttons, better layout, and capacitive touchscreen), but it also supports Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, both of which are ideal. This is the main reason why I chose this route.
After watching (apparently) hours of video showing how to do the swap, I found a cheap Sync 3 monitor, controller, and USB ports from a broken Escape. I backed away from hitting the Pay button because in my heart I knew that an hour on a YouTube video could cost me weeks.
Given that it takes several hours to replace the front indicator light (I blame the unnecessarily tight design of the headlight bracket and plug), and an entire day to replace a faulty reversing camera, the thought of living without having parts on my console last that amount of time means my Sync 3 dreams will remain the same. And now.
I also dream of replacing the wheels with ST-style alloys stolen from another member of the Ford family. And if I had loads of cash, I would also find a way to replace the ugly head with a slightly better Euro version. Then again, if I had an endless supply of dollars, would I still drive a Ford?
William Stopford
There are a few little things that have bothered me about my 2015 Hyundai Genesis since I bought it, and they hinge on missing features available in other markets.
I can handle without the rotary knob for the infotainment system commonly found in left-hand drive cars, but as beautiful as the faux-wood look – which isn’t always possible with plastic trees – I Would love to have a beautiful opening – hollow wood ornaments already available elsewhere.
Then there’s the lack of turn-by-turn navigation. On the instrument cluster screen one of the headings is for this but when you select it you just see a power off icon. Turn-by-turn directions do not appear on this display nor do they appear in the head-up display.
Then the lack of USB ports and stability controls can be a bit annoying at times. I also set the radio to classic because the car doesn’t default to Bluetooth Audio on startup and for some reason the radio is louder than the streaming audio. I’m sick of the Triple J or Nova’s loud bang when I start the car and the system can sometimes start up slowly as well.
But what bothers me the most is the lack of Android Auto, even though this has been rolled out to owners of some vehicles overseas. It seems like a no-brainer to Australian owners, and the more I drive new cars with Android Auto – nearly every new car sold today – the more I wish my car have it.
THAN: Why I bought a Hyundai Genesis
Quick Jack
There are quite a few things I would like to change about my 2020 Suzuki Jimny, but a lot of it is inevitable as it is really a box with wheels.
My main concern with Jimny is that it feels constantly out of breath. I absolutely have to twist its neck if I want to get through a traffic light. 75kW and 130Nm are not enough.
I’ve also had a case where I was going up a hill at highway speed and my speed dropped completely. It’s not like I can actually shift gears because at 110km/h in fifth gear, Jimny is spinning at 3500rpm.
I prefer a different gear because at highway cruising speeds, the noise the engine makes is hard to ignore. I try my best to drown out the noise with some music, but there’s only so much I can do.
One last thing that I would like to change about my Jimny is how blown it is on the road. I remember driving past Ballarat on the highway in heavy rain and wind and almost getting thrown from side to side. This is actually quite a scary experience.
James Vuong
In case no one knows, I drive a Mk7.5 Golf – a GTI, nothing more, nothing less.
While I would die on a hill saying it’s my pinnacle of compact cars in recent times, there are a number of features that have rolled out since its release that would make it a better one. little.
Wireless Apple CarPlay and wireless phone charging take the hassle out of fiddling with cables every time I get in the car, as well as a specially designed spot to put my phone.
It’s also a lot more convenient to just go in and have my phone connect to CarPlay the same way it connects to Bluetooth at startup.
My other annoyance is that my 12.3-inch Active Info Screen – known today as Digital Cockpit Pro – loses the map view when I’m using Apple Maps or Google Maps to navigate. .
In new models, the map screen will stay on and small turn-by-turn prompts will flash for Apple Maps. It’s just better integrated these days.
