I’ve never really liked the term “pet peeve.” It always sounded like the type of thing a sort of fussy person would keep track of in a little leather-bound journal, and that’s not really who I want to be. But, the word is useful in its specificity: some little habit or detail or practice that just rubs you wrong, and you end up making those annoyances your own special little irritants. They’re pet peeves, after all, and as pets, they need attention and need to be fed. So, that’s what I’m going to do right now, with two automotive pet peeves of mine!
A pet peeve generally is something sort of trivial, not Earth-shaking, and I think that qualifies for the ones I feel a need to share with you today, because, objectively, they’re not big things at all, and I should just get over it.
But I can’t. They don’t stop annoying me. So let me vent them out here, and hopefully I’ll be free!
Peeve One: Rear Windows Are Not “Windshields”
I feel like I encounter this one a lot, and every time I hear it, I wince a bit. And it’s not like it’s uncommon, or not accepted in general use. I know automotive designers like to call it a “backlight” but I always found that a strange and slightly confusing term, though it is better than “DLO” or “daylight opening” which just sounds like what an alien might call a window, were they unfamiliar with the concept.
I think the reason I don’t like “rear windshield” is because it simply isn’t a shield, dammit, not in the way a windshield is. The windshield literally shields you from the wind, from the air you’re pushing out of the way as you drive forward. The rear window? It just doesn’t do that. Well, I guess in reverse it does, a bit, but by that logic we’d call back-up lights “rear headlights” and no one does that.
This is a little thing, I know, but I feel like I can always spot someone who does not care about cars if they call a back window a “rear windshield.” Does that make me a dickhead? Does anyone else understand what I’m talking about here? I hope so.
Peeve Two: Using Clear Bulbs Instead of Amber Bulbs In Clear-Lensed Turn Indicators
Okay, this is a taillight-related peeve, so you know it’s important. I was reminded of this one again when I saw this Kia Soul the other day:
See what’s going on there? This one car is an object lesson in what I’m talking about. When car designers want an amber turn indicator – front or rear – but don’t necessarily want a big amber lens, they will often have a clear lens with an amber bulb inside, a compromise to get the proper color of light without all the bright visual orange some people – especially a lot of designers – seem to want to avoid.
When they do this, there’s a sort of unspoken agreement between you and the designer that when those bulbs need changing, you’ll find replacement amber bulbs and not just throw in some clear bulb, which hasn’t been the legal color of turn indicators since 1962. It’s like the people who don’t play ball here are going to ruin the concept of clear lens/amber bulb for everyone with this bullshit, because this lack of shit-givery is how we get mandated lens colors, people.
And let’s not forget the troubles we went through just getting from white to amber:
It wasn’t easy!
That Kia up there had one amber bulb and one clear one: for fuck’s sake, Kia owner, stop being so lazy! Where’s your sense of taillight dignity?
Man, after writing these out, they really do seem fussy and trivial. But I guess that’s the nature of a pet peeve, right?
Okay, now tell me yours! Make mine seem less inane, please?
My main Automotive Pet Peeve nowadays is: 90-something % of other drivers. STOP LOOKING AT YOUR FUCKING PHONES !!!!!
Spot-on with “read windshield”. That was hard to even type. Back glass seems the most common to me…rear vision is acceptable. Anyone saying rear windshield is a dolt.
Here in Penn’s Woods, we have a State Inspection program that will fail you if you attempt what this Kia owner did with incorrect color bulbs in incorrect places.
That being said, your expectations of a Kia owner, a Soul, at that are outrageous. If they gave a half a shit about cars that most likely wouldn’t be driving this shitbox in the first place. Expecting them to 1) know what they’re doing and/or 2) care about the car is just not reasonable. You can’t get mad for monkeys flinging poo at the zoo.
I mean if it is really that big of deal, then just axe the Windshield moniker al together and just call it the front window. By your logic it should be called the tail shield, but because some guy in the 1910’s did not start that weird description it would never work.
What’s with the rubber duckies on the dashboards of Wranglers and Broncos? This seems to be a new trend that has quickly become a pet peeve of mine. WTF?
Mine is when someone waiting to pick someone up chooses to stop at an intersection such that it isn’t clear that they won’t be moving though the intersection. It’s a problem at my local university, but once ride-sharing started, the ride share drivers are also guilty. Stop before or after the intersection and throw on your hazard lights.
Have you driven a vehicle without a rear windshield? It’s windy. Therefore, the glass is shielding us from the wind…
Automotive pet peeves:
1) Drivers who fly down the interstate well over the posted limit but then slow down as much as 20-30mph on a gradual sweeping curve. I get the need to scrub a little speed if you don’t trust the cornering ability of your anonymous SUV, but JFC.
2) Drivers who panic brake near known cop hideouts (even if they can tell from quite a distance that there’s no cop present).
and here’s a new one as of last night…
3) Bicyclists who have no reflectors, lights or any means of illumination riding on an unlit street after dark. We are both fortunate that, during my left turn, the only thing that hit him were the beams of light from my headlights. He would’ve run into the side of my car had he not braked.
Well, the first one that comes to mind is the whole “3” and “5” door hatchback thing. Unless the people who’ll call them that use nothing but doors that lift up to go anyplace (home, work, grocery shopping, etc), then there’s no logical reason to call a liftgate a “door”.
The second one is definitely lights that are bigger than necessary. Specifically, the mid-size Ranger when the name came back to the US.
Last one I’ll mention: “Car Enthusiasts”. You’re not a car enthusiast if you only drive stick. You’re not a car enthusiast if all you like about cars is how fast they can go, like all these 1,000 or 2,000 horsepower car owners. There’s so much more to cars then changing your own gears or how fast you can go.
Counterpoint: Let’s not gatekeep car enthusiasm. There are so many ways to be a car enthusiast: muscle cars, shitboxes, donks, hypermilers. They’re all fine (note that I’m excluding things like coal rollers who are actively harmful to the people around them). If you’re going to be peeved about this sort of thing be peeved at the people who think their type of car enthusiasm is the only valid one.
Except I am peeved about that, because all I ever see or meet from “car enthusiasts” are the ones who gate keep cars by saying manuals are the only way to be into cars or people who think having the faster car is the whole point about liking cars.
Going from my view, that’s what I’ve seen. Hell, when I went to a specialty automotive program, no one thought I was a car enthusiast at first. Wearing Mopar stuff and talking about Honda’s with the Honda guys and talking more about Fords then the Ford guys changed quite some opinions lol
I have never heard anyone refer to themselves as an ‘Enthusiast’ of anything. Always seemed (to me) like some silly descriptor that only writers & reporters employ.
I interchange it with guy a lot, honestly. Depends on what my brains thinks to use first!
The person that pulls right out in front of you even though there’s no one behind you just because they don’t have the patience to wait 5 more seconds.
And then chooses to drive 10 mph under the speed limit.
Every time!
I’m going to add two that are both related:
1) Your waiting in a left turn lane for the light to change. You’re first in line to turn left and you’re behind the white line. Cross traffic is allowed to go and those turning left from there are coming directly at you because they don’t know how to make a proper left, so they swerve away nearly missing you in a head-on collision. Bonus points when they honk at you for being in their way.
2) Similar scenario as above except you’re the one with the right of way to turn left. You make a proper left by following the line (real or imaginary) and the other person waiting to turn left is sitting past the white line obstructing your left turn. It’s even worse when you have two lanes of traffic that turn left together.
3) I know I said two, but this one came to mind because I was already thinking of left turns. When someone is pulling left onto a multi lane highway from a side road or parking lot. The highway has a center turn lane that is only supposed to be used for exiting the main highway to make a left, but people pull out into that lane from the side road or parking lot and use it as an entrance ramp onto the highway. Not only is this illegal (at least in Michigan), but it’s also unsafe. The worst part is that my son was actually taught to do this in driver’s ed this year, which I was pretty pissed about. Don’t believe me that it’s illegal? Look it up.
4) Okay. One more. I promise this is the last one. People who leave a car’s length or more gap between them and the car in front of them at a stop light. The difference between being able to make your right turn or being able to make the left turn green arrow can be the one asshole not pulling forward enough to close the gap. This is only a thing if you live in an area that’s heavily populated with heavy traffic during rush hours or you would not understand. It may take two or three cycles to make it through a traffic light sometimes and realizing that everyone around you is also trying to get somewhere.
One of my biggest pet peeves is when you’re driving along, and make full eye contact with someone waiting to pull out on the road. You can literally see them looking at you. Then, that person waits till the last minute and proceeds to pull right out in front of you, often resulting in heavy braking.
I’m with you 100% on both of those things.
The “rear windshield” thing has always bothered me, but I just experienced the amber/not amber signal thing while drive home from TROG this weekend.
If you object to the orange-tinted bulb inside the clear lens, they make silver coated bulbs that flash orange.
Just last night I saw an Audi that must have been refitted with European taillights because they had an amber turn signal. But they must have done something wrong because their turn signal was actually both amber and red. The red part was solid and the amber was the inner animated part.
Freaked me out seeing that.
Cars parked up on the side of the road with normal low-beams on instead of using their parking lights,or just turning the lights off.
That is literally the only time you have a use for your parking lights.
Turn ’em off, for Heaven sake! Makes it harder to see for anyone approaching from the opposite direction.
Mine is when on the highway there is a car on the shoulder, either a cop or someone with their flashing lights on, truck drivers usually move over if possible but no one else does it. I always do, its terrifying been on the side of the road while cars are passing +70mph while you try to change a flat tire on the cold winter in Michigan.
Rear wipers that are far too small.
Oh, here’s one, specific to certain Hondas from the aughts, as far as I can tell: the cruise control…controls. On most cars, the buttons are all clustered together on one spoke of the steering wheel. But on these Hondas, they’re all in the spot nature intended, except for the on/off button. That’s on the far lower left of the dash, where you have to take your eyes off the road and possibly bend to reach it, depending on the length of your arms. Why, Honda?
Because you just leave it on all the time. There really isn’t any need to turn the cruise on and off.
Here is mine:
Imagine, you’re sitting in a right-hand turn lane, at a red light. You stopped at the light, and then slowly inched forward so that you can see traffic, and you’re waiting for a safe opening to make your turn.
Then, in the left hand lane, intended for those driving through the intersection, or turning left, some bozo in a giant truck or SUV pulls up, and well past the stop bar, and now their stupid truck is blocking your view of traffic, forcing you to pull up even further to see, possibly into the crosswalk where you’re going to be impeding on pedestrians.
Those jerks… They’re my pet peeve.
People who slow down to a near stop because the driveway or road they are turning into has a 2 inch lip. Double if it’s a truck.
There are so many.. here’s a few (maybe I should get some professional help?)
These are called puddle lamps. I’ll have you know that was a $250 option I paid for on my Benz. I wouldn’t have, but that’s all they had. They are actually somewhat useful in specific circumstances, such as winter evenings when you let your passenger out in the driveway that may or may not be covered in ice.
I like the idea of the puddle lamp, I just think it’s a terrible idea to stick a logo there.
I can’t speak for the US, but here in the UK the amber bulbs have the pins offset so it’s quite hard to shove a clear bulb in, What does happen though is the amber flakes off the bulb and leaves it white after a time. I used to be a mechanic and part of the service was checking how amber the bulbs where and swapping them if needed, So when I see clear bulbs I assume they either crammed the wrong bulb in somehow (Really not very easy but possible if you are a gorilla) or the car is not well serviced.
One of my peeves is front turn signals built into and inboard of the headlamp so in some situations they are invisible. My Mrs Fiesta is like this and I have told her to take care especially on roundabouts as people may not always see the signal.
EDIT: Just to add that clear turn signals (Indicators) are an MOT failure here IIRC.
You can also get amber (indicator) bulbs that look silver until they illuminate, though.
This one is specific to my old country, but in Brazil some publication called auto manufacturers “assemblers” once, presumably during the 50s due to CKD kits, and the term stuck.
Nowadays people even try to justify it by saying “but they’re a huge operation, purchasing parts from a long supply chain, and the car is a big puzzle to assemble”. Well, this is bullshit, even if 70% of the parts by count were produced outside Volkswagen, just one big lump of chassis is more than enough to qualify the car as an in house built product.
This is pervasive, even in business school they teach us this crap. Irritates me to no end, and I DON’T EVEN LIVE THERE ANYMORE! But still, I see it in every publication from there. To them, I say: Go tell your mother that she “assembled” you from nutrients bought at the grocer!
I think this one beats Torch’s
Just to clarify because it is not clear, people say “assembler” for “manufacturer” everywhere. I supposed it started in the fifties with one publication, but now and since ALL of them do this, i. e. a bike as a factory, but a car, for some dumb affectation from the press, has an “assembler”.
Was it “montadora”? I haven’t read a Quatro Rodas since, I guess, the Chevrolet Kadett was a thing.
My current pet peeve is the dingling notification bell sitting top right on my phone when here at the Autopian. It has a number 4 in it. But pressing it does absolutely nothing…
Check it again, it should have the number 5 now
Check it again, should be a 6 now
7.
This is officially trolling you.
This is fun! I wonder if you’re ever going to see the actual notifications…
The fixed that for me a couple of weeks ago. You can mark individual replies read, or all of them read.
Here’s several of mine:
Lower road construction speed limits when there is no road construction going on nor any hazards to demand the lower speed limit.
Fastrack Lexus Lanes. They make NO sense other than putting money in the pockets of Fastrack.
Speeders, especially speeders who demand everyone make way for their speeding.
Red light runners, especially the second and third car after the light turned red.
Loud pipes and mufflers.
Pickup trucks flying giant flags in the bed. Seriously, WTF?
People who take up all the street parking with their car hoarding, especially the ones who have a garage and driveway filled with other crap.
I perpetrate at least two of these
“Speeders, especially speeders who demand everyone make way for their speeding.”
I hope that’s not your way to justify refusing to move out of the left-hand lane.
Again why would you care if I’m complying with the law? Are you?
I guess it’s not your role to police everyone else’s speed and time needs?
Safety is everyone’s responsibility so why aren’t you doing YOUR part?
Your implication is that nobody is capable of driving safely while exceeding the speed limit. I disagree. In most places the left lane is for passing by law, so you are likely also breaking the law by not moving over. And if you are actively blocking people from passing in the left lane, you are impeding the flow of traffic, which does not improve safety. I take the responsibility of driving very seriously, as I bet most do on this site. I recognize that many people do not, but intentionally impeding traffic flow by blocking the left lane does not make us safer on the whole, even if you are blocking that occasional egregious speeder.
My pet peeves are:
As an aside, I’m not sure a pet peeve has to be trivial by definition….
Ok, Boomer…
People who, during traffic jams, pull halfway into the lane next to them in an attempt to stop others from driving past them all the way up to the lane closure in some bizarre display of traffic vigilantism.
It’s as if the first thing the passing driver is going to say in the event of a wreck isn’t “I was driving along and this person pulled out in front of me!!”
Traffic vigilantism in general.
Sometime traffic needs a batman –