Five Car Features You Probably Don’t Know How To Use

Car companies are increasingly creating different features to sell their products to consumers but not very many people know that certain features exist, talk more of their functions.

Storage
Car companies like to squeeze little extra spaces in wherever they can, and some are super-useful if you know they’re there. Recent Toyota Highlanders have a great shelf in the middle of the dashboard that’s perfectly placed to hold cell phones and sunglasses. The Land Rover Discovery has a storage area for hiding valuables behind a climate control panel.

Hooks
The big space in the back of an SUV often feels like a space for all manners of things. However, did you ever notice little plastic hooks back there, a couple of feet above the floor?

Those hooks actually have a purpose, as they’re meant to hang shopping bag handles from them so the bag full of eggs doesn’t topple over. Some cars have them behind the front seats as well. Nissan even has one in the front passenger seat that the company calls a curry hook because it can be used to keep your takeout bags upright.

Grab Handle
Above each car door, you’ll usually find a handle. You’ve probably always assumed that the purpose of those is to give you something to hold while the driver takes corners a little faster than you prefer.

But these handles are actually very useful to someone with limited mobility trying to get in or out of the car. A wheelchair user or anyone lacking leg strength can hold on for stability while maneuvering into a comfortable position.

Conversation Mirror
A lot of mini-vans and some crossover SUVs have a small convex mirror mounted overhead that lets the driver keep an eye on what’s going on in the backseats.

It often pulls down from a compartment mounted near the rearview mirror, and it will help you keep tabs on your kids and whatever else is along for the ride without having to take your eyes off the road for an extended period.

Enhanced soundproofing
Listening to some good music in your car? Modern soundproofing makes it a lot easier to hear all the subtleties of an orchestral piece, as well as the not-so-subtle whining from your kids in the backseat.

Car makers are not just adding extra layers of insulation around engine and suspension mounts—some are also adding active noise cancellation, like the type you can get in headphones.