By FREDA LEWIS-STEMPEL
The car technology motorists hate the most has been revealed in a new study, and it seems safety features are driving us all round the bend...
Online marketplace eBay asked 2,000 drivers to rate the in-car technologies, with convenience and comfort features ranked highest of all.
But participants also disclosed the tech that drives them bonkers behind the wheel, and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) - designed to enhance safety and improve the driving experience – are top of the list.
Lane departure and lane keeping assist are the most frustrating ADAS aids, with 21 per cent of people voting in the multiple-choice questionnaire that these safety guides are the biggest bugbears while motoring.
This comes just months after research by Which? found that motorists are turning off safety features in their cars designed to protect them on the road because they find them 'dangerous, distracting and useless', with persistent visual warnings and 'bongs' alerting their activation sending drivers potty.
More than half of drivers polled in the national survey said they switch off at least one of five main ADAS, which help them to adhere to speed limits, guide the steering so they do not veer out of lanes on motorways, and automatically apply brakes to avoid impending collision.
Online marketplace eBay got 2,000 drivers to rate the in-car technologies they find the most irritating, and those they like the most, and some safety assists are not popular with motorists...
Other areas of in-car tech that motorists find frustrating include autonomous emergency braking (12 per cent), assisted steering (11 per cent) and head-up display (10 per cent).
It’s not surprising then that people are choosing to do without these infuriating tech aids.
Over half of the drivers participating in the research admitted to never using one or more of the advanced driver assistance or infotainment features their cars have.
Fifteen per cent of eBay respondents said that they never bothered to use radar cruise control, lane keeping assist (13 per cent) or lane departure warning (12 per cent).
Some 11 per cent turn off their blind spot assistance features too, which are designed to stop them pulling out on other vehicles on the motorway.
This mirrors the Which? survey, which found that lane keeping assist was the second safety feature most likely to be disabled, with 42 per cent of people turning it off.
Only speed assist was more regularly turned off, with 46 per cent of users who have it in their motors switching it off.
Lane departure and lane keeping assist are the most frustrating ADAS aids, with 21% of people voting in the multiple-choice questionnaire that these safety guides are the biggest bugbears
Lane Keeping Assist is part of the MG4s ADAS package, the default setting means it is activated each time the driver starts the engine. This means it needs to be manually deactivated before every journey
On the flip side, passive technologies and in-car entertainment scored highly across the board in the eBay rankings, as people like to be connected while in their vehicle.
Parking sensors are the most essential piece of car tech, according to the panel.
More than a third (37 per cent) of drivers who have these in their car said they couldn’t do without them – understandable as no one wants to ding their car trying to get into a tight space.
And 55 per cent of people said they would find parking sensors useful, while 54 per cent of people would also find a reversing camera a big help.
Highlighting how dependent we are on our smartphone and connected devices, USB charging is the second most loved piece of car tech, with Bluetooth tying for second place.
In both cases, 29 per cent of British motorists said they preferred this tech which connects your mobile phone to the in-car infotainment and charges devices at the same time.
However, as one in three of the 36.1million cars on the road in the UK are more than 12 years old, eBay predicts that as many as 11.4million drivers could be missing out on modern features.
Parking sensors are the most essential piece of car tech, with 37% of drivers who have these sensors saying they couldn’t do without this useful tech
The European Commission has previously stated that ADAS can reduce injuries from crashes where a car leaves its lane by between 20 and 30 per cent.
However, findings from a 1,500-strong poll found that motorists are often infuriated by incessant warning bongs from these systems or feel too uncomfortable relinquishing control.
Which?’s study found that it can take just one incident for a driver to lose faith in the technology before they actively turn it off - and the consumer group says it has received 'hundreds of complaints' from owners of different car brands about their vehicle's behaviour in the last year.
As a result road safety experts have called the findings 'ironic', saying drivers are 'ambivalent' about using assist systems that 'could save their lives' when they rely on other tech on a daily basis.
While many of these latest ADAS features are mandated for new cars sold in the EU, the UK Government has so far refused to make them a legal requirement.
Despite this, auto manufacturers are fitting the features in British-bound models anyway to avoid production complications.
And it was revealed in March that Labour is 'actively considering' adopting European Union rules to mandate the same safety technology in all new cars sold in the UK.
More than five years after Brexit, ministers say they are in the process of determining which of 19 safety systems required for models sold in Europe since last summer are 'right for Britain', despite UK motorists describing some of the features as 'dangerous, distracting and useless'.
The European Union's 'New Vehicle General Safety Regulation' - also known as GSR2 or Regulation (EU) 2019/2144 - came into effect across Europe on 7 July 2024.
It demands that all motor vehicles must have a suite of systems as standard, including the likes of Intelligent Speed Assist, Automated Lane Keep Systems and Autonomous Emergency Braking.