No offense to Christmas, Hanukkah or any other December holiday, but Festivus has a certain appeal that just can't be replicated by any other occasion around the winter solstice. The nights may be long, but our frustrations with the companies that produce the cars we love are long.
We asked our readers last Friday what grievances they had with the auto industry today. The general theme from the comment section was that things are getting far too expensive. Respondents raised complaints that automakers are more concerned with producing as many luxury models as possible. Many feel that a truly affordable new car simply doesn't exist anymore. It's not just the price on the window. Commentators want to tear down the whole dealership system and head off possible feature subscriptions at the pass. We don't need a December to remember because there's Festivus for the rest of us. Without further ado, here are your biggest grievances:
Mr.choppers / Wikimedia Commons
I feel like I could write a "Ninety Five Theses" and nail it to the doors of every Auto manufacturer in the world, but I'll focus on one.
There has been, over the last decade and a half, an acceleration of the idea that only the top of the market matters for anything.
So, we have very few small, inexpensive cars but an absolute glut of expensive, over-featured, bloated and leather-lined luxury vehicles. Because these vehicles are more profitable, these vehicles are easier to sell and they look better on the lot, which in theory brings in more buyers.
And just like real estate in the pre-crash days of 2007, it looks like awesome times for manufacturers and the market is only ever going to go up up up and the good times are never going to end. But just like the real estate bubble, cracks are starting to appear. Prices are too high, monthly payments are insane and defaults are starting to increase. And when the bubble pops, you are going to be stuck with a lot full of 80k luxury trucks that no one can afford and that are going to have the same cache as an H3 Hummer had in 2009.
I'm pleading with you, auto manufacturers, enough. Take it down a notch, Start building smaller, less expensive vehicles before it's too late. Because if we have a crash in the next 3 years, your bailout is going to come with strings you are not going to like or maybe won't happen at all because angry peepaw thinks your trucks are woke. Get the balance right in your product lines.
Submitted by: Buckfiddious
Topuria Design/Shutterstock
Lack of analog gauges. Seeing something physical climb with speed and revs felt special. That and lack of physical buttons. I have a 2024 BMW 230i coupe that I love, but what I wouldn't give for analog gauges and a well-integrated, simple screen, with a bank of buttons below it for volume, climate, etc.
Submitted by: Ryan Brenn
Tyler / Wikimedia Commons
Cars with connectivity that report your driving to third-party data collectors, who then sell that information to your insurance company, who then raise your rates.
If you buy a car, you should have complete and total control over what data gets shared, which should be minimal at most.
Submitted by: Robot impurity
William J Sisti / Wikimedia Commons
The growing lack of ability to change the audio system of a car. Between the non-standard head units that control too many things other than audio, and digitally equalized speakers that mean higher quality replacements actually sound worse because the audio signal isn't tuned for them, you're stuck with stock now in many vehicles. And you can only get the premium sound system with the higher trim in a vehicle.
Submitted by: Jumbojeepman
Rutger van der Maar / Wikimedia Commons
Restrictions on reselling popular cars. If I buy a car, it's mine. I find it unbelievably ironic that in the land where property rights are sacrosanct that manufacturers and dealers are forcing people into six-month to one-year no-resale agreements. And it's not just supercars and special editions. A friend went up to Edmonton to buy a new Rav4. When she was asked how she was financing she said no, that she was paying cash. The contract was ripped up and the dealer told her she would have to pay another $10,000. This was explicitly to prevent her from reselling the car in less than six months. Her response was "I'm a 62-year-old, grey-haired retired teacher, trading in a 16-year-old Rav4 on a new one. Do you actually think I'm running a car flipping ring." The dealer refused to back down so she left. She went down the road to Subaru and bought a new Outback Wilderness for less money.
Submitted by: JohnnyWasASchoolBoy
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
Here in the USA, the continued reliance on the dealership model to sell cars is so archaic. Over the last 20 years, every single dealer I have interacted with has done nothing but add time, cost, and frustration to the car-buying process. I wish more manufacturers would adopt direct sales models.
Submitted by: Stephen.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
It's not completely widespread yet, but might as well get ahead of it now while I can. Subscription-based services in vehicles should not be a thing. I'm not referring to satellite radio or necessarily connected services (e.g. remote start from phone, unlock doors, vehicle analytics, etc.) but rather having to pay to use heated seats, heated steering wheel, remote start from the fob, built-in nav). NY has already introduced a bill to outlaw this. If it's installed in the car, there shouldn't be an extra charge to access it.
Submitted by: Jeff Meyer
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Sean Duffy as Transportation Secretary.
Submitted by: Video360
Benespit / Wikimedia Commons
Redlight and speed camera warnings that you can't turn off. 2025 Ioniq 5, had to turn down the warning volume to zero to stop the 40 seconds of warnings every time I drive through a school zone on a weekend. Now I just get the initial beeps and a pop-up warning in the dash.
I drive through there at least 4 or 8 or 12 times every weekend when I go to the hardware store for parts to fix all my broken stuff every weekend. The warnings stomp on my music. Not cool.
(school zones have weekday times with flashing lights, come on Hyundai, you should know this).
Submitted by: DieselOx
