Show Me Examples of Poor Design

I recently purchased a 2013 Mazdaspeeed 3 and immediately noticed the design / color of the tachometer. I wonder who signed off on this?

Another example (no pic) is my C6 Z06. Like many cars, when shutting off the ignition, the powered drivers seat can be set to slide back to ease exiting the car. The reverse is not the case. Every time you get in the car you must press the button on the door to cause the seat to move back to the 'memory' position. It does not automatically do so when starting the car.

What other examples have you seen?

Infotainment screens that control everything and take forever to boot. 
 

Like the one in my Subaru that plays the radio and the last volume (turned up for podcasts) until it boots and by the time it responds to my frantic off button pressing I already can't hear anymore. 

So, what is wrong with the Mazdaspeed tachometer in the first post?  You don't like the color?  I do see that the red zone isn't very clear but I don't know if that's what you're talking about.

In reply to stuart in mn :

Yes, the redline is difficult to see. They essentially made the redline start at zero RPM.

Redline is kind of irrelevant on that car. Mine ran out of steam by 6k. The power drop off was very apparent. 

If a power window or sunroof has auto-down, it should have auto-up.  My old Tundra - auto-down only on the driver window.  Rear window is manual up and down, but on the up function, it stops at a 4" gap from fully closed (the only functional position for the rear window that doesn't convey all the crud in the bed to the cabin,) and you have to press the button again to close it further.  The cargo lamp button and rear defroster buttons are identical and right next to each other.

Sienna - has left, right, and rear temp zones.  The rear controls don't work without pressing the Mode button for the rear (feet, face, bi-lev.)  Even if you set a temp and fan speed for the back, you have to cycle the mode to activate.

M3 - moonroof auto-opens, but is full manual to close.  The default for the climate control is always ON and the lowest fan speed, regardless of the last setting.

The ultimate worst was a 95 Chevy truck my dad bought new. The 'security system' was that it wouldn't start unless you put on the left turn signal.  If you turned the key to start position without holding the turn signal stalk down, the horn would blow.

Cruise control systems that have to be turned "on" every time the car starts before you can set a speed.  If I'm hitting the "set" button, let's just go ahead and assume I want the system to be on.

There is an old Brita water filter jug, a slightly older version of the one below (with a fundamentally similar design), which is one of the worst-designed things I've ever seen:

The two biggest issues with it are:

- The entire top piece covering the intake section and the flap over spout is a single piece, held on with gravity and wishful thinking. If you try to pour from it while there is any water in the intake section, this entire piece will immediately pop off and any intake water will spill out in a torrent over what you're pouring water into.

- If any liquid spills on top of it, it will immediately drain into the intake through the cracks around the intake flap.

They made a later version with no flap over the spout and a 1-piece top with no flaps that clips over the intake section, it works much better.

(Edit: I guess this was supposed to be an automotive-specific thread, but this thing still deserves a mention )

To continue beating the dead horse that is Dodge.  My 2020 Ram Classic work truck uses a knob to shift gears, a knob to adjust the fan, and a knob to control volume.  All the same shape and only slightly different sizes and just a few inches apart.

myf16n said:

Another example (no pic) is my C6 Z06. Like many cars, when shutting off the ignition, the powered drivers seat can be set to slide back to ease exiting the car. The reverse is not the case. Every time you get in the car you must press the button on the door to cause the seat to move back to the 'memory' position. It does not automatically do so when starting the car.

 

My FIL's 05 Cadillac would go back to whatever forward position (based on the key in the ignition, 1 or 2) when you started the car.  Do you have an aftermarket key?  

+1 on the cruise control that you have to turn on EVERY TIME!  Loved that our Honda just had a CC button you could leave on (or off) all the time.  Agree on the Brita pitcher, bad execuction.  

Power windows that do not auto-up is for a reason...the first kid that accidently cuts their fingers off is a massive liability.

But we have to ask:  poor design by whose standards?    FIL has a Ram van that had a coil go bad.  It's a transverse V6.  The intake manifold is attached in a manner that is impossible to remove in the engine bay without bending some of the brackets.  (or I'm stupid...)  The design for maintenance is awful.  The design for manufacturing (which is all that car companies care about) was likely spot on.  

Almost every infotainment system these days is full of design flaws. 

The early 10th gen Civics and the current Golf R have these radios with no volume knobs which is extremely frustrating to adjust the volume in a rapid fashion like when your fav jam comes on. 

The Civic also had climate controls split between physical knobs and buttons and the infotainment. 

I also just purchased a specialty tool for Honda type ball joints, like for the S2000 uppers. It makes ease of pressing them out; however, pressing them in doesn't work because the receivers inner diameter is smaller than the ball joints. 

I'll just get this out of the way

For real, I nominate engines with the power steering pump located over the alternator which kills it from leaks over time.

The Toyota 1UZ is notorious for this despite otherwise being totally reliable.

It's bad enough on Mitsubishi Monteros there's an alternator shield made for them:

My Cushman Trackster (which I sold) was an awesome concept and super fun to use but there were absolutely no captured nuts on the entire vehicle. Most of the suspension mounts, engine mounts, parking brake, trailer hitch were all bolted with thru bolts and a nut on the other side. It was IMPOSSIBLE to work on any of it with one person. I always joked that the person that had to put it together must have been the mortal enemy of the engineer.

I'll add another:

Having the built in garage door opener powered on / live, when the car is off. Why allow a thief to have access to the garage and house by just breaking a window in the car?

I swear you have less access to the engine with the bonnet open than when it is closed.

I could go on a rant about the whole cars but I will leave it at the terrible access the bonnet allows

Sorry about this one also:
 

What happens when you loose (or gets shot out) an engine and you are not in a low hover.... a very fast crash landing (or harsh landing if you are near an airport).  What happens when both get shot out....  

It will not autorotate.  It does apparently crash well (falls apart appropriately)... which is nice I guess.

jmabarone said:

Power windows that do not auto-up is for a reason...the first kid that accidently cuts their fingers off is a massive liability.

Kids were getting their fingers caught in the power windows long before one-touch up ever existed... That's why they're generally not capable of taking a finger off.

In reply to aircooled :

While obviously less than ideal, the V-22 can power both prop-rotors with one engine. Google says that they can auto rotate, but I can't imagine that it would be a soft landing.

Following this because I am sure I'll come back and add some things.

Dodge Stratus

DirtyBird222 said:

Almost every infotainment system these days is full of design flaws. 

Touch screens are inherently bad in motor vehicles, since you have to take your eyes off the road to use them.  With old fashioned radio and heater controls, it's easy to reach over and find the appropriate knob and button by feel.

stuart in mn said:

DirtyBird222 said:

Almost every infotainment system these days is full of design flaws. 

Touch screens are inherently bad in motor vehicles, since you have to take your eyes off the road to use them.  With old fashioned radio and heater controls, it's easy to reach over and find the appropriate knob and button by feel.

^ This

I went through a master's degree program in Human Factors Engineering during the late 80's and I remember automotive interior controls being used as an example of good design because each input control served only one function...infotainment systems = retrograde development.

If you want to hear a grouchy old man rant about the evils of MFC's "Multi Function Controls" read this...

This is a photo of the oil pump drive BELT in a 1.0 Fiesta.  The timing belt is also wet.  The timing tool set is $250, but the Rotunda version of the torque multiplier required to loosen and tighten the crank bolt is $1200.  I bought a generic one.

The crank bolt requires 44 foot pounds through a 5:1 torque multiplier, then 5 90 degree turns, which ends up somewhere over 500 foot pounds, becausevwhy would you cut a keyway in a crank pulley?

aircooled said:

Sorry about this one also:
 

What happens when you loose (or gets shot out) an engine and you are not in a low hover.... a very fast crash landing (or harsh landing if you are near an airport).  What happens when both get shot out....  

It will not autorotate.  It does apparently crash well (falls apart appropriately)... which is nice I guess.

I hate these for a plethora of reasons. For infil/exfil of troops, there's only a rear cargo door for egress & where a gun can be mounted for cover/protection. Clutch issues have been plauging them lately; but, apparently they have a better safety record than most rotary winged airframes.