My Current Ride Still Has #5

5 Old-School Innovations We Desperately Want Back In Modern Cars

The automotive sector is a fast-paced constantly evolving environment. As a result, brilliant designs are often pushed to one side by modern technological advancements. Here are five old-school innovations we'd like to see return . . . . .

1. Yellow headlights

There are few things in life cooler than a classic French car with yellow headlights. Legend has it that the yellow lights were introduced in France in 1936 so that allied forces could distinguish between ‘friendly’ French citizens and white-lit Nazi invaders. The truth behind the story is up for debate, but we do know that the French retained their quirky coloured headlights until 1993, when they were banned by EU legislation.

The French loved their yellow lights for a number of reasons. They allegedly worked better in the fog, created less glare for oncoming motorists and gave citizens a sense of national pride - all of this was subjective of course. With the European ban on these lights, the only place we now get to see them is on the racetrack, where they serve a very useful purpose. Slower GT cars tend to run the coloured lenses so that they can see the faster prototypes approaching from behind in low light conditions. And just like the citizens of France, many racers swear that the tinted lights create less of a glare in adverse weather conditions.

So they serve a semi-functional purpose, and they also have a cool retro look. Not surprising then that tinted lenses are slowly finding their way back onto road cars. But like all of the trends on this list, they only work on the right car. Porsches suit them down to the ground, and we love the effect that they’ve had on Paul Geudon’s (owner of Mulholland Racer) dark grey Porsche GT4 - truly beautiful.

5. Manual Gearbox

When Porsche revealed that its most involving driver’s car - the GT3 RS - wasn’t going to be available with a stick, the automotive community went into collective mourning. I mean, if Porsche couldn’t offer a manual gearbox, what hope was there for the future of shifting yourself? But it can be all too easy to get angry at supercar manufacturers. At the end of the day, they’re just reacting to market demands. For example, only one per cent of buyers ordered the previous Audi R8 V10 Plus with a manual gearbox, thus this year’s model only comes with flappy paddles - makes sense to us.

But it’s important to remember that some manufacturers still cater for the one per cent, and for that they should be celebrated. Both Ford and Chevrolet offer its high performance muscle cars, the Camaro ZL1 and Mustang GT350 with good old fashioned gear sticks, and both companies have expressed its intentions to retain the option of a manual in future models. Thank god for ‘Murica.

But Porsche has also shown that it’s not completely given up on that third pedal just yet. The GT4 is arguably Porsche’s most popular car of 2015, and the demand for its last analogue 911, the GT3 RS 4.0, is absolutely through the roof, with examples swapping hands for up to £300,000.

However, it really comes down to us, the car enthusiast, to ensure that the manual gearbox survives. So if you do find yourself purchasing a new car, make sure that you go for the manual without hesitation; the future of performance cars is counting on you!

Complete list (CarThrottle.com)