Seven Ways to Make Your Old Car Feel Like New Again

Once you’ve paved the countryside, embraced the suburbs, and turned communities into something like highway rest stops, you really need a car to survive in the modern world, unless you ‘re very thoughtful about your life choices. And right now, buying a car—used or new— is expensive and frustrating . As a result, people are meticulously maintaining their cars for longer than ever – the average age of a car is approaching 13 years . And if you bought your car back in 2010, there’s a good chance it lacks many of the new technologies and features you might find in a new model.

Luckily, many old cars support a powerful aftermarket industry, and you can easily make an old car feel much newer by giving it a good, thorough cleaning and some of those upgrades.

Some of our favorite updates listed in this article:

• Pioneer Floating Multimedia Receiver
• Jensen Multimedia CD/DVD Receiver with Extra Large Touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android
• AUTO-VOX CS-2 Wireless Backup Camera
• Microwave radar for blind spot detection
• LUSRAIT Heated seat cushion
• Rust-Oleum car headlight restoration kit
• Macally car headrest

Add touch screen

If your car doesn’t have a touchscreen (and possibly Bluetooth connectivity), you can easily get both by replacing your existing car stereo. The main thing you need to know before proceeding with this upgrade is whether your car has a single or double DIN stereo system. DIN refers to their height – a single DIN system is two inches high, while a double DIN system is four inches.

Once you know that, you have many options, like this one for a single DIN dash or this one for a double DIN. Prices and features vary – some offer Bluetooth for your phone, some offer CD players, most offer USB charging, but all are as easy to install as any car stereo and instantly transform your car into the modern age.

Add a backup camera

One of the best things about modern cars is the rear view camera, which not only shows you if some random child has decided to sit on the sidewalk behind you, but also helps you parallel park. If your old whisk doesn’t have one, you can install it very easily for little money.

Add blind spot detection

Another great safety feature found in almost all new cars is blind spot detection – sensors that beep when something (such as another car) enters your ” blind spot ” – the area around your car that you cannot see through windshields or mirrors. . These blind spots can be large enough to hide an entire other car – an obvious problem if you change lanes and crash into one. Installing a secondary blind spot monitor will not only make your car look more modern, but it will also increase your overall safety. These devices come with sensors that you attach to various points on your vehicle, interacting with indicators that you attach next to the side view mirrors.

Most of these kits require a bit of effort to install neatly, but they usually don’t require drilling or other invasive work, meaning a moderately skilled person can probably install it on their own. But there are also professional installation options – check with the same people who install car audio systems.

Add heated seats.

Sometimes it’s the little luxuries that make something feel new. If your old car’s seats have standard fabric upholstery and zero features, consider an easy and affordable heated seat upgrade. Installing a heated seat cushion is not very expensive and difficult. If you’re looking at winter weather in the future, it could save your sanity and also make your car feel a few years newer.

Install new (or polished) headlights

One of the reasons your old car looks so old is because of the headlights: dim, cloudy headlights or headlights that glow with a faint amber light don’t exactly scream advanced vehicles. If your headlights have become opaque monuments to lost time, you can buy polishing kits online or improvise your own pretty easily without spending a lot of money – and the results will be spectacular.

Alternatively, you can upgrade your headlights to the more powerful and clearer versions available today. You can do it yourself, but headlight calibration requires some skill, so consider leaving it to a professional.

Add a tablet mount to your headrest

If your kids have been in a more expensive car recently, you’ve probably heard of the screen in the back seat. Sure, you can hand your kids a tablet and tell them to go to town, but adding a simple and inexpensive tablet holder in the headrest will enhance the whole experience. A holder like this one offers multiple configurations so you can customize media for different screens and backseat populations.

Install tire pressure sensors

Tire pressure has a big impact on handling and fuel economy, and now you too can control your tire pressure at a glance. All of these aftermarket systems work on the same basic principle: you replace the valve caps with the included sensors and they regularly check tire pressure and feed the information to an app or display.

Throwing in some cash to make your driving experience a bit more modern is a great investment, especially if you’re planning on keeping your old car until the market settles down. What should be from day to day, right?