Auto parts that should be standardized by now

The DIN and double-DIN thing seems to be working pretty well for radios, and we got everyone to agree on OBDII...what else needs to be standardized? There are lots of good reasons not to standardize certain parts, but the fact that I now have to use shank-style lugnuts with my race wheels and 60* tapered seat acorn lugnuts for me street wheels is kind of annoying. Oh, and 2 different sized lug wrenches.

What could and/or should reasonably be standardized? I'm not talking about legal regulation; I'm talking about getting the industry to say "Yeah, that could actually make some sense."

Filler cap in the same location-ish. Having cars have to go two directions through a gas station is stupid.

I always wondered why there are so many different styles of oil filters - you'd think the industry could standardize on maybe a half dozen that would fit all cars.

Lights. I know, they'd look dorky. But the British managed to make a whole bunch of good looking cars with a fairly limited selection of lights. They're expensive, easy to break - there's no good reason that the taillights from a 2005 car should be different than those from the same car built in 2006. Plus it'll save a bundle on DOT approvals and design time.

Jeep, of course, has managed to come up with rear lights that have all the charm of generic trailer lights but without the inexpensive cost. On a vehicle that takes out taillights with regularity.

We used to have standardized headlights in the most efficient envelope possible - round. Bring them back!

The British also used a standard windshield wiper setup. If you've never looked at them, they're pretty clever. It's not something that needs to be replaced very often, but it might take a bunch of engineering time out of a new car.

Will wrote: The DIN and double-DIN thing seems to be working pretty well for radios, and we got everyone to agree on OBDII...what else needs to be standardized?

Have you seen a new car lately? DIN is dead, dead, dead.

Not that you could easily change the radio anyway, since it's usually tied in with one or two of the computer networks.

lug patterns, at least for typical passenger cars.

There is no reason why cars all more or less the same size need to have 9 different bolt patterns in metric and SAE, depending on brand, continent of origin, etc. At most, there should be two: a standardized 4-bolt for subcompacts and other stuff that use tiny wheels, and a standardized 5-bolt for everything else.

Yeah, good point on the modern cars with nav systems and whatnot abandoning the DIN standard.

Here's a true example, and I use these cars only because I know them well. Let's look at Ford. In 1994, the Thunderbird and the Mustang used the same front wheel bearing. The hubs are the exact same size, but one is 5x4.5, and the other is 5x4.25. That means different part numbers. The rotors are identical except for the bolt circle--more part numbers. The wheel studs and lugnuts are also different thread pitches--more part numbers.

How is it this is the one battle the bean counters lost?

Yet the front calipers from a Focus RS will bolt to either car, as well as a Taurus.

All cars should be beige.

I think engine/bellhousings patterns should be standardized. The SAE Round patterns from industrial engines are a good start.

A standard for parts, make things the same...shame on you guys and make it easy on the next generation of grassroot mechanics. What type of discussions would there be then

Will wrote: Yet the front calipers from a Focus RS will bolt to either car, as well as a Taurus.

Oddly enough, all the 13" SVT cobra brakes are a bolt on affair with a 94-99 taurus sho....well, after the stud holes are either red filled or slotted to fit on the rotors.

Trust me, I've got cobra brakes on my '91(94-5) knuckles are on it.

When I am king, I will require all headlamps to be 7" round sealed beams again- and it will be a capitol offense if it takes more than 5 minutes to change them in a gas station parking lot using a fingernail file.

I will allow 4 (four) and only 4 (four) different sizes of batteries. If your designers are too dim to package either a small, medium, large or extra large battery, then hire new staff.

Radios will have two large knobs. The one on the left turns the unit on and off, and controls volume. The one on the right changes channels/tracks. You may add other buttons as required, but those two knobs are legislated. Also- pushing a "source" button for a long period of time is not the same as having a button labeled "off".

Some of these are good ideas... but I think starting with ancilleries would be a better idea. How about a standardized alternator? Just think of the savings if all the cars used the same alternator. Not only would it make replacement cheaper, but just building the car would much cheaper as buying a large quantity of anything usually yeilds a lower price.

Same with a lot of the stuff you can't see. Steering shafts, axles (on an independent suspension) brake lines, bearings, All filters. The savings would be immense

What? You want all those engineers and designers to be fired?

What else would they do if they weren't designing the next nightmare to come out of the automotive industry.

Filters, batteries, fuse boxes, seat belts, airbags, anything used in a Volkswagen.

RossD wrote: I think engine/bellhousings patterns should be standardized. The SAE Round patterns from industrial engines are a good start.

I would give body parts to have engine/bellhousing patterns standardized.

Streetwiseguy wrote: When I am king, I will require all headlamps to be 7" round sealed beams again- and it will be a capitol offense if it takes more than 5 minutes to change them in a gas station parking lot using a fingernail file.

Sealed beams? Really? Not the superior H4 option in the same size? Weirdo.

ransom wrote: Filler cap in the same location-ish. Having cars have to go two directions through a gas station is stupid.

I hate this.
Nissan has them on two different sides of the car for the same model year (different models of course)
always have to look before I gas something up at work.

I think I figured it out though: made in japan cars have it on the right side, made in usa cars on the left side (aka most of their cars)

This really should be standardized though.

I think lights should definitely be standardized as well

If gas fillers should be standardized, they should be on the back.

corytate wrote: I think I figured it out though: made in japan cars have it on the right side, made in usa cars on the left side (aka most of their cars)

Nope. It's just whatever works best for the packaging.

Heater cores.

corytate wrote: I think I figured it out though: made in japan cars have it on the right side, made in usa cars on the left side (aka most of their cars)

One of my buddies who travels a lot for work pointed out to me that most cars now have an arrow next to the gas pump icon on the dash board. Arrow points to gas cap.

I am loathe to say how many I'd been driving before I learned that. Genius.

Oh, and please standardize the windshield wiper stalks. Is up faster or slower? It's like the bridge of death, there's no correct answer!

Mentioned before, but lug patterns. Pick a pattern and everyone stay the berk with it.

4 lugs for tiny things.

5 lugs for Sedans/Crossovers/SUV's

6 lugs for Trucks/Truck based SUV's

7 or 8 lug for a 3/4 truck IF needed.

peter wrote: Oh, and please standardize the windshield wiper stalks. Is up faster or slower? It's like the bridge of death, there's no correct answer!

When I'm king, there will be 3 settings on my stalk, in the following order:

Off
Intermittent*
Slow
Fast

*Intermittent can have a little toggle that will control the time between. My old SAAB had that, I thought it was an awesome feature.

Keith Tanner wrote: Lights. I know, they'd look dorky....

No. NO NO NO. no.

Lights give a car character. It's one of the first things you learn about in transportation design. I agree that round lights are a great thing, but where would Audi be without the space to experiment? The new McLaren is drop-dead gorgeous, and those front and rear lights are a HUGE part of the package. Lights are at the corners, and if you start to pre-determin what the corner angles are, you kill 90% of a design before it's been drawn.

SkinnyG wrote:

RossD wrote: I think engine/bellhousings patterns should be standardized. The SAE Round patterns from industrial engines are a good start.

I would give body parts to have engine/bellhousing patterns standardized.

Best. Idea. Ever. I am sure there will be packaging problems but nothing insurmountable I'm sure.

HVAC units could certainly be a plug-n-play item. Many companies already share a basic design among their line of cars, why not just standardize it? Break it down into hot and cold for ease of packaging and put it in every car.