Adding Luxury Features to a Chevy Metro
 

I think it would be kind of cool to add luxury features to a car that gets good mileage (like my 4 door 01 metro) any ideas? These are some ideas i've had so far

*add cruise Control (need ideas on from what vehicle)
* nicer seats from a Suzuki Esteem
*suzuki esteem center console or Neon console
*heated/massaging seats
*overhead console (need ideas on from what vehicle)
*thermoelectric warmer/cooler
*heated steering wheel cover
*universal door locks
*universal trunk release
*car alarm/remote start/door opener/trunk opener
*umbrella pockets built into doors
*aftermarket tpms
*maybe some sort of abs/ traction control? (need ideas here)

Does anyone have any other good ideas? I'm just trying to bounce ideas off of people and come up with better solutions.

*cup holders
*flags like diplomats have, but it could be the ecomodder logo
*decal that says 'Luxury'

You can get nearly all of those parts from JC Whitney or other aftermarket car part companies.
Personally I love hand crank windows and hate ABS and would work to remove it if I had a car that came with it.
But maybe that is just me liking simple cars that work and finding vehicles that hold up and last to be a luxury.

I actually agree with the crank windows one, all the cars my family with power windows all had problems with at least one of them

I think you would be better off selling your current car and purchasing one that already has the luxury appointments you're looking for. The depreciation on those items is huge and it's a real hassle to add some of the items on your list.

The electric window thing reminds me of my old Saab. It had cranks in the rear so you couldn't raise or lower the windows from the driver seat, and in the front, where you could have reached the cranks, it had electric instead. Of course, they were old and tired, so you had to start the engine and give it some revs to get the windows up or down.

Not all that luxurious.

I don't really have an interest in selling my current car for a new one

Many of those features will add weight to the car, which will hurt fuel economy to some extent. It will also (slightly) reduce the already low performance of the car if you add much weight.

That said, it's pretty neat to try to make a very efficient vehicle nicer to be in.

Universal cruise control kits can be found in various catalogs, like JCW as was already mentioned. Similarly, there are universal kits for power windows, power door locks, and so on.

I would very very strongly recommend against trying to fit ABS onto the car. There are just too many ways for it to go wrong!

-soD

Speaking of ABS, once upon a time i heart that some late model Metro's came with abs? does anyone know if this is true?

I am a huge fan of the auto-dimming rear view mirror I installed. $11 from a junkyard, I highly recommend it.

What about heated side mirrors so they defrost themselves? I think those have reached the junkyards as well.

Another great upgrade would probably be an HID retrofit. They make really tiny projectors now that may just screw into your headlight socket, if they fit.

Bi-Xenon Morimoto Mini H1 install - Honda Civic Forum

I like these ideas a lot, and they are probably weight neutral.

OMG, how cold is it there?!

I would do the door/alarm thing, but not the others.

Remote start wastes fuel. I would skip it totally As for other things, I think the best idea not on your list is an aux line input that enables your cellphone or your mp3 player to play through your car speakers. I put in one, mainly to eliminate the CD player, which was a bigger power draw and 7lbs in weight.

After that, how about new paint? The car will feel more "luxurious" when it looks sharp.

But in general, I'm in agreement with whoever said that cheap and reliable *is* luxury in a car.

j

I live off the south shore of lake erie directly on the lake, it gets cold, its not uncommon for it to get to -15 for a week at a time or 0 degrees for a couple weeks during the winter, Also about the mirrors, i put on a panoramic view mirror from walmart, and I tore off the side mirrors for aerodynamics and added one internal $2 mirror from meijer instead :3

Also, as far as new paint i don't care, i have a maroon 01 metro that is spotless as is