Leaving the toilet seat up or arguing over the TV remote is bad enough, but when you’re behind the wheel of a car, your significant other’s annoying habits can get even more irritating.
Maybe your boyfriend likes to try and show off behind the wheel but isn’t quite the rally star he likes to think he is, or maybe your wife can’t park her car anywhere without taking up at least three spaces.
Reddit user verbthatnoun asked the internet community what the worst in-car habits their significant others have, and we’ve collated some of the best and most entertaining responses. How many can you relate to?
Filling the car with rubbish
We’ve all stepped into a friend or significant others’ car at one stage only to have to part what feels like a Red Sea of half-eaten McDonalds and empty water bottles just to find a seat. It’s something that really annoys Reddit user /u/Drunken_Consent, too:
“She's one of the cleanest people I know. Clean room, clean apartment, punctual, tidy, neat with her notes/organisational shit. But holy f*** if that isn't one of the dirtiest cars I've ever seen. I just don't get it. And it's not like food disgusting. It's just... there's s***. Everywhere.
I would estimate 1/8th her wardrobe is in the trunk/rear, books on the floor (ones she doesn't use, because as I said, neat inside). I literally get high blood pressure when I get in her car (and I talk to her about it, she'll clean it and a week later it gets like that again).
Honestly, if this is the worst car habit she has, I'm fine with that. But won't stop it from giving me a subtle, yet prominent eye twitch every now and again.”
Not wearing seatbelts
Despite the fact that wearing a seatbelt is a legal requirement in most parts of the world, there are always some people who just don’t want to buckle up. Would you be okay with your other half not wearing a belt? /u/secreted_uranus isn’t:
“She refuses to wear a seatbelt. I've been in 3 accidents in my life and have tried to explain that even at slow speeds a crash can be deadly without wearing one. She doesn't listen so I refuse to take the car out of park until she buckles up. Also, when she drives she forgets to put on her lights at night. How the f*** does she have a clean driving record!?”
Leaving dreams unfulfilled
Most drivers will have a dream car that they’ve always wanted, like a Lamborghini or a vintage Porsche, but not everybody has the means to achieve those dreams. But what if you could afford your dream car, but then just refused to get it? That’s what really annoys /u/BuckTheF***Naked:
“He's a great driver, good with mechanical stuff, and keeps his car clean. The biggest problem is that he doesn't do what he wants. He really, really wanted a 2015 Mustang GT 6 speed manual. Instead, he buys a 2010 Ford Fusion automatic, then proceeds to bitch about how much it sucks. Dude, you should have bought what you want. You have the funds. I'll even help.”
Braking bad
Is there anything worse than riding shotgun in a car where the driver’s either too liberal with their braking or, on the other hand, too lax? Turns out it scares the pants off /u/vtecgreen as well:
“Late braking - she has an SUV so she can "see" what's in front of her. That high driving position. But she doesn't seem to see that the car 2 in front of her is now braking, so she should probably stop accelerating and start moving towards the brake. Nope. Wait till last possible moment....slams on brakes. She's gotten better now that I've called it out, but damn. No anticipation of the other drivers.”
Putting feet up on the dash
It’s not polite to put your feet up on the table, so why do some people insist on sticking their honking big feet up on your car’s nice dashboard?! Here’s what /u/LeeDaLong had to say:
“When she is a passenger she thinks it should be ok to put her feet on the dash. I dont care what kind of car it is, this is not acceptable. We have had this conversation a few times, at this point I will pull over and tell her to get out if she does it.”
Slamming the doors
If you even have the slightest bit of pride in your car, you’re going to want to protect it from harm at all costs. Pity poor /u/cmiovino then, as his significant other seems to love slamming the doors on his old Subarus:
“Slamming doors. 90's and early 2000's Subarus have light doors with frameless windows, which is all I've driven for the last 10 years. Everyone slams the doors thinking they need twice as much force as usual to close them. This is really bad when the windows are partially down as the glass literally almost shakes out.”
Constantly obsessing over new cars
It’s one thing to have a dream car that you work hard to achieve, but what happens when your taste for buying new vehicles is borderline obsessive? /u/because_dinosaur has a hard time with their husband, who just won’t stop buying new toys:
“We are both car people- we met through cars. We don't have issues of disrespect towards vehicles. But my husband has the WORST habit of constantly obsessing over vehicles we cannot have. Like right now, we've agreed that in a year or two, we'll buy an SUV.
So for the past three of four months all he's doing is researching SUVs and talking to me about them, and watching reviews on them. And not just SUVs in our price range, but brand new Land Cruisers and Mercedes that would be another mortgage payment.
He does this all the damn time. And as soon as we get said vehicle, the energy shifts to modifications. Modifications that we never buy. We have a house and a kid now, we can't be spending this much time and money on cars anymore!”
Leaving half-rotting food around
Leaving food in your car isn’t just a little bit disgusting, it can also be potentially dangerous according to research. That doesn’t stop /u/LeAuxChord’s other half from filling their car with food that’ll never get eaten:
“Food... I just keep finding it. Just this morning I found a McDonalds apple pie (still in the box) in the centre console storage compartment. I don’t know how long it’s been there, but judging by her ‘oh man, where'd you find that?’ it’s either been a while, or there’s more to be found.”
Driving beyond the car’s limits
It’s funny enough when you see a teenager in a clapped-out old Vauxhall acting like Ken Block in a deserted Asda car park, but when your supposedly mature significant other insists on driving your sensible family car like it’s in the WRC?
Not only does it look ridiculous, but according to /u/pawsmatic, it can also be genuinely upsetting:
“When he drives his car it doesn't bother me when he does this, but when he drives mine it makes me so upset; braking hard and cornering hard. My car was designed for the elderly so far as I can tell, be gentle on her.”
And finally…
User Cykbryk hit us with this absolute gem:
“She doesn't rev match when she downshifts. It really grinds my gears.”
Ha!
