Bringing your classic to the modern era isn’t always the easiest transition. You want to keep what makes your car unique, but also, some modern-day tech can help with many different things.
You can end up spending a lot of time in your vehicle so it’s best you get the interior how you want it to make life while driving as easy for you as possible.
Below we’ve come up with a list of options which will help you bring your car or van up to the modern era.
The ultimate in-car upgrade?
The internet defines the modern age, so it tracks that the ultimate modern installation you can make to a vehicle is Wi-Fi connectivity. Not only is it good for smartphone satellite navigation and maintaining a strong signal on your Spotify playlists, but it can help kid young ones entertained. Also, if you work on the road, it can be more reliable for laptops and tablets.
Read the Parkers guide to the best in-car Wi-Fi devices here.
Phone Mounts
We shouldn’t be touching our phones while we’re driving; new laws make it illegal even to open or unlock your phone. However, if we’re using out a phone for use as a sat nav, it’s okay to interact with the phone.
Here’s a mix of phone mounts that will help you on your way, from magnetic ones to ones that mount onto your headrests to keep kids in the back happy.
iOttie Easy One Touch Wireless 2
PRICE: £49.61 | VIEW OFFER
The iOttie Easy One Touch 2 is a clever little mount that will recharge phones wirelessly. This little unit is nicely made and has various options for mounting it inside your vehicle, from the windscreen, dashboard, or even your cupholder.
The telescopic arm and pivot will allow you to get your phone exactly where you need it the next time you get in the car.
MagGrip Air Vent Magnetic Universal Car Mount
PRICE: £13.50 | VIEW OFFER
It’s a blindingly obvious simple design that works. Moreover, it’s cheap too, which is good because you could lose it quite quickly due to its size, so you may find yourself replacing it quite often.
It mounts into your air vents without an awful lot of fuss and will hold almost any phone in place. The magnet is strong enough to be sturdy in keeping your phone in place, TechMatte has built something good here, and we think it knows it.
With it being a budget solution but incredibly capable, if lost or left in a hire car, you won’t be too upset if it’s misplaced, but you’ll have to question if it’s efficient to keep buying more.
Arteck Universal Mobile Phone Mount
PRICE: £7.64 | VIEW OFFER
This phone holder mounts to your dashboard super tight. A gel pad with a suction cup sticks like a limpet to a rock, so there will be no fear that it’ll come flying off as you circumnavigate a roundabout.
It is affordably priced and has a 360-degree rotational design to point your phone exactly where you want it.
Car Back Seat Headrest Mount
PRICE: £8.99 | VIEW OFFER
This is a bit of a curveball but hear us out on this one… So maybe the phone mount isn’t for you. Maybe this mount is for a tablet to keep the ankle-biters in the back quiet.
This simple design works so well; a spring-loaded arm holds the mount secure on the headrest with a good solid, sturdy grip on the tablet.
It can be angled if you’ve more than one back seat passenger and will be sure to give you a small amount of respite from the “are we nearly there yet” brigade.
Floor mats
Interesting one this. You might not think it, but this inexpensive option can be a luxurious upgrade. If the carpets in your car are worn and past treated to bring back their original colour, floormats can help.
They will hide a multitude of sins and give the floor of your car a new lease of life. The great thing is that these are removable to be washed and vacuumed correctly if they’re dirty. There are plenty of options on these and one to suit every car; if you do enough looking around and internet trawling, you can probably find original ones for your vehicle.
Sakura All-weather Car Mat
PRICE: £14.95 | VIEW OFFER
With a healthy mix of carpet and rubber, these will wear well and last a good while. The carpets aren’t too plush either, meaning they’ll give up any grit and dirt readily when vacuuming; a nice little bonus is the mats are trimmable, so you can make sure you get them to fit just right.
Ring Ultra Shield 5000 Car Mat Set
PRICE: £25.99 | VIEW OFFER
Ring’s RMAT1 had a mix of carpet and PVC. At 72 x 45cm, the front mats go well under the pedals and suited left-hand drive or right-hand drive cars. They are easily trimmed for a good fit, and the combined area of all four mats made them one of the most extensive sets overall. The PVC will make them durable and easy to get small stones and grit out of when vacuuming.
Michelin Premium Carpet 4-Piece Mat Set
PRICE: £24.63 | VIEW OFFER
This thick-pile carpet will add a sense of luxury to any motor, not quite thick enough to take your shoes off and sink into, but nice nonetheless. The large, soft rubber heel pad on the drivers’ mat is a nice touch.
These are excellent mats that will vacuum well and withstand some wear. However, they’re not trimmable like rubber mats, making it a bit hit and miss if they fit your car.
Audio systems
You can even purchase aftermarket DAB radio ariels that plug into your cigarette lighter and connect your phone. They can be convenient if you don’t fancy taking out your old car stereo.
There are two car stereo chassis types you’ll encounter: Single DIN and Double DIN. Essentially this is the height of the car stereo system. Below we’ve listed some Double DIN car stereos because, if you’ve space and a little bigger budget, these are probably the way to modernise your car.
Kenwood DMX5020DABS
PRICE: £469.00 | VIEW OFFER
This has everything which you’d want from a Double DIN display. No buttons, a clear touchscreen, USB extensions, and more.
If you’ve never used Apple CarPlay before, you’ll find apps such as Podcasts, WhatsApp Audible and Spotify. You’ll also be able to make calls, receive text messages and respond to messages via Siri.
Pioneer 1026883
PRICE: £340.99 | VIEW OFFER
This from Pioneer doesn’t have the quickest of wakeup times, but that’s bearable when you start using it as it’s rapid fast.
It has a quirky feature in that you’re allowed to pause live broadcasts if you want to take a call or chat with your passengers.
Pure Highway 600 Digital Radio Adapter
PRICE: £79.95 | VIEW OFFER
You don’t have to buy a big stereo to bring your car up to date; you can spend a lot less on something like this, a DAB ariel for your vehicle.
Providing voice control, a better quality of audio, and features such as Spotify Radio and Bluetooth. You’ll be able to make phone calls and stream music with ease and confidence.
Parking sensors
You might not think you need these until you have them, but they make everything easier. Chrome parts can be expensive to replace, so a decent set of aftermarket parking sensors can help save hefty amounts if your dink a bumper.
Aftermarket car stereos are also ready to be hooked up to parking sensors. It’s a sensible option to future-proof your car if you get a new stereo to get one prepared for parking sensors.
Dolphin DPS400 Reverse Parking Sensors
PRICE: £39.99 | VIEW OFFER
Available in a large variety of colours in matte and gloss are these Dolphin DPS400s. The set comes with everything you’ll need to install the sensors. They will start notifying you will hear a beep when objects are around 1.5 meters behind you and flatline at approximately 30cm away from an object.
Dolphin DPPK1
PRICE: £109.99 | VIEW OFFER
If we’re going to suggest you use Dolphin for your rear parking sensors, it’s no surprise if we recommend them for both front and rear sensors.
As with the above, easy to install and very easy to use.
4 Parking Sensors LED Display
PRICE: £20.99 | VIEW OFFER
If you want a super cheap option, there are these by Zonetech. The LED display can be stuck onto your dash underneath your rearview mirror, it reminds us of an early system, but it tells you how far away you are from an object and either side of you.
Headlights
It could be argued that headlights are one of the most considerable advances in the automotive sector. Over the years, they have come on leaps and bounds; today’s LED lights are so bright that some money makers have even started making night-driving glasses.
You can do some simple things to improve your headlights, from cleaning them to changing them.
Philips 577928 RacingVision GT200 H7
PRICE: £21.99 | VIEW OFFER
These bulbs claim to be up to 200% brighter and will extend your headlight beam over 80 meters further than the minimum legal halogen bulbs. They’re fully road legal with a bulb design that provides higher luminance for a brighter view of the road.
KATUR 9012 Headlight Bulb
PRICE: £35.99 | VIEW OFFER
Made from some of the best automotive LED chips, the 6000k Xenon white colour ensures maximum light output.
The headlight adopts the latest 360-degree adjustable mounting collar. You can rotate the headlight for the perfect beam pattern without dark spots, shadow areas, or blinding people driving in the opposite direction.
Belupai Headlight Headlamp Restoration Kit
PRICE: £13.59 | VIEW OFFER
If changing lightbulbs isn’t your thing, and you think your car would benefit from having its headlight cases cleaned, a restoration job can be time-consuming but rewarding.
Make sure you have the correct tools, and this kit by Belupai can help you take years off of your headlights and bring clarity back to frosted lenses.
