But there are also plenty of useful accessories on sale at hardware stores and workshops, especially when it comes to making life easier for drivers in cold weather or slippery conditions.
Windscreen coverings can be helpful in extreme weather, says Ulrich Koester from a leading German auto industry association. An accessory like this can make for an easier start to a morning commute.
These coverings are held in place between the two front doors and under the windscreen wipers, helping keep the car protected from frost or extreme heat.
By contrast, says Koester, "dangling CDs from the rear-view mirror is senseless." These mirror ornaments are said to counteract speed cameras, but Koester sees this as pure fantasy. The CDs could also become quite dangerous by reflecting light into the eyes of oncoming drivers.
The ADAC, Germany’s largest automobile club, also advises against dangling air freshener trees, which can be distracting and can contain allergens.
A better accessory is an air freshener placed in front of the car’s air conditioning vents. Some manufacturers even offer integrated diffusers with different fragrances for the air conditioning.
Whereas padded leather gloves or furry steering wheel covers used to make for warm fingers on a hard, cold steering wheel, some modern cars offer a heated steering wheel at the push of a button. Experts also advise against using separate heated coverings for steering wheels or seats, as these can loosen and slip off.
Unlike cars from decades past, modern models don’t tend to have the once-popular auxiliary high beams or fog lamps.
The full-size lamps at the front can turn everyday cars into rally race cars - at least visually. On today's vehicle fronts, though, there’s hardly any room for them, especially with more focus on drag coefficient and pedestrian safety.
Large speakers on the rear shelf or in the door compartments are also becoming increasingly rare in modern vehicles. The range of high-quality audio systems is so great in many small cars that retrofitting for even more volume usually doesn’t pay off.
And with the wide range of on-board electronics and smartphone connectivity available, modern cockpits already offer plenty of vehicle information through digital displays, thus making auxiliary dashboard accessories increasingly obsolete.
The Bluetooth hands-free systems with voice control built in to most new cars can also make phone calls easier and safer.
But drivers should ditch the tissue boxes, nodding dogs and bobbleheads, says the ADAC. Now as ever, these objects can turn into dangerous projectiles in the event of an accident.
