Excessive use of screens has become a security issue. We tend to take our eyes off the road to navigate submenus and access an often-used feature. This is a real problem that Euro NCAP recently highlighted. From 2026, Europe’s independent safety body will penalize carmakers by lowering the safety rating of cars that do not have physical controls for certain functions.
This decision made us think: are there still cars without a central screen? By that we mean no display. There are a handful of cars with non-touch screens surrounded by buttons, but we want to focus on car interiors that do away with the center screen altogether. The answer should be yes. For example, Dacia will sell you a Sandero sedan, a Logan sedan, a Jogger wagon or a Duster SUV without a central screen, as long as you stick to the cheapest version.
While the Sandero, Logan and Jogger have been around for a few years, the latest Duster is a brand new car that has only just gone on sale. Configurators are up and running in more and more European countries, revealing a gloriously spartan interior for the entry-level version. Renault’s low-cost division isn’t the only company doing this as Fiat offers a screen-less setup for the cheapest Panda. In its third generation since 2011, the adorable city car recently saw its life cycle extended until 2026.
The Volkswagen in place! went out of production a few months ago, and it was also offered in its basic version without a central screen. However, owners could connect a smartphone and turn it into a removable infotainment system. Dacia offers the same functionalities for cars ordered without a touch screen. It’s called Media Control and serves as a “screen that sticks out of your pocket” since you’re already carrying a smartphone. Here’s how it works:
To this list, we can add exotic cars like Bugattis and Ferraris which do not have a central windshield, as well as certain utility vehicles. Since we mentioned VW earlier, the chip shortage starting in 2021 has forced the company to sell the Nivus crossover and Fox sedan in Brazil without a central display. This was particularly strange for the Nivus since it had a fully digital instrument cluster but no touchscreen. In the recent past, VW Brazil sold the cheapest version of a car without a display in the middle of the dashboard.
Of course, we can agree that a car interior without a screen in 2024 seems old-fashioned. However, without infotainment, you get something better: buttons and controls. Old-fashioned controls are more functional, regardless of what an automaker’s marketing team says about the quality of giant touchscreens. Bean meters employed by an automaker will never officially admit that it is cheaper to use the same displays across the entire product line than to develop separate switchgear.
While there is no perfect compromise, some automakers like Hyundai try to please both worlds. The recently updated Tucson retains its pair of screens but has more buttons than before. Not only that, but the South Korean brand has expressed its long-term commitment to physical controls, arguing that hardware keys are easier to use while driving.
BMW sees things differently since it has already removed the iDrive controller in the X1 and X2 crossovers, as well as the 2 Series Active Tourer minivan. The rotary knob will be removed from the 1 and 2 Series Gran Coupes later this year when the next-generation models arrive. As if that wasn’t enough, next-generation electric vehicles on the Neue Klasse platform won’t have it either.
If you have other examples of new cars on sale today without a screen, share them!
