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When driving manual you already unconciously know the gear you’re in. The automatic cars aive driven did show d/r/n/p, because I guess it is in the control syst

When driving manual you already unconciously know the gear you’re in. The automatic cars aive driven did show d/r/n/p, because I guess it is in the control system anyway.

FirmwareBurner 3y ago
>When driving manual you already unconciously know the gear you’re in. You've never been fender bumped by a driver who forgot he was in first gear/reverse, thought he was in neutral, and just let go of the clutch without the brakes on? Happened to me twice. I often find myself checking I'm in neutral before letting go of the clutch during complex parking maneuvers, because I can't trust my memory on where I last left the gear stick. On my old 2003 Fiat Panda, the gear shifter was placed quite high up[1], closer to the side of the steering wheel rather than down in the console, so you could tell with your peripheral vision whether it's still in gear, and also easily flick it into neutral with just your pinkie finger without taking your hands of the wheel. I miss mechanical UX like that when a lot of though was put in stuff like this, instead of every car being a copy-paste of the same barren generic platform, void of mechanical interactions, and with just an iPad in the center, designed to be as cheap to manufacture as possible. [1] https://assets.adac.de/image/upload/ar_16:9,c_fill,f_auto,g_auto,q_auto:eco,w_1256/v1/Autodatenbank/Fahrzeugbilder/im00923-4-fiat-panda.jpg https://assets.adac.de/image/upload/ar_16:9,c_fill,f_auto,g_...
- gregoriol 3y ago
  On motorbikes, there is often (at least in older ones) a neutral indicator but no gear indicator: it prevents this exact situation I guess
  - FirmwareBurner 3y ago
    I assume it's because on motorcycles dumping the clutch while in gear could have graver consequences for the rider than a fender bender.
  - sokoloff 3y ago
    It may also be that a neutral switch already exists to lock out the starter (as opposed to only being an indicator). Adding an indicator for a sensor that’s already present is cheaper/easier/higher RoI than sensing plus indicating.
  - guax 3y ago
    In my experience bikes have it because lots of them are a pain in the ass to put in neutral and is easier to see the light than to feel with the clutch. The neutral is also in between first and second, so its a bit finicky.
- R0flcopt3r 3y ago
  I severely doubt adding a gear indicator would save people from these kinds of situations.
- Already__Taken 3y ago
  In most countries where automatics aren't the default, no that generally never happens. you'd have to not know it's in gear, have the engine running, not be on the break and not have the handbrake on.
  - FirmwareBurner 3y ago
    What are you talking about? All that can definitely happen. And it has happened to me.

When driving manual you already unconciously know the gear you’re in. The automatic cars aive driven did show d/r/n/p, because I guess it is in the control system anyway.

FirmwareBurner 3y ago

>When driving manual you already unconciously know the gear you’re in. You've never been fender bumped by a driver who forgot he was in first gear/reverse, thought he was in neutral, and just let go of the clutch without the brakes on? Happened to me twice. I often find myself checking I'm in neutral before letting go of the clutch during complex parking maneuvers, because I can't trust my memory on where I last left the gear stick. On my old 2003 Fiat Panda, the gear shifter was placed quite high up[1], closer to the side of the steering wheel rather than down in the console, so you could tell with your peripheral vision whether it's still in gear, and also easily flick it into neutral with just your pinkie finger without taking your hands of the wheel. I miss mechanical UX like that when a lot of though was put in stuff like this, instead of every car being a copy-paste of the same barren generic platform, void of mechanical interactions, and with just an iPad in the center, designed to be as cheap to manufacture as possible. [1] https://assets.adac.de/image/upload/ar_16:9,c_fill,f_auto,g_auto,q_auto:eco,w_1256/v1/Autodatenbank/Fahrzeugbilder/im00923-4-fiat-panda.jpg https://assets.adac.de/image/upload/ar_16:9,c_fill,f_auto,g_...

gregoriol 3y ago
On motorbikes, there is often (at least in older ones) a neutral indicator but no gear indicator: it prevents this exact situation I guess
- FirmwareBurner 3y ago
  I assume it's because on motorcycles dumping the clutch while in gear could have graver consequences for the rider than a fender bender.
- sokoloff 3y ago
  It may also be that a neutral switch already exists to lock out the starter (as opposed to only being an indicator). Adding an indicator for a sensor that’s already present is cheaper/easier/higher RoI than sensing plus indicating.
- guax 3y ago
  In my experience bikes have it because lots of them are a pain in the ass to put in neutral and is easier to see the light than to feel with the clutch. The neutral is also in between first and second, so its a bit finicky.
R0flcopt3r 3y ago
I severely doubt adding a gear indicator would save people from these kinds of situations.
Already__Taken 3y ago
In most countries where automatics aren't the default, no that generally never happens. you'd have to not know it's in gear, have the engine running, not be on the break and not have the handbrake on.
- FirmwareBurner 3y ago
  What are you talking about? All that can definitely happen. And it has happened to me.