I know that question up there may sound a little, um, unsavory, but it’s a pretty fundamental question that I’m not sure has ever really been asked: when it comes to dashboard controls, do you prefer to grab or twist or poke things on the dash, or do you prefer to manipulate parts of a stalk?
The older the car, the more likely the basic controls will be on the dashboard itself. As time went on, more and more controls found themselves migrating to stalks sprouting out of the steering column. Windshield wiper controls especially, for some reason, are now almost exclusively on stalks.
Headlights, though, are still undecided, with European (especially German) makes seeming to prefer a location on the dash, while Japanese cars tend to be almost exclusively stalk-light-controllers. I think American cars may just barely lean to dash light controls, but there’s a mix.
So, I just want to do an informal poll here: what do you like better, knobs or stalks? Stalks let you keep your hands on the wheel, but dash knobs are easier to see and understand.
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Personally, I think I prefer dash controls, because I both tend to prefer old shitboxes and because I’m often in many kinds of cars, and dash controls are easier to glance at and figure out. But stalks are convenient, once you learn them.
So, if you have a deep-seated preference, now’s your chance to be the advocate. And if you get into a heated argument about this, it’s going to be hilarious to explain it to your non-gearhead friends, who will just use it as further confirmation that you’re a loon.
Godspeed.
Patrick hates headlines that end with a ? but these are exceptions, I say
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