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Electronic gear selectors are getting more and more popular rapidly replacing traditional mechanical shifters and I have a few thoughts on this.
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Hello there and welcome to another video.
I am roadshow reviews editor Craig Cole coming to you from the confines of My personal isolation space, and I hope you're all staying safe out there, during these difficult times.
Now, have you noticed, it seems like every new or redesigned vehicle, features and an electronic gear selector, where there's no mechanical linkage between the shifter, and transmission.
Now there are countless benefits to going this route, it can increase interior storage space, and, You don't need a gear selector on the center console.
It improves safety of vehicle can automatically put itself in park if, say the driver's door opens and it's still in gear, and it can even enable some pretty amazing features.
Look who's got SmartPark
Smart Park.
She said the clicker kind of hacks itself.
It's not it's [UNKNOWN] And I could park it anywhere.
Hyundai's Smart Park is supper cleaver, but it could never work if that Sonata had a traditional shifter.
Of course, other auto makers offer similar systems, like Fords with its Active Park Assist, though you do have to be in the vehicle for that to work.
And of course, the Mustang comes with active crash assists, but of course that only works with a d-bag behind the wheel and while leaving Cars & Coffee.
[SOUND] Shift by wire is a great idea but sometimes it's frigging annoying numerous car companies from Land Rover and BJU it to BMW Porsche kiya and more have gone electric, but they've left the shifter on the centre console, and I have to ask.
Why would you do this?
Why?
It eats up precious space that could be used for something else.
That's not all.
Some shifters don't respond or are slow to change gears plus, many of them look past.
Ridiculous.
I mean, have you seen the one that General Motors uses?
It's like a Nokia brick phone from about 2002.
And they're even putting that thing in the brand new Cadillac Escalade, gross.
But it's not just GM, BMW electronic shifters are similarly absurd looking, even when they're made of crystal plus there's no rivalry or reason to where they stick the park button.
Porsche has started putting a weird dubbin in some of its models which are I mean, if you're buying a Porsche sports car, you should really be getting a manual transmission, but that is a rant for another day.
And then there's Volvo, this Swedish Chinese firms, new electronic shifter is particularly annoying.
It makes you sort of double click when going from one year to another.
I mean, am I opening a damn folder on my computer or driving.
Now I've done a lot of browsing here but it's not all bad.
For instance, I used to hate Honda's multi button gear selector but after a couple of years, I have made my peace with it.
Also, GMC uses a weird sort of rocker and button arrangement that some roadshow staff members hate, but I actually don't mind it.
But who is doing shifters right these days?
Well FCA's rotary knob is great, especially in the RAM 1500 prop but my favorite has to be Lincoln's tape deck style set up in the Navigator and Aviator SUVs is he had super easy to use and take, Almost zero space on the dashboard or console, naturally not everyone agrees with my opinion, but some people just love being wrong.
In fact many Roadshow staff members hate Lincoln's push buttons, for instance executive editor Chris Parker says, they're too far to reach Also he complains that you can't manipulate them by touch only, as with Honda shift or layout, you have to actually look at the buttons you're pressing and do all that I say.
Big deal.
Lincoln setup ain't that hard to figure out.
Plus push button shifters are a super cool retro touch.
Did you know Chrysler had them back in the 1950s?
Even the ill fated Edsel brand offered something similar, a series of push buttons mounted in the steering wheel hub.
How's that for clever Smart enough to make them one of the greatest disasters in automotive history.
Hey, thank you very much for watching this captivating audio visual masterpiece and please let me know if you agree with my incoherent ramblings or if you think I've gone completely crazy.
There's nothing wrong with putting your car keys in peanut butter.
It keeps the batteries charged.
Leave a comment or five down bellow and please stay safe out there.
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