Am I daydreaming or would my old Wolseley Hornet ( Mk 1 Mini in drag ) have had a floor operated headlamp dipswitch? I seem to think that it was to the left of the clutch. It is 30 years ago mind you, so I may be wrong! I also want to remember that the indicator stalk had a flashing end, but again maybe not.
(Just in case there are any other motoring trivia lovers in the forum at present.) ;-)
SS
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Dunno about the Hornet, but when I started driving in the 60s I took this to be the norm, on my Austin A35, Hillman Husky etc. An an old friend driving a Morris Minor claimed to have absent-mindedly changed gear using the dipswitch on at least one occasion...
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It was a 60s feature I think. Cars I have owned dating from the 40s and 50s usually had a switch on the lower side of a bakelite housing in the middle of the steering wheel, matching a similar one on the upper side for the indicators. Small horn-push in the centre of course.
Then came floor mounted switches, as my Triumph 2000 (64) but only for the Mark 1. By the 70s vulgar stalks were the fashion.
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The foot dipswitch was earlier than the 60s. Father's cars had them in the 30s and my 1929 Lagonda had one. I was used to them up to the 60s and could see no point in the steering wheel or column mounted ones until our first Toyota came with a footrest in the old dipswitch position, the footrest being one of these initially inessential features which became essential once one was used to them.
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Got one on my old GMC pick-up truck (1963) and I must admit I prefer it to column-mounted ones. Perhaps they either went out of fashion or some "safety" law banned them though I can't think why that should be.
Old Minis (mine was 1969) had them for sure.
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I had a 1968 Mk1 Mini 850 and it had the main/dip switch as a little button on the floor just to the left of the clutch pedal, so yes, you did!
And yes, the indicator stalk had a green flashing end!! ;-)
Edited by b308 on 25/02/2008 at 21:00
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Mum's 1966 Mini SDL (MWW 684D) had exactly this dipswitch arrangement. By age 11 I was operating it as co-pilot!!
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By age 11 I was operating it as co-pilot!!
Snap - the co-pilot bit, anyway.
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Thanks guys - you have just made me £5 richer! ( A friend scoffed at this today )
Wonder if anyone else has memories of any other oddly located controls? I know I have indicated with wipers and tried to clear the windscreen with indicators on some cars which for reasons best known to their designers have reversed the common arrangement of the stalks. In my view indicators should be operated by the left hand and handbrakes by pulling upwards on a centrally located lever. Any other arrangement is possibly subversive! ;-)
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Wonder if anyone else has memories of any other oddly located controls?
Vague recollections of a foot operated windscreen washer pump on the floor of one of my dad's old cars. Can't remember which one though.
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Washer pump on floor.
Yes Dave I had one, and it was on one of the following, can't remember which......
Mk1 Escort or Triumph 1300 or MG Midget or Triumph Spitfire
Today's "vague" award please !?
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>Vague recollections of a foot operated windscreen washer pump on the floor..
I think dad's Mk III Cortina had this. No electric pump just a rubber bulb thingy mounted to the left of the clutch.
Kevin...
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I think dad's Mk III Cortina had this. No electric pump just a rubber bulb thingy mounted to the left of the clutch.
IIRC my MkII had a bulb in the middlel of the wiper switch
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>>shoespy
>>on some cars which for reasons best known to their designers have reversed the common arrangement of the stalks.In my view indicators should be operated by the left hand Any other arrangement is possibly subversive! ;-)
The reason is oh so simple. The PROPER arrangement is for indicators to be on the right as they always were and still are in at least Japan and South Africa. This allows changing gear and operating the indicators at the same time.
The Japanese cars are altered for European LH drive markets and we are lumbered with wrong indicators as a result.
Where it really was confusing was in SA where my hired Corolla had identical stalks and function but reversed.
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>> Wonder if anyone else has memories of any other oddly located controls? Vague recollections of a foot operated windscreen washer pump on the floor of one of my dad's old cars. Can't remember which one though.
Mine were often added on as a luxury extra and would involve drilling the dash and putting in a simple water pump with a push button. Systems often involved a water reservoir of barely a pint in capacity.
Then we went on to more sophisticated ones (Lucus) with an electric motor or those ghastly ones that worked using inlet manifold vacuum whereby pressing a discrete dashboard button would initiate a 5 or 10 second spray onto the windscreen, if you were lucky.
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Vague recollections of a foot operated windscreen washer pump on the floor of one of my dad's old cars. Can't remember which one though.
Dunno about cars but they were fitted to the Ford "D" series trucks up to about 1979. The washers were operated "mechanically" by pressing the rubber bulb,the truck also had a metal ring round the bulb which operated a "flick-wipe" switch; a very useful arrangement in light drizzle before the days of delay switches.
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>> Wonder if anyone else has memories of any other oddly located controls? Vague recollections of a foot operated windscreen washer pump on the floor of one of my dad's old cars. Can't remember which one though.
I bought a new 1971 2 door Cortina 1600 GT that had one. That was my first Ford and a nice motor with those rally seats that looked like a couple of nuns sitting in the front.
Reg was RWM 777K
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Mark 1 Escorts had a foot operated washer and wiper system. A black plastic bulb which pumped the water surrounded by a metal ring which operated the wiper when you'd depressed the pump and got water on the screen. Awful! I think it was dropped for the Mk2, if not before.
JS
Edited by John S on 25/02/2008 at 22:03
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Your green flashing tipped indicator stalk would have been on the right, Can't remember when they moved over to the left or who started the trend.
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That'll be why I sold it ! ;-)
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Very early Mini's had a floor mounted starter button, just in front of the hand brake i think. Was the shortest route from the rear mounted battery to starter motor, there was no starter solenoid so a heavy duty push button was required.
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Many cars I drove in the late fifties and early/mid sixties had floor mounted headlamp dip switches and very convenient they were two, if a trifle noisy in operation. Sometimes they could be a nuisance if you wanted to dip the headlights at the same time as changing gear. Otherwise I don't find the column mounted ones of today particularly well thought out.
Our early minis or was it the Morris traveller had a green flashing light at the end of the indicator lever on the right hand side of the steering wheel.
Edited by oldgit on 25/02/2008 at 21:15
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Hillman Imp choke lever was on the floor between the front seats.
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Rover 2000 had a fuel reserve tap. Also a very early vacuum-operated delay wipe with variable delay.
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Early minis had a floor-mounted starter button.
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Had a floor-mounted dipswitch, on either my 1971 Sunbeam Rapier, or my 1974 Hillman Hunter GLS. One or the other, can't remember which
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>>Hillman Imp choke lever was on the floor between the front seats.
And a pneumatic throttle!
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>>Your green flashing tipped indicator stalk would have been on the right, Can't remember when they moved over to the left or who started the trend.
I think you'll find this is due to the EU (common market) standardisation.
Kia have only just caught up!
The same reason wing mirrors disappeared. They had to be capable of being adjusted from inside the car, hence door mirrors. Although I do remember wing mirrors with a remote cable adjustment. With modern electrical remote adjustment, I don't see why they can't be put back where they should be - discuss!
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Yes, the pneumatic throttle on Imps was fitted for about two years, wasn't it? Dropped when the revised version appeared in about 1965, which embodied the long list of the improvements that 'customer-based development' had identified. Hope you aren't offended, l'Escargot, but one of the reasons my hair is now white is that I owned Imps...
To return to the thread, how about the floor-mounted ignition switch and incorporated reverse gear lock fitted for decades to 'proper' Saabs?
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Imp also had two indicator stalks: one on left of dash, just ahead of the steering wheel, wich was depressed to indicate left, and one on the right to indicate right.
It also had a vacuum operated carb venturi (for the accelerator), which meant that on older cars - which always had little leaks in the system - you would gradually slow down when 'cruising' on a dual carriageway or motorway so eventually you had to release the throttle and then depress it again to re-establish vacuum and get it back up to speed.
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I remember it well, as the song goes. (Maurice Chevalier and Hermione Gingold...wonderful)
Foot operated dipswitch on the old hillmans, nothing wrong with that either.
And i still prefer the indicator switch on the right hand side, as still the case on my old merc, i think they should be like that on right hand drive cars as it leaves the left hand free to change gear if needed and of course to cuddle SWMBO at frequent intervals.
Still like to hear a good solid tick tock from the indicators instead of this ominous silence.
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The old air cooled Fiats (like the 126) and even the water cooled 126 bis had the choke lever on one side of teh handbrake and another lever on the other side. I can't remember if this was a starter or a control for heat for the cabin? It's about 20 years ago and the brain cells have gone white. Maybe it was the Karmann Ghia we used to have that the lever provided heat and the Fiat did indeed have a remote starter....
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Commer has a foot operated dipswitch, catches out young mechanics at MOT time.
Handbrake operates on the front wheels, another trap for unwary young MOT testers.
I also seem to remember a relative's ford Zephyr in the early 60s with the fuel cap behind the number plate. I think designers in those days had a sense of humour.
SNIP! - as already mentioned to you, no signatures.
Edited by Webmaster on 26/02/2008 at 00:22
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Handbrake operates on the front wheels another trap for unwary young MOT testers. I also seem to remember a relative's ford Zephyr in the early 60s with the fuel cap behind the number plate. I think designers in those days had a sense of humour.
Renault 4 also had handbrake on front wheels.
The hidden fuel fillers were IMO a neat idea, other cars had them as well I think; much smarter than the genius at VW who designed the early Beetles so you had to lift the "bonnet" to fuel up, and get all your luggage wet if it was raining.
Hideous little car, Herbie had a lot to answer for!
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Handbrake operates on the front wheels another trap for unwary young MOT testers. I also seem to remember a relative's ford Zephyr in the early 60s with the fuel cap behind the number plate. ....
Had a Commer caravanette. Went to do a handbrake turn in the snow and it was then that infinitely terminal understeer alerted me to the front wheel handbrake system! Also, the handbrake was on the right.
Just remembered that the Sunbeam Stilletto had the release button and the keyhole for the front bonnet behind the round badge on the front of the car, which swivelled down to reveal it. The petrol filler cap was under the bonnet and it would puzzle forecourt attendants quite often.
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'57 Beetle had relay switch thingy to dip lights next to clutch and slightly higher up a metal bar lever which you moved round to access the reserve petrol when you ran out (no petrol gauge).
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My Beetle was a '61 and had the same arrangement. But it was LHD. On RHD models, when the petrol ran out, a skilled driver could gas the engine with the right foot and keep it going while the left foot kicked the reserve tap. Impossible with LHD.
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Remember the floor mounted Mini starter button as a child.
As well as regular Minis we had a Mini Moke with the same switch and i remember frightening the life out of myself by stepping on it and turning the engine over whilst climbing around in the car. I guess it must have operated without the key in the ignition.
I would have been about 4 or 5 when we had the Moke, no childseats either, my folks sold it in the end after I was nearly flung out the back seats for the umpteenth time by my dad taking a corner too quick! Apparently after those traumas I used to cry every time we went in it.
My first car (1958 Morris Minor) had the floor dipswitch, plus a knob in the centre of the dash that you pulled to start it.
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I had a 67 Hornet but I can't truly remember where the dipswitch was - I remember the floor button but that could just be the 1962 Mini which definitely had it.
The flashing green end on the indicator stalk is very familiar too
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Manatee - as a fellow "Horneteer" wasn't there also some kind of choke-like control which had something to do with the heater? Probably on the Mini and Elf also.
My Dad's Wolseley 6/110 had a pull out control somewhere low down on the dash which operated the overdrive I think. His Zephyr definately had the fuel filler hidden behind the rear number plate as someone mentioned above.
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My grandfather had a Humber Super Snipe (I think) which had the fuel filler hidden behind one of the rear reflectors. It was a circular one which just unscrewed.
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Yes, early Minis and derivatives had a pull-out control which (theoretically at least) adjusted the water flow rate through the heater, allegedly giving temperature control. Didn't work of course. Took ages to have any effect and was normally used in on/off mode.
You think the fuel filler on a Zephyr is well hidden? Ever tried refuelling a '60's Humber Hawk? Fuel filler cap was one of the circular rear reflectors in the (offside?) rear light cluster. You unscrewed it to access the fuel filler tube.
Glad to see Ford are keeping up the tradition with the Focus bonnet release.
JS
Edited by John S on 25/02/2008 at 22:26
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I remember a few oddly placed items in various cars owned by friends and relatives...
On a VW 1600TL the (front) boot release button was set into the jamb of the driver's door (logical, I suppose). Pressing in the end of the indicator stalk honks the horn on a lot of cars, but flashed the lights on a Ford Zodiac III and early Honda Accord. Pull the indicator stalk towards you to flash on most cars, but a Peugeot 504 or Citroen GS would blast its horn.
Whenever I pulled the remote boot release on my Montego - the retaining spring was tensioned to approximately 3G - the bootlid would burst open like a bank job from an episode of The Sweeney, occasionally sending passing pedestrians fleeing for their lives!
All time favourite? On a friend's Alfasud, the right hand column stalk worked four separate things, including the fan heater!
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>On a friend's Alfasud, the right hand column stalk worked four separate things, including the fan heater!
My Chevy has one column stalk that controls:
i) Indicators.
ii) High/low-beam.
iii) Wipers on/off and variable speed/delay.
iv) Windscreen washers.
v) Cruise control on/off and speed setting.
Kevin...
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>v) Cruise control on/off and speed setting.
I forgot "Resume"
Kevin...
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The original 1959 Minis were called Austin 7 and Morris Mini-Minor: the floor starter button was not just due to nearness to the battery, it was also a bit of retro. The Austin 7s and Morris Minors of the 1920s and 1930s had floor-mounted starters.
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My father's 1947 Austin 8 had a floor-mounted dipswitch to the left of the clutch pedal - it also had, amongst other features, a windscreen that could be released upwards and a rearscreen blind operated by a length of cord just above the offside side windows.
I wouldn't have thought being "blinded" by following cars was too much of a problem in those days...:-)
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My 1968 Midget had a foot operated dipswitch.
Seem to recall Dad driving a minivan with a starter located on the floor.
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My father's MG1100 had one as did my 1953 Rover 75 iirc...
As did my 1961 Mini, my brace of A30s ,
A real pia.
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I think the floor mounted starter button followed Issigonis's idea of simplicity. It did away with the need for a solenoid - the button directly made the contact in the starter switch. It's even simpler than the pre-62 Minors - they have a knob on the dash which pulls a cable and operates the starter switch -- again, no solenoid.
JS
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Talk about strange cmtrols, I used to drive J4 van which had tge gearbox as a mirror to the normal syle. i.e. in the H shape the first and second gears were on the right. My Daimler SP 250 has a foot operated dip switch. The thing I find confusing is the position of reverse gear on so many modern cars
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I had a Simca 1500 with 1st and 2nd nearest the driver. I also had a Westminster, like the Wolseley 6/110, with the overdrive knob which IIRC also operated the freewheel. There was advice to pull out the knob and lock the freewheel before descents. The lack of engine braking with the freewheel operating was a bit disconcerting at first. My first SAAB 99 (1970) also had (has, I still have it) a freewheel, it was discontinued thereafter. The Westminster was supposed to be liked by the Police because 1st and reverse were easily engaged, being directly opposite, enabling rapid turn arounds. I too once had an Austin 8 with the rear window blind. I wrote a rude word on mine for the benefit of rear dazzlers. As to floor mounted dipswitches, wasn?t there a tale or more likely, urban myth, of the centre rivet wearing away allowing the outer part to be propelled at great force into the driver?
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Eeeee!! my 1965 Triumph Herald had loads of great features I miss today:-
1) Thumb-breaking starting handle, that actually ?fired? the engine (as long as you remembered to turn the ignition on! Before you were knackered)
2) Reverse opening bonnet, (made that way on purpose so that it wouldn?t fly-up when the catches came undone ? as they always did!)
3) Little reserve switchover lever on top of the tank, which gave you another gallon to get to a petrol station when you ran out, and the gauge still showed half-full. (But didn?t re-fill again unless you filled the tank right up ? so next time you needed it, it was empty! Grr!)
4) Hand operated push-button squirty screen-washers
5) Boot lid that used to operate on a ?a pawl? system ? when a gust of wind caught it, it came down and tried to eat you.
6) And yes!! Floor-mounted dip-switch!
7) Nice plasticky type headlining material, that was easier to give a quick coat of white emulsion to, rather than clean, especially if you smoked.
8) Lovely black-rubber sealing strips around front and back screens, which somehow used to hold water, and leach black stains down my pristine brown-edged WHITE body panels - every time it rained.!
9) Positive Earth electrical system that made my life hell ? until I got the hang of installing all my gadgets the opposite way round! (Was red negative ? black positive?, ?bang-fizz? ? DRAT!!!!!)
10) And finally (in my case) rear wheel assemblies that fell-off due to body-rot with five people in, on the road between Ingleton and Hawes!
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>>Little reserve switchover lever on top of the tank, which gave you another gallon to get to a petrol station when you ran out, and the gauge still showed half-full. (But didn?t re-fill again unless you filled the tank right up
This lever moved the fuel pick-up to a lower level in the tank, it had to be turned back after re-fuelling for it to be of any use!
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Don't forget the other Herald joy, no synchro on first gear, try to select first when you're not quite stopped - ouch!
I guess it wasn't uncommon in those days but a Herald was the only thing I ever drove that was like that.
Edited by commerdriver on 27/02/2008 at 09:30
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The Heral: but, wow, what a turning circle. You could do a straight U-turn on anything down to a country lane! Loved driving my mother's soft-top; nice wooden dash too.
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The Heral: but wow what a turning circle. You could do a straight U-turn on anything down to a country lane!
The turning circle was almost too good - there were stories of Heralds snapping front stub axles because of the scrub effect.
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billy25
Re your Triumph Herald.
I remember all 10 of your Herald features (well the first 9 anyway). My dad bought 4 new Heralds one after the other and I learned to drive in the first of them. They were brilliant to learn in with their tight turning circle and positive (for the time) gear change. We'd had Fords before (a Prefect followed by a Consul) so the Herald was our first 4 speed gear box. Total luxury. I passed first time without spending a penny on lessons (my dad was a very patient tutor) and I put much of the credit down to the Herald.
If I remember correctly the last 2 versions had wooden dashboards (and not veneer either).
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I had a Simca 1500 with 1st and 2nd nearest the driver.
My Dad had one of these (GLS Estate version) and you've triggered a dim memory of gears being a mirror of those in Mum's Mini. Perhaps an oddity of cars where a column change was the norm with a floor mounted gear lever reserved for the upper end of the range.
Other oddity was that the whole floor of the boot could be slid out as a fold down picnic table.
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Weedy, I have an SP250 as well, a 1963 'C' spec. What's yours?
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Anyone for early sixties Fords with wipers powered from inlet manifold vacuum? Turn them on and accelerate and be lucky if they did a screen wipe in less than ten seconds ? lift off the throttle and they would fly back and forth at incredible velocity, and not necessarily in the same direction!
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Lift off the throttle, reach under the dashboard and pull off the pipe to the inlet manifold, and 'pop' everyones ears ;>)
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1947 Triumph roadster 1800. 4-speed column-change gearbox, but with a very short lever tucked behind an enormous steering wheel, operated with the right hand. Umbrella handle handbrake also on the right. Very long bonnet covered both the engine and gearbox. Result - bench seat and unimpeded seating for 3 people.
2 fold out seats in the boot, with a private windscreen but the hood didn't cover them.
But a dip switch on the steering wheel boss. It extinguished the offside headlamp, and tilted the nearside reflector downwards with a solenoid.
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wipers powered from inlet manifold vacuum>>
My best mate had a Ford with this "extra" - it used to drive him mad at times.
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I remember Ford Transits from the 70's had foot operated wash/wipe, to the left of the clutch.
So switching between a Morris Traveller with floor mounted dipswitch, and a Transit was a bit confusing. Not nice at night in a Transit to unexpectedly wash/wipe with the lights of an oncoming car getting brighter!
Edited by Sofa Spud on 27/02/2008 at 16:28
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Did on my old 1957 Conquest Century. Prefer this to stalk dip. This motor also had cable operated reserve feature with knob on dash to pull out. Gave you access to 1.5 imp.gall. Another feature was the semaphore turn indicators which often required some manual assist to operate (off or on!!!).
Happy Days long gone.Phil I
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My old Austin Cambridge A55 had a foot operated dip switch. IIRC it was to the left of the clutch pedal, but I can't be sure as I have tried to erase these memories.
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Hi nick,
my Sp250 is 1961 "B" Spec, so the things its missing compared to yours are cigar lighter, rack & pinion steering, some sort of improvemet to the heating and, of course, SEAT BELTS!
By the way I have several other motors a Ford S max, a VErte tempest, a landrover Defender 110 High Capacity pick up and a mazda B2500, oh, and I have Parkinson's Disease.
So if you want to email me you can do so once you join PDUK.org where I post using the same name.
I live in Essex inside the M25 and will probably use the Daimler to go to a get together of the PwP who inhabit the pdUK website on 10th May at the Hilton Northampton.
Regards,
Weedy
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I remember having a floor mounted dipswitch in my 1949 Standard 12 and Hillman Minx's of about 1951 and 1954 vintages and a Standard 10. My next car on returning from Aden (RAF) in 1963 was a Wolseley 12 and I'm sure this was similarly fitted.
I think it was the Standard 12, which being ancient and in poor condition (my first car and for which I paid £239 in 1957) catapulted the dipswitch cap and internal spring at me with considerable force one night , as I moved my left foot away.
I found that the turned over cap rivet which held the cap and spring in place had worn completely away thus releasing both. It was soon mended though, since the centre shaft was hollow and a washer and suitably sized self tapping screw repaired it as good as it ever was.
Thinking about it now, that 1949 Standard 12 rust bucket for which I paid £239 in 1957 was just one devil of a price and that was off a bomb site in Coventry. Mind you, cars of any sort were in very short supply. Perhaps one of you mathematicians can convert that into today's price. I'm sure it will be a frightening sum for an eight year old car judged by current values!!!
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My 1964 Fiat 500 had a starter motor operated by a lever between the front seats, 1975 Saab 99 had a hand brake that worked on the front wheels; the manual suggested you pull it gently if one wheel was spinning on ice/snow and the 1982 Alfasud had inboard disc brakes where the pads could be changed without any dismantling. I once did it in my "good" clothes, simply rolled up my sleeves.
Alfalfa
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One oddity of Rootes group cars, right up to the death of the Hillman brand circa 1976 - the handbrake down on the driver's right hand side. It was always a distinguishing feature of the Minx/Hunter cars and derivatives, not for the likes of the "conventional" Imp and Avenger.
A few other cars have had this curious feature - including my granny's Austin A35 IIRC.
The question is - why?
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My father had four Hillman Minx models, from the 1300 to the 1725, over a number of years and I also bought a 1725 model because of the marvellous service he had had over many, many thousands of miles (the first 1300 model did 67,000 miles in its first year).
I remember the handbrake well, but can only suggest the reason was that bench seats may have originally been part of the specification. No doubt someone will correct me...:-)
By the way, his four Minx cars were followed by a Hillman Hunter and a Super Snipe; the last of the Minx models was the test bed for the Hunter's 1725 engine.
My own 1725 Minx did well over 100k after I acquired it with 34k on the clock and was far,far more reliable than cars I bought in later years; apart from the usual replacement parts, the only additional expense was a "new" radiator, which cost just £5 from a local car scrapyard and which was in virtually new condition.
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Yes; bench seats. The reason for all sorts of odd handbrakes; the umbrella type was very popular too.
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>>the handbrake down on the driver's right hand side. A few other cars have had this curious feature - including my granny's Austin A35 IIRC.
A further oddity of the A30/35 (and possibly A40) was the single brake cylinder mounted under the floor to the rear of the handbrake that operated the rear brakes through the same mechanical linkage as the handbrake. If anything failed, it meant you had no brakes whatsoever. Probably the reason dual-circuit brakes were introduced.
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My 1965 Singer Vogue had the floor-mouinted dipswitch, and the right-mounted handbrake, both of which I found logical, and easy to use. The dipswitch spring was strong enough to be the footrest too [deliberately so, according to the handbook, as I recall.]
The Singer handbrake cables both came to the lever base, thus making them of unequal length, which didn't seem to cause any problem with unequal stretch, but the Austin A30 that I had earlier, also with right-mounted handbrake, had a cross-shaft to the transmission tunnel and cables of equal length. The A30 handbrake lever was a pressed steel thing, welded to the cross-shaft. The weld gave way on me once. Oh Bother !!
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Right hand handbrake levers are easier to hold a vehicle with less than perfect brakes on a steep hill when you need a really hard pull on it.
I expect the real reason is to do with bench seats which were quite common in the sixties but then I always found the "umbrella" handbrake pulls under the dash easy to use as well.
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Right hand handbrake levers are easier to hold a vehicle with less than perfect brakes on a steep hill when you need a really hard pull on it. I expect the real reason is to do with bench seats which were quite common in the sixties
The reason I liked the right-hand handbrake on my 1967 Hunter was that you could put the car in gear with the left hand whilst at the same time start releasing the handbrake with the right hand. It gave a much smoother movement of limbs than having to operate the gear lever and handbrake in sequence with the one hand.
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My Verte Tempest (see post above) is really a Ford Falcon made in Australia and with a LPG only engine of 4 litres straight six. It was made in 2002, registered in 2005 in UK, yet also has a handrake to the right of the drivers seat. The disconcerting thing about it is that once the lever has been used to set the brake it goes all floppy and sinks back to the floor thus not impeding access to or egress from the drivers seat - clever eh? To release it you have to pull the lever up and depress the button as normal ( unlike the fly off handbrake in the Daimler).
Weedy
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That's a weird one, sounds a bit like the concept of the foot operated parking brake our transatlantic cousins are so fond of.
Edited by commerdriver on 28/02/2008 at 09:30
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Caterham 7's have the handbrake situated in the passenger footwell.
If the seat's well back you can't reach it from a normal driving position, not that you buy a car like that for ease of use of the handbrake.
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Had a friend who worked in a garage and a lady who complained her beetle was running lumpy (technical term). The garage took it in and tested it all day and found no problem so they asked her to demonstrate how she drove the car. She got in, pulled out the choke, which was in the centre of the dashboard and hung her handbag on it and drove off (in a lumpy way)
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My friend's old Fiat 500 (F reg I think) had a 'hand throttle' on the dash. He would open his fabric sunroof, accelerate to about 30mph, set his hand throttle then stand on the driver's seat whilst driving along with his upper torso sticking out the roof! He was mad...
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Odd controls - I recall an old Ford - Prefect I think - that had an ignition key to fire up the electrics and a knob on the dashboard you pulled to operate the starter motor.
The knob had the symbol of a starting handle on it, presumably an electric self-starter was an innovation at the time.
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drove off (in a lumpy way)>>
Oh dear! The old ones are the best...:-)
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Merc w114's had a foot operated wiper/wash
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My Riley Elf had one along with a nice walnut dash
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If you go far enough back, there were many wierd systems of control, and certainly foot operated dipswitches-very common! My 1930 Morris Minor had central accellerator pedal-some concentration was needed when I got in something more modern- also foot (or palm of the hand) operated starter, no ignition key-just a switch- no door locks! That says something for peoples honesty during the 30's and 40's. Mind you, its still going, so perhaps the present owner wheel-clamps it every time it is parked. The Riley I passed my test on had the gear H-gate arranged 1st/2nd towards the driver, and 3rd/4th away. What about early Morgan 3-wheelers, with throttle control on the steering wheel.? Some of them were started by a handle which went in the o/s rear of the body,behind drivers seat- passers-by thought it was clockwork!
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Rolls-Royces and the equivalent Bentleys up to the Silver Cloud, as well as the six-cylinder Morris Isis and Wolseley 6/90 of the 1950s all had right-hand gearchange levers. I've never figured out why...
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Perhaps to allow a central passenger in the front of these fair-sized to large cars, mh?
Actually some of the early RR 20s had a central lever and three speed gearbox - I went in one once, an open tourer belonging to a friend's father, still in use at age, er, only about 28 or 30 actually now I come to think of it although it looked and sounded very venerable with its horizontal radiator slats. It is I who am becoming old.
That right-hand remote has a very nice feel to it though, solid and heavy but silky, with a nice diagonal slide from second to third. It may have been cribbed from Hispano Suiza by Royce along with the mechanical brake servo for which RR paid royalties. But if you leave the car in second or top gear the lever may go up your trouser leg when you get back into it.
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only about 28 or 30
Damn! I was ten years out in the heat of the moment. The car was 40 when I went in it, and therefore officially venerable. It was still in regular although not daily use as the owner, a Cambridge don, had died and his widow didn't drive much. Their son, a friend and my employer at the time, lived in London, drove new Ford Consuls and was planning to sell it.
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