Andy recently spent a week in a $40,000 Ford Maverick, and as much as he enjoyed the truck, there was one thing he couldn’t get past — the shift knob. It wasn’t the end of the world, but he did find it incredibly frustrating while trying to make a three-point turn. Personally, I agree with him. A rotary shifter is an inherently flawed design because it isn’t a column shifter, and column shifters are objectively the best. In fact, every single automatic on every single car should have a column shifter.
Manual transmissions are, of course, exempt from this argument because manuals are awesome, and I’m not sure how a six-on-the-tree setup would work in real life. I can’t imagine it would be an improvement in a performance car, but it’s possible I’m wrong. If we’re talking about cars that don’t have a manual transmission, though, I know for a fact I’m not wrong because column shifters are the ideal shift lever.
Until relatively recently, most automatics were physically connected to the shift lever, so it made sense to put a big one right in the middle. Except, do you know what was far more satisfying that dropping that 1996 Toyota Camry down into drive? Doing the exact same thing in a Chevrolet Suburban. Why? Because of that sweet, sweet column shifter.
Now that computers control everything, automakers are free to find creative new ways for drivers to put their cars into gear, and unfortunately, none of them have ever come up with an idea that beats a column shifter. When your hands are already on the wheel, the shifter is right there. It’s easy, convenient and far superior to every single alternative.
Basically, it’s time for everyone to give up and copy Mercedes-Benz. Mercedes isn’t the only automaker that uses column shifters, but it’s still a superior experience compared to what you get from Hyundai. I recently had a Mercedes-Benz E 450 for a week, and let me tell you, driving that thing was a dream. I mean, it was a $90,000 luxury sedan when you considered all the options, so it better be a dream, but I’m not kidding when I say part of why I enjoyed it so much was because Mercedes has the best shifters in the business.
Want to make a three-point road turn? You barely even have to think about it. It also made me question why more automakers aren’t taking the same approach. Maybe there’s a cost issue? That doesn’t seem likely, but I’ve been wrong before. Still, I’m not a product planner. The actual professionals can figure out the dollars and cents side of things. I’m simply saying it shouldn’t matter because what Mercedes has done is so much better than any of the alternatives I’ve seen.
What about performance cars, though? Do I really expect you to use a dainty column shifter to put your big, manly Mustang GT into gear? Yes, I do. Take your new column-shifted Mustang GT out for a drive that involves a three-point road turn, and you’ll agree I’m right, too. It’s not like a column shifter means you can’t still use paddles to shift gears manually. Ultimately, it’s just a better, cleaner design, and it’s time for the rest of the industry to recognize that.
