User interface
Main article: Car controls
In the Ford Model T the left-side hand lever sets the rear
wheel parking brakes and puts the transmission in neutral. The lever to the right controls the
throttle. The lever on the left of the steering column is for ignition timing. The left foot pedal
changes the two forward gears while the centre pedal controls reverse. The right pedal is the
brake.
Cars are equipped with controls used for driving, passenger comfort, and safety,
normally operated by a combination of the use of feet and hands, and occasionally by
voice on 21st-century cars. These controls include a steering wheel, pedals for
operating the brakes and controlling the car's speed (and, in a manual transmission car,
a clutch pedal), a shift lever or stick for changing gears, and a number of buttons and
dials for turning on lights, ventilation, and other functions. Modern cars' controls are now
standardised, such as the location for the accelerator and brake, but this was not
always the case. Controls are evolving in response to new technologies, for example,
the electric car and the integration of mobile communications.
Some of the original controls are no longer required. For example, all cars once had
controls for the choke valve, clutch, ignition timing, and a crank instead of an
electric starter. However, new controls have also been added to vehicles, making them
more complex. These include air conditioning, navigation systems, and in-car
entertainment. Another trend is the replacement of physical knobs and switches by
secondary controls with touchscreen controls such as BMW's iDrive and Ford's MyFord
Touch. Another change is that while early cars' pedals were physically linked to the
brake mechanism and throttle, in the early 2020s, cars have increasingly replaced these
physical linkages with electronic controls.
Electronics and interior
Panel for fuses and circuit breakers
Cars are typically equipped with interior lighting which can be toggled manually or be
set to light up automatically with doors open, an entertainment system which originated
from car radios, sideways windows which can be lowered or raised electrically
(manually on earlier cars), and one or multiple auxiliary power outlets for supplying
portable appliances such as mobile phones, portable fridges, power inverters, and
electrical air pumps from the on-board electrical system.[68][69][a] More costly upper-class
and luxury cars are equipped with features earlier such as massage seats and collision
avoidance systems.[70][71]
Dedicated automotive fuses and circuit breakers prevent damage from electrical
overload.
