Do certain car swiches have to work in a specific direction?

[drivin_me_nuts]

... Like the central locking switch. Top bit lock, Lower bit open.

[Kiltie]

I don't understand the question.

Is it an auto-electrical question or a legal / MOT question?

[Glade]

Like red means stop, green means go.

You can't have a green emergency stop button for example.

[RDM]

Glade said:

Like red means stop, green means go.

You can't have a green emergency stop button for example.

You can get blue ones though..

[Glade]

RDM said:

Glade said:

Like red means stop, green means go.

You can't have a green emergency stop button for example.

You can get blue ones though..

ha wow

[Ray Luxury-Yacht]

Know what you mean - like I've never seen a Hazard light switch that isn't push-on, push-off operation?

[john2443]

drivin_me_nuts said:

... Like the central locking switch. Top bit lock, Lower bit open.

That sounds the wrong way to me, because you would push the button down in the door (if you had a car old enough to have buttons in the door so that you could easily break in with a bit of wire) it seems more logical that you'd push the bottom of a switch on the dashboard to lock. Are you sure you haven't rolled it?

The rocker switch in the roof of our car that folds the door mirrors in works the wrong way due to being Italian and hence originally left hand drive.

Steering wheels always go a particular way in my experience.

[northwest monkey]

Ray Luxury-Yacht said:

Know what you mean - like I've never seen a Hazard light switch that isn't push-on, push-off operation?

A 1985 Ford Transit had a rocker switch for the hazard lights. I'm now delighted I've bothered to remember this piece of trivia for 20 years

[poing]

northwest monkey said:

Ray Luxury-Yacht said:

Know what you mean - like I've never seen a Hazard light switch that isn't push-on, push-off operation?

A 1985 Ford Transit had a rocker switch for the hazard lights. I'm now delighted I've bothered to remember this piece of trivia for 20 years

I think the Ford Escort of a similar era had the same, guessing in that case most Fords of that period had them.

How can I remember useless stuff like that but not why I just went into the kitchen?

[shost]

Also the Volvo 200 series from the 80's

[drivin_me_nuts]

sorry for the confusion, it's the curse of a small keypad on the mobile. what I mean is take a switch like the central locking one, are there any rules that say they have to work in a certain direction? on my Jazz for example, push the top part closest
to the dash and it locks, the part closer to the driver and it unlocks..are there rules on this stuff or can a manufacturer do what they like?

and no, the car was not rolled!

[Slidingpillar]

john2443 said:

Steering wheels always go a particular way in my experience.

Except for the car I saw many years ago at a fair. Steering wheel worked the other, pedals were swapped over and the gear lever pattern was odd. If you could drive a simple course, you won a prize. Don't think anyone succeeded, but it was possible - the owner demonstrated it.

[northwest monkey]

Slidingpillar said:

john2443 said:

Steering wheels always go a particular way in my experience.

Except for the car I saw many years ago at a fair. Steering wheel worked the other, pedals were swapped over and the gear lever pattern was odd. If you could drive a simple course, you won a prize. Don't think anyone succeeded, but it was possible - the owner demonstrated it.

I drove a Land Rover Defender once on a corporate day where the steering was reversed. Quite good fun but bloody tricky!

[NH1]

I remember owning a datsun cherry or similar where the gears were reversed, 1st and 3rd were where 2nd and 4th were and vice versa. Dont know how they managed to do it but there was a helpful cardboard diagram selotaped to the dash.

[Jimbo.]

From Wiki re. automatic gearbox "shift patterns":

"Vehicles conforming to US Government standards[3] must have the modes ordered P-R-N-D-L (left to right, top to bottom, or clockwise)."

IIRC seatbelt release buttons have to be red.

[Shaw Tarse]

Jimbo. said:

IIRC seatbelt release buttons have to be red.

But don't have to be marked "Press"?

[Jimbo.]

Shaw Tarse said:

But don't have to be marked "Press"?

Don't know! Might even be wrong myself.

[ezi]

drivin_me_nuts said:

... Like the central locking switch. Top bit lock, Lower bit open.

We have a car which is opposite to this, so there goes that one

[Shaw Tarse]

Jimbo. said:

Shaw Tarse said:

But don't have to be marked "Press"?

Don't know! Might even be wrong myself.

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=...

[rohrl]

I've never had to struggle to get free from a car on fire or flooding with water but I guess in that situation I might wish that there was a standardised placement for the interior door handle.