Andreas Mindt, Volkswagen’s Head of Design, has announced that the manufacturer will reverse the trend of removing physical buttons from its cars.
This trend has been strongly driven by cost. Car manufacturers know they need to include large screens in modern cars to attract customers, so it is easier and cheaper to place all controls on that screen rather than installing a variety of physical buttons.
However, after consumer criticism, VW is reversing course. “From the ID.2all onward, we will have physical buttons for the five most important functions — volume, heating on each side of the car, fans, and the hazard light — below the screen,” Mindt told Autocar.
“They will be in every car we make from now on. We will never make this mistake again. On the steering wheel, we will have physical buttons. No more guessing. There is feedback, it’s real, and people love it. Honestly, it’s a car. It’s not a phone.”
The five functions that will have dedicated controls are in addition to the requirements of Euro NCAP, which will include them in its safety ratings starting in 2026.
This means that if a car does not have physical controls for the horn, windshield wipers, turn signals, hazard lights, and SOS functions, it will not be able to achieve the maximum five-star rating.
“What we are seeing now is more and more […] accidents where people crash because they are distracted,” said Matthew Avery, Director of Strategic Development at NCAP, to Politico.
Photo and video: Volkswagen. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
