You can do a while lifetimes work, and yet sometimes it's a tiny action like this which can have the biggest benefit to mankind.<p>Just think how many billions of times someone has avoided pulling up to the wrong side of the pump because of this arrow - literal lifetimes of effort saved.
Which is great for new cars. I drove a 78 Buick Riviera. Friends couldn’t figure out how to fill it up. Because the gas cap was behind the license plate in the back!
On cars without the arrow they often follow the convention where the gas filler handle is depicted on the same side of the gas icon as the filler door is in the car.
Anybody else get confused by whether the arrow represents where the car should be or the pump?
No
I think this is the source of me misinterpreting the symbol a few times, so yes.
I agree. As much as people appreciate the factoid, it's not an example of good design.<p>I don't ever recall the arrow being paid attention to until listicles and other blog spam were born. It has all the elements of great clickbait.
Why would you not just always put it on the driver's side, since they're the most likely to be doing the refueling?
And which side is the driver side? Surprise, it depends on the country. And a Japanese car manufacturer will move the driver controls to sell cars in USA/Continental Europe, but flipping everything else will cost more.<p>I've driven 2 models of an Italian brand, my previous car had the gas tank on the passenger side, and my current one has it on the driver side. I do wonder why they changed it.<p>There's also the issue of pulling to a small road side petrol station, having the fuel door on the passenger side means you don't have to be standing next to the busy road while refuelling.
As it should be. If the Globalist cabal had their way, everyone would drive on the same side of the road <i>(like mindless assembly line workers)</i> and traffic signs would be completely standardized, and - yes - the fuel filler would be on the same side of every car <i>(welcome to a monotonous Communist dystopia)</i>. They already came for Sweden ('Dagen H' Plan. Do your own research) /s
safest place is put it opposite of drivers side, because if you're out of gas on the side of the road and filling it up, you won't be standing right next to freeway traffic. Saab started this.
A linked article agrees:<p><pre><code> "... many European cars have the fuel door located on the passenger side, while many Japanese and American vehicles have the fuel door on the driver side. Both techniques have valid reasons. European automakers place the fuel filler on the passenger side for the sake of safety when a vehicle has run out of fuel and has pulled off onto the shoulder of the road to fill up from a canister. Meanwhile, American OEMs tend to place the fuel door on the driver side of the vehicle for convenience reasons, so that a driver doesn't have to walk around the vehicle when filling up at a gas station."[0]
</code></pre>
Brings to mind the Dead Kennedys album name, "Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death"<p>[0] <a href="https://fordauthority.com/2020/08/ford-designer-credited-for-arrow-showing-vehicles-fuel-door-location/" rel="nofollow">https://fordauthority.com/2020/08/ford-designer-credited-for...</a>
Is that actually safer? Both you and drivers lose visibility which in my mind makes it more dangerous.
What happens when they sell the car in a country that drives on the other side of the road? They would have to move everything around.
My plug-in hybrid (Audi Q5) has the electric connector on the rear left (driver’s side) and the gasoline inlet on the rear right. I sure plug in way more than fill up.<p>The fuel side indicator is quite helpful to me.
A couple of other links:<p><a href="https://archive.ph/pluwT" rel="nofollow">https://archive.ph/pluwT</a><p><a href="https://www.jalopnik.com/2061179/inventor-little-arrow-what-side-fuel-filler-is-on-dies/" rel="nofollow">https://www.jalopnik.com/2061179/inventor-little-arrow-what-...</a>
“Moylan arrow”<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_gauge#Moylan_arrow" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_gauge#Moylan_arrow</a><p><a href="https://www.vermeulenfh.com/obituaries/james-moylan-2/#!/Obituary" rel="nofollow">https://www.vermeulenfh.com/obituaries/james-moylan-2/#!/Obi...</a>
I had no idea till this moment that’s what the arrow was for…
What a letter. Clear, concise, just chef's kiss. I love that little indicator.
I only knew it because someone talked about that. Very useful. RIP.
I use his arrow all the time. I'm also a Ford Truck Fan. RIP James.