Shall we ever be able to drive by widgets only - I doubt it, but what it is for sure that we shall always check their displays.

The first car didn’t have widgets - it was moving - and that was enough.

In 1898 Benz Ideal ideal was equipped with an odometer: the counter of passed way. By the end of XX century the cars were already equipped with speedometers. These two widgets are were not invented by the auto industry: a speedometer came from railroad transport; odometer - from cartage.

In the beginning there was no such a term as a dash - the widgets were placed in sight of a driver, and no one was thinking about the design. As a separate element of the car a dash was adopted at the beginning of 1930s when the designers start thinking about the ergonomics and esthetics of the driver seat.

In the 30s there appeared a glove compartment. It fell into place right from the beginning and till now is an important attribute of any car. Earlier a glove compartment was placed not in front of a passenger, but near the driver.

By the 70s the number of adjustments and settings of the car has increased significantly. There appeared a question: where to place all these bulbs, buttons e.t.c. It was right time to introduce a central panel, which later on filled in all the space between the front seats.

The end of the 70s opened the era of plastic. Today even the most luxurious and exclusive models have plastic elements.

Here it is - a central panel. Designers and constructors experiment on the design of it: some try futurism, others - classic, still others mix these two styles. The classic design means round scales with arrows, and the latest invention is the digital screen which is able to be everything in one widget.

The major kinds of deterioration of the panel include dirtying, bursting of the plastic, its deformation. Sometimes bulbs go broke. And the replacement of the control panel is quite money-consuming - from $600 and higher.

If you don’t like the basic console you can tune them. You can cover the widgets with leather, make wooden or metal insertions (aluminum, stainless steel, silver, gold) decorate it with Swarovski crystals e.t.c. The way you can change your panel depends only on your budget.

The History of a Car Seat

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