[Drivingforfun]

It's always seemed intuitive to me (even as a child) that you push the indicator stalk up to signal right and left for down

I never realised why this was decided, but it only recently occurred to me that if the stalk moved with the steering wheel, you are pushing it in the same direction as you'd move the steering wheel to make the turn

I felt a bit silly

Are there any other obvious bits with a pretty clear reason behind?

It seems intuitive to me with automatic gearboxes that left = downshift and right = upshift (whether that's the direction you push the selector, or which of the two paddles either side of the steering wheel you pull) but similarly I can't really figure out why

[Beelzebub]

Originally Posted by Drivingforfun

It's always seemed intuitive to me (even as a child) that you push the indicator stalk up to signal right and left for down

That depends entirely on where the stalk is. It used to vary between L and R on different makes/models.

[Mark07]

Originally Posted by Drivingforfun

Are there any other obvious bits with a pretty clear reason behind?

I noticed something yesterday that made me think of this conversation.

On my car's AC control, cold is on the left and hot is on the right. I've never thought about it but this seems completely intuitive.

However, in my house I turn the mixer tap to the left for hot and right for cold. 🤯

[TC1474]

Now you know how/why indicators self cancel 😉

[Beelzebub]

Originally Posted by Mark07

I noticed something yesterday that made me think of this conversation.

On my car's AC control, cold is on the left and hot is on the right. I've never thought about it but this seems completely intuitive.

However, in my house I turn the mixer tap to the left for hot and right for cold. 🤯

The convention in this country is exactly that - hot tap on the left.

[Santa]

Wasn't it some Japanese cars that used to have the wiper stalk on the left and indicators on the right? You would see cars approaching a junction on a sunny day with wipers wagging.

There are many things that we use every day but don't really think about. Take the standard three-pin electric plug and socket. Condemned as ugly and clumsy by Americans, they are a masterpiece of design that has developed over the last seventy years or so.

It is smarter and more advanced than many of its contemporaries. The earth prong opens a shutter in the socket that prevents children from poking things in "to see what happens". There is a fuse to protect the flexible lead, insulation at the top of the live prongs and a shaped cover to make it easy to grip.

The G Type plug might seem cumbersome compared to the European or US models, but in the 70-plus years since its introduction its three prongs and in-built fuse, have proved an enduring design that can power new devices and smart technology, while remaining one of the safest plugs in the world.