VW backflips on in-cabin hard buttons

IN WHAT can only be described as a win for common sense, Volkswagen has committed to returning physical controls to the cabin of all future models, saying touch-style controls (or haptic sliders) were a “mistake” the brand will never make again.

In a conversation with UK publication Autocar this week, Volkswagen design chief Andreas Mindt said physical controls will be reinstated for the vehicles’ most important functions, including those set on the steering wheel spokes and for use of the climate control system.

“From the ID.2all onwards, we will have physical buttons for the five most important functions – the volume, the heating on each side of the car, the fans and the hazard light – below the screen,” he said.

“They will be in every car that we make from now on. We will never, ever make this mistake anymore. On the steering wheel, we will have physical buttons. No guessing anymore.

“There’s feedback, it’s real, and people love this. Honestly, it’s a car. It’s not a phone.”

Volkswagen has been criticised in recent times for moving many vital in-cabin controls from physical buttons and dials to the infotainment screen.

It also introduced haptic ‘sliders’ below the touchscreen for the climate control and audio volume, while also using haptic panels instead of buttons for steering wheel spoke controls.

However, Mr Mindt said Volkswagen will continue to offer cars with touchscreens, in part due to new legal requirements that require vehicles sold in the United States to feature a reversing camera as standard fare.

“There are a lot of functions you have to deliver in certain areas, so the screen will be big and you will find a lot of HMI (human-machine interface) contents in the depths of the system,” he added.

“But the five main things will always be on the first physical layer. That’s very important.”

Moreover, European safety body Euro NCAP has announced changes to its protocols from 2026 that require physical controls for key vehicle functions.

Under the new rating scheme, manufacturers will not be able to achieve the highest safety ratings if they do not provide proper, physical switches for certain functions including indicators, hazard lights, sounding the horn, operating the windscreen wipers, and activating the vehicle’s SOS function.

Speaking with The Sunday Times, Euro NCAP director of strategic development Matthew Avery said the overuse of touch-style controls is a widespread problem.

“The overuse of touchscreens is an industry-wide problem, with almost every vehicle-maker moving key controls onto central touchscreens, obliging drivers to take their eyes off the road and raising the risk of distraction crashes,” he stated.

“New Euro NCAP tests due in 2026 will encourage manufacturers to use separate, physical controls for basic functions in an intuitive manner, limiting eyes-off-road time and therefore promoting safer driving.”

The regulation of how drivers interact with vehicle controls (the human-machine interface) is surprisingly weak in the European Union, with most guidelines on the matter voluntary.

“The EU’s voluntary guidelines are not working because current touchscreens and infotainment systems are distracting and unsafe,” explained ETSC vehicle safety expert Frank Mutze.

“EuroNCAP requiring physical controls for some functions is a welcome step in the right direction. But we now need EU regulators to follow-up and adopt legally binding requirements for all vehicles.”

While touchscreen controls now dominate almost all new car models, tests carried out by Swedish Motoring Magazine in 2022 found it took drivers much longer to carry out basic tasks on touchscreens compared with old models with physical controls.

Further, research by UK-based TRL (2020) found mobile phone interfaces for touchscreen (i.e., Apple CarPlay and Android Auto) hindered driver reactions times as much as drink or drug driving.

Joining Volkswagen in turning back the clock on human-machine interaction, Hyundai Motor Company said it would also revert to physical controls for frequently accessed vehicle functions after negative feedback from its customers.

In a recent interview with Korea Joong Ang Daily, Hyundai Design North America vice president Ha Hak-soo said initial enthusiasm for touchscreen interfaces has evolved into a more balanced approach.

“As we were adding integrated (infotainment) screens in our vehicles, we also tried out putting touchscreen-based controls, and people didn’t prefer that,” he said.

With Autocar, European Transport Safety Council, and Korea Joong Ang Daily.