Small Maverick gripes, and why the dial shifter exists.

[RCollins]

As long as we are griping, I want to add that I would rather redesign the lighting system. There is no way to completely turn off the lighting system, when you want to, unless you completely turn the truck off. For instance, if I want to wait in the car at a parking spot and run the air conditioner, why leave any lights on to run down the battery sooner?
And for the shifter, yes you can get used to it, but if offered a preference, I would rather have a lever with a positive detent for a reverse and park lock out.

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[Art Vandelay]

Here's my 2 1/2 cents (inflation) on a few gripes: I can live with the rotary dial, but the continuous spin drives me crazy.

The continuous spin is especially odd because my wife has a 2022 Edge and that rotary dial shifter does not work the same. The Edge rotary dial has hard stops at Park & Drive, so you can't keep rotating right past Drive or left past Park. It's more convenient because if you want to go to Park or Drive you just rotate it quickly until it stops. When I first got my Maverick I thought there was something wrong with the rotary shift dial because it didn't have hard stops like the Edge. Not sure why Ford doesn't use the same set up on the Maverick.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Back to little gripes.
Little for sure but...
Radio volume goes in whole integer increments. The "increments" are pretty big. Volume level 8 is too quiet for me and Volume level 9 is too loud.
Can't ever be "just right".

I 100% agree with this however for me it's not specific to the Maverick. I seem to have that issue in just about any car I've driven the past several years. I thought it was just me.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Anyone like auto high beams? I don't.
I keep that feature disabled.

They go high to low like 6-8 times a minute at totally inappropriate times "flashing" other drivers.

My experience was the same with the Auto High Beams and I disabled them within a week of owning the truck.

 

[old willie]

58 Edsel?

 

[RCollins]

58 Edsel?

 

[RCollins]

Correct.

 

[Rick T]

My complaint is the screen of the entertainment system. Too dark and a lot reflections. Hard to see in very bright conditions

 

[jcast0311]

I actually like having the middle vent lower. Better angle for getting some A/C to one's lap.

Agreed. First vehicle that actually hits my my laps and upper torso perfectly.

 

[Ktowntimmy]

When it comes to what you get for the money (if you paid MSRP) and how well designed the Maverick is, I could not be more impressed. These are just 2 minor things I would have changed and some possible clarification on why something exist.

A lot of people don't like the dial shifter, but it took me one day driving the Maverick to figure out why Ford went with that.

A normal shifter on the steering wheel would have been too close to the infotainment screen. Like literally an inch or two. Which means you would hit the screen and potentially damage it if it was on the steering wheel. Or at the very least, keep annoyingly hit a buttom on it. The other option would be the second most normal shifter option...in the center console area. It wasn't put THERE because it would block the pathway to all the storage area in front of it. It would probably only be marginal, but still be a nuisance. The option Ford went with takes up the least amount of space. And overall, the Maverick does a great job utilizing space. There is nothing bulky or protruding in or around the Maverick and I have never seen such a small vehicle feel so roomy and have so much storage.

But, one way they could have fixed this and the biggest change I would have made...get rid of that center cubby next to the screen and move the screen right 3-4 inches. That way, you could either put a normal shifter on the steering wheel, or move the middle air vents to each side of the screen instead of keeping them down low and harder to reach the back.

Also, I would have made the cubby hole behind the screen deeper and have a lip on it so a phone could be placed there for GPS purposes. Having something like that on the bottom doesn't make much sense since it's unsafe to look all the way down there while driving.

But that's it. I still can't explain not being able to keep the car in Eco mode always and during start up. I assume there's a reason for it. I would hope.

Just a question: Are the console stick shifters used in today’s vehicles electronic or is there a mechanical linkage to the transmission?

 

[Potatomafia]

My experience was the same with the Auto High Beams and I disabled them within a week of owning the truck.

I had the same experience.

I have an 80 mile per day commute. Part of that is a 3 lane state highway that goes through a rural section that has no streetlights. I get flashed at least twice every morning by on coming traffic that has auto high beams. It's a neat system but not flawless. I'd rather not do that to other people on the road, so I disabled my auto high beams.

 

[Exranger]

I like the dial but wish it was on the dash. I had a bottle hit it and shift to reverse while driving on the highway and the system was smart enough not to do that.

Maybe they’ll make push button shifter like my first car, a 1962 Imperial. On the left side of the dash too!

 

[Mite-o-Dan]

Just a question: Are the console stick shifters used in today’s vehicles electronic or is there a mechanical linkage to the transmission?

It's electric. At least for the hybrid. But it's more common overall in today's cars even that aren't a hybrid

 

[Potatomafia]

Just a question: Are the console stick shifters used in today’s vehicles electronic or is there a mechanical linkage to the transmission?

100% electronic. At least the dial shifters are. Most column shifters are as well.

My 2015 Ram 1500 had the dial shifter. The detents were very positive and the dial had stops at Park and Drive. I liked it, especially after I put a solid billet aluminum knob on it:

 

[Old Ford Guy]

Old school shifters are no longer needed. Its all electric. So just need a way for the driver to select what there doing. I'm getting use to the dial and don't mind it. Jumped into wife's crv and initially put my hand down looking for the dial.

People just don't like change.

Not that anyone reading this post will do it. Read this great book called the Design Of Everything. Cognitive science and how to design for people. I'm guessing the author would have been upset with dial shifter. LoL

thanks for the recommendation, i am just fascinated by the industrial ergonomic design sciences. i'll be checking this out.

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