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Evolution of the steering wheel: always trend-setting
From the simple steering rod to the capacitive command center: 120 years ago, the daimler motor company introduced an invention that was by no means taken for granted: the steering wheel. The inventor of the car initially managed without a steering wheel.
Company on the subject
Carriages didn’t need one: here, the four-legged friend ran in the direction the coachman directed him. The chassis with its turntable steering simply followed the animal being hauled. The situation was different with the first automobiles: Here, the driver had to change course himself. In the early days of driving, this was done by means of a simple crank. carl benz’s patented motor car of 1886 also had such a steering crank. Just like the "steel-wheeled car" of 1889 designed by gottlieb daimler and wilhelm maybach: both had no steering wheel.
Therefore, the french engineer alfred vacheron deserves the honor of being the inventor of the steering wheel. For the world’s first automobile race, the race from paris to rouen in July 1894, he had installed a steering wheel in his panhard& levassor was fitted with a steering wheel instead of the usual steering lever.
He achieved his goal of better lane control by distributing the steering movement of the front wheels from a neutral center position to the stop over several turns of the steering column. The more precise steering in turn made higher driving speeds possible. The frenchman only came in 11th place – but the so-called "volant" prevailed. in 1900, the daimler motor company also equipped its phoenix racing car with a steering wheel. The engineers also tilted the steering column, which made it much easier to operate. Nevertheless, every steering movement required a great deal of effort. In the mercedes simplex models introduced in 1902, there were additional levers on the steering wheel, which the driver had to or was allowed to use to regulate essential engine functions such as ignition timing and fuel mixture.
the twenties to the forties: large "volant" with horn ring
While the levers for manual adjustment of the fuel mixture and ignition gradually became superfluous thanks to the further development of engines, one additional function from the early days of the car has survived to this day: the horn. The simplest form of car-to-X communication began with the balloon horn on the steering wheel rim, followed by the horn button on the steering wheel hub. In the twenties, the horn ring made its debut on the steering wheel spokes. It was standard until the seventies and became more and more filigree.
in 1949, the horn ring also took over the function of activating the turn signal or the winker, which was common until the middle of the fifties. To turn, it was simply turned to the left or right. Then an approximately 20 centimeter long indicator arm swung out of the side of the body and indicated the direction of travel. These direction indicators, which seem bizarre from today’s perspective, were replaced by orange-yellow flashing lights that were activated by turning the ring via a central control unit.
The fifties: the debut of steering wheel gearshifts and power steering
In the 1950s, the steering wheel became even more of a central interface between car and driver – a control center for new comfort functions and greater safety. In 1951, mercedes-benz introduced the steering wheel gearshift in the type 300 "adenauer-mercedes" (W 186) and in the type 220 (W 187). A comfort gain for driver and passenger. At that time, the front seats usually consisted of a continuous bench seat that could accommodate up to two passengers. Until the seventies, the gearshift lever on the steering column remained a widespread method of operating the transmission. The lever for the headlight flasher was added as a further steering wheel function in 1955. Steering itself, however, was often energy-sapping, despite the large steering ratio and the large diameter of the steering wheel. In 1958, the stuttgart-based company therefore introduced power steering in the 300 model’s prestige sedan.
With the "heckflossen-mercedes" (W 111), they improved accident protection in 1959. The sedan was the world’s first vehicle with a holistic safety concept, consisting of a stable passenger cell, crumple zones, a new safety steering wheel with a large, deformable impact plate that reduced the risk of injury in the event of a collision, and a split and rearwardly offset steering column. This made it possible to avoid the so-called lance effect. In earlier vehicles with a rigid steering column, there were always serious injuries, because after a head-on collision the steering column pushed towards the driver and virtually impaled him. To further increase safety, mercedes-benz introduced a patented safety steering system with telescopic steering column and impact absorber. It became standard across the entire passenger car range in 1967.
The seventies and eighties: all about safety
In addition, the first combined lever celebrated its premiere in 1959 in the "tail fin" and the "pontoon. According to the motto "two become one," it included the turn signal and headlight flasher functions. In 1963, the lever was extended to include the windshield wiper and washer functions. The windshield wiper was previously activated by a pull switch on the top of the instrument panel. The four-spoke safety steering wheel introduced in the 350 SL roadster in 1971 provided even better impact protection thanks to a wide padding plate with an impact cup: the spokes serve as supports for the rim. In the event of a collision, they absorb the forces and transmit them in such a way that the steering wheel rim cannot break. The horn ring had become obsolete and the horn buttons were moved back to the center of the steering wheel.
The mercedes-benz 450 SEL 6 was one of the first cars to be equipped with a horn ring.9 in december 1975, a so-called speed control system, or cruise control for short, became standard equipment. The further striving for the best possible safety led to another decisive change in the steering wheel design from 1981 onwards. The reason for this was the introduction of the first driver airbag in the S-Class (model series 126). The new restraint system, which offered an unprecedented standard of safety in the event of a collision, was concealed behind the protruding impact plate. Developers rejoiced, designers tussled their hair. Because early airbags were voluminous, the impact cup had to be significantly larger. In the course of further development, however, the vacuum-packed air cushion was able to be folded smaller and smaller, and the designers had greater scope for design again. in 1992, the driver airbag became standard equipment in all mercedes-benz passenger car models.
The steering wheel as a carrier for the airbag and more
Another technical revolution was the multifunction steering wheel, which was introduced in 1998 together with the "comand" system (cockpit management and data). Not only the multitude of vehicle functions, but also the advance of new devices for information, navigation and entertainment required a rethink of vehicle operation and the display concept. An important goal in the development of the S-Class 220 series was to reduce the driver’s workload to such an extent that he or she could concentrate fully on the essentials: the traffic situation and the driving experience. With a new, standard multifunction steering wheel, he controlled many systems and called up important information at the touch of a thumb. For the first time, the steering wheel was linked to the car radio, car phone and a display in the center of the instrument cluster, on which up to eight main menus appeared.
2005 saw the debut of the then new M-Class and S-Class models with a redesigned cockpit: the automatic selector lever moved from the center console to the steering column. The new "direct select" gearshift created space between the driver and passenger and made operation easier once again. Additional steering wheel shift buttons enabled manual preselection of the seven gears. the power of the six- and eight-cylinder engines could now be optimally exploited in every driving situation. From 2008, the 7G-tronic sports transmission with steering wheel shift paddles was available in the SL roadster. the e-class of 2016 was the first car in the world to feature touch-sensitive touch control buttons on the steering wheel. They allow the entire infotainment system to be controlled by finger-swiping movements – without having to take your hands off the steering wheel.