Each car is equipped with a gearbox that transfers torque forces from the engine to the drive wheels. In turn, switching speeds is impossible without a gear knob . This seemingly small detail plays a significant role in the car. How it is arranged and where it is located is further in our article.
Location and properties
At the moment, on almost all cars, the gear knob is located in the center relative to the driver and front passenger seats, next to the center console. The modern transmission lever has an outdoor remote control. The part itself is connected to the gearbox with the help of cables, a roller and special traction (backstage). The last element is located outside the box body. At the center console, the gear knob is located on almost every car, regardless of whether it is an “automatic” or a “mechanic” gearbox.
In some cases, the lever is located directly on the steering column. This location was popular on many domestic cars, such as the 21st Volga and Moskvich old models. He received great popularity in the 30-50s of the last century and was actively used on machines of American and European production. Nowadays, only German cars are equipped with such a lever, and even then equipped with automatic transmissions in limited versions. And this is more likely not a lever, but a pair of buttons located directly on the steering wheel (they are called “petals” of gear shifting).
Why gearshift knob sharply lost its popularity? The fact is that gear shifting with such a lever entailed increased wear of the rods, the risk of incomplete turning on / off the speed, as well as “knocking out” of the gear, up to the complete closure of the rods, increased. Therefore, due to their insecurity, steering column gears gradually lost their popularity.
Switching schemes
Most modern cars have a very primitive gearbox shift pattern, making it very easy to learn. Looking at the third photo, you can see that the gears are engaged in the longitudinal or transverse plane, and the modes themselves are placed parallel to each other. When transferring the handle from one mode to another, a special fork is used that pushes the lever, and that one, shifting the synchronizer, engages the desired gear. In neutral position N, the device is held on several or one spring (see photo No. 4).
Gear knob: tuning
At the moment, gear lever tuning has become especially popular, especially among owners of domestic cars. Every second "Zhigulenok" is equipped with a non-factory gear knob. Ready-made devices can be purchased at any specialized store. They are inexpensive. Chrome handles without patterns are sold at a price of 500 to 600 rubles. The same ones, only with neon lights, cost 1,000 rubles. Leather or combination (chrome, patterns and leather) cost from 1 to 2 thousand. Some motorists independently tune the gear knob - get a small piece of leather, process and sew it up to its regular place.