HOW TO PLACE PUSHBUTTON DOOR HANDLES CORRECTLY
Pushbutton door handles were the most common type of handles from the early 50s to the early 70s, and even though they went out of fashion some cars used them well into the 90s, as well as some more recent retro cars like the Chrysler PT Cruiser. So, chances are that you are going to use them sooner or later, at least if your brand has a lore that harks back to the 70s or earlier. And I have seen one thing that many people are doing wrong when putting them on.
Here, we have three examples of cars using them. Do you notice one thing they do have in common? Yes, the pushbuttons on all of them are facing towards the rear, and there is a good reason behind that too.
But what about this Lincoln then? The pushbuttons on the rear door handles are facing towards the front, and ONLY in the rear, why? When they had the chance to put on the handles symmetrical and nice, it would have looked better and made more sense, right?
Truth is, pushbutton door handles are ALWAYS mounted with the pushbutton in the opposite direction from the hinges. Most cars have doors that is hinged up front, and that means that the pushbuttons on the door handles are facing towards the rear. But when the doors are rear hinged (“suicide” doors), like the rear doors of that Lincoln, the pushbuttons are facing towards the front.
The reason for that is very simple. Lets say that the car have front hinged doors, like most cars have. Then the natural thing will be to open the left door with your left hand, and the right door with your right hand, because you then will open the door away from you instead of towards you. And, since you only have one thumb, that means that the pushbutton has to be placed in the spot where your thumb will be. All other placements will be ergonomically awkward.
It is a small detail that is easy to forget (especially if one rarely gets into a car with pushbutton handles, which are getting more and more rare), but that breaks the realism, and since I have seen this being done wrong on more than one Automation car, I thought that an advice could be helpful.