2025 Upgraders: Do You Miss The Dial Shifter?

[AtomicInternet]

I'm planning on getting a 2025 Rally once my current lease is up.
In my current 2023, any time I want "DRIVE" I just spin the wheel right without even looking knowing it will land on D.

I'm assuming the new drive stalk is even easier, since I'll just tap it down without looking, but curious to hear some experiences. I'm lazy of course, so the requirement to look at anything when shifting is a concern.

Sponsored

 

[RickMachE]

It would be hilarious if people complained, given the complaints about the knob. No matter what a car company does, some portion complain.

 

[txaggies07]

I much prefer the dial and never understood the complaints. Just spin it all the way to the right for drive or all the way to the left for park. It has tactile feedback for the mid clicks and I never had an issue landing in the correct gear every time. Chevy does the stalks and I always hated when I got stuck driving a Chevy.

The real big downside is the abomination of a stalk that now exists on the left side. There is no way any of y'all can be crazy enough to say dial plus well laid out stalks is worse than this new shifter plus that horrible thing they put on the left.

 

[Jimrpa]

The multi-mega-giga-Franken-stalk is stupid. We’ve had rain off and on the past few days, and it’s so nice just to be able to tap down for a quick windshield wipe, and to just use the tip of my finger to quickly hit the rear window wipe without having to take my hands off the steering wheel or look around at controls.

 

[hypersnake]

I never understood the dial hate either. It was a bit of a learning curve at first coming from a stalk shifter, but I actually prefer it now.

 

[E90alex]

The new column shifter should be much easier and faster to use without looking compared to the dial. Push all the way down for drive, all the way up for reverse. Don’t need to look at anything. Don’t need to take your hand off the wheel. Don’t need to count clicks to hit reverse from drive without accidentally going to park.

 

[moog]

Ford created a solution for a "problem" that never existed.

It's sorta like the peeps that complain about the speedometer being on the side rather than in the middle.

I would say Ford's policy on moving to a stalk shifter was "squeaky wheel gets the grease"....but I know that's not true, because people have been screaming for years about:
- a charging screen that shows the rate of charge for years now with zero response from Ford.
- Trunk and Frunk buttons that stay at the top of the screen accessible at all times.

I don't know who or what Ford's designers are listening to in focus groups, but hey, they changed the Mach-e 4x logo on the side....because you know....that was important.

 

[Mache_Nor]

Unless the knob will be turned into a DJ-functional wheel suitable for the superior karaoke function, the stalk can go F itself!

 

[BlackOnGray]

The multi-mega-giga-Franken-stalk is stupid. We’ve had rain off and on the past few days, and it’s so nice just to be able to tap down for a quick windshield wipe, and to just use the tip of my finger to quickly hit the rear window wipe without having to take my hands off the steering wheel or look around at controls.

Or you accidentally forget you’re driving your wife’s 2025 instead of yours and go into reverse instead of a quick windshield wipe…?

 

[Teslaeata]

It would be hilarious if people complained, given the complaints about the knob. No matter what a car company does, some portion complain.

It’s the tinternet ??‍

 

[ChrisO]

I found this article/video interesting, since he is going the other way removing the Ford F-150 shifter and putting in the rotary dial.
https://fordauthority.com/2025/05/f...wner-replaces-shifter-with-rotary-dial-video/

I personally like the rotary dial and wish Ford hadn't caved on this for 2025. I also fear that they will eventually cave on adding in door handles, just because a few people complain and call it a "safety issue". How that can possibly be a safety issue is beyond me.

I think features like these make a given vehicle unique and give it character. One of the main reasons I bought a Mach-E is that doesn't look like the others. It is also why I didn't get a car that is white, black, or grey/silver.

 

[Sikkun]

I also fear that they will eventually cave on adding in door handles, just because a few people complain and call it a "safety issue". How that can possibly be a safety issue is beyond me.

Your 12v battery dies with a child inside the car and you can’t open it is ones of the how it can in a very rare scenario become a safety issue.

 

[AliRafiee]

Same shit. I much prefer, push forward to go forward and pull back to go backward.

 

[Jimrpa]

Same shit. I much prefer, push forward to go forward and pull back to go backward.

Except it’s not even that intuitive (I don’t think). My understanding is that you signal a left turn to go reverse and a right turn to go forward.

 

[Charge_Rob]

I'm extremely excited for my 2025 and the stalk shifter. I had no big issue with the rotary dial, but really excited to have the stalk instead, it's just the most logical place to put a shifter as you don't have to remove your hands from the wheel when doing a multi point turn or when backing in.

Sponsored