Merits of center mounted gauges on the dashboard?

[Dave T]

The speedometer on the MINI is in the center. I presume that the original design might have been to save money by having a common design for left hand drive cars and right hand drive cars. I don't think it is a good design from the driver's standpoint though it could be from an accountant's standpoint.



Yesterday, a similar idea popped into my head.


The SID on the 2003-2006 Saab 9-3 is widely liked among owners. It is high on the dash and easy to see. I think that the angle that one has to shift one's eyes is less from straight ahead that even the speedometer. Therefore, perhaps a good design would be to have a display that is located in the same spot but sharply angled towards the driver.

A 2nd speedometer or a display that can be changed would be useful. If it is a speedometer, it would be in between a linear design and a semi-circle. The semi-circle is better for looking quickly versus a linear design or digital which requires careful reading. Yet, a semi-circle is tall. Perhaps a semi-circle that is stretched horizontally?

[rpiereck]

The original Austin Mini (not the new BMW "MINI") had the speedometer mounted on the middle because there was very little room behind the steering wheel for anything, not much room for instruments between it and the firewall. It's a tiny car. Being that it was a car designed by an engineer, Alec Isigonis decided that to fix that problem he would center mount the speedo and other instruments. That also made production cheaper, because as you pointed, no need to switch for left and right hand drive cars.

The new BMWs that mimic the old Mini have their speedos mounted in the middle for pure aesthetics, as the car was most likely designed by committee, study groups, and a team of engineers who had very little say so on the interior layout. I have driven a MINI and I think the center mount speedo on that car is horrendous: too big and gaudy. I wish MINI would bring the speedo to where it belongs: in front of the driver.

[Dave T]

How about this as a start? This car needs gauges in front of the driver but the SID could similar to the 2003-2006 9-3 SID except also have the capability of displaying the speedometer here.


In other words, have the traditional Saab dash plus a large SID angled towards the driver like in this photo.

[rpiereck]

I see the point of a good HUD that projects on the windshield more than a center mounted instrument, but if you are talking about putting a SID there, that's different than a main instrument. But why would you want the SID mounted that high up?