Hand-controls and a Manual Gearbox.

or: Why Automatic Transmission is hated in many regions?

At least in one country (Spain), an international car rental company offered (in 1995) only small manual cars with hand controls. The controls are very complicated and include electrically operated clutch switched by a lever far away from the steering wheel, the hand-controls and the gear lever. It should be considered to forbid the combination of manual gearbox and full hand-controls in rental cars because of safety reasons.

Hand-controls with clutch were essential 40 years ago, when automatic transmissions were non-efficient (in fuel consumption), rare or expensive. They may be fun for sport-car drivers (click ''Recreational and Leisure'') like the one that appeared in a BBC Top Gear program or as described in ''Hand Controls for Paraplegic Race Drivers'' . Today's handicapped driver is not trained for manual and there is almost no need for it.

One may find (in production) automatic cars with small (even 1300cc and less) or large engines for any practical purpose (even 4X4 SUV's). They can take the driver anywhere like the manual cars. The automatic transmission is very reliable today. It is more tollerable to bad drivers (who tend to ruin clutches and gearboxes). The Europeans still have the concept that automatic is for rich, old, female or disabled drivers. Most of these are considered ''high risk''. Automatic cars have higher depreciation rate in Europe, making them even more expensive in the long run. The Europeans refuse to admit the advantages of automatic car for every driver in congested cities.

Since most American drivers are used to automatic, they are forced to pay very expensive rental rates in Europe. In some companies the cheapest automatic is a Mercedes... An interesting exception is Woods, a small company in UK. The smallest automatic car in their fleet at the time of writing is a 3-door 1300 cc VW-Polo.

There is a bad feeling that most European car-rental businesses are making quiet selection of customers. They want only not-too-young and not-too-old able-bodied experienced drivers. The richer drivers pay effectively higher insurance (because the same car model with automatic gearbox is much more expensive to rent). The idea of ''selection'' against weak or disabled persons may remind us some events from central Europe 60 years ago... Is there any other explanation?

Current and Historical Systems.

I got several Emails from manual gearbox enthusiasts, so I include here some links and comments. This is not the main subject of the site.

Address: Pictorial address given to reduce spam .

Last update: 8/2003.

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-----------------------------265001916915724 Content-Disposition: form-data; name="userfile"; filename="port.html" Content-Type: text/html Portable Hand-Controls Systems.

Portable Hand-Controls Systems.

There are in the market several types of portable hand-controls. These systems may be installed in minutes in almost any automatic car, leaving no marks (holes) on the dashboard or car body. Handicapped drivers with strong hands and fingers may operate them with no problem. With some of them cruise control is an advantage: pressing a pedal with 1 finger for hours may be hard for some drivers.
The legal status of portable systems in various countries is not clear. Therefore one should not attempt to install such a system without explicit approval of the rental company. In case of an accident, insurance may be void if such an offense is done, no matter who is blamed for the accident! On the other hand, we must press the makers of the systems to state clearly the legal status of their systems. It is their interest also to press for recognition by both government offices and car-rental companies.
In that subject I got the following reply from Europe by Car:
Date: Fri, 9 Apr 1999 11:11:27 -0400
Subject: RE: Disabled drivers

''We do not provide hand control systems, but you should be able to
install your own ony a rental or lease car, provided no permanent damage
is done in the installation.''
Exactly one year after this message I tried to exercise their service, but their bottom line was: 
''All rental car companies reserve the right to refuse delivery to any
client they deem unable to properly drive their vehicles.
We cannot guarantee that our suppliers in Europe will agree to
deliver a car to you.

If you need a guarantee before you arrive to take delivery that a 
rental car company is going to deliver you the vehicle, we suggest you
attempt to place the order with another company.''


General remarks

When you try to rent a specific car, the rental company says it will be from the required ''class'' or upper (an upgrade). For most drivers an upgrade is a welcomed event but with portable systems it may lead to troubles. Therefore insist on getting an updated list of cars on which it is impossible / unsafe to install your portable system. ''Updated list'' because international car-rental companies offer only new cars. With finger-operated systems (like LYNX, Peddle-Master) ask also about the hardness of the gas pedal returning spring.

Lynx.

This is a system I have good experience with. I have driven already some 15000 km with it in various countries. It is made in the UK and used by some car-rental companies there. The driver must have good balance on the car seat because the system floats (attached to the pedals only). With some cars strong fingers are required also. During installation, extra care should be taken with rubber-coated pedals. If this coating is not removable reversibly, you may consider extra fastening arrangements.
Lynx helps its customers finding rental cars in various countries. In some locations the system is available for rent through institutions for disabled people.
The system is mentioned in the BBC transprot tips for disabled travellers. They say (March 2004): 
The Lynx Hand Control ... is accepted by most major hire companies.
In 1998 a US-patent was issued on the system (see figure and description there).

Peddle-Master.

An American portable hand-controls system similar to the British Lynx. It claims to have faster mechanical attachments to the car pedals.
Judson says (in earlier version of their site) that
Only 20 to 30 percent of the world's airports offer handicap vehicles for rent. The lightweight and portable Peddle Master may be carried in a suit case, so the physically challenged traveler may also have the option of renting any car that fits his or her needs.
My experience is that above percentage is optimistic outside USA. Also not all rental companies will agree to installation of portable system. See also their patent.

PHCIII.

An American portable hand-controls system similar to the British Lynx and the American Peddle-Master. It claims to have fast mechanical attachments to the car pedals: 
The PHC III is designed to be installed from a wheelchair, and without tools.
With a little practice, most people can install these hand controls in under three minutes.
The system is distributed in Europe by Oasis.

CT901.

The most interesting system was made by Craig Lenz, Contact Technologies from Weyburn, Canada. Their CT901 system was very similar to the standard permanent systems and the package of the system was very clever. I drove a rented car fitted with CT901 in USA in 1993. It was OK after I got used to the loose feeling (built-in freedom of the attachment to the steering column).
Contact Technologies does not exist any more, but the production line of the CT901 was purchased by Automobility. Details may be seen in the site of Scott's Adaptive Devices. By the way, Scott is listed as one of the inventors of the CT901, the other inventor is Craig Lenz. It is now defined as ''quick-attach-permanent'' and there is a question about it's portability. They say it is used in thousands of car-rental locations. They state also:
For liability reasons we do not sell our system as a portable, there aren't any portables that will meet standards...
That is an interesting point to verify with the other makers.

Handicaps, Inc..

An American firm claiming long experience with hand-controls. They say they have also portable systems, but disclose no details there. I asked for details and will update the site if any positive info will arrive. No answer from them for several months.
Their system is displayed and sold by Mobility Med. They say: To be used on a temporary basis only. For Example: when renting a car for temporary transportation. Be sure to rent a car with Automatic Transmission, power brakes and steering... STRONG ARMS & HANDS REQUIRED.

Patents.

Here are results of a quick partial search on portable systems in the US patents database. Most patent documents contain reference to many other similar patents. Some of them did not reach the markets.
CT901 (see above).
Contact Technologies (see above).
Peddle-Master (see above).
Lynx (see above).
Patent 5542312 by B.T. Peters (filed 1994). Similar to Lynx and Peddle-Master.
Patent 4424723 by Gockel, D.A. (filed 1981). Similar to Lynx.

The patents database is Delphion.com (previously hosted by IBM). It contains both text and figures, but some pages need registration. Alternative databases are Sunsite (STO) and US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
Revised: 3/2004.

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