Why do you need to switch between Reverse and Drive when driving? Why not add another pedal that makes the car go backwards instead?

Question

Why do you need to switch between Reverse and Drive when driving? Why not add another pedal that makes the car go backwards instead?

In: 0

Answer 1

Other than the gear issues it’s for safety.

Now as for the gears:

A car moving forward in gear cannot shift to reverse without causing mechanical issues (breaking very expensive parts). Most cars have an override that prevents the transmission from shifting to reverse unless the car has come to a stop (or very slow). This prevents damage to the gears and tires.

Now from a safety standpoint, let’s pretend that you replace the gears with a belt drive or an electric motor. Now you could have a reverse pedal, but there’s the risk of someone hitting reverse instead of the brake. So instead of stopping they’d end up going backwards.