In an unexpected turn, the Ford Mustang Mach-E is bringing a feature back to the future. Does that make sense? Electric vehicles are the future as most automakers are slowly making the transition. However, certain things disappearing from these EVs are already missed, like physical knobs. Changing your vehicle’s climate temperature or even the volume of the radio has never been more difficult than when it’s only available on a touchscreen. Now, a Ford Mustang Mach-E update is bringing physical knobs back from the past and into the future.

Ford Mustang Mach-E update adds physical knob

According to Kelley Blue Book, Ford has issued an over-the-air software update to its Mustang Mach-E electric crossovers. With it, owners get a few changes, like allowing drivers and passengers to use the vehicle’s only physical knob to control the interior temperature. Fortunately, every Mustang Mach-E is already equipped with a physical knob, though it didn’t get much use before. KBB says it could only control the volume, but now Ford has added temperature control.

Sadly, drivers must tap an icon on the touchscreen to toggle the knob between volume, temperature, fan speed, and heated seats. Fortunately, it’s a tap away instead of many taps to control the heat or air conditioner temperature with the touchscreen. We, like many others, appreciate the update making it easier to find frequently-used controls. EVs have gotten out of hand with everything being on a single touchscreen, which is good for the automaker but bad for the owners.

Why are physical knobs disappearing?

One of the most prominent features in recent years that’s been exiting electric vehicles like the Ford Mustang Mach-E is a physical knob. Automakers like Tesla began installing gigantic touchscreens in the center of the dashboard without any physical buttons or knobs. Although it’s visually appealing, making the interior look high-tech and futuristic, it isn’t functionally convenient. Drivers must scroll through multiple menus and press the screen many times to get to the function they want to control.

Unfortunately, that means their attention is away from the road for much longer. With past cars, drivers can quickly turn a knob to change the temperature, volume, or another setting. Touchscreen-only controls are cost-effective for automakers, as subtracting one switch from hundreds of thousands of vehicles adds up. Ford is one of few automakers to backtrack, offering an update to take the physical knob back to the future.

What else did the Mustang Mach-E update do?

Adding temperature control to the physical knob with the Ford Mustang Mach-E is part of the Ford Power-Up 4.1.2 update. In addition, it adds easier-to-use icons for navigation and other touchscreen functions. Next, Ford added a few new games to play on the main screen while parked.

Most importantly, Ford Mustang Mach-E drivers can now use the physical knob for a few different functions. Is switching between controls for one knob the solution to everyone’s problems? Although it doesn’t prevent us from using the touchscreen at all, it significantly reduces the time spent pressing buttons on the touchscreen. It’s challenging to argue against improving safety, even if all Ford did was bring back an obviously convenient feature from the past to the future to its popular electric vehicle.