Mercedes-Benz Leads Industry Shift Back to Physical Controls

Car manufacturers are gradually moving away from touchscreens and reintroducing physical buttons, with Mercedes-Benz amongst the latest to announce this significant change.

Magnus °stberg, Mercedes-Benz’s head of software, revealed to Autocar last week that the German manufacturer will begin incorporating more physical controls into vehicle cabins because "data shows us physical buttons are better."

The forthcoming GLC and CLA Shooting Brake EVs will be the first models to feature these changes, according to the report.

"Having that balance between physical buttons and the touch is extremely important for us," °stberg explained to the publication. "We’re completely data-driven... the data shows us the physical buttons are better, and that’s why we put them back in."

Whilst buttons will be added to a redesigned steering wheel, screens will remain present within the cabin.

Industry-Wide Movement

Mercedes-Benz is merely the latest manufacturer to announce this shift. Volkswagen declared in March that it plans to reintroduce physical buttons across its range.

"Modern vehicles have increasingly integrated touchscreen controls to streamline design and improve aesthetics," a Volkswagen blog post explains. "However, this shift has not always been well received by drivers, who often find touch-based interfaces cumbersome and distracting whilst on the road. Many Volkswagen customers voiced concerns over the usability of these controls, particularly when it comes to essential functions like climate control, volume adjustment, and hazard lights."

The benefits of physical buttons include enhanced safety, improved usability, better accessibility, and increased reliability, according to the blog.

Safety Standards Drive Change

Last year, the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) announced it would require more physical controls and fewer touchscreens during its industry-respected safety tests.

These standards are set to commence in January 2026. Manufacturers seeking five stars will be required to use a button, stalk, or dial to control critical tasks, such as direction indicators, hazard light activation, horn operation, windscreen wipers, and SOS functions.

Engineering Challenges

The transition presents significant challenges for manufacturers, however. The shift proves more complex than it might initially appear.

Sam Abuelsamid, Telemetry’s vice president of market research, recently told The Drive that equipping vehicles with buttons and physical controls can be costly.

"There’s a lot of engineering effort that goes into it—designing them, validating all those components," Abuelsamid explained. "And from a manufacturing perspective, it adds considerable complexity to develop a dashboard or steering wheel that has physical controls on it."

As vehicles advance with more features, touchscreens have become a logical step for manufacturers, he noted.

"But you’ve got to find a balance between those extremes — all touchscreen versus all physical — if you’re going to have so many features in a car," he said.

Robby DeGraff, AutoPacific’s product and consumer insights manager, observed that for some manufacturers it is easier and cheaper to use a screen than designing a row of toggles and buttons.

The industry’s challenge now lies in striking the right balance between convenience, cost-effectiveness, and user safety as physical controls make their comeback.