Which side is your gas tank filler on? Don't look back.

[JohnnyRingo]

34. It's funny you mentioned that this week. He just died on Dec 11th.

He was 80 years old. I hope his headstone has an arrow to indicate where flowers are to be placed.

James Moylan was born in Detroit on December 19, 1944, and was hired by Ford as a draftsman in body engineering in March 1968. He was laid off in the '70s, but was later brought back to the company to work in plastics engineering, a growing sector as cars were getting smaller and cheaper. The idea came to Moylan on a rainy day in April 1986 when he hopped in one of Ford's employee fleet cars to drive to a meeting at another building. He had to fill up on the way, and, of course, parked with the wrong side of the car facing the gas pump, getting soaked by rain when he moved it. Moylan said he immediately had the idea to put an arrow in the gauge cluster indicating which side the gas cap is on, writing a draft of a "product convenience suggestion" proposal as soon as he got back to his desk.

In the proposal, which included a sketch of what it could look like (though using an illustration of the fuel door open, not just a simple arrow), Moylan said "Even if all Ford product lines eventually locate on the same side, for the minor investment involved on the company's part, I think it would be a worthwhile convenience not only for two car families, but also pool car users and especially car rental customers." He sent it off to his boss and promptly forgot all about it, until getting a reply seven months later from R. F. Zokas, a director of interior design, who said the arrow would be added to 1989 model year cars that were under development. The 1989 Ford Escort and Mercury Tracer were the first to use it, followed by the Ford Thunderbird and Mercury Cougar.

Read More: https://www.jalopnik.com/2061179/inventor-little-arrow-what-side-fuel-filler-is-on-dies/