Did you know? Why fuel tank arrows exist on your dashboard
That small arrow next to your fuel gauge points to your fuel cap side. Invented by Ford designer Jim Moylan in 1986, here's the surprisingly clever story behind this tiny detail.
- Jul 2, 2026,
- Updated Jul 2, 2026 4:33 PM IST
- 1/7
There is a small arrow sitting right next to the fuel gauge icon on your car's dashboard. Most drivers never notice it — yet it is one of the most thoughtful and genuinely useful pieces of design in any modern vehicle.
- 2/7
The arrow next to the fuel pump icon on your dashboard points directly to the side of the car where your fuel filler cap is located. Arrow pointing left — fuel cap is on the left. Arrow pointing right — fuel cap is on the right.
- 3/7
The idea came to Ford interior designer Jim Moylan on April 17, 1986, when he pulled up to a petrol pump on the wrong side in a company car on a rainy day, got drenched, and wrote a memo to his bosses suggesting a simple fix.
- 4/7
Ford's director of interior design approved the memo on November 18, 1986. By 1989, the Ford Escort and Mercury Tracer became the first cars to feature the fuel filler arrow — and it slowly spread to virtually every manufacturer.
- 5/7
Some automotive historians argue the first fuel filler arrow actually appeared on the 1976 Mercedes-Benz W123's dashboard — over a decade before Ford's version. Mercedes itself has apparently forgotten, crediting its 1997 G-Class instead.
- 6/7
The arrow is especially valuable in rental cars or borrowed vehicles where you have no idea which side the filler cap is on. A quick glance at the dashboard saves the walk of shame around the car at a petrol station.
- 7/7
Jim Moylan, the Ford designer credited with inventing the fuel filler arrow, passed away on December 11, 2025, at the age of 80 — leaving behind a tiny but genuinely life-improving piece of automotive design history.