If you're one of those people who likes to travel at night, you probably know that specific strain on the eyes caused by the dozens of illuminated indicators, screens and buttons on the dashboard. While modern cars overwhelm us with digital graphics, a bygone Swedish legend - Saab - offered a solution directly inspired by fighter jets, which to this day remains unsurpassed in its ingenious simplicity.
This extra, which debuted in 1993 in the 900 model, is a real gem for connoisseurs of ergonomics. With the press of a single button, the entire dashboard of the car literally "falls asleep". All the arrows, lights and displays go out, leaving only the speedometer illuminated (and only up to 140 km/h). The idea is to eliminate visual noise and prevent eye fatigue, allowing the driver to concentrate fully on the road ahead.
But the magic of the Night Panel doesn't end there. The system is “intelligent” - if during your night journey the engine starts to overheat, the fuel runs out or the revs enter a critical zone, the relevant instrument automatically “wakes up“ and lights up to warn you. Once the problem has been detected or corrected, the instrument goes back into darkness.
This aviation-style approach to safety is a legacy of Saab's past as an aircraft manufacturer. Engineers have calculated that reducing light pollution in the cabin improves peripheral vision and shortens the driver's reaction time in critical situations.
In an era of giant tablets and ambient lighting that sometimes resembles a disco, Saab's feature seems like a romantic memory of a time when the focus was on clean driving. And although the brand no longer exists, the Night Panel remains one of the most meaningful and beloved extras ever to find a place in a mass-market car.