Teletouch is the trade name for the transmission controls found on many Edsel brand automobiles manufactured by the Edsel and Mercury-Edsel-Lincoln (M-E-L) Divisions of the Ford Motor Company. The significance of the Teletouch systems lies in its conception, design and symbolism for American automobiles produced in the 1950s, and the gadgets designed into them. The main distinguishing feature of the system was its use of push buttons on the steering wheel to shift gears as opposed to a gear stick. Conception Conception of the Edsel began in the early 1950s when Ford Motor Company attempted to outflank industry leader General Motors through altering its production, pricing and its make and model ranges. One of the results of this plan was the E-car program that resulted in the ill-fated Edsel. From the beginning, the Edsel was promised to be something very different from the cars that Detroit was turning out at the time. However development costs required that Edsel share the basics of other established Ford brands on the market. In this climate, the Edsel emerged as a five-model, three-wheelbase automobile line. Senior Edsels would share their chassis with Mercury, junior models would share their chassis with Ford passenger vehicles, and station wagons would share their chassis and body structure with Ford's station range. The distinction offered by the Edsel, therefore, was in the styling details. While the famed 'horse collar' grille and 'boomerang' tail lights made the Edsel visually unique, the Teletouch transmission and saucer-like spinning speedometer emerged as two of the better-remembered interior details. Design The first electrical gear shift mechanism sold on new automobiles was the Vulcan electric gear shift system, a solenoid-driven transmission shift device for a standard sliding gear gearbox introduced in the summer of 1913. Among the automakers to offer the Vulcan system were the Haynes Automobile Company of Kokomo, Indiana; the S.G.V. Company of Reading, Pennsylvania; and the Norwalk Motor Car Company of Martinsburg, West Virginia. While the Vulcan shifter was often advertised as standard equipment on the Haynes car, a common floor shift was also available for $200 less. Norwalk made the Vulcan system available on their products, such as the Underslung Six, as an option; approximately 25 of those cars were so equipped. A large nickel-plated box was attached to the right side of the steering column which housed the push button mechanism. It utilized six buttons – first through third gear,