A French automobile company once marketed a car with an unusual clutch mechanism in the United States. To disengage the gears prior to shifting, the driver had to depress the accelerator all the way to the floor. American drivers of this car never mastered this procedure and after numerous accidents and lawsuits the company stopped selling the car here. The difficulty with shifting this car was due to ________.
A) heuristics
B) bottom-up processing
C) functional fixedness
D) overapplication of algorithms

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The difficulty with shifting this car was due to functional fixedness. American drivers were accustomed to using the clutch and brake pedals to disengage gears prior to shifting, but the unique mechanism of this car required them to use the accelerator instead, which goes against their fixed idea of how to shift gears.

A French Automobile Company Once Marketed a Car with an Unusual