A worker has issued a warning to motorists after police stopped him and asked him about a missing gear shift sticker.
Nathan Swenson, who works as a carpenter, was driving his Toyota Hilux pickup truck when he was asked to stop for a random breathalyzer test in Brisbane last Wednesday.
Mr Swenson uploaded a video to TikTok last week to describe the confusing moment an officer asked him about the sticker after he didn’t see it on the gear shift knob.
‘He walks around the fancy car, comes back to it, looks inside and says, ‘Where’s your H sticker?’
I was like, ‘bro, what’s an H sticker?’
The officer explained that he was referring to the sticker that shows the shift pattern on the gear shift knob.
Stickers are often found on top of the shift levers inside manual transmission vehicles to indicate the different gear movements.
The shift pattern is shaped like the letter H, hence the name of the sticker.
Nathan Swenson (pictured) was left stunned when police stopped him in Brisbane last week for a random breathalyzer test and asked him about the sticker.
Mr Swenson then pointed to the lever, which was attached to the console between the driver’s seat before he was allowed to drive.
He urged motorists to ensure that their vehicles comply with all traffic regulations.
“Keep your car as legal as possible… you get detected even for those little things,” he said.
“I was going to take that sticker off when I got the car and I thought: no, I’m going to leave it there because I know that one day… I’m going to get fined for that.”
Hundreds of commenters expressed shock after Mr Swenson was asked about that little detail.
“It’s crazy what you can get these days,” one person wrote.
“You’re the second person I’ve seen criticized for this recently. I’ve never heard of it before,” another person wrote.
“Then I’ll have to put a sticker on it. I haven’t had a shift knob for almost a year,” added a third.
Police asked Mr Swenson where the sticker was before he pointed to the object, which was stuck to a console between the driver’s seat (file image)
Stickers (pictured) are often found on top of the shift levers inside manual transmission vehicles to indicate the different gear movements.
The encounter fueled speculation that it is illegal not to have the appropriate sticker on the gear shift.
A Queensland Police spokesman said Yahoo It is no longer an infraction if the sticker on the gear shift is missing.
A spokesperson for Queensland’s Department of Transport and Main Roads confirmed that it is not necessary to display it.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted the department and Queensland Police for further comment.
Australian Design Standards, which are a set of government-issued vehicle safety standards, require gear levers to be marked.
Stickers can be purchased from major auto parts retailers including Repco and Supercheap Auto.
