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To defend OP, he probably doesn't even remember putting the car into reverse, and probably hasn't reviewed the video. Yeah it's a weak defense, and I agree with you, if he's making big claims he should've reviewed things more carefully.

OTOH, I wonder if "The car must indicate to the driver visually/audibly that it's been put in reverse." is a clause in a law somewhere...

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Most manual transmissions don't give you any indication whether you're in reverse or the gear next door until you start moving.

The position of the gear selector is an indicator.

It can be in some cars, but with sporty 6-speeds in particular it can be very difficult to tell if you're in reverse or 1st just by looking because the shift gates are so narrow. My VW is even worse, because you get it into reverse by pushing the shift knob down and then basically shifting into 1st.

Of course not knowing which gear you're in when you start the car is less a problem with a manual - interacting with the gear lever is a much more normal and automatic (irony) part of the driving experience so if you start rolling the wrong way you just pop it into a different gear and move on with your life.

That I can get behind. These things are dangerous and don't belong on our roads.

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