An operating device for a vehicle, comprising - a capacitively operating touch panel having an upper face with a touch-sensitive surface, and - an operating unit (18, 18') having a translatory or rotatably movable operating element (22, 22') which can be grasped manually and has an electrically conductive surface, and having a plate-shaped holding element, provided with an upper face and a lower face facing away from the upper face, on which the operating element (22, 22') is movably arranged and which for its part is arranged on the touch-sensitive surface of the upper face of the touch panel, - wherein the operating element (22, 22') comprises at least one motion detection encoder element electrically connected to the electrically conductive surface of the operating element (22, 22'), and which is preferably a wiper sliding along a sensing path of the upper face of the holding element when the operating element is moved, - wherein the holding element comprises first sections and second sections along the sensing path which are arranged alternately successively, - wherein the upper and lower face of the holding element are connected to each other in an electrically conductive manner in each of the first sections and are electrically insulated from each other in each of the second sections, characterized in that - the operating element (22, 22') comprises a detent means with at least one elastically or reversibly movable detent element, and with a detent path with alternately successively arranged detent protrusions and detent recesses - the at least one detent element is arranged on the operating element (22, 22') and the detent path on the holding element or vice versa, and - that the sensing path of the holding element is adapted as a detent path of the detent means, comprising the detent protrusions and the detent recesses, wherein the at least one detent element serves as a motion detection encoder element. - a capacitively operating touch panel having an upper face with a touch-sensitive surface, and - an operating unit (18, 18') having a translatory or rotatably movable operating element (22, 22') which can be grasped manually and has an electrically conductive surface, and having a plate-shaped holding element, provided with an upper face and a lower face facing away from the upper face, on which the operating element (22, 22') is movably arranged and which for its part is arranged on the touch-sensitive surface of the upper face of the touch panel, - wherein the operating element (22, 22') comprises at least one motion detection encoder element electrically connected to the electrically conductive surface of the operating element (22, 22'), and which is preferably a wiper sliding along a sensing path of the upper face of the holding element when the operating element is moved, - wherein the holding element comprises first sections and second sections along the sensing path which are arranged alternately successively, - wherein the upper and lower face of the holding element are connected to each other in an electrically conductive manner in each of the first sections and are electrically insulated from each other in each of the second sections, - the operating element (22, 22') comprises a detent means with at least one elastically or reversibly movable detent element, and with a detent path with alternately successively arranged detent protrusions and detent recesses - the at least one detent element is arranged on the operating element (22, 22') and the detent path on the holding element or vice versa, and - that the sensing path of the holding element is adapted as a detent path of the detent means, comprising the detent protrusions and the detent recesses, wherein the at least one detent element serves as a motion detection encoder element.