9 and 3, thumbs up should be a standard and best practice with how some vehicles are now. The image NSW Road Safety – NSW GOV shared shows the hand positioning that is closer to 10 and 2, would we agree?
➡️ Here’s some reasons why 9 and 3 should be a standard and best practice…
1. It gives the driver better balance and control of the vehicle by providing more precise steering inputs. That’s why race car drivers are at this position!
2. In most modern vehicles it gives quicker access to the left and right levers/stalks by allowing us not to move our hands up and down the steering wheel.
3. It keeps our hands and arms from being pushed into our face by the airbag.
➡️ Here’s some reasons why 10 and 2 is a poor method…
1. It’s easier to lose control as we cannot steer with precise inputs if having to swerve left or right which is probably why we saw the introduction of ESC!
2. To access left and right levers/stalks, we would need to move one of our hands downward meaning both hands are now uneven… need we say more…
3. The airbag could push our hands and arms into our face.
My main reason for 9 and 3 is about control. Yes the airbag is another reason but we need to move away from that and focus on having “proper control” as the law states. If we are avoiding crashes, we won’t have to worry about airbag deployment! 🙏🏾
Want to discuss this? Email me (Courtenay) at crudedriving@gmail.com
Thanks for reading this blog post! 🙂