The Driving Woman

The under approach...

..so to continue the discussion from yesterday on how to hold a steering wheel, in my google search I came up with the JD Power article titled Steering for Optimal Control.

The JD Power piece supports the low riders. As quoted; ”The current recommendation for hand placement (if you imagine your steering wheel is a clock) is anywhere between 7 o'clock and 9 o'clock for your left hand and between 3 o'clock and 5 o'clock for your right hand. Although it may feel strange to have your hands so low on the steering wheel, this actually provides better control than the "10 and 2" method.

I asked Dan Edmunds, Director of Vehicle Testing at Edmunds Inc. (no relation to Edmunds), for his opinion. He pointed to a line in the article that states, "A lower hand position (8 and 4 or 7 and 5) makes it less likely that you will overcorrect during an emergency maneuver, which is what often causes spins, slides, and rollovers."
 
His take? "This line of reasoning is an outgrowth of the popularity of SUVs. Since high CG [center of gravity] vehicles like these don't handle well in emergency maneuvers and are the source of most of the rollovers they allude to, this improper hand position is being advocated to compensate. You can't input very much when holding the wheel in this way--so you can't roll the thing over--or so goes the reasoning. They're trying to dull someone's natural reactions."
 
Furthermore, Edmunds says this theory is not taking into account the fact that stability control systems are becoming standard on SUVs (to pass the government rollover test) and will be required on all vehicles in a couple of years.

"Overcorrecting isn't an issue with stability control-equipped vehicles, so this advice seems directed at older SUVs," he said. "I agree that 12 or 6 is bad, bad, bad, but 7 and 5 is nearly the same as 6. I can't follow the logic on this one."

Next, I called Jon Linkov, the Managing Editor of Autos at Consumer Reports, who is a HPDE (high performance driving education) instructor for the BMW car club and National Corvette Museum.

He agrees with Edmunds." I've never seen 8 and 4. I've gone to Audi's winter driving school several times and their instructors always hold 9 and 3 or 10 and 2. That way you can pull or push," he said.

"What about the thumbs," I asked, "Hook or not hook?". He notes that it's a personal feel but the suggestion is to rest them lightly on the wheel.

"A bigger problem I have is the people who have their hands across the wheel," he says. (It's that lazy way of driving!)

Linkov concedes that it's tough to get the right fit unless you have a tilt and telescope wheel and/or adjustable pedals. The ideal is to sit the recommended 10" from the steering wheel (so you don't get bonked by the airbag).

"This position will allow your elbow to bend softly (somewhere between 90 to 180 degrees) so you can turn extreme right or left and not run out of distance."

For more on this controversy check this article.

Now, I’ll put the question to you. How do you put your hands on the wheel?