Most safety experts recommend that the back be straight or slightly reclined and relaxed against the seat. The seat should be close enough to allow for an easy reach from a bent leg to the pedals and full depression of the pedals with the balls of the feet. The left foot should have a secure footrest. The arms should remain slightly bent while the hands are on the steering wheel. The seat should be adjusted vertically to enable a full view of all the gauges. The seat belt should be adjusted properly low over the hips, on the chest and over the shoulder, without slack.

 

Some drivers tend to sit too far back with arms and legs straight. Studies have shown this creates a greater risk of joint damage during a frontal impact. Bent arms and knees act like a second “crumple zone” inside the external 'crumple zones' at the front and rear of the vehicle. On the other hand, sitting too close creates a risk of injury from deployment of the front air bag. Experts now say that a driver’s chest and the steering wheel hub should be at least 26 cm or 10 inches apart.

 

A driver’s hands on the steering wheel are the sole point of contact with the road. As racecar driver turned driving safety expert, Danny McKeever, puts it: “You'll be surprised how much information you can get just by listening with your hands: On the steering wheel, your hands will tell you how much traction you have, if you're going too fast and what the road conditions are like. It's simple: your tires tell you where the car is going. Your steering wheel tells you where the tires are pointed.” And yet experts say the number-one problem they see in drivers today is the improper placing of hands on the steering wheel.

 

A comfortable, not too tight grip with the thumb on the top of the wheel maximizes 'feel' for the road and reduces fatigue. The conventional teaching on proper placement is “both hands on the wheel at all times,” the left at the 10 and the right at the 2 o'clock position. This enables a driver to be as ready as possible at all times to steer as smoothly as possible—not turn the wheel as suddenly or as much—to avoid a hazard. To avoid injury to wrists and hands from air bag deployment some instructors now recommend left–9 and right–3 positions.

 

Steering techniques include palming, hand-over-hand—neither of which are recommended—and shuffle steering. Shuffle steering is recommended for a smooth and uniform drive devoid of “annoying little jerky movements while turning.” Go to www.koniaris.com/auto/steering/ for a detailed description of shuffle steering techniques.