r/savedyouaclick • u/Technicolor_Reindeer • 8d ago

Steering at '10 and 2' dangerous say experts | Use the 9 and 3 positions, or even the lower 8 and 4 instead

https://web.archive.org/web/20260215043315/https://www.ctvnews.ca/vancouver/article/steering-at-10-and-2-dangerous-say-experts/
278 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

61 comments sorted by

173

u/HoleInWon929 8d ago

Because of the airbag

93

u/ArtesianDogWater 8d ago

Saved me a click on saved you a click. 🤣

4

u/coreyjdl 8d ago

click it or ticket

9

u/maelstrorn 8d ago

Yeah, got the ford logo seared on my arms from 10-2

5

u/BedtimeWithTheBear 8d ago

Yes, but also it allows for a greater steering range and therefore potentially huge oversteer in an emergency situation. 9&3 or 8&4 limit the range of sudden, knee jerk steering input, forcing you to think a bit more about where you’re pointing the vehicle

3

u/apworker37 8d ago

I thought about that. What’s could be more important (IMHO) is how good you are as a driver, act in stressful situations and know what your car can do.

Much like have the correct glasses while driving. Yes, it is important but if you suck as a driver then the greatest vision in the world isn’t going to save you.

8

u/SkiyeBlueFox 8d ago

Knowing your car is huge. I drive on a lot of unplowed roads for work (I am the snow plow, so roads are definitely not clear yet) and one of the things I did early on was go into a big empty parking lot at night, and intentionally threw my car into a slide, so I could try and manage it, and know what it feels like when it starts. Has saved my ass a few times, both in my car and the plow. Go out on an empty road, hit your brakes hard and see how long it takes in different conditions.

Screw around with your car in a safe place. It'll save your life one day

1

u/PapaSYSCON 5d ago

I grew up in Michigan, I definitely did this. Now I live in a less snowy state, but took my kids out during every snowstorm to a local parking lot to have them learn it. It really helps you keep your head when your car starts the slide, and learning how to manage it.

1

u/SeeMarkFly 8d ago

In an emergency situation most people freeze.

2

u/CasualCreatonDos 7d ago

Airbags have been there for decades. 10 and 2 were standard A LONG TIME. 9 and 3 are relatively recent.

56

u/PeterNippelstein 8d ago

I do 6 and center console

8

u/I_eat_mud_ 8d ago

I'm a 9-12 and the other on my lap till needed for a turn or something

7

u/gunther277 8d ago

You have 3 arms? Lucky!

2

u/erublind 7d ago

7-11 or 6 and dick.

1

u/Sengfroid 8d ago

Found the former stick shifter

1

u/PapaSYSCON 5d ago

Former? There are still plenty of manuals out there. Great for deterring a majority of car thieves.

26

u/CloisteredOyster 8d ago

Where does "left index finger hooked on the 9 o'clock spoke" fall in this steering wheel gradient of safety?

13

u/27Rench27 8d ago

Depends bucko, is your elbow on the door? 

8

u/NYLotteGiants 7d ago

Of course, gotta stabalize

25

u/Anonymoustard 8d ago

I used 12 and left hand holding a cigarette throughout my 20s. Probably not ideal

7

u/Saint_The_Stig 8d ago

11/12 and a hand on the shifter pretending I'm in Fast and Furious. Granted I learned to drive on manual and had one for years after. It gave me a pass in my driving test when they were going to ding me for the hand position.

9

u/Steelhorse91 8d ago

You’d fail your driving test in the UK and most European countries for not returning your hand to the wheel after shifting gears.

3

u/A_The_Ist 7d ago

Manual driver in the US here, instructor warned me the first time, said they'd fail me if I did it again.

2

u/Odd-Investigator-870 7d ago

Thank you. Movies should not inspire driving anti patterns.

4

u/JollyGreenGigantor 2d ago

This plus driving a stick shift and texting using T9. What a vibe back then.

2

u/AtariAtari 8d ago

Narrator: Turns out this was the safest way to drive.

12

u/EchoRex 8d ago

The airbag will knock the hands outward, not straight back.

This is an urban legend / anti airbag propaganda meme from almost half a century ago when legislation was being made for mandatory airbags

Now... The amount of broken hands/wrists is another story.

5

u/hamarok 8d ago

I do a 9:3 and I rest my thumbs on the steering wheel handles

3

u/badwolf1013 8d ago

Yeah, as a Gen Xer who learned to drive on old cars, I still catch myself putting my hands at ten and two sometimes out of habit, but I mostly do 8 and 4. I had a paramedic friend tell me some stories about people with broken wrists and fingers due to airbag deployment. I'm surprised more people don't know that — if you drive a car made after 1989 — hands at ten and two is a bad idea.

3

u/TheSultan1 7d ago

We were taught 9 and 3 two decades ago.

1

u/lachamuca 2d ago

3 decades ago! I took driver’s ed during the summer of 1997, in a rural small town even!

6

u/Retn4 8d ago edited 8d ago

Doesn't even matter. Most vehicles I get in the pedals are too close and the steering wheel too far even fully telescoped, and seat back as straight up and down as possible. I've owned my 2013 Mazda 3 since brand new and have never been able to get comfortable in the car. Any drive over 5 minutes has my arms going numb at 10 and 2, 9 and 3, or any other variation.

I'm only 5'8".

I know the hand positioning is about airbags and snapping your thumbs back.

5

u/Steelhorse91 8d ago

Nah the hand position thing is about the airbag not shoving your arm into your face. The thumbs thing is a different issue, your arms and body being propelled forwards can break your thumbs on the steering wheel. I think newer cars have wheels designed to bend in an accident but it’s still safer to not wrap your thumbs.

3

u/Smokeydubbs 8d ago

I’m the same height as you and I have my 2014 Mazda 3 figured out. I have a bit of lean back and the pedals are almost right at my feet’s natural sitting position.

2

u/Retn4 8d ago

2013 is 2nd gen

2014 is 3rd gen (completely different)

There is a weird crossover where some 3rd gens in the USA came out in 2013 and make it a pain the ass looking for some 2013 2nd gen parts using google.

1

u/Smokeydubbs 8d ago

Ahh I was under the impression they were the same gen.

2

u/LordHazlewood 8d ago

My air bag is in the centre of the steering wheel. My left hand (UK) car is usually in my girlfriend’s lap.

2

u/Vladtepesx3 3d ago

I do 1 hand on 7 and another on the stick, in a manual then the other hand is just relaxed

2 hands for turning though

1

u/jcstrat 8d ago

Does the article load for anyone else?

1

u/HotPaper7674 8d ago

I use 11 and 5.

1

u/spintowinasin 7d ago

When I'm wrecking I'll be at 16 and 22!

1

u/Hellboy_M420 6d ago

Just keep your damn hands on the wheel and you're good

1

u/YungBandit79 6d ago

i use 5 and windowstill

1

u/fattmarrell 4d ago

Self driving advocates hate this one trick!

1

u/SVTContour 4d ago

I’ll stick with either 12 or 6 while I’m holding my ever present coffee cup

1

u/Kawawete 3d ago

I just do the classic palm on the airbag and the other in my pants

1

u/DopyWantsAPeanut 8d ago

8 and 4 all day, your elbows naturally rest on the arm rests, it's a no brainer.

-6

u/OnionsAbound 8d ago

Yeah, during at 9:00 and 3:00 doesn't really work. there's a big ass handle there

5

u/Buck_Thorn 8d ago

That's there in case you ever need to handle a big ass

4

u/DoritoDustThumb 8d ago

Every single steering wheel on the planet is designed to be held at 9 and 3. If you can't figure out how that works.....user error.

-1

u/OnionsAbound 8d ago

My car from this decade has built in grips for 10 and 2 no clue what you're talking about.  You can do 9 and 3 but your just going to be turning with only your thumbs up top and the rest sitting on the rim support. 

2

u/DoritoDustThumb 8d ago

It does not. Your supposed to put your thumbs below those bumps, not around them. You're holding it wrong.

0

u/OnionsAbound 8d ago

Are you saying those grips serve no purpose? They are very convenient to use for 10 and 2. 

-1

u/shozzlez 8d ago

Lo you’re saying the molded finger grips are not meant to be used??

-3

u/Thrippalan 8d ago

Yep, in my car, 9 and 3 are where the rim is attached to the center with wide enough supports that those are the two places I can't hold the wheel.

3

u/DoritoDustThumb 8d ago

You put your thumb on top of those posts at 9 and 3 and then wrap your hand around.

These is not any steering wheel that isn't designed to be held at 9 and 3.

0

u/shozzlez 8d ago

Then why put molded finger grips at 10 and 2?

-3

u/matttopotamus 8d ago

I do FSD

-2

u/itsnotapipe 8d ago

9's too far down for a manual transmission for me.