With the purchase of a new car with a hydraulic booster, I began to notice that my wife, let's call her a novice driver, absolutely stopped steering correctly. Often twists the steering wheel, makes too sharp maneuvers. I thought for a long time what helps me to feel the way, how I quickly learned to ride and turn the wheels to the right angle. Also reviewed many different video tutorials and all kinds of courses.
Initially, the hands rest on the steering wheel in the 10: 2 position, if we consider the steering wheel as a watch dial. Why are they resting? Because these are points of equilibrium, the weight of the hands is, as it were, weights that make it possible not to strain the muscles of the hands in the rectilinear movement of the car. And if you need to adjust the movement just a small movement of the hands is enough, as a rule, this is just a weakening of the handlebar grip of the arm opposite to the turn. That is, if within the limits of your lane it is necessary to press against the side of the road, it is enough to loosen the grip of the left hand, and then the steering wheel goes out of balance, the right hand pulls down, and the car turns to the right.
If we remove the hand, then under the weight of the remaining hand, the steering wheel rotates and the car turns.
But, if you need to make a turn, or go into a protracted quick turn? How to understand how necessary it is to turn the steering wheel? I listened to the sensations for a long time, it is clear that they are already on my automatism, but somehow I started, somehow I quickly began to understand how and where to turn the steering wheel in order to drive a car. We will analyze the turn to the right, there is a steering wheel and two hands, the right hand in this case we have a power hand, a sharp jerk down and the steering wheel will turn right very quickly, but there is a very high probability of turning the steering wheel. Therefore, the rotation is performed with two hands.
And the left hand here turns out a little more important, it is she who sets the right angle. The fact is that with such movements in the left hand much more muscles will be involved, including the shoulder muscles, and when you apply so much effort, it is easier to control these efforts. Before that, I had a car without a hydro or electric amplifier, and I had to bring the steering wheel to the right angle with almost the weight of my body.
It turns out that when turning right, we start the rotation with our right hand, and we correct with the left. We bring the steering wheel to the desired angle. And pay attention to the grip, the steering wheel is firmly, but not tightly gripped in the hand. no palms, etc. We get information about the cohesion of the stake through the thumb, if we have stones, gravel or something wrong, then we will feel it with the second phalanx of the thumb. Or put a mono finger, straight pad on the steering wheel.
Again, if we see that a large (sharp) turn can be used before the grip, that is, hands should be moved in advance to the other position on the steering wheel so as not to take your hand off the steering wheel for as long as possible. Why do this? So that there are fewer hand movements, there will be a special interception. It is at the time of interception that the steering wheel can knock out a hole or a stone.
7 pre-grab when turning left. 
For example, we have to perform a left sharp turn. We do pre-grab at point 5 with our right hand and at point 12 with our left hand. And as soon as we returned our hands to the normal position of 10: 2, our steering wheel is already turned almost 90 degrees.
Continue the rotation as described above. A hand in whose direction the car turns (left) power, Other (right) corrective. But it happens that this is not enough. Then there is an interception of hands. But this is already better explained in a driving school. Or at the circuit.
And most importantly, the steering should be progressive, starting with a small angle and low speed, gradually accelerating the speed of rotation of the steering wheel and, accordingly, the angle of rotation. Ideally, if the steering wheel does not rotate at the same speed when turning.
And now about how to correctly take turns.
One of the most excellent videos where the specialist tells everything in detail.
But for now I have everything, I hope my wife quickly learns to drive safely, and my advice will be useful to others. If you have any disagreements and comments, write, I'm not an expert and talk about my observations, I would like to hear the opinion of the pros.
The ability to handle the steering wheel correctly is the first thing a novice driver should learn after learning the rules of the road. If you know how to turn the steering wheel, you can avoid a very large number of errors that can be made on the road while driving. Inaction can lead to extremely negative consequences. Handling the steering wheel should be automatic, making it easier for you to control the machine. You can learn this not only while driving a car, but also at home on a simulator.
Hand movements are divided into:
- movement of the working type (starts from the moment when you take the wheel, ends when you release it);
Idle type movements (the period between when you release the steering wheel and then grab it).
Remember: if you release the steering wheel or take it, and the wheel itself rotates, then it should not stop.
Newbie Error
The very first practical lessons are very important, but most beginners make some serious mistakes because of the excitement. The very first mistake is to return the steering wheel to its original position after completing a turn. Despite the fact that the steering mechanism is designed so that after scrolling, the wheel willfully returns to the position that corresponds to the movement of the car in a straight line. That is, in the actions of the driver there is no need for this. During the rotation of the steering wheel, the primary task is not to make unnecessary movements so that you can coordinate in time.
The most common mistakes made by beginners are:
1) The driver pulls the steering wheel.
Relaxed hands and a soft grip are two key points to keep in mind when driving. Do not apply excessive force to the steering wheel during a turn. Of course, you can aggressively enter the turn, but after a while you will have to drive the car for diagnosis, since problems with the suspension and tires arise precisely. If the wheels slip, you cannot control the machine. Therefore, you need to forget about the efforts during the torsion of the steering wheel. So the car will "obey" you, and the tires will not need to be changed for a very long time.
2) The driver "hangs" on the steering wheel
When driving a car, only the load from your hands should fall on the steering wheel. Those muscles that are not involved in control should be as relaxed as possible. To do this, you need to use the support for the left leg, as tightly as possible to press against the back, buckle up. Thanks to this, you will merge with the machine as much as possible.
3) Do not hold the steering wheel with a stranglehold.
In order to turn the car, you need to make an effort to the steering wheel, but still you can not grab too much for it. You need to learn how to relax your hands at one point. If you are constantly tense, then the car will be worse than you "obey", and you yourself will be faster tired of driving.
Steering Methods
When you sit behind the wheel and start the engine, you need to grab the steering wheel with your palms, while squeezing your hands does not need much. Imagine a steering wheel is a watch dial that is divided into 12 parts. The left palm should be between 9:00 and 10:30, and the right palm between 01:30 and 03:00. The elbows should be slightly bent. Thanks to this position of hands, you can react in time in an emergency.
Very often during the ride you have to turn the car, rebuild, overtake and deploy the car. Perform all these maneuvers in different ways, with different techniques.
1. Taxiing
If you need to turn the car at an angle less than 45 °, then there is no need even to change the position of the hands on the steering wheel. This technique is the simplest. You need to do the following: put your hands on the steering wheel as described earlier; if you need to rebuild or overtake someone, then the steering wheel must be turned in the right direction, while you can’t remove your hands from it. After completing the maneuver, return to the starting position and release the steering wheel. This control method is good because you do not need to think about the fact that the wheels will not stand upright and that the car will have to be aligned. But it can not be used in cases where you need to perform a turn or a turn with a large radius of the angle. You will always have the opportunity to straighten your arms if they are located in the initial position on the steering wheel.
If the angle of rotation is greater than 90 °, then you need to apply the technique of intercepting the steering wheel. Put the steering wheel on the wheel as previously described. With both hands, gently unscrew the steering wheel to the left, until the left hand and left side are not leaning against each other. After that, remove your left hand from the steering wheel, but continue to turn the steering wheel with your right hand. Then quickly move your left hand over the right and grab the wheel. When it is inconvenient for you to turn the steering wheel with your right hand, you will need to put it on top of the steering wheel.
Next, you need to do the same: unscrew and intercept the steering wheel. When the machine moves in the right direction, the steering wheel will need to be aligned. It must be rotated in the same way when it will be necessary to turn to the right. Put your hands in the starting position. Gently slide your right hand over the steering wheel, grabbing it in place above the left hand. Turn the steering wheel with your right hand, but do not move your left. When the right hand returns to its original position, you will need to squeeze the steering wheel with your left hand and turn the steering wheel with both hands.
In order to turn right, it is not necessary to use both hands to turn the steering wheel. You can use only the left brush, the right one does not even need to touch the steering wheel.Position your left hand slightly above the middle of the rim, do not squeeze tightly, begin to slowly turn to the right side. Straighten your fingers and rotate them 180 °. The palm needs to rest against the steering wheel, but keep turning. It is necessary to return the hand to its original position. Repeat the maneuver if necessary.
3. Taxiing in reverse
When reversing, you must either turn back or navigate through the mirrors. Most motorists use the first method, because this is how you can notice a pedestrian suddenly appearing or other obstacles. If you need to take back, while driving in a straight line or turning to the right, you will need to put your right hand behind the headrest of the passenger seat, and continue to operate with your left. If you are supposed to turn left, you will need to turn in a half-turn. The elbow of the left hand will need to be placed on the back of your seat, and with the right hand to turn the steering wheel.
When driving, it often happens that one hand is busy with something. In these situations, it will be very useful to learn to steer with one hand. To comprehend this "science", you need to: squeeze the top of the steering wheel with your left hand and control it. Suppose the right hand is busy. Once it is free, put it on the steering wheel. All manipulations with a busy hand must be performed very quickly so that you can apply one of the above techniques as soon as possible.
The most important thing in this business is training. If you practice purposefully, then you will learn how to manage much faster. This can be done in an empty parking lot or on an abandoned road, where you will master steering, acceleration, and braking.
1) Experiment first. Start at a low speed, gradually gain. In principle, it can be any, you can compare how much effort is required to control the machine at a speed of 60 km / h, and how much - at 30 km / h.
2) Turn the steering wheel and apply the brakes at the same time. Observe the reaction of the car.
3) Relax your hands, do not hang on the steering wheel, keep your torso in the correct position. You need to ensure that your body weight does not affect movement.
4) Use different management techniques, combine them together.
5) When you want to rebuild, you need to determine exactly how the car will respond to your actions. First, try to rebuild slowly, and then quickly.
6) Try to go into a turn in second gear, while pressing on the gas, with the coast. Watch how successfully the machine turns.
Exercise "Snake" as a way to learn how to turn the steering wheel
To get a driver’s license, you will need to successfully pass not only the theory, but also the practice of driving.At the stage of practical exams, you will need to pass an exercise with the eloquent name "Snake".
It is for rent on a rectangular platform, which consists of 4 sections of equal size, the length of which is 1.5 times longer than the length of the car, and the width is calculated according to the length of the car. It is clear that it is better to practice yourself before taking this exercise on the exam. At the site, you will need to install improvised racks of bags, cans, plastic bottles of water. It will be necessary to install 6 racks: at the start, at the finish, and 4 intermediate. There should not be other cars on the site so that you have the freedom to maneuver. The essence of the exercise is to drive this distance along a serpentine path, while you do not have to touch a single rack. So, you should drive to the “Start” mark. Slowly start moving in a straight line. At that moment, when the car moves forward, you need to squeeze the clutch to the stop, after which you will move by inertia.
At that moment, when the first rack reaches the middle of the left front door of the car, you must turn the steering wheel to the left, and you need to make one revolution. So you will pass the first rack at an angle of 45 °.
Watch out for the second rack. As soon as it is to the right of the right wing, you need to align the wheels, that is, turn the steering wheel to the right (make a complete revolution). Move along a straight path, after the second pillar reaches the middle of the front right door, you need to make a couple of full turns with the wheel to the right, after which you will need to lightly press the gas pedal, release the clutch slightly so that the car is pushed forward a little.
After that you need to completely squeeze the clutch. Watch out for the third counter. When it passes the front left fender, you must align the wheels with two turns of the steering wheel. Further actions are similar. Some drivers may have difficulty accessing the “finish”. You need to do this. When you reach the fifth pillar, when it reaches the middle of the front left door, with the wheels being straight, you need to make one full turn to the left.
Look ahead, when the nose of the car will be directed to the stop mark, you need to align the wheels with one turn of the steering wheel to the right. Next, approach the finish line, as a landmark use the sixth rack. Shift off the gear and put the machine on the parking brake. After that, the exercise will be considered completed.
The main problem that occurs during the execution of this exercise is the touch of the racks, which then fall, and you get penalty points. To avoid this, you need to ride evenly, while the speed should not change. Do not apply pressure to the gas, brake and clutch. The main goal is to turn the steering wheel in time. This is the next mistake that drivers make during the Snake. Along with a slow ride, the novice slowly turns the steering wheel. This is fundamentally wrong. You need to spin the steering wheel very quickly, but the speed should be low. That is, the higher the speed of the car, the calmer you must turn the steering wheel.
Every motorist is obliged to understand the science of proper handling of the steering wheel. Only the right reaction to a difficult situation, the absence of fuss, unnecessary movements and panic will help you keep your car intact.
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Some actions of the driver can be compared with the work of an industrial robot. In the process of driving a car, the driver constantly uses a certain set of standard actions, and each of these actions is performed purely automatically. As for the driver’s consciousness, it is busy monitoring the constantly changing traffic situation and planning tactics for driving a particular section of the road. Therefore, an experienced driver very rarely has to think about the technique of working his own legs and hands, he simply does not have the right to pay attention to them.
This will also come to you, but in order for your automatic actions to be concrete and correct in the future, you must first lay the correct foundation.
Any person has his bad and useful habits, but after all, once upon a time there were none ?! Therefore, today we will begin to form your useful habits when working with hands, and a little later, with your head. To do this, you will have to spend some time training.
In this lesson, we confine ourselves to examining the work of hands with a steering wheel.
Driving
As for the permanent "place of residence" of your hands on the steering wheel, we seem to have agreed (see and). But sometimes you need to turn the steering wheel! But as? This is what we’ll do now.
If today there is a winter cold outside the window, then you are very lucky. Based on the fact that you have to thoroughly work with your hands, you should ensure complete freedom of the front wheels of your car. And what could be better than slippery ice! Therefore, ask your assistant to drive the car to some quiet place where the janitor has not yet sprinkled sand and salt on the shiny mirror of a frozen puddle.
And if in the yard ... July?
Then I advise you to purchase the discs "Health" or "Grace". These are the very disks with which your lovely ladies perfect their figure, turning them back and forth. Believe me, these discs calmly withstand not only the fairer sex, but also a significantly greater load.
If you put one disk under each of the front wheels, you will thereby ensure a very easy rotation of the steering wheel.
Ask the assistant to drive these wheels with their front wheels, put the Machine on the handbrake (parking brake) and turn off the engine. Then sit in the driver's seat and start training.
Hand taxiing
This is completely uncomplicated. It is necessary to observe only one condition - “stick” the hands to the steering wheel in the normal position () and do not move them relative to the rim of the steering wheel ().
But then the question arises: “How will I turn into the yard at an angle of 90? After all, I won’t get there ?! ”
I agree, you will not get.
Hand taxiing from the steering wheel - this is the usual way of taxiing in the following cases:
- when adjusting the rectilinear movement of the car;
- when leaving the sidewalk;
- before stopping;
- when changing to an adjacent lane;
- with a smooth detour obstacles.
Fig. 19 Taxiing without taking off the hand from the steering wheel: a) initial position; b) turn left; c) turn right
This method of taxiing is used when it is necessary to slightly change the direction of movement of the car, with its subsequent return to the position of rectilinear movement.
If the hands remain in their "home" on the rim of the steering wheel. You always have the opportunity to immediately put your hands straight!
Training consists only in conscious control of the hands. After turning the steering wheel right or left at an angle of 80-90, your hands will want to change the position on the steering wheel rim, but you must not let them do this. Feel and remember the sensations in the hands arising from their "taming", we will need them now.
Interception taxiing
When an EXPERIENCED driver wants to make a turn, he does not think about that. what his hands will do. And you have to carefully prepare.
Grab the wheel and start turning it to the left.
Why left and not right? Because most people are right-handed and their right hand is right. And when turning left, the main work is performed by the right hand ().
By the way, I advise left-handed people to get used to working with their right hand, since in cars with a left-hand drive, all car controls are designed for right-handed people.
Fig. 20 Hand operation zones when turning the steering wheel: a) with the right hand; b) with the left hand: c) restricted area
So, two hands begin to smoothly turn the steering wheel to the left (). However, after turning the steering wheel at an angle of 80-90 "(position 2), the elbow of the left hand begins to feel discomfort and is about to rest against your side. This means that the left hand cannot work further. Therefore, you just need to remove it from the steering wheel! But at the same time (pos. 3-4):
Then, for some time, the hands work simultaneously, but then the left hand again begins to rest its elbow against your side. Therefore, it should move and take a place above the right hand, which at this time continues its work. Further, the right hand transfers leadership to the left hand and goes to the highest point on the steering wheel. And the process is repeated.
Fig. 21 Hand operation when turning left
Fig. 22 Hand operation when turning right
It's time to draw some conclusions.
When steering to the left:
- the right hand performs the main work, as it serves a larger sector of the turn;
- the left hand performs auxiliary work, ensuring the steering wheel rotates non-stop when the right hand changes its position.
After making 3-4 steals of the steering wheel, you and I turned it to the left to the end. Now we need to return the steering wheel to its place, that is, turn it to the right ().
Working with your hands while turning the steering wheel to the right is practically no different from the one you just did by turning the steering wheel to the left. There is only one difference - the main hand is now left! It is she who turns the steering wheel, and the right hand only helps.
The following recommendations follow from well-known errors.
Fig. 23 Errors when driving
And now the most important thing. Do not look at your hands, they are “embarrassed” and begin to do all kinds of nonsense! If you pay less attention to your hands, they will work much better. After all, the movements discussed above are quite natural for human hands. And in general, learn to trust your body, then not only your hands will work correctly and gracefully, but everything else in driving will be easier for you.
Now you know how your hands should work when you turn the steering wheel at an angle of more than 90 and what you will do in the next half hour - you need to start an active training. I don’t know how long it will take you to “tame” the steering wheel (or your hands), but you need to do this now. At that moment, when the car starts moving, thoughts about hands on the steering wheel should no longer be!
One-handed steering
“This is how and why?” Two would learn! ”- a gloomy exclamation is heard from those who already realized that they would have to work hard to make their first trip in life.
And I'm not saying that right now you need to "cut off" one hand. Without the ability to steer with one hand, you can never easily put the car in reverse in the garage. And when moving forward, sometimes you have to resort to this option of turning the steering wheel. Working with one hand, right or left - depending on the need, the driver has the ability to turn the steering wheel with maximum speed and accuracy.
Fig. 24 Turning the steering wheel with one hand
As for speed, I think it’s clear that you don’t have to carry your hand. And the accuracy is achieved by the fact that the hand is constantly in the same position on the rim of the steering wheel and the driver knows exactly how many revolutions or half-turns he needs to make in order to instantly put the steering wheel in the position of rectilinear movement. But enough words, let's get down to business.
Let's start by turning the steering wheel to the right, because first of all you need the ability to turn the steering wheel with one hand exactly to the right. You will encounter this in exams at the traffic police.
So, turn right (Fig. 24). Take away your right hand somewhere, or at least attach it to your lap - it does not participate in subsequent actions and should not interfere. Forget that you have it at all!
Place the palm of your left hand on the steering wheel in the space provided for it (Fig. 24, item 1). And do not forget to “grind” it (see. Fig. 3), now it is very important. The brush of your left hand should and will remain in your “house” until the end of taxiing!
Gently hold the steering wheel with your fingers and, slightly resting your palm against the steering wheel rim, start a turn to the right.
When the steering wheel is turned almost 180 (), your left hand will begin to feel discomfort - it cannot rotate the steering wheel further! This is a signal for you to straighten (spread out) your fingers, slightly increase your palm pressure on the steering wheel rim and, while continuing to turn the steering wheel, turn the brush in your “house” counterclockwise (Fig. 24, pos. 3).
Keeping your fingers straight and palm rest. You continue to turn the steering wheel further through the restricted area (, in and). As soon as the "house" of the left hand, together with the brush, leaves this zone, it will be possible to slightly weaken the pressure of the palm on the steering wheel rim and gently hug it with your fingers.
It’s easy to continue, you just need to repeat all the above steps. And in order to return the steering wheel back ”in the reverse order everything needs to be done.
I am sure that after a short training session you will like this taxiing method, and for a successful entry into the examination box it is simply necessary. Plus, when taxiing with one hand, your second hand is freed, there is always a case for it.
It was a right turn when only the left hand worked. To turn left you only need to change your hand, and everything else is unchanged. Left hand in your pocket, right hand in your house ”and let's go. We twist, spread out, scroll, we pass the restricted area and so on.
I understand that I have set you a difficult task and that it will take a lot of time until the movements of your hands become precise, beautiful and natural. Therefore, I do not advise you to try to master driving in one sitting. A few minutes today, a few tomorrow, but you can’t leave this business halfway.
Hi AutoCadabra! We continue our auto-training - in today's issue we’ll talk about the steering wheel and how to work with it correctly. Whose answer will you like the most?
Photo from a sports driving course in Europe.
Answer (lecture fragment) Alexander Ilyukhin, master of sports, teacher of the department of applied sports and extreme activities of the RSUFKSiT:
The technique is called "two-handed rotation of the steering wheel." You have many wonderful ways to control the steering wheel - “a la dosaaf”, or “English technique”, we also call it “GAI technique”. When you were taught: how much did you bother the steering wheel in this direction, how much did you bother in this direction (the auto-instructor demonstrates the steering wheel rotation technique). How many movements you made, where your wheels are at that moment - is unclear! But this technique has a right to exist.
Now let's see how the steering wheel rotation technique looks in general. I once start spinning with both hands, after I got one hand upstairs - this is a signal for my lower hand to lower the steering wheel.
The average pace of movement (the auto-instructor shows the average pace of rotation of the steering wheel), the progress of the steering wheel.
Well, a critical situation, when you need to get out of it, you, as the last time in your life, will carry out some movements of the steering wheel (the auto-instructor shows a high pace of rotation of the steering wheel).
Answer Anton ZakharovLeading Instructor at the Center for Excellence in Driving:
The steering wheel must be able to work in such a way as not to lose the position of the front wheels. You don’t see the front wheels, you must know with your hands where your front wheels are looking now, how long it will take you to return them to the straight position.
These are the things that stem from order on the steering wheel, due to the correct steering wheel amplitudes, etc. This is a consequence of the use of effective steering wheel technology, of course, this needs to be learned.
If you don’t know how to rotate the steering wheel, you are already substituting somewhere, somewhere risking slipping or not stabilizing the car, or getting a rhythmic skid where it might not have been, well, etc.
Still, try to drive the car with two hands, try to keep both hands on the steering wheel, try to keep your shoulders as relaxed as possible. Your back may be strained, but your shoulders should be relaxed, your hands should be relaxed. This is a position that gives you physically, but actually psychologically, be prepared for certain actions.
Answer Mikhail Gorbachev, master of sports, author of many books on car driving, member of the Union of Journalists:
Now I will show you how to drive correctly. What actions should the driver do with the wheel. The steering wheel is the main governing body of the car. Many to the question: what is the main governing body of the car? Answer: brake, brake pedals. In fact, this is not so. The main thing is the steering wheel! As the driver steers, so the car rides!
There is a main rule in driving a car - "steer sparingly." What does it mean to steer sparingly? How to steer correctly, I will now demonstrate to you.
We approach the turn, make one turn with the wheel, the car goes along an arc, we arrive exactly in the middle of the road and turn the wheel back.
Here we resort to such a method, which is called the "aga method". I turn the steering wheel and think: yeah, I didn’t turn something much, the next time I turn more. I drive up to the turn, turn the steering wheel again and think: yeah, I turned a lot of things, next time I turn less. I turned the steering wheel to the right angle, I think: yeah, now I turned to the right angle, now I will remember it and will do just that.
Answer Nikolai Ostrovsky, master of sports, instructor of the Tushino Ring Driving School:
The driver must relate to the steering technique in such a way that he is able to turn the steering wheel both to the right and left with the same speed and with equal effort. Therefore, it is necessary to select a grip with both hands symmetrically about the axis of the steering wheel, approximately in this position (the auto-instructor demonstrates the correct position of the hands on the steering wheel). This grip angle from the index finger of the right and left hand is connected to the center of the steering wheel and is called the grip angle. The higher the physical ability of a person - this angle is smaller than it is lower - the grip increases, but not more than 180 °. It is advisable to choose such a grip angle (the auto-instructor demonstrates the grip angle). A lot has been written about this, people defended dissertations. By the way, the taxiing school that exists in our USSR, in Russia, is generally a unique motorsport school. It was developed in the 80s, when our leading racers competed in the cars of our Russian automobile industry, which clearly did not meet international standards. Therefore, it was necessary to use the steering technique, competing with pilots who controlled sports cars with a short rack, power steering, etc. Our drivers were deprived of this, so they developed the taxiing technique that Ernest Sergeyevich Tsygankov put together, developed a technique and has been teaching successfully throughout this time. I think many thousands of drivers are grateful to him that at some point they used this technique, were able to get out of the difficult situation on the road, because at the first stage of driving the driver compensates for all the mistakes that were made to them in predicting the traffic situation, according to the choice of the trajectory of movement, etc., he compensates for all errors precisely with high-speed taxiing, due to this, it is possible to avoid negative consequences.
Answer Stanislav Semionov, leading instructor of the driving school Mikhail Gorbachev "Drive-Class":
Firstly, to understand where the wheels are turned, and this is very important in emergency situations, for example, when a skid occurs. In order to steer accurately, i.e. understand how much you need to turn. And in order to look beautiful while driving, which is also important.
So, the standard hand position on the steering wheel in a modern car is now adopted "9-3". In any modern car, you will find some kind of reminder that you need to keep the steering wheel in this position.
For example, in this car, if I hold my hands in position 9-3, the control levers for the wipers and turn signals are directly under my fingers.
There are recesses on the steering wheel for thumbs, and the audio control buttons are also very convenient under the thumbs. Those. all steering argonomics is made so that in this car you need to keep the steering wheel in the 9-3 position. You can also see something in your car.
Today, there are many different methods of taxiing, but the main ones are three. Why three, because if you really consider all the many turns that you can meet on the roads, then all the turns can be divided into three categories.
Turns are smooth, medium and sharp. And for each category of turns there is a steering technique. The main thing is to correctly understand what category the turn to which you are now approaching belongs.
The first turns are smooth high-speed, rather large radius turns that are made with both hands without taking off the steering wheel. We don’t move our hands, and we turn quite smoothly at a small angle, for example, a quarter of the steering wheel or maybe even less and so on. It is possible to shift the steering wheel by 180 degrees, which in this case is the limit.
Therefore, in this case, if your turn is smooth high-speed, then you just tilt the steering wheel a little and thus move, for example, in a left turn.
If we talk about technology, then it is extremely simple, the main thing is that you push the steering wheel. If this is a left turn, then the working main hand is right. If you are moving in the right turn, then the working arm is left. Those. you’re pushing the steering wheel away from you.
In general, in this case it is a mistake to turn left with your left hand. Turn left right.
The next category of turns is average turns, where we need to turn the steering wheel, say, by three quarters of the steering wheel turn. There are a lot of such turns, and if you make such a turn approach without taking your hands off, then this is extremely inconvenient and from the outside looks, in general, strange.
Therefore, this technique is performed as follows. You lower your right hand at 6 o’clock on the steering wheel, there are special notches for the thumb, and only with your right hand from the lower position make a left turn. Thus, you turned the steering wheel at a fairly large angle. There are a lot of such turns in Moscow.
You don’t have to turn it at such a large angle, you can turn it to a smaller one, or maybe even a bigger one if you don’t fit into the turn. There are a lot of options and this technique can be called universal.
You can do the same for right turns, for this you use your left hand, which you also lower down to the "6 o’clock" area and simply push the steering wheel with it. The right hand does practically nothing and only passes the steering wheel through itself.
The steering wheel must be returned with the hand you turned. In no case should you let go of the steering wheel. Releasing the rudder at the exit of the turn, when the rudder itself begins to spin sharply, is, in general, a rather gross mistake.
Therefore, even if you pass the steering wheel through your hands - this is not entirely correct. Those. the more you turn into the turn, the more you turn out of the turn.
And the last taxiing technique is the coolest turns, for example, turning the car to the left in the opposite direction or, for example, leaving and entering the yard. The reception is called "Intercepts" and the steering wheel is often rotated to the maximum possible angle, i.e. all the way.
Here everything is done as follows. After about two hand movements, we turned the steering wheel all the way, and back again, two movements, and you are in the upright position of the hands on the steering wheel.
If someone has a feeling that sometimes the steering wheel is not straight and does not know where directly, then everything is very simple - you need to turn the steering wheel all the way, count back about one and a half turns and then you will find yourself in a straight position. Because in an average car from straight wheels to the stop of the steering wheel about a half turn. This car is slightly smaller, but it looks like a half.
You can also try turning the steering wheel to the right with the same interceptions. Notice that the hands touch exactly the “9-3” position on the steering wheel. Here are the same “9 o’clock”, here are the same “3 o’clock”. When I straighten the steering wheel, the wheels are straight and my hands are in the "9-3" position, I can easily accelerate and drive around or go around any pits there, because my hands are in this position.
In general, it is considered actually a mistake to hold hands, for example, downstairs or to go with your hand to "12".
Very often you can meet the position of the hands “10-2”, which was correct, but now cars and steering wheels are arranged so that “10-2" is not always inconvenient.
Again, it all depends on the car, if you are moving on the Zhiguli of some 70th year of production or on the Moskvich of the 65th, then there, in general, this is normal.
If your car is modern, then I say it again, you can look at your steering wheel and you will see a reminder on it that you need to hold onto it in the “9-3” position.
Answer Andrei Lunin, the leading instructor of the autodrome training club "Extreme Drive":
Hand position on the steering wheel. Naturally, with two hands we should hold the steering wheel at points 10 and 2 on the dial of the watch, or 9 and 3, as an option.
Be sure with two hands, be sure to close the grip when the thumbs close, clasp the rim of the steering wheel.
Two-handed landing is a pose of readiness for a normal driver. If we hold the steering wheel with both hands at points 10 and 2 and work correctly with the steering wheel, then we have the steering technology installed, we have a high taxiing speed.
You must have muscle memory. We should be able, without looking at the steering wheel, if necessary, to return to a straight position corresponding to the straight position of the front wheels.
Answer Kirill Papkova, BMW Driving School Instructor:
The steering wheel is a round thing, but it’s good not to perceive it like that. These little things on the steering wheel, also such an erroneous illusion of steering wheel grip points.
There are many different kinds of grip techniques, as previously taught to hold the steering wheel. Now, in view of the fact that all cars are equipped mainly with some kind of power amplifiers, for example electric, hydraulic steering, no difference, we can turn the steering wheel with a finger.
We do not have to exert any excessive efforts to turn the steering wheel. Therefore, we can take the steering wheel wide, with our arms symmetrically positioned, and from here we can turn the steering wheel anywhere, easily and naturally.
Why was the grip, the so-called 10-2, once invented, because on the Volga GAZ-24, for example, you won’t turn the steering wheel from position 9-3 at all, you don’t have enough strength. And from position 10-2, in principle, applying effort to almost the entire body, the steering wheel can be turned.
Accordingly, in the presence of a power steering for all cars now, we can not particularly bother. The steering wheel rotates smoothly and evenly everywhere practically, therefore we can steer from this wide grip, the so-called 9-3 or "at fifteen to three." Again, if you take the steering wheel as a watch dial.
What is the advantage. Firstly, if there are buttons on the steering wheel, it is very convenient to press them without taking your hands off the steering wheel. If the hands are at 10-2, then we will have to change the volume of the radio by shifting the arm somewhere, this takes extra time, extra power, even, however.
The second advantage, turn signals, janitors, too, is all here, we do not need to move the arm anywhere. By the way, the convex things on the steering wheel - this is, to keep it, the emphasis of the thumb. Those. all of a sudden, for some reason I’m steering with one hand so that my steering wheel simply doesn’t slip out of my hand.
From this grab 9-3 in any direction, I can turn the steering wheel as much as possible, i.e. almost to? steering wheel rotation, even with arms crossed.
If I have a turn that requires a geometric rotation of the steering wheel, I'd rather turn it without taking my hands off the steering wheel than by doing small interceptions, trying to catch the steering wheel every time.
If I turn with one hand, this is also not very good, because: I have to pull the steering wheel down, I lose the feedback on the steering wheel, it hangs on my thumb somewhere below, I don’t feel what is happening with the front wheels .
If I turn with two hands, I, firstly, pushing my hand through the upper sector, feel everything that happens under the wheels, and secondly, I insure myself with my free lower hand, if I suddenly need a second turn - it will be ready.
So I can turn endlessly if I find an infinite number of turns. This so-called continuous taxiing method provides you with the opportunity to drive any turn at a speed of more than 40 km / h. In the sense of those turns that are designed to cover more than 40 km / h. Another taxiing method there is not even safe to carry out.
In general, why it is wrong to touch the steering wheel - each time we lose its zero point, the direct position of the wheels. Plus, the steering wheel is almost everywhere the same in texture, in order to understand where it is directly and where you do not need to look at it directly, as soon as I looked at the steering wheel, I stopped looking at the road and flew off somewhere.
With my thumbs on my knitting needles in special recesses, I feel the wheels are in a straight position, the steering wheel is in a neutral position.
Based on this, you can find another second taxiing method, when you need to steer more - the interception method. Now, on average, for each car, the steering wheel turns one and a half turns in each direction. With one interception of the steering wheel, I closed the steering range to the right.
About what I said that the steering wheel is kind of round, now I’ll destroy this illusion - it is a rectangular helm. You have a sector of nine, a sector of three, these hands ideally should work in these sectors. So I always know where my wheels are right and it will be as fast as possible.
If I use another cat-catcher, I call it: one, two, three, four, five, six and vice versa - yes, I have already left the road a long time ago.
Why deep turns are used to park near the house. Agree that in order to park near the house, we do this: carelessly hold the steering wheel with one hand, and the phone in the other.
Of course, it is not critical if near the house I will steer with my palm, and not with the right interception. But on the other hand, just as my hands are used to working on a big turn of the steering wheel, so they will work at any speed.
If suddenly I have a skid and there is a need to turn the steering wheel from lock to lock at high speed, I will not help myself with this, most likely I will fly out of the road as quickly as possible.
Now, if I force myself to work every day near the house by interception without paying any attention to it - and after three months I will not pay attention to it, because for three months I’ve steered so much that I’ll forget that there are some other tricks and a method palm-type taxiing - then at high speed I will skid correctly and the most important of the skid will put the wheels directly as efficiently and quickly as possible, and then I won’t look somewhere later, which will lead to the following drifts, rotations and loss of trajectory.
To stabilize the car, it’s better all the same with two hands. If we are talking about deep steering. You can steer the so-called roll with one hand. This is a plus that the hand always returns to the same place. But if at some point it slips somewhere, it will not come back, it’s bad. If I have to do any more taxiing methods, I’ll just get lost. And any slightest pause to find the steering wheel, it is critical.
You can steer with one hand to change direction. If the turn is steeper than 180 degrees, but less than the interception, it happens that it seems to be so small, then you start to steer up to three quarters of the taxi, and this seems to be enough, there is no need to twist. Using interception is not very rational then it turns out, an extra movement. Before capturing from the lower sector at 6 o'clock he turned with one hand pushing and that's it.
Again, the method is ideal for crossing intersections, but if I steer like that and then it turns out to be not enough, it will be necessary to intervene with some other combined taxiing method and then it will be very difficult to return the steering wheel back.
The most common mistake in terms of taxiing and everything else is to grab onto the steering wheel and try to do something abruptly. As soon as we put effort into it, as soon as it becomes our fulcrum, it ceases to be a governing body.
So, I steered, my joint got jammed and I can’t steer further, if I relax my hands, everything will turn on further freely.
The same with interception, you can’t strain your hands, I have elbows below, they work as if they were hinged, I twist it with my little fingers there.
A sharp maneuver: if this is a detour, then interceptions are still not required. It is unlikely that you will ever have a detour in your life will require such interceptions of the steering wheel. There taxiing is fast, without taking your hands off the steering wheel, of course, your thumbs should be inside.
If we are talking about interception in the event of a skid, remove your fingers from the steering wheel in advance so as not to break them. On the other hand, the beginning of the big turn should be with the thumbs inside, when you grab, the thumb should also be inside.
If we put our fingers on the big seals, then the chances of breaking the thumb are even greater, firstly. Secondly, tactilely it is less clear that this is the neutral position of the steering wheel.
Interesting? We invite you to work out the theory for 6 hours
What is the main governing body of the car? No matter how many answers, the only answer is the steering wheel. Turning the steering wheel a certain degree, we thereby change the angle of rotation of the front (guide) wheels, and the car moves in the right direction, i.e. where its front wheels are directed.
As we have already said, when driving, the steering wheel should be held with both hands in position 10-2. Exactly so, and precisely with two hands, because for confident driving, you can quickly rotate the steering wheel with only two hands. Moreover, turning the steering wheel with one hand, in some situations you just can not cope with the control - the car gets out of control and the consequences can be unhappy.
Moreover, turning the steering wheel with one hand, it is not always immediately possible to determine by what degree the front wheels of the car are turned, more precisely, in what position they are currently at. And to know this is important, because, as mentioned above, where the front wheels are directed, the car goes there. To remove the hand from the steering wheel while driving should only be for shifting gears, after which the hand must be returned to the steering wheel.
Taxiing without tearing off the hands.
This is the usual way to rotate the steering wheel, when you need to slightly change the direction of movement of the car with the subsequent return to "straight":
- when adjusting rectilinear motion
- when smoothly avoiding obstacles
- when leaving the sidewalk
- when changing to an adjacent lane
- before stopping
Taxiing interception.
When you need to turn the steering wheel more than 90 degrees, you still have to take your hands off the steering wheel. Consider how to do it right.
Conventionally, the steering wheel can be divided into sectors according to the dial of the watch. The upper sector is 10-2, here we hold the steering wheel. The sector for working with the left hand is 10-4, for the right hand - 8-2. The lower sector is 8-4 non-working, hands should not be there. In this sector, you cannot hold the steering wheel with any grip. Below we will look at how to pass this zone.
When turning the steering wheel to the left, the right hand does the main work, the left hand helps to turn the steering wheel without stopping, and when turning to the right, respectively, the left hand is the main, the right hand is the auxiliary.
We begin the rotation based on a rectilinear movement, the hands are in position 10-2.
- Gently turn the steering wheel with both hands to the right to position 12-4, as in the figure. At that moment, when the right hand reaches point 4, the elbow is about to rest against the body, which means that the right hand will not be able to work further.
- We continue to rotate the steering wheel with the left hand to position 4 without stopping, at the same time move the right hand up to position 12 of the steering wheel and grab it at this point. Now the wheel is rotated by the right hand.
- We rotate the wheel without stopping with the right hand to point 4, now the left hand is already moving to position 12.
Similarly, the steering wheel rotates to the left. Only the hands now change places - the right hand leads, and the left helps. If the interception in sectors 8-12 and 12-4, as we have considered, seems large, then you can reduce the interception zone (the distance between the hands at the moment the steering wheel is gripped) to one or two fists, but the interception technique cannot be changed. In addition, all these movements are quite natural for human hands and it’s not difficult to get used to them.
Preliminary capture.
Often there is a need to turn the steering wheel at a certain average angle, when rotation without interception will be small, and with interception - a lot. In such cases, it is better to use pre-grab, see the figure. This option allows you to turn the steering wheel without interception at a larger angle.
It is performed as follows:
- From position 10-2, we transfer the right hand to the left hand by sliding along the rim and grab the steering wheel in position 11, then with the right hand we turn the steering wheel to the right, leaving the left hand in place.
- When the right hand reaches point 2, squeeze the left hand and continue to rotate the steering wheel with both hands at the angle that is required.
One-handed steering wheel rotation.
One-handed steering is used in situations where you need to steer and shift gears at the same time. One hand will have to steer when reversing, when the driver sits in a half-turn and looks into the rear window, turning his head back, while his right hand most often lies on the back of the passenger seat, and the left, respectively, on the steering wheel. In this situation, the actions will be in the following order.
- The starting position of the left hand is point 10 or 12 on the steering wheel. The peculiarity is that during rotation, the hand will always be at the starting point relative to the steering wheel. We begin to turn the steering wheel to the right.
- When the hand reaches approximately point 4, we straighten the fingers, while increasing the pressure of the palm on the steering wheel. We continue to rotate the steering wheel and simultaneously turn the brush counterclockwise. As soon as the brush passes point 8, you can hug the steering wheel with your fingers and continue the rotation.
We continue to rotate the steering wheel to the angle that we need, because we look in the rear window and feel the trajectory of movement. That's all, we turned right in reverse. To turn left, you just need to change your hand and turn the steering wheel to the left. And for a better view when moving back, you can stick your head out the driver's door window.
Typical driver errors when taxiing.
The first and most common mistake is a wrong grip on the steering wheel, see picture. In such positions, it is difficult to hold the steering wheel when it is pulled out of the hands and, as a result, the driver loses control. When turning at a large angle without “tearing off” the hands from the steering wheel, a crosshair is obtained. Such a rotation of the steering wheel itself is not correct, and fixing the hands in a cross position is a gross mistake. Turning the steering wheel with the palm of your hand - a common way of taxiing on cars with power steering - is also a blunder. In this case, the contact with the steering wheel is weak, therefore, steering control is lost. After passing the turn, sometimes there is a desire to relax the hands and "let go" the steering wheel. The wheels themselves will become straight. You can’t do this either - control over the position of the steered wheels will be lost.
We examined how to rotate the steering wheel of a car and went to the next, third part, where we learn how to do it right.
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