Why do Women sit so close to the Steering Wheel?

[FNG]

german tony said:

Which cars have steering columns that contract in an accident or has that idea been quietly forgotten?

All new cars have a collapsible column, has been the case for decades I believe.

But the collapsable section is only so long, and you can still hit it damn hard.

Seatbelt pretensioners are the best friend of our steering-wheel-cuddling friends but there still needs to be space for the airbag to deploy between wheel and chest, and in harder hits there is still some inevitable forward movement towards the wheel regardless of the pretensioner, not least due to the belt stretching.

[jellison]

I give up - i'd haul evey women off the road sitting right up against the screen and take their license off them.

[Zen.]

jellison said:

I think it is some basic insecurity thing - can't put my finger on it but god it is stupid.

A bit like men with small Penis syndrome, where they buy a bigger faster car then try and hound others off the road?

[jellison]

Zen. said:

jellison said:

I think it is some basic insecurity thing - can't put my finger on it but god it is stupid.

A bit like men with small Penis syndrome, where they buy a bigger faster car then try and hound others off the road?

I drive a Puma. How about you, you do not appear to own a car on your profile....

No ladies offering and sebsible reasoning for sitting right ontop of the steering wheel even if their legs are long enough to sit a good bit further back (i.e. not with face almost on the dash!/ airbag).

Edited by jellison on Tuesday 3rd March 14:40

[Mrs Muttleysnoop]

kambites said:

You can modify an Elise to make it more comfortable. Lots of people sell spacers to fit behind the wheel to move it closer to the driver (as you say, the ergonomics as they leave the factory are unadjustabe and pretty dire).

I've moved my steering wheel about 2 inches closer to me and it makes a world of difference - just makes reaching the indicator stalks rather tricky. Next modification is going to be lengthened, bent, indicator stalks.

If you struggle to get in and out, a snap-off steering wheel solves both problems at once as the bosses tend to be deeper and you can take the wheel off to get it out of the way when clambering in and out.

Edited by kambites on Tuesday 3rd March 08:12

Muttley is 5'2" and modified our S1 111s by putting the front mounting brackets to the back and the back mounting brackets to the front which allowed the rails to go further forward. Now we have a Elise Sportsracer and he has no problem reaching the pedals.

[Wadeski]

Conversely, there is one driving habit which instantly identifies the driver as a bellend.

Driving with the left hand at 12 O'clock, right hand on the armrest, seat reclined.....

[HRG]

flemke said:

Zod said:

flemke said:

jellison said:

Nothing to do with height you see average height or tall women get out most of the time with the wheel MUCH closer than you would for a man of similar height.

It amazes me how you turn the wheel with the arms so bent.

I think they think they are closer therefor the THEY MUST be More in control.

Did not think on the airbag thing.

Maybe it is driver instructor lead?

It depends on what you mean by "so close".
Most drivers sit too far away for optimal efficiency and control, as it happens.

most male drivers, so many of whom seem to believe that straight arms allow best control of the wheel.

Stirling Moss always drove with straight arms. Since his retirement, he admitted that he had affected this style because, when he was starting to race, his favourite driver drove that way, and thus he copied it. He added that, after he had become accustomed to straight arms, he could never get out of the habit - even though he recognised that it was inferior.
Sometimes the cockpit of a single-seater will be so narrow that you can only steer with straight arms. In a sports or touring car, however, well-bent arms are the way to go.

I thought it was supposed to be the inside of the wrist to the top of the steering wheel with a straight arm in a road car?

[Mrs Muttleysnoop]

When I did my driver training at Lotus in 2000 I was taught wrists on the steering wheel at quarter to three.

[cslgirl]

The csl's seats don't recline at all (unless you have a handy spanner) so it all depends on how long your legs are as to how close you sit to the steering wheel which in my case, isn't that far away being 5ft 2 and a bit.

[anonymous-user]

In my Supra (auto) I had the seat right back, so much so that my wrists would not reach the top of the steering wheel without leaning forward. I never had any leverage problems at all. With power steering I doubt there would be a problem anyway

The TVR I have a comfortable distance and the same with the ST. I like to keep as far away from solid objects as possible.

If I hit something I want to have some space between me and any objects in the car I may hit. I have had a car on the wrong side of the road at about 50mph come towards me once. They only just missed me & they subsequently went into a hedge!!

If I had hit them I'd have rather had 1-2 feet between my chest and the steering wheel than a couple of inches.

Barring "vertically challenged" people - when I see people so close to the wheel it just gives me the impression that the driver is insecure or not confident with their vehicle.

Edited by anonymous-user on Tuesday 3rd March 19:11

[jellison]

Exact so this sitting a sensible distance back with moderately bent arms (assuming you can operate all pedals) make perfect sense for ALL woth most cars have Power steering. Absolutesly ZERO reason why most Women need to sit right on top of the Wheel! Lokks stupid, but also a crap idea on safety grounds.

[kambites]

jellison said:

Exact so this sitting a sensible distance back with moderately bent arms (assuming you can operate all pedals) make perfect sense for ALL woth most cars have Power steering. Absolutesly ZERO reason why most Women need to sit right on top of the Wheel! Lokks stupid, but also a crap idea on safety grounds.

Indeed. And also zero reason why 80% of men seem to sit with their arms almost straight.

[staceyb]

I'm just short of 5ft so pull the seat base as far forward as possible so my feet can reach the pedals, but then I lean the seat back back so I don't feel too close.

But then again it's upto personal choice. So what if some women want to sit where they do, what difference does it make to you?

[flemke]

HRG said:

flemke said:

Zod said:

flemke said:

jellison said:

Nothing to do with height you see average height or tall women get out most of the time with the wheel MUCH closer than you would for a man of similar height.

It amazes me how you turn the wheel with the arms so bent.

I think they think they are closer therefor the THEY MUST be More in control.

Did not think on the airbag thing.

Maybe it is driver instructor lead?

It depends on what you mean by "so close".
Most drivers sit too far away for optimal efficiency and control, as it happens.

most male drivers, so many of whom seem to believe that straight arms allow best control of the wheel.

Stirling Moss always drove with straight arms. Since his retirement, he admitted that he had affected this style because, when he was starting to race, his favourite driver drove that way, and thus he copied it. He added that, after he had become accustomed to straight arms, he could never get out of the habit - even though he recognised that it was inferior.
Sometimes the cockpit of a single-seater will be so narrow that you can only steer with straight arms. In a sports or touring car, however, well-bent arms are the way to go.

I thought it was supposed to be the inside of the wrist to the top of the steering wheel with a straight arm in a road car?

You are correct.
If you do that, however, and you then bring your hands down to the proper 9:00/3:00 position, your elbows will be bent at something like 135 deg, perhaps a bit moreso.
The whole idea is that your shoulders should always be against the back of the seat, so that your body is stable. If you imagine turning the wheel 180 deg with your hands fixed to the wheel (a different subject for debate), you can see that one of your arms will be pulled away from you. You want enough bend in your arms that, even with your hands rotated 180 deg, your shoulder will still be against the seat. Hence the test of trying to put your wrist on the top of the wheel.
It would be more accurate to put your right hand at 9:00 on the wheel whilst your right shoulder is still touching the seat back, although that may be slightly extreme because, in the real world, most people do some sort of wheel-shuffling. Wrist atop the wheel seems a good compromise for road driving.

[jellison]

I bet most wimin will have there Elbows on the top of the wheel or the 10 to 2 positions!

[LukeBird]

mike325112 said:

I often wonder what would happen if they did have an accident, sitting that close the airbag would surely do more damage than it would prevent.

+1
Some people I've seen must be so close they'd decapitate themselves in a crash!

[MitchT]

Resurrecting an old thread for the purpose of asking the same question...

The OH and I are both 5'7". She has longer legs than me. If I get in the driver's seat of her car after she's been using it I feel like my legs will snap if I try to force them into the available space, so where on earth does she put hers, which are longer?