How to hold your steering wheel the right way

Over the years I’ve seen my fair share of ‘interesting’ steering techniques in the car. Everything from one-knee or one-finger steering (usually while trying to eat a burger from the drive-thru) to a white-knuckle-gripped ten-and-two position by a super vigilant (aka anxious) driver.

While the first two examples are definite no-gos, the latter is often referred to as the correct way to hold the steering wheel and has been spruiked to many of us as being best practice.

But is this actually correct? And does it really matter how we hold the steering wheel?

carsales asked expert Director of Research and Development at the Australian Driving Institute, Cameron Wearing, for his take.

The 10 and 2 rule (holding the steering wheel at the 10 o’clock and 2 o’clock positions as if the wheel was a clockface) was the go-to advice applied to most vehicles produced before the 1990s, says Wearing, because car suspension and steering systems were different.

It was said to be the safest and most reliable position because a higher grip allowed for more control.

However, the inconvenient truth is that for those of us who learned to drive in the ’90s (like me) and were given this advice, we are now middle-aged and (unlike ’90s fashion, which is back again), in 2025 this advice is well and truly outdated.

Or, as Wearing puts it, “It is patently incorrect to hold the wheel at 10 and 2.”

It’s incorrect because the steering rate, which is measured in degrees per second, is too high for a modern car but ideal for an unassisted, older car.

“At the time, this was correct because the suspension, geometry and assistance were different,” he says.

The introduction of power steering also contributed.

“Power steering varied heavily when it was introduced,” Wearing continues. “A Jag for example and most American barges had excessive assistance and would spin too easily, translating to a lack of feel, but today we recognise the importance of a measure called ‘on centre feel’. This is when the steering wheel can be moved a little bit before it impacts steering the wheels, or the slack.

“When you feel resistance, you have an intuitive feel against your hand.”

In addition to being outdated, a big issue with this position is that it is simply “dangerous”.

“The airbag system was developed in the mid to late ’90s and if you have your hands at 10 and 2, you will be more injured as a result,” Wearing says.

In fact, if your airbag deploys while your hands are in this position it can lead to severe arm injuries such as hyperextension, torn ligaments or even dismemberment (yikes!).

Like the 10 and 2 positions, there are other unsafe ways (some obvious and others not so much) to hold your steering wheel, says Wearing – “12 o’clock with one hand, 6 o’clock inside the wheel and with your knees.”

You need to put your burger down, get your hands back on the wheel and rejig your clock position to 9 o’clock and 3 o’clock.

“9 and 3 is simple physics,” Wearing says.

While there is no Australian law dictating this, Wearing says that for safety and control, it is essential.

“It matters because humans are very basic at controlling stability, balance or, if you prefer, car control ... holding 9 and 3 is balanced, the stalks are placed there for your fingers to operate, the buttons are for your thumbs,” he says.

“They didn’t develop a method requiring you to take your hands off the wheel for these actions. This is a very important and missed argument.”

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