What’s the best way to grip your steering wheel?

There are many ways to grip your vehicle’s steering wheel, but there are right-er ways to do it. If you’ve attended any driving course or school, you might have been instructed to hold the wheel in a certain way. Basic driving courses in the Philippines don’t really stress the importance of steering wheel grip, while motorsports courses and advanced driving lessons will. 

It’s important to remember that the steering wheel is your main contact point with the car, apart from your seat, brake, and accelerator among other things. The steering wheel will communicate what the car is doing. Gripping the steering wheel right is also a part of forming good driving habits, however, which grip is the “right” one? Is it ten and two? Is it nine and three? Is it eight and four? Let’s go over the pros and cons of each grip and give you our verdict as to which is the best. 

Treat your steering wheel like an analog clock. Twelve o’clock is the top and center position on your steering wheel, and we assume that you know what a clock looks like. Nine and three, ten and two correspond to your hands’ positions on the wheel just like the hour hand on an analog clock. 

There are some grips out there that we cannot recommend. The 12 o'clock grip is definitely not recommended and the same may be said for the six o'clock grip, though it's not as bad as the former. Just remember that proper grips require two hands on the wheel, adequate reach to all the driving controls, and also your wiper and indicator stalks. 

There are a lot of modern cars, especially if they are of the sportier variety, which will package a nice and ergonomic steering wheel in the interior. Whether it’s the Honda Civic or even a sportscar like the Subaru BRZ, you can expect the brand to put in a steering wheel that allows for a comfortable grip at ten and two.

Some schools of thought would still tell you to put your hands at ten and two to get more leverage on the steering wheel. While you can flick the wheel left or right pretty quickly, the problem becomes apparent if you cannot reach the top sections of the wheel. It’s important that your elbows are bent when you are reaching for the wheel as turning the wheel while maintaining your grip may cross your arms when turning, which is not good if you want total control. Fewer muscles are engaged when you grip ten and two. This grip also puts your hands further away from the paddle shifters, the light stalk, and the wiper stalk. You'd have to move your hand down from ten and two in order to engage these controls properly in most cases. 

Other than that, the position will put your arms in the way of the airbag. It’s a bad place to be in just in case you get into an accident and the bags deploy. According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) in the United States, injuries may occur if the airbag deploys and your arms are locked in the ten and two grips. 

Perhaps one of the more common grip techniques out there. For most road drivers, nine and three will be one of the first grips that they engage in, and for good reason. Most steering wheels, even that of common cars, or even of those with sporting chops, will have a steering wheel that will accommodate nine and three grips with little to no issue. Most car steering wheels are meant to be gripped this way anyway, finding the right spot for your grip is intuitive. 

Driving schools have also come to promote this grip more, as it is less likely that your arms will cross when you turn the wheel, and it also allows for a nice bend in your arms, given a proper driving position. Nine and three gives the driver ample leverage when turning the wheel, and enough fine control for precise inputs. You may also find that the light and wiper stalks are within reach, as will the paddle shifters if your car comes with a pair. This position also allows for better airbag clearance in the event of a crash. The airbags will be mostly out of the way should they deploy in the event of a frontal or rear-end collision. 

Also in the world of motorsports, the nine and three grips will promote this grip as the best since it allows for a big range of motion and also flexibility while turning the wheel left or right. It also allows more muscles in your arms to be engaged which is good for more precise control over a car’s steering. 

If you drive a bigger car, chances are you may have a steering wheel that has cutouts that tell you to grip the steering wheel a little lower. This is common among the larger SUVs, pickup trucks, and vans because more often than not the steering feel will be heavier compared to common sedans and crossovers. Also, any grip lower than the nine and three grips and between six o'clock can be classified under this. 

The eight and four grip may not seem optimal, but for many drivers who may have difficulty turning the wheel, using this grip technique will allow you to push the steering wheel in the direction that you want to go. As such, it may be optimal for heavier cars or cars with heavy steering. However, this grip does result in a sub-optimal level of control, which means that finer inputs might be more difficult when engaging in this type of grip, especially for cars with sensitive steering. On top of the leverage that this grip gives you to turn the wheel, it does put your hands further away from the light and wiper stalks and your paddle shifters as well, so that's another thing to consider. 

On the note of clearing the airbag, eight and four will almost totally clear the airbag should you get into a crash, allowing for the bag’s deployment without interference or risk of further injury. 

Let’s face it, not all driving schools or mentors will have a one-size-fits-all approach for every driver, every car, and every scenario. It’s encouraged that you vary your grip depending on your current needs, but is there one grip that is best in almost every situation? 

Yes there is, and that is nine and three. For most of the time anyway, nine and three will offer you the most amount of control, throw, and fine input potential, as well as a good compromise if an accident were to happen. The grip is also a standard that is taught throughout motorsports as a beginning grip. 

However, do note that you are not forced to engage in just one type of grip. As stated, eight and four is alright when you want to commit to a big and strong input on the steering wheel. Either that or you have a heavy car that’s more comfortable to turn while pushing, a motion that the eight and four grip is good for. 

So the best grip is nine and three, and sometimes you can do your eight and four, but rarely should you go for ten and two—so always, sometimes, never in that order. 

While we stand by nine and three grips for most driving scenarios, it won’t matter if you are not properly positioned to drive in your seat. When you’re finding your optimal driving position, make sure that you have a bend in your knees, and also a bend in your elbows when holding the steering wheel. 

If you find it difficult to grip the steering wheel in the nine and three positions, consider adjusting your seat or your wheel’s reach (if it has a telescoping feature) and also consider the height of the driver’s seat. 

Also, you can vary your grip, however, it’s good to always go back to your home position of nine and three.