Steering wheel

It is the steering wheel in your vehicle that leads you to your destination. It is the man at the wheel who guides it and takes you to your chosen place. Without a steering wheel a vehicle will not remain on its course. All the land vehicles have steering wheels. Even ships and boats have them. Clearly a steering wheel is a prominent component of your car. Though from the outside an added product such as a body kit may be very visible, inside the car the steering wheel is the first thing you see.

Steering wheel is actually a part of the whole steering system. Steering wheel is the most visible part of the system. A driver rotates the wheel through a few degrees to give it the necessary command. A mechanical system carries the command to the wheels. Thereby he controls and influences the direction in which the wheels move. This whole exercise needs some physical effort. To minimize the effort on the part of the driver there are power steering wheels. There is a hydraulic system for these. It makes driving easier and less tiring. Now there are advanced computer controlled electronic driving systems. Irrespective of the systems in use the steering wheel remains a crucial part of it.

Safety in driving depends much on the steering system. An efficient system keeps the vehicle on the course decided by the driver and does not allow it to deviate by an inch. Any fault in the system may lead to accidents.

A driver has to constantly remain at the steering wheel. It is, therefore, necessary that he remains as comfortable as possible while manipulating the steering wheel. The distance between the driver’s seat and the floor should be so adjusted that he feels easy. He should be able to move his legs easily to operate brakes, clutches etc. on the floor. The steering wheel needs to be placed at such a height that he has a clear unhindered view of the road without straining himself. He should place his hands on two points on the wheel which are diametrically opposite in the horizontal direction. He has to guide the vehicle by pushing the wheel up by one hand and pulling it down by the other. Parallel parking would however require different adjustments. Driving will be less tiring.