Is it because we associate the Pull-Push style of steering with the process of learning to drive that we immediately abandon it after passing the driving test? Why does that happen? Whatever the reason it seems that nearly every one will readily drop the so called approved steering method very shortly after ripping off the L-plates, and will very soon after be crossing their arms, steering one-handed, and indeed since mobile phones came into being, be steering with their knees!  What is it that makes us think that we can do better?

One argument I have heard, and this was put across quite enthusiatically, is that if the approved style was any good, people would continue to use it, and as driver’s abandon this so called orthadox style of steering so readily then it obviously isn’t the best method to use.  I personally don’t go with that one, as there are many required disciplines associated with all manner of activities that people will involve themselves with, activities that require approved methods and procedures to be followed, that have been put forward as best practise on the grounds of preserving safety and effectiveness.  Yet in every such pursuit rules will always be broken by those who think they know better, can’t be bothered to follow them or have no sense of discipline. It is a fact of life that when rules are put in place, human beings will always break and bend them, as it is a basic human response that is activated when people are asked to operate within boundaries.  It has always happened and it always will, and bucking against the approved method of steering a car, to my mind, is just another example of declining human attitudes. Who drives according to the Highway after passing the driving test, for example? That will be the last time most will ever bother to look at a copy, and that could have been 50-years ago for many.

Human beings are naturally idle creatures and will settle for any technique where the advantages are promoted on the grounds of reduced effort, rather than for the complete effectiveness that can only be realised through applying greater effort. You only have to sit and observe drivers in car parks to see that one happening, as nearly all drivers will insist on trying to get their vehicle into a parking bay nose first instead of the far more effective way of reversing in.  If you were to ask any individual why they did it in this way you would most likely be told it was the easiest method of doing it.  The best way will not always be the easiest, and that rings true in a number of different activities. Yes, human beings are idle, and it seems more and more the case these days that people disguard good pactise just because they can't be bothered to keep it up.

Another explanation as to why the Pull-Push method is abandoned is that we live in a very image-obsessed world these days and it is not seen as being cool to handle the steering wheel in the orthodox manner. The stars of film and television have partly put pay to that, as Brad Pitt or Tom Cruise would never have any credibility if they were to appear on screen shuffling the wheel of a car like newly trained driver.  It is perhaps these images that seem to have so much influence over the way we behave, and driving a car is just one of those behaviours. Certainly cars themselves have become very image orientated in what they offer the buying customer.  Steering with the Pull-Push method is certainly not seen to be cool, and as such, people will become self-conscious about using it.

Driving cars has always had a certain roughy-toughy kind of image attached to it, and it seems that if we develop a slightly rebellious attitude towards all of what should be done on the road it somehow makes us feel proud of ourselves. It is that misguided pride in doing what is normally frowned upon, and being able to get away with it, that helps to justify what we do; and we will often dismiss our actions as being harmless, even though whatever it is may be quite dangerous in reality. We are always in control, or so we think.  This is where the perceived ability bit comes in, which as the rest of us know, is a level of ability to drive that is positioned considerably higher up the personal performance ladder than where it belongs when viewed from a position of reality.

It was once said to me that the most accomplished drivers are those who will always accept, no matter how good they are, or to what level they climb to, there is always more that can be learned.  Whilst I do not put myself forward as being the best in terms of my ability, I do believe that no one person knows everything.  To that end, when examining suggested alternatives in technique, I do retain an open mind, I am willing to learn and I accept there may be a better way of doing things.

When investigating any particular topic, and in order to do that effectively, it is necessary to look at all aspects and options, and particularly the background information so as to gain a more complete understanding of the subject matter as a whole.  With that in mind, let us look at where the Pull-Push style of steering originated from in the first place. As it is obviously a disciplined procedure the best starting point will be to look at driver training, because that will undoubtebly be where it has its roots.

The first compulsory driving test for car drivers in the UK was introduced at the beginning of June 1935, and applied to all drivers who first began driving on or after 1st April 1934. When the law was introduced, 246,000 people applied, from which the resulting pass rate was 63%.  Incidentally, France was the first country to introduce a driving test, this being in 1893, well ahead of us.

The introduction of the legal requirement to take a driving test spawned the first appearance of commercial learner driving schools, but instructors were initially unregulated. I am of the opinion the Pull-Push method was introduced at about the same time, but I am as yet unable to find any record of who put it forward as the approved steering method, nor can I verify exactly when this took place.  It may have been that the London Safety First Council, as set up by the Government in 1916, was responsible as it introduced a range of road safety initiatives in an effort to reduce the already poor road accident fatality rate. In 1941 this organisation changed its name to RoSPA and could well have been the source of Pull-Push - or was RoSPA merely adopting an existing technique as used by someone else?

Back in the 1930's there were a great number of road accidents that involved police vehicles, and so that the police driver could begin to set a high example on the road, and to combat the number of road collisions involving police drivers, the Metropolitan Police Driving School was opened at Hendon in 1934, and as you can see, preceeds the introduction of the civillian driving test. A great deal of research went into finding what would become an approved system of driving to be taught during police driving courses, and it is here that the Push-Pull method was adopted, and which is still promoted as the approved mainstream steering style for police driver training today.

It would make sense if the Pull-Push steering was brought in when the formal driving training was developed and introduced, as there would need to be a recognised way in which to operate the vehicle controls for driver competency testing.  After all, you can’t test a method of doing something if there is no recognised method attached to doing it.

Apart from being procedural, the likely mechanical reason for the Pull-Push steering style may well have been the fact that in those bygone days of driving, cars were so heavy and had such huge steering wheels.  To steer a car effectively the Pull-Push method would have no doubt become a necessity, as there was no power assisted steering and so a high level of arm leverage would be required. That being the case there could be a reasoned argument to say the style is indeed outdated.

It is astounding how some techniques associated with driving, even though vehicle technology has moved on in leaps and bounds, has remained stuck in a time warp. Learner driving schools are only just breaking the mould on sequential gear changing, and that was only initially brought into use because the vehicles of the day had such poor brakes that the driver needed to change through every single ratio going down the gearbox to help slow things down.  Look at braking systems now, they are light-years ahead of back then, but how long is it taking to get rid of that old method of assisting the brakes by using gears?  There is a paradox in that whilst we seem to be shrugging off that ancient method, carmakers are introducing paddle operated gear changers, which almost demands that we go right back to where we were again!

Getting back to steering, if you speak to the Driving Standards Agency (DSA), which is the body that polices the driver training industry, and you ask them why the Pull-Push style is still promoted you will find they can offer no good reason other than it is the approved style and it is the only steering method they recognise.  This suggests that the only reason it still exists today is because those who promote it will continue to do so, and on the grounds that what has always been done will always be done, because it has always been done in that way. As far as they are concerned, there seems to be no better reason than that. They can't even say for sure where it came from.

Sometimes the argument put forward against the Pull-Push method is that it is awkward, uncomfortable and difficult to use.  I would argue back as in many of those cases the Pull-Push steering method was not even taught correctly to begin with, as most novice drivers end up taking bites of the wheel that are far too small. That is awkward and uncomfortable.  Yes, the teachings say that neither hand should pass 6 or 12 o’clock, but you find many inexperienced drivers having their invisible boundary line on the wheel set between 8 and 10 on the one side, and 2 and 4 on the other. Trying to steer within such tight parameters will be a nightmare and I can quite forgive anyone for ditching the method as soon as they can if that is how it has been presented to them. When we show people the real way to do it, often they are amazed to find it is a different style to that taught to them at learner level. Not only that we very seldom find that drivers know how to set their seat position, as a badly chosen driving position will not help the delivery of an effective steering technique.

The evidence so far suggests that the Pull-Push method of steering dates back to the 1930’s, was introduced as an effective method of steering heavy vehicles with big non-power assisted steering wheels, became the recognised method associated with effective car control for driver training and testing purposes and is still promoted today on the grounds that it is the way in which steering should be taught. So, the question is, is it still effective.

There are many different steering styles that motorists will naturally gravitate to, and whilst it is easy to poor scorn on anything other than what is seen to be purely the right way of doing things, it may be that for certain situations at least, some of those styles will contain elements that are worthy of some consideration.  So as to take this further, let’s look at some of the ways in which people steer to see if there is any merit in the methods used.




This is where the driver will place both hands close together at the twelve o’clock position on the wheel rim, and without moving them from that one spot on the wheel, will swing the hands left or right in response to the direction the car is required to move.

When evaluating this method it becomes immediately obvious that as soon as the wheel is turned the driver’s body is placed completely off-balance.  With such an awkwardly positioned centre of gravity this method makes it difficult to apply steering smoothly and progressively. Also, if the road follows a sharp deviation, the hands will become cranked all the way around to 5 or 7 o’clock on the wheel from where they will not be able to physically travel any further.

To apply more steering in this case the driver will have to let go of the wheel rim with at least one hand and move it to a different part of the wheel so as to retain control.  When you consider that even when driving at 30mph a vehicle is covering the ground at a rate of 44-feet per second, and so it is likely that by the time the hands get sorted out it may all be done too late.




Cross-handed steering, or knitting, as we call it, is where you turn the wheel hand-over-hand, and is probably the method most will adopt after discarding the L-plates.

Whilst you could argue there is nothing technically wrong with this style, and maybe there isn't if used only when manoeuvring at slow speeds, there are better ways of managing the vehicle, as will be pointed out later on this page.  If you have ever tried to apply steering very quickly you will find that hand over hand actually makes hard work of something that could be done so much more easily through employing a better method.

Out on the road this style again puts the body off-balance within the driving seat, and hinders the ability to apply steering smoothly and progressively, as well as speedily. Some use this with a reversed handgrip position, that is to say with the palm of the hand inside the wheel rim with fingers gripping around the back – fingernails towards the driver. This is very awkward and has very limited control potential.  A lot of female drivers do it this way for some reason, which is just an observation, and may be to do with stature perhaps? You can see how a driver will compensate for the imbalance of the upper body this produces as they will lean into the bends from within their seat as if riding a motorcycle.

Whilst this system may be a firm favourite among those who love to kick against tradition, it is perhaps because it is seen in many circles as being the bad-boy way of doing things that will make it so attractive? It is actually a method that doesn't work that well, and certainly there are better methods that can be used - and that is apart from Pull-Push.




This actually carries some credibility, but has a specialist application.

During pursuit management training, British police officers carry out an exercise in which they are required to drive through a slalom course of traffic cones as quickly as possible, both in a forward direction and again in reverse. The steering method that is taught here is called Fixed Arm Steering, or Fixed Grip, and the way it is done is to grip the wheel at the 3 and 9 o’clock positions on the rim and keep the hands locked to that position whilst turning the wheel left and right in accordance with the spacing of the cones. One of the reasons this method is used is that when you make changes in direction at such a high frequency, the power steering pump can’t actually keep up with the unnatural demands being placed upon it.  The consequence is that after about three or four rapid direction changes, any power assistance is lost and the steering mechanism suddenly becomes a dead weight.  When this happens it will require a considerable degree of physical effort to keep the direction changes going.

By placing the hands in the fixed grip position, as described for this exercise, you remain well balanced in the driving seat, you can input the steering progressively and with sensitivity, as well as exerting maximum leverage on the wheel – especially when the steering assistance becomes lost. Yes, as with the double-handed swing method, you can arrive at the situation where you have your hands and arms at the full extent of their range of travel, and therefore will be unable to apply more steering input readily, but here you are having to deal with another and more immediate situation. It’s a compromise used for a particular application and has limited usefulness for normal road driving.




This one can actually have some credible consideration, but having said that, no doubt any purists reading this page will be taking a sharp intake of breath and sucking at their teeth in a display of disapproval.  However, let us look at this method to see if there is any value in it.

One hand on the wheel, elbow resting on the door-top, is not good, as not only is this a lazy posture, but it will encourage the driver to be lazy in other areas too.  This is not what we want to promote and would join all the rest of you in saying that is not a good way to drive.  However, it is possible to steer one handed and in a way that will allow a driver to exercise a high level of control over the vehicle, but this will only be in certain selected situations, and when the method is carried out in a disciplined manner.

We would never, for example, promote one-handed steering for driving at any speed that was over and above that used for manoeuvring, or when making a series of substantially tight turns in quick succession, such as in busy city streets.  At low speeds it does work, but the second hand needs to be involved also, and needs to be positioned in a state of readiness to assist.

If you are beginning to get hot under the collar as you read this part, just consider what happens if you drive on a skidpan?  If you haven’t had that experience then I can categorically tell you that if you try to use the Pull-Push method in that environment you will not be capable of maintaining control of the car, because the vehicle will simply get away from you.  The reason for this is that the Pull-Push method will not allow you the ability to apply the amount of steering input required quickly enough to counter the behaviour of the car to keep it under control.  However, if you steer one-handed by starting off with one hand at the top of the wheel and using it to turn both ways, then you will fair much better.

On a skidpan you need instant action in reaction to the behaviour of the car, and this one-handed steering method gives that to you, but it is only effective today because of the advent of power steering, more highly geared steering racks and smaller steering wheels of the modern car.  Using this method is what I would refer to as embracing evolution, as it catches up with the technology of the modern steering systems.  The method gives you a high level of control, but you have to do it properly.  I am not saying that the second hand is idle, because you do need to use it, or at least have it ready for use.  Whilst one hand and arm are actually moving the steering wheel, the other needs to be in contact with the wheel rim, allowing it to run through a loose grip.  What the second hand is doing here is waiting to apply maximum grip as a brake on the wheel, or to use as a backup to the first hand, should the situation demand greater steering force.  By employing this method you are always in a state of instant readiness should circumstances require a more serious course of action.

If you are in a situation where you are having to make a lot if steering movements in both directions, the hand that starts off doing the main work can be changed for the other, perhaps according to the direction in which you are steering at the time, and to give a more balanced overall delivery. By use of this method you are using the most powerful muscles in your upper body to assist your working arm, and utilising gravity as a form of power assistance.

It does need to be stressed that when travelling at 30, 40, 50, 60 70+ mph this one-handed method is not good, because at the higher speeds you actually need better body balance and more evenly applied leverage to gain the required degree of finesse in control that a full-on two handed grip will provide.




This is the method we promote at Ride Drive, and is a combination of the Pull-Push method and the Fixed Grip steering method.  It works very well, particularly when driving quickly, which is where it really comes into its own.

We start with the hands gripping the wheel in the traditional 10-2 position and with the thumbs pointing towards one another along the face of the rim. This should be a relaxed grip, but with the hands ready to tighten on the wheel if needed.

As you approach a right-hand bend, for example, the right hand needs to move towards the top of the wheel and the left towards the bottom. As the car enters the bend, begin to apply steering in a fixed grip style, nice and progressively, until you have applied the amount of input required to safely negotiate the bend. If you judge it correctly, and this all ties in with your bend analysis skills, you will find that when you are at the tightest part of the curve, your hands at that point will have arrived at the 10-2 position, even though you are cornering.  This gives you near-perfect body balance within the car, maximum leverage on the wheel, and with plenty of arm travel in either direction should that become necessary to apply rapid steering adjustments.

This is back to where we started, and you will have been taught this method (hopefully) during your initial driving lessons. The way it works, just in case you have forgotten, is to begin with the hands placed in the 10-2 position on the wheel.  It is advised that you do not wrap your thumbs around the wheel rim in a fist, but place them along the front of the wheel so they are pointing towards each other so as to gain better feedback through the steering.

When there is a requirement to steer to the left, the left hand needs to move up to the a point just before 12-o’clock on the wheel, grip and pull it down close to and just before reaching 6 o’clock.  Whilst this is going on, the right hand slides down the wheel to a point close to 6 o’clock on the other side of centre, grip the wheel and push it up towards 12 o’clock.  If further input is required, the left hand should be in position close to the top of the wheel to again pull down more of the wheel rim.  The system is used in the same way, but in reverse order, when turning to the right.

Basically you are passing the wheel rim from one hand into the other, and when perfected, this can be completed in a smooth and flowing manner, even though modern cars have power assisted steering, smaller steering wheels and high-geared steering racks.  It is also true this method, providing many simultaneous large movements are not required, does offer a high level of vehicle control potential and does make for very smooth steering input.

This is the one that everyone loves to hate, everyone who wants to buck against tradition that is, but for those who have disciplined themselves to use it, and use it well, it does do the job.




Having looked at the known steering styles, and driver steering habits, when deliberating over the effectiveness of each it needs to be remembered that so many cars fall off the road with poor steering discipline being a contributory factor. A lack of understanding of the mechanics of driving, and a lack in precision when operating the vehicle controls, will always tempt grief, especially when the pace is high and the pressure is on.

It should be remembered also that many functions involved in driving a car are closely linked. If you misjudge a bend by going into it a little too fast, you can usually get away with your error providing you have good discipline with the controls. If you have poor steering discipline you won’t make it, just the same as if you were to stamp on the brakes mid-corner, because when a vehicle is on that point between being within control of the driver and not, one inappropriately applied move will produce disastrous results.

Most modern cars have an airbag contained within the steering wheel centre, and in a collision that airbag is deployed by an explosive charge, which is also contained within the steering wheel hub. The whole thing really is an unexploded bomb, and if that airbag deploys when your arms are across the steering wheel centre, it may well break your bones. I have heard people scoff at the mention of this, but I an ex-police colleague of mine, who got one arm in the way of an airbag once, even though this happened on 1991, still has problems associated with that injury today, and probably always will. I can say all this without doubt, because I was there with him when it happened. I saw it. At least he is alive, and can thank the airbag for that much.  Having said that, you will be extremely unlikely to get an airbag deploy in a collision at slow manoeuvring speeds, or when crawling in traffic, as they are designed to only deploy when the crash energy reaches a very high level.

So, has the Pull-Push steering method passed its sell-by date?

Personally I don’t think it has.  It may be abandoned instantly by many, but I think the evidence suggest this is mainly down to attitudes of a largely undisciplined and image conscious society.  There is also the issue that a great many driver trainers don't know how to use it properly, and it therefore follows that those who become trained by these people don't get to know how to use it either. Certainly, from our experience, when going out in cars with our customers, we find that a great many have never been shown the correct way and are actually quite impressed when they are.

However, I think times have changed and there are occasions where a different approach will serve better.  We have to evolve with technology and to that end I believe that the one-handed method has a place, the Ride Drive approved alternative (Combination Steering) also has a place, but the good old Pull-Push method (used correctly) is still a worthy technique, especially for those who know how to use it well and who are able to enjoy what it offers. Basically, it is horses for courses, and providing the right horse is used to run on the most appropriate course, then where is the harm?