The problem is I cannot keep my right arm on the steering wheel for more than a few mins otherwise its gets too tired and I am forced to drop it.

I don't have the problem when I was driving other makes (Peugeot/Citroen/Volvo). Its just seems to be with MY car (which was originally my ex-wife's car).

Any suggestions?

Subliminal supraspinatus tendinitis, rendered noticeable by the psychological effect of driving ex-wife's car?

Hello All

I have a 2012 Honda Jazz.

Great Car, but I do have one little issue with it and thats my driving position. I just cannot seem to get it right.

The problem is I cannot keep my right arm on the steering wheel for more than a few mins otherwise its gets too tired and I am forced to drop it. I don't know of its the seat or the steerling wheel. I just cannot find a comfortable position and am forced to drive with my left arm only which is unsafe.

I don't have the problem when I was driving other makes (Peugeot/Citroen/Volvo). Its just seems to be with MY car (which was originally my ex-wife's car).

Any suggestions?

For that sort of thing, the normal cause is how offset the steering wheel is compared to the seaing position. Some cars are worse than others, though the problem is *mainly* on smaller (narrower) cars where more of a compromise has to be made.

I don't recall this issue being a particular issue for the gen-2 Jazz on the review page on this site (especially the Driving and Good/Bad sub-sections or owner's reviews).

I suffered significant back problems after a year's ownership of my first car, a mid 90s Nissan Micra. Again, that car had no reports of this type anywhere. I found that the main reason why I had problems was because I had the seating position one notch too far away, meaning I was always stretching to reach the pedals and steering wheel.

The only reason why it went from ok to not was because I'd changed jobs from one travelling at 30mph tops in often heavy traffic for 8 miles (each way) to going at a more decent clip most of the time, often on winding roads and for 20 miles each way.

Unfortuantely for me, the car had no steering wheel reach adjustment (height, yes), and the seat didn't itself adjust for height (which may or may not have made a difference), just the usual distance back-forward and the angle of the seat back.

In the end, moving the seat one notch forward and slightly making it more upright made enough of a difference for my back problems to cease. Try also finding on the Interweb a guide to how to adjust your driving position to make it comfortable and ergonomic for driving.

With the distance away issue, you need to be able to fully depress the clutch (or simulate that with your left foot) with you not sliding forward; similarly with the steering wheel held (both hands) at the 12 o'clock position, you should not have to lean forward either, and when your hands are in the normal (straight ahead) driving position (say quarter to three), your arms should be bent, but not too much.

Your knees should also never touch the bottom of the steering column when driving - often that's a sign of you being too close to the steering wheel. Hopefully if your car has an adjustment for steering wheel reach, then that should help a lot.

Height adjustment of the steering wheel is more so you can see all the dash instruments; the seat height is more if you are either well above or below average height to be able to see properly forward and without 'perching' on the seat. When you depress the pedals, you should be able to do so without it pinching on the back of the knee.

Sometimes it can take a while to find a good driving position - some people seem more attuned to what works for them and can adjust it quickly, or that some people with certain physiology or susceptibility to joint problmes may find it takes longer. It's best, once you got something in theory that works that you drive with it for a good few trips first, and see how you go. If it isn't working, change one thing, and repeat.

I do somewhere have a guide to this (I last used it 15 years ago when I bought my current car), but I'll have to find it first and scan it onto my computer/upload it. Hopefully someone else either has something to hand or a website they can recommend you visit with such tips and has useful diagrams/photos to assist.

Best of luck. It took me a month on my current car to get the adjustments just right.

People come in an array of different shapes and sizes, some with short or long appendages: my daughter has short legs, which put the pedals out of reach for her in some cars.

Similarly with cars - all have adjustable front seats, and most also steering wheels. Despite that, some people find that a comfortable position cannot be found in some cars. It may be that Japanese cars are shaped for the average Japanese.

When Fiat launched the first Punto (about 1990?) the hype claimed that its seats were designed by an osteopath. I had one for a year or two; the seats were fine, as were those in all the various Pug 205s I owned. But I had to dispose of a 206 after a couple of months because it became uncomfortable to sit in after about an hour.

The only way to prevent the problem may be to have a long test drive before buying.

I imagine most cars are initially designed as LHD and later reworked more or less satisfactorily for RHD markets. It would be unusual for a Japanese car (i.e. RHD in its homeland) car, but who knows what goes on in this ever-more globalised world we live in? We are all familiar with the compromises of indicators on the "wrong" side and wipers that don't clear the screen properly (Australian and South Afrtican markets didn't seem to suffer this nonsense as I recall!), and also gloveboxes rendered useless by fuseboxes, etc. Early VW Polos couldn't accommodate a brake servo on RHD models; the list goes on.... But there's also the annoying lack of footrest for the left foot and offset pedals and steering wheels, especially on smaller cars. Years ago Vauxhall used to swap the rear wiper over for RHD to make rainy reversing easier and they even gave us twin rear foglights, while continental Opels made do with one. Standardisation and cost-cutting has inevitably taken its toll.

Time to put EU / Brexit etc. to one side and get the thread back to the original theme.

I don't think there will ever be agreement regarding which is the 'correct' side to have the indicator, we've had these discussions a good few times over the years. Here's one from 2006, largely the same issues and pleased to see my views have not changed...

www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=44927

The view that having it on the right leaves the left hand free to do the gears is less relevant now with more automatics and electric cars.