1.4 Getting Ready to Drive: Fitness, Seating, Mirrors & Seatbelts
Key Takeaways
Don't drive when you are sick, injured, tired, upset or angry, or after alcohol or drugs that may affect your driving; your fitness to drive can change from day to day.
Sit high enough to see over the wheel and hood and to see the ground four metres ahead, with the back of your head directly in front of the middle of the headrest.
Set the inside mirror to show the centre of the rear window and each side mirror so you can just see your car's rear, then always shoulder check, because mirrors cannot cover your blind spots.
Every occupant must use their own seatbelt or child seat; drivers who don't buckle up, or who fail to buckle in passengers under 16, can be fined and get 2 demerit points.
Novice drivers must have a working seatbelt for every passenger, and a G1 driver's only front-seat passenger may be the accompanying driver.
Getting Ready to Drive: Fitness, Seating, Mirrors & Seatbelts
Quick Summary: The handbook's safe-driving chapter starts before the engine is running. Make sure you are physically, mentally and emotionally fit to drive, and that you know your vehicle's controls and driver-assistance features. Sit so you can see over the wheel and the hood, with the headrest behind the middle of your head. Keep your windows clear and adjust your mirrors to shrink your blind spots. Then check that everyone is buckled in their own seatbelt or the right child seat. Knowledge-test questions on seating, mirrors and seatbelts come straight from this material.
1. Are You Fit to Drive Today?
The handbook says your ability to drive can change from one day to the next. Illness, fatigue, prescription and over-the-counter drugs, stress and your mental or emotional state can all reduce it. If you have doubts about yourself, your vehicle or the conditions, don't drive.
- Sick or injured: Don't drive.
- Alcohol, drugs or medication that may reduce your ability: don't drive (Section 10.2 covers the zero rule for G1 and G2 drivers).
- Tired: Don't drive. Fatigue slows your thinking, makes you miss things, and can lead to the wrong decision, or no decision fast enough, in an emergency. Section 9.4 lists the warning signs of drowsiness.
- Upset or angry: Don't drive. Strong emotions reduce your ability to think and react quickly.
2. Know Your Vehicle
- Controls and gauges: Know where every control and instrument is and what it does. Check that warning lights and gauges work; a warning light that stays on after you drive away may mean a serious problem.
- Without looking: Learn to work the wipers and washers, headlights, high beams, heater and defroster without taking your eyes off the road.
- Driver-assistance technology: Many newer vehicles help with steering, braking or accelerating, for lane keeping, collision avoidance or following distance. Read the owner's manual to learn how they work and their limits. The handbook is clear that you remain responsible for all driving tasks and must be ready to take over at any time. Aids such as automatic parallel parking, lane monitoring, cruise control and back-up cameras may not be used on a road test.
3. Get Into Position
| Check | The Handbook's Standard |
|---|---|
| Seat height | High enough to see over the steering wheel and hood, and to see the ground four metres in front of the vehicle (use a firm cushion if needed) |
| Posture | Sit straight upright with elbows slightly bent |
| Distance to pedals | Place your feet flat on the floor under the brake pedal. If you can do this without stretching, you are seated properly |
| Headrest | The back of your head should be directly in front of the middle of the headrest |
| Space | Don't crowd your driving space with passengers or property |
| Hands | Picture the wheel as a clock and hold it at nine o'clock and three o'clock |
Keep a clear view: Don't put anything in your windows that blocks your view. Windows must not be coated with anything that stops you seeing out in any direction, and the windshield and front door windows must not be coated to stop people seeing in.
4. Find Your Blind Spots
Your blind spots are the areas beside and behind your vehicle, usually to the back left and back right, that your mirrors do not show. A cyclist, or even a whole vehicle, can hide there.
Adjusting your mirrors (handbook method):
- Inside mirror: the centre of the mirror shows the centre of the rear window, so you can see directly behind the car.
- Left outside mirror: lean toward the left window and set the mirror so you can just see the rear of your car.
- Right outside mirror: lean to the centre of the vehicle and set the mirror so you can again just see the rear of your car.
- Avoid overlap between what the mirrors show.
Even with perfect mirrors, turning your head for a shoulder check is the only way to be sure your blind spots are clear. Learn where your own blind spots are by having someone walk around the car while you watch the mirrors. On the road, check your mirrors about every five seconds, stay out of other drivers' blind spots by adjusting your speed, and be extra careful at dusk and dawn.
[ Blind spot ] [ Blind spot ]
(left rear) (right rear)
\ /
\ [ VEHICLE ] /
| |
Mirrors cover most of the view behind;
a SHOULDER CHECK covers the blind spots
5. Fasten Your Seatbelt, and Everyone Else's
- Everyone buckles up: You must wear a seatbelt every time you travel in a vehicle that has them, and every passenger must be buckled in their own seatbelt, child car seat or booster seat.
- Penalties: A driver who doesn't buckle up can be fined and gets 2 demerit points. The driver also gets fined and demerit points for failing to make sure every passenger under 16 is properly buckled in a seatbelt, child car seat or booster seat.
- Novice drivers: A G1 driver may carry only the accompanying driver in the front seat, and novice drivers must have a working seatbelt for every passenger. Failing to do so can cost a novice their licence for at least 30 days.
- Wear it properly: Snug enough to keep you in your seat; the shoulder strap over your shoulder (never under your arm or behind your back); the lap belt low over the hips, not against the stomach. Never put more than one person in a seatbelt.
- Airbags do not replace seatbelts. The belt holds you in position so the airbag can protect you.
- Outside the cab is never safe: Riding in the back of a pickup truck, or in a trailer being towed, risks being thrown out in a collision. No one may ride in a towed trailer (Section 10.5).
- Backing up: You may remove your seatbelt while reversing if you need to turn to see, but buckle up again before moving forward.
Why Seatbelts Matter
Seatbelts keep you inside and in control of the vehicle; people thrown from a vehicle are far less likely to survive. They stop the "human collision" with the steering wheel, windshield, dashboard or another person. And in the rare case of fire or sinking, they help you stay conscious so you can get out.
Children: The Essentials
Section 10.4 covers the child-seat stages in detail. From this part of the handbook, also remember:
- A rear-facing seat is best in the back seat, and never in a seat with an active airbag. Children over 9 kg may stay rear-facing if the seat is designed for their height and weight.
- The safest place for a child under 13 is the back seat.
- An installed child seat should move no more than 2.5 cm where the belt or UAS strap passes through it. For a forward-facing seat, always attach the tether strap.
- Be careful with used car seats: they must have complete instructions and parts, no damage, no collision history, no recall, and must not be past the manufacturer's useful life.
- Secure loose objects with cargo nets or straps, or put them in the trunk, so they cannot hit anyone in a sudden stop.
According to the handbook, how should you check that your seat is the right distance from the pedals?
Push the brake pedal to the floor with your leg fully straight
Adjust the seat so the steering wheel touches your chest
Move the seat all the way back for airbag safety
Place your feet flat on the floor under the brake pedal; if you can do this without stretching, you are seated properly
Where should the headrest be when it is adjusted correctly?
With the back of your head directly in front of the middle of the headrest
As low as it will go
At the level of your shoulders
Tilted back so it does not touch your head
Your mirrors are properly adjusted. What does the handbook say is the only way to be sure your blind spots are clear before changing lanes?
Checking the inside mirror twice
Using the right outside mirror only
Turning your head to do a shoulder check
Watching for other drivers' headlights
A G2 driver takes four friends in a car that has only four working seatbelts. What does the handbook say?
It is allowed if the extra passenger sits in the middle
It is allowed on roads posted under 80 km/h
Only passengers under 16 need seatbelts
Novice drivers must have a working seatbelt for every passenger, and breaking this rule can cost them their licence for at least 30 days
Sections you finish are checked off in the contents.