With technology changing in vehicles today, some of the training that you got when you were in high school might be wrong or cause injury. How you hold your hands on the steering wheel will make a huge difference.

Mac Demere of Popular Mechanics said he knows of a story about a cop who was once fiddling with the in-car computer with his right hand while driving the car with his left hand at 12 (the top of the steering wheel) When the distracted police officer smashed into a stopped car, the force of the airbag deployment flung his hand back into his face, and he broke out his front teeth with his own hand.

According to Yahoo! news driving with your hands in the 10 and 2 position, once the common wisdom of driver’s ed classes, is also deadly, thanks to airbags. The proper position is 9 and 3, the Italian way is 8 and 4 and most driving instructors nowadays are saying that is even safer.

Don’t do those hand-over-hand turns anymore, either. Most modern steering wheels have “thumb hangers” that naturally put your hands at 9 and 3 so you won’t smack yourself if an airbag deploys. Anything over 14 mph will deploy your airbag.

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