Second day of the Nigerian Auto Journalists Training Workshop held at the weekend attracted a German born trainer, Derek Kirkby, Ford DSFL training Director, South Africa, who took participants through a theoretical session of Driving Skill for Life (DSFL)and later practical motoring on Coscharis Test track.
[dropcap]D[/dropcap]erek explained:
- Before you jump inside your car and drive off, take 15 seconds to move round your car, inspecting body for dents, tyre and underneath for leakage.
- Enter, sit behind the driving wheel and do as follows:
- Adjust the seat to ensure that you are on comfortable driving position. Make sure your feet are not completely stretched, danger of which if involved in a head-on collision, impact could go straight to the waist, thereby having damaged pelvis.
- Steering setting should level with the chest, not face. For if levelled with face, in case of accident, airbag, which travels at 380 km/hour, could give you broken nose and even damage your eyes.
- Adjust the mirrors from sitting position
- Adjust headrest; ensure it levels with back of your head. Some motorists would level headrest with the neck for relaxation. In case of accident, head can be thrown backward, leading to broken spinal cord.
- Wear your seatbelt.
- Ensure that rear passengers wear seatbelts too. If they do not and there is a head on collision, the person seating behind the driver or front passenger would be thrown forward, and his or her weight is capable of killing the front passenger or driver.
- Always check your extra tyres. Unused tyres lose air quicker than tyres being used. To avoid disappointment, when you have flat tyre on the road, always check your spare tyre.
Courtesy Ford sub-Sahara Africa, South Africa, represented in Nigeria by Coscharis Motors
