Benefits & Tips for Left Hand Drive Cars

The most obvious advantage of choosing a left hand drive is ease and safety when driving in left hand drive countries, which is especially beneficial for frequent travellers, whether on business or for pleasure.

A less apparent perk is for the right-handed individual, who, with greater strength on his/her right side, is more easily able to transfer and coordinate between steering wheel and gear-stick in left hand drive cars, while the weaker left arm can rest comfortably on the arm rest of the door.

Driving tips for LHD cars:

While you may not be used to it, getting around in left hand drive cars on the right side of the road is every bit as safe as driving on the left. All you have to do is follow the tips below and you’ll soon enjoy cruising the highways and byways of your chosen destination.

• If you have never used a left hand drive before, it is advisable to choose one with automatic transmission. If your hand-eye coordination isn’t as accurate as you’d like it to be or you’re nervous about losing control while you take your eyes away from the road to find the gear-stick, driving an automatic means you don’t have to worry about changing gear.
• Take time to familiarise yourself with the controls and equipment in LHD cars. If you’re using a manual left hand drive, remember that the pedals are in exactly the same position from left to right, i.e. accelerator, brake, clutch. While it may be slightly disorientating at first, it is only the location of the gear-stick and handbrake in a LHD that you need to worry about.
• Check out the speedo too. You may be used to measuring speed in miles, but many left hand drive countries measure in kilometres, which means that many left hand drive cars measure in kilometres only, or indicate both kmph or mph but with kmph more dominantly placed on the speedometer.
• Take a little test drive in your LHD before you venture out onto the roads, and when you finally take the plunge remember to keep right! Many rental companies place a sticker on the dashboard in LHD cars to remind drivers to stay on the right side of the road - you could try this too whilst you get used to the feeling.

A couple of days is all it takes until you’ll be sitting back and relaxing in your newly-acquired vehicle.