If you don’t have a parking heater, it can take a while for the car to heat up in the cold winter. So leave your thick winter jacket on, but this can have dangerous consequences.
If you drive a car in winter, choosing the right clothing is essential. Despite the cold, you should never sit behind the wheel in a thick jacket, gloves and hat. You not only limit your mobility on the steering wheel, but also endanger your safety as the seat belt is no longer optimally fitted.
Risk of serious injuries even in small accidents
Typically, for adults, the belt should fit snugly around the hipbones. Parka etc. change the position of the belt. It is already over the lower part of the abdomen when the belt is being fastened. According to a simulation with thickly wrapped dummies from ADAC At a stop of 16 km / h, which roughly corresponds to a rear-end collision in traffic, the consequences of the incorrectly attached seat belt became noticeable.
The strap of the belt cut deep into the abdomen. In the event of accidents at high speeds or emergency braking, this can lead to serious injuries to organs such as the intestines, liver or spleen. Internal bleeding is also possible.
Hats, scarfs and the like can also be dangerous
In addition to taking off your jacket, you should also take off other winter accessories as soon as you get into the car. The driver’s field of vision can be severely impaired by hats and scarfs. Gloves do not guarantee complete safety either, as the grip on the steering wheel is no longer 100%.
More warmth in the car: you can do that
In the best case scenario, use the parking heater before you take the car. This also saves you having to de-ice the windows. In any case, you should take off thick winter clothing before driving or at least make sure that the belt is under the jacket. So that your children, for whom winter jackets can be just as dangerous, do not freeze, take a blanket with you that has been warmed up in the house beforehand.
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