What Are The Bumps On A Steering Wheel For?

Contrary to what Reddit and other online sources claim, those small bumps or raised dots on your car's steering wheel are not Braille. The trend started a few years ago when social media users shared posts claiming the bumps on the steering wheel are to help visually-impaired or blind drivers find the horn. 

What's funny is that although the rules for drivers with poor vision will vary by state, you shouldn't be driving if you need Braille symbols on the steering wheel to find the horn. In addition, the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) said to Reuters in a 2018 report that steering wheels don't use Braille, nor do bumps or dots provide tactile information for blind people.

The NFB further noted that although the word "blind" covers many eye conditions or levels of visual impairment, a person who uses Braille for reading or writing won't see well enough to drive a vehicle. What's interesting is that although the small bumps are not for blind people, they are for all drivers to locate the horn, specifically to mark the place where drivers need to press to blow the horn. You probably won't find those raised dots on the coolest-looking steering wheels ever made, but they're more common on dad's or grandpa's old beater.

Depending on the make and model, some new vehicles have foregone the need for small bumps on the steering wheel. Those cars have upgraded steering wheel covers that feature contact points all over the pressing zone, which means the driver can blow the horn by pressing on any part of the horn pad. Meanwhile, older vehicles have those dots or bumps to help drivers identify the horn pressing zone without taking their eyes off the road.

The social media posts claiming the steering wheel dots are Braille are just flights of fancy or possibly the result of boredom. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation, the existing visual requirement standards for commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers are as follows:

• A distant visual acuity of at least 20/40 (Snellen) in each eye without corrective lenses or visual acuity separately corrected to 20/40 (Snellen) or better with corrective lenses;
• A distant binocular acuity of at least 20/40 (Snellen) in both eyes with or without corrective lenses;
• A field of vision of at least 70 degrees in the horizontal Meridian in each eye;
• The ability to recognize the colors of traffic signals and devices showing standard red, green, and amber.

Again, the rules and regulations for drivers with poor vision will vary by state, but safe driving combines acute motor skills, knowledge of road rules, and good vision. Self-driving cars may provide hope for blind or impaired passengers to operate a moving vehicle. Still, the existing technology requires more tweaks and updates to unleash Level 5-capable self-driving cars for everyone.