Excerpt from Abstract

This study explored the relationship between driver descriptions of vehicle turning and measurements of vehicle speed and acceleration (lateral and longitudinal) for a relatively new type of off-road vehicle referred to as a side-by-side. Thirty-one novice operators were asked to drive an off-road course three times and describe how they were turning the vehicle using any combination of the following descriptors: gentle; slow; careful; moderate; smooth; abrupt; sharp, high speed; aggressive; and pushing the limits. Analyses of descriptors and clusters of descriptors were conducted… Participants were able to distinguish between different levels of operation and communicate their perceptions with various descriptors. This study is useful to the investigation of vehicle tipover/rollover and to those interested in assessing direct perception of vehicle occupants and strategies for communicating messages related to vehicle stability.