On Sat, 12 Jun 2021 17:13:04 +0100, "Commander Kinsey"
wrote:

Why do people say left hand down instead of left?

They don't.

We all know which way to turn the wheel to make the car go left, and it's the same in reverse.

What, it's the opposite if you want the car to go left when going in
reverse? ;-)

And if I'm reversing looking over my shoulder, one hand isn't on the wheel so the phrase makes no sense!

It does when you understand it's function.

It's an instruction from someone who has a good idea which way the
wheels need to be when (often / typically) manoeuvring the car in
close quarters (like going up onto a vehicle lift) where there isn't
much room for error.

So, an experienced mechanic guiding someone not familiar with driving
vehicles up onto a ramp might say 'left hand down a bit' under the
assumption the driver is holding the wheel at 10 to 2 or similar. They
may well also guide an experienced driver the same way because they
would except / understand the terms without question.

Cheers, T i m