Blind Spot Fix?

[bababooey]

i can echo the difficulty of changing lanes on the multilane highway systems we have in texas. i try to track other vehicle's pacing using mirrors but physically do the hot rod shoulder look over my left to confirm noones there. to the right is generally tougher even with the passenger head rest removed. i check my mirror and peak thru the porthole near back seat. iv'e almost changed lanes into someone on the right far more in 6 months in this car vs the previous ride of 6+ years.

[HerrFunf]

Sure, blind spots do exist 2 lanes away, but if you both try to merge into the middle lane, you get closer together, at which point they become visible in either your mirror or peripheral. The all knowing diagram proves that. That literally happened to me yesterday on a 3 lane highway, some dude came my way without his turn signal and as we both started to merge into the center lane, he came into my side view and I yielded. Then he proceeded to speed excessively in an ice storm and jump lanes without signaling for the next few miles. ..so pretty standard Philly driving.

[carma143]

Originally Posted by HerrFunf

Turning your head to look back is just asking to rear end someone.. which is cool, if that's what you're into.

In California the DMV teaches everyone to twist their neck look behind their back everytime a turn or laneswitch is to be made. I failed my first driving test because I only used the mirrors and failed to twist my neck all the way to look backwards when in the rightmost lane and turning into the DMV parking lot.

The only true blindspot I have in my FRS is from the passenger head rest, which I take off and throw in the back until some needs to ride shotgun.

That's a good idea. I should try that sometime.

Jello

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by carma143

In California the DMV teaches everyone to twist their neck look behind their back everytime a turn or laneswitch is to be made. I failed my first driving test because I only used the mirrors and failed to twist my neck all the way to look backwards when in the rightmost lane and turning into the DMV parking lot.

That is also the rule in Alabama, where I received my original driver's license so many years ago. They had merge areas in the road course where they would specifically watch to see if you turned your head or used your mirrors.

The overriding rule just about everywhere is that you have to do whatever is necessary to safely operate the vehicle. If your car has a blind spot that requires you to turn your head to see into it, then you have to turn your head to see into it. It isn't complicated.

And if you can't turn your head for a quick glance without rear-ending someone, you're either driving too fast and/or following too closely, or you're just an idiot.

[Eski]

ive been pondering this issue for some time now as well.

i also missed points on my drivers test for not completely turning my head to look over my shoulder when changing lanes, i believe you auto fail if you don't look and turn into a bike lane in california. i think every one has learned differently as to how to set their mirrors and how to use them correctly while driving so everyone has adapted to have their own sort of blind spots, however being 6'5 i do find the b pillar gets in my way alot when i go to move over. with my mirrors set for maximum visibility i still find that i dont have that 100% confidence when changing lanes with the twins even if my awareness tells me there are no cars in my way. i think im going to try new mirrors and see how they work out. anybody have advice on aftermarket ones they've used that have improved vision?

[Stewie]

Originally Posted by killboydotcom

Really not trying to sound like a smartass, but you do have your mirrors angled way out so you don't see any of the side of your own car in them, right? I'm 6' and I don't have any issues with seeing my blind spots, but I have my mirrors angled out.

Yup. I've got them angled out. But there are still times when a car happens to sneak into a blind spot on the highway. It's mostly the fast movers that I seem to have a hard time picking up.

[Stewie]

Originally Posted by extrashaky

Wrong. There is cone of blindness that starts just behind the driver's seat on the driver's side and expands outward the further an object is from the car. Here is a crude line drawing to illustrate:



If you have your mirrors adjusted correctly, you will be able to see a car in the lane immediately next to you because that cone of blindness is narrower than a car in that lane. But since the cone expands outward, if a car is another lane over (for example in the far left lane of a three-lane highway), it is impossible to see in the mirrors because the cone of blindness is wide enough at that point for the car to hide in.

I drive a lot on interstates (just over 30K miles on this car in my first year of ownership), so I've had plenty of opportunities to observe this phenomenon in the real world. If I am driving in the right lane on a three-lane interstate and want to take the center lane, I have to physically look over my shoulder to ensure that someone from the far left lane is not also attempting to take that lane. This can present a real challenge in heavier multi-lane traffic in cities. It's also a challenge in areas that have entrance ramps from the left. The cities I travel in and to for my job have a lot of both.

I have tried a number of adjustments to the mirrors to eliminate that blind spot. It isn't possible, at least not with the stock mirrors.

Edited to add another, more detailed crappy drawring:

The situation he describes is exactly what I'm talking about. I've gotten caught unaware by people going from the outer most lane to 1 lane over to the right on a four lane (sometimes 5 lane) highway while I'm trying to change lanes to the left.

[Churnobyl]

Originally Posted by NickDC88

Didn't even think about getting creative with it. Just went ahead and got the Rexspeed mirrors. Easy install and they helped a lot more that they thought the would.

its a $100 fix. And requires zero mechanical aptitude. Buy them. Snap them in. Done. Blind spot is gone. Like @Stewie I'm tall. I've been in one accident in 18 years of driving, a chain rear end that I didn't start 16 years ago.

Within 3 months of owning my BRZ I almost caused two by moving to my left into a car I never saw. Then I installed the Rexspeeds & adjusted to wide. No more issues. There is a very small vulnerability passenger side where a car two lanes over and quartering back could move across while shielded by the B Pillar and get caught but its a perfect storm. Otherwise gtg.

[AustinMcCloud]

I saw you didn't want to go with the convex replacement option, but for what its worth the Rexpeed mirrors aren't easy to notice unless you know to look for their blue tint.

If you're really set on being different, you could always just go all out and get one of those 5 panel panoramic mirrors everyone puts in their civic

[swarb]

^it's called the wink mirror. They have a 3 panel and 5 panel version. It's good for a race car, bad for a street car unless you like everyone behind you blinding you at night. Here is a pic in a civic lol-

[N234]

Google "adjust side mirrors properly" and you'll find guides to it.

I sit far enough back that the mirrors still don't go outwards outwards enough. So I installed convex mirrors.

It's almost far enough out. It bothers me that manufacturers designed it with an inward bias.

I can turn them inwards enough to see my own face. <sarcasm>Sooo useful.</sarcasm>

[FTemplar]

Get fender mounted mirrors if the blind spots bother you that much.. problem solved.

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by FTemplar

Get fender mounted mirrors if the blind spots bother you that much.. problem solved.

LOL, no. Fender mirrors narrow the field of view even more. The closer you are to the mirror, the wider your field of view.

Take a hand mirror, put it right up to your face and look around the room behind you reflected in the mirror. Then move the mirror away from your face and watch your angle of view decrease so that you can't see as much of the room.

Moving your mirrors out onto your fenders has the same effect, so that you actually make the problem worse rather than better. The field of view narrows inward so that the blind spot a lane over is even bigger.

[FTemplar]

Originally Posted by extrashaky

LOL, no. Fender mirrors narrow the field of view even more. The closer you are to the mirror, the wider your field of view.

Take a hand mirror, put it right up to your face and look around the room behind you reflected in the mirror. Then move the mirror away from your face and watch your angle of view decrease so that you can't see as much of the room.

Moving your mirrors out onto your fenders has the same effect, so that you actually make the problem worse rather than better. The field of view narrows inward so that the blind spot a lane over is even bigger.

Sir,

A wing mirror (also fender mirror, door mirror, or side mirror) is a mirror found on the exterior of motor vehicles for the purposes of helping the driver see areas behind and to the sides of the vehicle, outside of the driver's peripheral vision (in the 'blind spot').

Source : [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wing_mirror"]Wing mirror - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]


In other words, I think you're correct about the narrow field of view yes, but at least these mirrors cover the blind spot perfectly for the adjacent lanes... for the farther lanes, well, normally, you should move over one lane at a time, check your blind spot again and so on. At least that's what I learned in my driving class but we don't have more than 3 lanes on our highways here so it's not really an issue as big as you guys might deal with on highways with 5 or 6 lanes...