How To: Adjust Your Mirrors to Avoid Blind Spots

[taintedwhistler]

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From Car and Driver via Lifehacker

The only problem is getting used to the SAE-recommended mirror positions

[aejhayl17]

nice post. so in conclusion, what is the right or best angle of side mirror to be most efficient?

i am a "figure 5".for me the best is, i like seeing my vehicle's sides as well as vehicles on my side. ang palatandaan ko is when kita ko pa yung handle ng front doors ko sa side mirror. gets? hehehe

[CVT]

Thanks for sharing bro.... I must admit, old school pa rin ako in terms of positioning my side mirrors....

Anyone here who is using figs1 and 4?

9303:grin2:

[meledson]

I use a "mid" position. I set the side mirrors in such a way that I see minimally the body of my car. para may point of reference ako sa layo ng mga sasakyan sa tabi. Ito na ang SOP ko to minimize blind spots

[batang_raon14]

nice post. so in conclusion, what is the right or best angle of side mirror to be most efficient?

i am a "figure 5".for me the best is, i like seeing my vehicle's sides as well as vehicles on my side. ang palatandaan ko is when kita ko pa yung handle ng front doors ko sa side mirror. gets? hehehe

Same here. Fig.5 din gamit ko. Reference ko kasi sa distance yung side ng vehicle ko.

[icelock]

"mid" position din gamit ko. kapag inaadjust, once di ko na kita gilid ng kotse ok na.
pag masyadong wide mahirap makita mga motor sa gilid e normally in between lanes sila.

[Type 100]

I use Fig2 and Fig4. Fig2 I have to use because of the limits of my Jazz's power mirror motors. Ideally Fig1 would be best.

The idea behind this is that ALL your mirrors are rear-view mirrors. Let's assume you're driving in the middle lane of SLEX at a steady cruise. If a speed-matched car some distance behind you moves from the leftmost lane to the rightmost lane, you should be able to smoothly track its lateral progress through your mirrors - without any overlap or disappearance. The car should move from your left mirror, to the center mirror, to the right mirror, without overlapping.

Allowing for the limits of the power mirror motors, if you can still see your vehicle's sides, you still have blind spots.

This technique of mirror adjustment was published in the Inquirer many, many years ago - 2001 if I'm not mistaken. I've been using it ever since. It's just a matter of getting used to, and it's proven very useful in avoiding sideswipes.

[Type 100]

"mid" position din gamit ko. kapag inaadjust, once di ko na kita gilid ng kotse ok na.
pag masyadong wide mahirap makita mga motor sa gilid e normally in between lanes sila.

You should not be using your mirrors to check for motorcycles alongside you. You should be using your windows instead.

If a motorcycle runs alongside you, you should be able to pick them up using your peripheral vision.

I've also observed most motorcycle riders have made things a little easier for us by fitting noisier mufflers - this way we can pick their location up by ear and avoid hitting them. They're noisy and annoying yes but they at least will afford us a chance of avoiding collisions.

My two cents

[niky]

You should not be using your mirrors to check for motorcycles alongside you. You should be using your windows instead.

If a motorcycle runs alongside you, you should be able to pick them up using your peripheral vision.

I've also observed most motorcycle riders have made things a little easier for us by fitting noisier mufflers - this way we can pick their location up by ear and avoid hitting them. They're noisy and annoying yes but they at least will afford us a chance of avoiding collisions.

My two cents

Everyone within five miles of my position knows where my car is.

Everyone who isn't blind or deaf, that is... which makes me wonder about the requirements to get a license in this country, since people still swerve into me or pull out or walk out into my path.

I have the same problem with my mirrors. The motors will only allow a certain amount of adjustment before reaching the limit of travel.

[Firefighter]

Fig. 1 & 4 is the proper side mirror positioning according to this video.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBj89kyTvWo"]YouTube- How to get rid of your blind spot[/ame]

[Type 100]

Fig. 1 & 4 is the proper side mirror positioning according to this video.

YouTube- How to get rid of your blind spot

Thanks for the video.

Indeed they are the correct positions, however you may not be able to adjust them to Fig1 because of adjustment limitations.

I currently use Fig2, but I try to approximate Fig1 as much as I can before the side mirror adjustment motors say "enough."

Before correct adjustment of the mirrors, the driver's seat has to also be correctly positioned also - as everything else will follow from there

[MXFX]

used to do 2 and 5 until i read this somewhere years ago. works well esp my side mirrors are kinda small. it takes time to get used to not seeing your side, but never a problem anymore. and no more last minute "kabig" for nearly not seeing cars on the blind spots.

[james00112233]

I use fig. 1 and 4

[granro01]

Mga tsikoteers. Just by looking at the first picture, fig.1 and 4 is the correct positioning of side mirrors. But there is a catch because this is usually ideal in the states where motorist normally follows the road line. Here in the Philippines motorist normally use most of the time in between the road lines kaya minsan yung tatlong lane nagiging four or five lanes. Pinas talaga.

So the best is to set your side mirrors in between fig. 1&2 and Fig. 3&4. San ka pa lulugar nyan eh neutral ka na.

Happy motoring...

[n1kn0k]

i remember from my driving school lesson, the instructor told me 10% of the mirror should reflect your car and the rest the road. i guess i'll try to follow figs 1 & 4 but will still leave some part of my car, konting-konti na lang. you also need to know where your car is in relation to the "outside world."

but blind areas don't just depend on the mirrors. when i use my van i almost never encounter blind areas, but when i'm using my sedan madalas meron. i guess it's because in the van i'm "up there."

[Memphis Raines]

Ah so I've been doing it correctly all this time

My side mirror adjustment never shows any part of the car.


I guess my old man was right!

[icelock]

You should not be using your mirrors to check for motorcycles alongside you. You should be using your windows instead.

If a motorcycle runs alongside you, you should be able to pick them up using your peripheral vision.

yung pinag-uusapan naman mga paparating na sasakyan di yung katabi mo na

[woohoo]

I prefer not to mess with my rear-view mirrors (center and side), so I maintain them in positions where I can see the sides of my car.

For blind spots, I installed blind spot mirrors.



Best of both worlds!

This was taken in a hurry, though, it wasn't from the driver's POV kaya medyo mali ang posisyon.

Oh, and by the way, siyempre kasama na yung wide-view center rear view mirror sa upgrades.

[SIZE=1]18/3,711[/SIZE]

[xanor]

Fig. 3 & Fig. 5 for me... nakikita ko lahat ng sa likod ko...

[misterj68]

i am not used to not seeing the sides of my car while driving. but it's true that the blind spots can be a problem. i just try to be alert at all times.

question: do you re-adjust the side mirrors from Fig 1 and 4 back to "normal" position when parking in reverse?