Poll: How many of you have your car's side mirrors set properly?

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I almost never watch live TV anymore but I was watching football last Sunday and saw an ad for the Ford Focus which highlighted the Blindspot Information System. I immediately was like there are no blindspots so that's a pointless feature. Out of curiosity I Google/Youtube around and come to find people don't know how to set their side mirrors to eliminate the blindspots. I was never taught how to set my mirrors and from the start, I set my side mirrors to see cars in the next lane as that just seemed like common sense and what said mirrors are supposed to see.

Here's a short video of how to set your mirrors:

I've been driving like this for over 10 years and I never turn my head to see if the lane is clear because I can tell by just using the mirrors. I'm one of those drivers that constantly changes lanes as well; if you're braking for no reason (which so many do), I'm getting out of your lane ASAP. The only time I do turn my head is on the expressway (with 3+ lanes) due to not being able to see 2 lanes over as you and somebody else may both be changing into the same lane. With the mirrors properly set, you can watch both ahead of you and the other lane so it also eliminates the times the guy in front of you brakes while your head is turned saving you from accidents that will be your fault.

 

[Recusant]

I've been hearing this, on and off, for years; I'm starting to suspect it's one of those situations where people think that if you repeat something often enough, it becomes true. Assuming you're driving a standard, legal-on-US-roads car, there are four possibilities:
1. You're sitting so far back that the view of what's beside you is almost as wide as the view of what's in front of you. This would require some anatomical oddness, but is by far the best of the scenarios.
2. You have somehow moved your eyes onto stalks.
3. You are in fact a woodcock, or other animal with a greater range of peripheral vision. None of the above are particularly likely, which leads to
4. You're mistaken about how much you can see. This is dangerous enough, but if you're frequently changing lanes without turning your head to look at what's coming up beside you, you apparently don't realize that cars move, even relative to each other. Unless you're bouncing your eyes around like a trucker, it's only a matter of time until you kill somebody.

If you don't believe me, head out to a truck stop and talk to some of the drivers. Tell them that lateral blind spots don't exist if your mirrors are set correctly (dorsoventral blind spots are of course a different matter); their mirrors cover an even wider area, they'll be sure to agree!

Just don't do it after eating.

 

[WolfThomas]

I have them set up like you. "Properly". But I also turn my head because it's the law (I believe where I am, actually I'm not sure) and they're not perfect.

 

[RedDeadFred]

I have to back into a lot of really tight spots with my truck, so I usually have my mirrors closer to my vehicle. I try to have them so I can see the edge of my rear wheels. Shoulder checking is for blind spots and it's something I do instinctively (it's also the law). I wouldn't feel safe relying on my mirrors to for blind spots.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I've been hearing this, on and off, for years; I'm starting to suspect it's one of those situations where people think that if you repeat something often enough, it becomes true. Assuming you're driving a standard, legal-on-US-roads car, there are four possibilities:
1. You're sitting so far back that the view of what's beside you is almost as wide as the view of what's in front of you. This would require some anatomical oddness, but is by far the best of the scenarios.
2. You have somehow moved your eyes onto stalks.
3. You are in fact a woodcock, or other animal with a greater range of peripheral vision. None of the above are particularly likely, which leads to
4. You're mistaken about how much you can see. This is dangerous enough, but if you're frequently changing lanes without turning your head to look at what's coming up beside you, you apparently don't realize that cars move, even relative to each other. Unless you're bouncing your eyes around like a trucker, it's only a matter of time until you kill somebody.

If you don't believe me, head out to a truck stop and talk to some of the drivers. Tell them that lateral blind spots don't exist if your mirrors are set correctly (dorsoventral blind spots are of course a different matter); their mirrors cover an even wider area, they'll be sure to agree!

Just don't do it after eating.

I'm a rather normal 5'11" height. I do believe I have my seat all the way back because it's the most comfortable position (I have the back of the seat rather straight and not leaned back much if at all). When you look in your side mirror, your peripheral vision moves as you need to turn your head a bit to look into the mirror so it's not the same peripheral vision when just looking straight ahead. I literally set my side mirrors to where I still see the back of the car next to me in my mirror as said car enters my peripheral vision (the car is both in the mirror and my peripherals at the same time); it's rather easy to fine tune at stoplights to get the perfect settings. I don't drive a truck so I don't know what trucks are like, but I do know with a normal car, there are no blindspots. My commute to work is only 10 minutes but I easily change lanes 10+ times each way to get around other cars and just change lanes because there's a bump there or the train tracks are smoother on one side. I glance at my mirrors every few seconds to get a sorta snapshot of the traffic around me as you never know when you'll have to change lanes in a fraction of a second to avoid an accident or possibly someone running into the street; I've avoided several accidents by doing that as I'm always aware if the lane next to me is open. I've been driving well over 10 years now and never look when changing lanes; if there was a blindspot, I'm sure probability would dictate I would've hit someone by now.

Shoulder checking is for blind spots and it's something I do instinctively (it's also the law). I wouldn't feel safe relying on my mirrors to for blind spots.

1) There literally are no blindspots
2) Where the hell is it a law you must look over your shoulder? I'm guessing it would just be some really old law still on the books from when cars probably didn't have side mirrors.

 

[RedDeadFred]

Shoulder checking is for blind spots and it's something I do instinctively (it's also the law). I wouldn't feel safe relying on my mirrors to for blind spots.

1) There literally are no blindspots
2) Where the hell is it a law you must look over your shoulder? I'm guessing it would just be some really old law still on the books from when cars probably didn't have side mirrors.

1) Maybe not in a tiny car, but again, I drive a rather large truck for work so shoulder checking is absolutely essential to not killing people. You can adjust the mirrors to minimize blindspots, but they absolutely exist.
2) http://www.transportation.alberta.ca/2003.htm I can't find a specific law since I don't know where I'd even look to find something so specific, but this is the government website for the province I live in and they say you MUST do shoulder checks when lane changing. It is the driver guide which was updated in July 2016. Maybe us Canadians are just too safe, eh? Sorry.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

2) http://www.transportation.alberta.ca/2003.htm I can't find a specific law since I don't know where I'd even look to find something so specific, but this is the government website for the province I live in and they say you MUST do shoulder checks when lane changing. It is the driver guide which was updated in July 2016. Maybe us Canadians are just too safe, eh? Sorry.

That would be rather ridiculous law to implement (and enforce), that reads like recommended guidelines and not actual law. It even says in the next paragraph that if you don't have backseat side windows to use the side mirror. Hell, something like turning into your corresponding lane (turn right and stay right most lane on the street you're turning onto) I've never seen enforced or ticketed when that is rather important and makes traffic flow much better but no one does it. I used have fun in Driver's Ed cutting off people turning as I'd stay in my proper lane while they wouldn't and my teacher never said anything because he knew I was driving properly. Of course, I don't do that in my own car (as I'll time my turn slightly ahead or behind the other guy) to avoid needless accidents. I am one of those drivers that will turn say right if the left lane has traffic as the right lane is open and perfectly safe to turn into.

 

[Souplex]

I'm confuzzled. People don't own cars, cars are sentient machines that exist to make the lives of all humans in New York miserable. Why would you try and move their mirrors? Do you fiddle with a grizzly's ears?

 

[Laughing Man]

1) There literally are no blindspots

You ARE kidding right? If cars all had the exact same mirrors placed in the exact same location being the same size and shape and everyone was physically the same size and shape and then seated in a relative position to the mirror that meant no matter what car they were in they were the exact same viewable angle and distance from the mirror then yes you could maybe just about make a mirror that would remove all blind spots. The reality is that is not even close to the case and certain cars, with certain mirrors do have blindspots.

2) Where the hell is it a law you must look over your shoulder? I'm guessing it would just be some really old law still on the books from when cars probably didn't have side mirrors.

First thing you do when you learn to drive, well technically it's the seventh thing you learn to do after; put on seat belt, adjust seat and mirror position, start car, put in gear, turn on indicator, check mirrors and then check over your shoulder.

The fact that you believe 1) and mention 2) makes me glad that you clearly don't drive on UK roads and if you do god help anyone unlucky enough to be anywhere near you when you are in a car.

 

[09philj]

Yeah, you're going to die one day doing this. I'm surprised you haven't crashed already. You have to turn your head to look into the next lane to make sure it's clear, because there's always a chance you've missed something that's not clear in the mirror or is in fact in a blind spot you weren't aware of.

 

[Drathnoxis]

What, do you have some debilitating neck injury that means you can't turn your head? Do the 'ing shoulder checks you lazy bugger!

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

You ARE kidding right? If cars all had the exact same mirrors placed in the exact same location being the same size and shape and everyone was physically the same size and shape and then seated in a relative position to the mirror that meant no matter what car they were in they were the exact same viewable angle and distance from the mirror then yes you could maybe just about make a mirror that would remove all blind spots. The reality is that is not even close to the case and certain cars, with certain mirrors do have blindspots.

Yeah, you're going to die one day doing this. I'm surprised you haven't crashed already. You have to turn your head to look into the next lane to make sure it's clear, because there's always a chance you've missed something that's not clear in the mirror or is in fact in a blind spot you weren't aware of.

What, do you have some debilitating neck injury that means you can't turn your head? Do the 'ing shoulder checks you lazy bugger!

What is wrong with you guys? The side mirrors are engineered to see in your side lanes, that's why they are fucking there, that is just a FACT. What is the point of having those mirrors there if they don't work? There's papers and numerous articles about properly adjusting side mirrors to eliminate blindspots. The Society of Automotive Engineers published a paper stating side mirrors eliminate blindspots back in 1995. Ford's chief safety engineer even states that Ford's Blind Spot Information System, or BLIS, does not help safely change lanes better than just using side mirrors.

In an interview, Steve Kozak, Ford's chief safety engineer, acknowledged that side mirrors can be set to eliminate the blind zone. But most drivers don't adjust their mirrors that way so BLIS is a valuable safety aid, he said.

"If we could train everyone in the United States to do it that way, then I think we would probably be a lot better and we wouldn't need a system like this," he said.

---

First thing you do when you learn to drive, well technically it's the seventh thing you learn to do after; put on seat belt, adjust seat and mirror position, start car, put in gear, turn on indicator, check mirrors and then check over your shoulder.

The fact that you believe 1) and mention 2) makes me glad that you clearly don't drive on UK roads and if you do god help anyone unlucky enough to be anywhere near you when you are in a car.

My instructor never said you have to look over your shoulder to change lanes. He even let me purposefully cut off people that were driving wrong in fact. The point of looking in the mirrors vs turning your head is that if the guy in front of you happens to slam on his brakes while your neck is turned, you're not going to see that. Lastly, I have a perfect driving record with no caused accidents.

 

[JohnnyDelRay]

The video itself has you move your head all the way to your window, and middle of the car to adjust the mirrors. Meaning that you can eliminate your blindspot by moving your head that far anyway. So why not just turn your head...unless you have some kind of condition/recovering from injury that makes your neck extra stiff or limited in motion, it's better to trust your eyes than the mirrors. Heck peripheral vision and even a fleeting fraction of a second are all it takes to tell if something is there.

I adjust my mirrors the "normal" way. Since I drive a 20 year-old car with small, horribly limited range of vision mirrors I've made it a habit anyway. Plus living in a place where roads are narrow and motorcycles outnumber cars 1000:1 (my own loose exaggeration) you have to be bouncing around from mirror to shoulder all the time anyway.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

The video itself has you move your head all the way to your window, and middle of the car to adjust the mirrors. Meaning that you can eliminate your blindspot by moving your head that far anyway. So why not just turn your head...unless you have some kind of condition/recovering from injury that makes your neck extra stiff or limited in motion, it's better to trust your eyes than the mirrors. Heck peripheral vision and even a fleeting fraction of a second are all it takes to tell if something is there.

I adjust my mirrors the "normal" way. Since I drive a 20 year-old car with small, horribly limited range of vision mirrors I've made it a habit anyway. Plus living in a place where roads are narrow and motorcycles outnumber cars 1000:1 (my own loose exaggeration) you have to be bouncing around from mirror to shoulder all the time anyway.

Moving your head that far is just a way to set the mirrors, you don't have to move you head like that when looking in them while driving. After seeing the Ford Focus commercial, it was my 1st time looking any of this stuff up. I didn't set my mirrors by how the video shows you; I set my mirrors in a normal driving position at stoplights so you can perfectly set the mirrors while both being stationary and having cars where they realistically will be when having to change lanes. If you do have to turn your head, you can have a situation where the guy in front of you slams on their brakes while your head is turned whereas if you look in the mirror you can see both the car on your side and the car in front of you. Like I said, I have my mirrors set up perfect to where when the car enters my peripheral vision, the very back of the car is still in my mirror thus there is no gap to where the car will be out of the mirror and out of my peripheral vision at the same time. What I see in my mirror is the same thing I'd see if I turned my head, that's what mirrors do is show you exactly what's there.

I don't understand why anyone would ride a motorcycle. I recently got creamed by a guy going 40mph right into my drivers side doors, he was running from the cops and ran a stop sign right into me. If I wasn't there, he would've drove through a house as he was going so fast on a normal 90 degree turn. I walked away without even a scratch, but if I was on a motorcycle, I probably would've been FUBAR. I even still went to a brewery that I was heading to and met up with friends about 45 minutes after the collision. It really doesn't make sense that driving without a seat belt is against the law when a motorcycle is so much less safe than driving a car without a seat belt.

 

[JohnnyDelRay]

snipped

Moving your head that far is just a way to set the mirrors, you don't have to move you head like that when looking in them while driving. After seeing the Ford Focus commercial, it was my 1st time looking any of this stuff up. I didn't set my mirrors by how the video shows you; I set my mirrors in a normal driving position at stoplights so you can perfectly set the mirrors while both being stationary and having cars where they realistically will be when having to change lanes. If you do have to turn your head, you can have a situation where the guy in front of you slams on their brakes while your head is turned whereas if you look in the mirror you can see both the car on your side and the car in front of you. Like I said, I have my mirrors set up perfect to where when the car enters my peripheral vision, the very back of the car is still in my mirror thus there is no gap to where the car will be out of the mirror and out of my peripheral vision at the same time. What I see in my mirror is the same thing I'd see if I turned my head, that's what mirrors do is show you exactly what's there.

I don't understand why anyone would ride a motorcycle. I recently got creamed by a guy going 40mph right into my drivers side doors, he was running from the cops and ran a stop sign right into me. If I wasn't there, he would've drove through a house as he was going so fast on a normal 90 degree turn. I walked away without even a scratch, but if I was on a motorcycle, I probably would've been FUBAR. I even still went to a brewery that I was heading to and met up with friends about 45 minutes after the collision. It really doesn't make sense that driving without a seat belt is against the law when a motorcycle is so much less safe than driving a car without a seat belt.

Fair enough, I guess my interpretation of the video was a bit off. I guess I couldn't also possibly fathom arranging my pathetic mirrors in a way that I could eliminate blind spots without some physical movement, but I will definitely give it a shot when I get my car back. Ironically, she's in the shop right now from an accident.

I think you shouldn't have to look that long to check your blindspot to hinder yourself reacting to a car braking in front of you, but there is always a gap where that could happen should someone do an emergency brake. Half a second is plenty of time for shit to go down when travelling at highway speeds. You can never tell, really...I mean I was just rearended badly from having to do an emergency stop to someone pulling out without looking, ended up getting smashed from the back and forcing me into the car in front, effed up sandwich situation which left me screwed.

Totally agree on the motorbike thing, but here (Indonesia) it's simply a matter of poverty and convenience. Bikes are affordable with as low as a $50 deposit, and the easiest way to get through the monstrous traffic jams. As much as I've been obsessed with them, I definitely wouldn't brave the roads out here, literally everyone I know who rides/rode has messed up their life at some point due to stacking it, getting injured, or straight up dying. My dad's witnessed a road rage incident where a biker tried to smack off a car's mirror, ended up missing, falling off, sliding into opposing traffic and rolled over by a truck. Of course, he didn't live to regret that mistake.

 

[Fijiman]

My blind spots are anywhere I'm not currently looking. That being said, I've got my mirrors adjusted to where I can comfortably see most of the cars around me without needing to twist my until I actually plan on switching lanes.

 

[Laughing Man]

My instructor never said you have to look over your shoulder to change lanes. He even let me purposefully cut off people that were driving wrong in fact.

Let me get this right, the guy who encouraged you to put you and your vehicle in dangerous situations to stop drivers who HE deemed to be in the wrong is also the guy who neglected to tell you to check blind spot before pulling away and changing lanes? Well I guess that's Jenga right there then.

Only thing left to say is this

Rule 267 of the UK Highway Code

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/motorways-253-to-273

4th point

take a quick sideways glance into the blind spot area to verify the position of a vehicle that may have disappeared from your view in the mirror

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I think you shouldn't have to look that long to check your blindspot to hinder yourself reacting to a car braking in front of you, but there is always a gap where that could happen should someone do an emergency brake. Half a second is plenty of time for shit to go down when travelling at highway speeds. You can never tell, really...I mean I was just rearended badly from having to do an emergency stop to someone pulling out without looking, ended up getting smashed from the back and forcing me into the car in front, effed up sandwich situation which left me screwed.

There are times when you want to change lanes but the car next to you is just close enough and you're trying to just get that extra bit of space and either you have to look longer than you want or make several quick looks. Whereas I can just look in the mirror the whole time while seeing ahead of me in those situations.

My instructor never said you have to look over your shoulder to change lanes. He even let me purposefully cut off people that were driving wrong in fact.

Let me get this right, the guy who encouraged you to put you and your vehicle in dangerous situations to stop drivers who HE deemed to be in the wrong is also the guy who neglected to tell you to check blind spot before pulling away and changing lanes? Well I guess that's Jenga right there then.

Only thing left to say is this

Rule 267 of the UK Highway Code

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/motorways-253-to-273

4th point

take a quick sideways glance into the blind spot area to verify the position of a vehicle that may have disappeared from your view in the mirror

My instructor was pretty old school type of guy. He told us to make sure the lane was clear when changing lanes, he didn't say you HAD to look over your shoulder because you don't need to do that. He didn't encourage cutting off drivers but I would turn right when the guy across from me was turning left (cutting them off sometimes) as I would stay the right most lane while the other guy turning left wouldn't stay in his left most lane. For good traffic flow, you should have people turning left and right onto the same road (2+ lanes obviously) at the same time. He didn't encourage doing that but he didn't say not to do it either because the other driver was turning improperly.

Those are guidelines, not rules. Are you going to say experts in the field of automobile safety saying side mirrors can eliminate all blindspots are wrong? The side mirrors are engineered to see what's next to you, it's just that most drivers don't set their mirrors correctly.

 

[Glongpre]

lmao, do you know what could also save your life youtube guy? Looking out the window to see if there is a car there.

Woah!!
The more you know!
Knowledge is power!

Frankly, not looking out the window is dangerous. Plus, you should be able to see down your car so that you can see bicyclists (on city streets).

Also, wouldn't there still be a blind spot with the youtube guys configuration? or can your peripheral now see the car? Even if your peripheral could see the car, I wouldn't trust it, it is peripheral after all. You should always look out the window to check to see if there is someone beside you. It is just common sense.

It takes a split second glance or two.

If you rear end someone, that just means you were driving too close to them. Maybe don't be in such a rush, and drive safer.

 

[KyuubiNoKitsune-Hime]

Yeah, the using wing mirrors to eliminate blind spots is a myth, an extremely dangerous myth at that too.

All four of my cousins believed in this stupidity, all four of them have run people out of their lanes, or side swiped another car while I was in their car. The myth is untrue and I feel that believing this particular myth should make people ineligible for a driver's license.