
How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot” - harshulpandav
http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~gdguo/driving/BlindSpot.htm
======
ummonk
There are smaller things (bicycles, motorcycles, pedestrians) that can sneak
into the gap between the side and rearview mirror views here. And colliding
with one of those is much more likely to cause serious injury or death than
colliding with a car.

It's a much better idea to make sure your side and rear mirrors have complete
coverage (i.e. no gaps) at the back, and actually turning your head to check
the blind spot. Make a habit of doing this on every lane switch or turn, even
if you think you're at the side of the road - there may be a bike lane or
crosswalk you didn't notice, or someone might be simply be using a nonexistant
lane of travel.

A good way to adjust your mirrors is to have someone walk by your car, and
make sure you can see them in either your rear or side mirrors, and make a
note of where you need to look for the blind spot.

Of course, even if you make sure the side and rear mirrors provide complete
rear coverage, that doesn't always keep things safe - some cyclists and
motorcyclists seem to like to jump out from behind a vehicle to lane-split and
then get mad when they see you switching lanes in front of them...

~~~
mveety
This is fantastic advice. The only thing I can really add is you should be
keeping track of what’s around you, don’t look just before a lane change.
Having good situational awareness is the most important thing when driving.

~~~
wahern
I used to emphasize and practice that, back when I drove a '93 Honda Civic. It
was a useful skill as I would naturally adjust my speed to prevent cars from
cruising in my blind spot or to give myself more room for maneuvering.

But newer cars have such poor visibility that it takes too much effort to
track movement such that it becomes a diversion. In my '93 Civic any kind of
movement in my peripheral--direct or in the mirror--registered immediately;
and that peripheral was wide and tall and clear. It was also easier to hear
the road and traffic, which also helped. Newer cars make you feel like you're
entombed and deaden the senses, compounding the problem.

I know part of my degraded situational awareness is getting older, but since
we keep a '98 Civic for when I have to commute by car, I have an idea about
which changes are more objective than subjective. The sight lines in the '98
Civic aren't as great as the '93, but still incomparable to the post-2010 cars
I've leased or rented. I drive both our family car (new lease every 2-3 years)
and the '98 in roughly equal proportion and pretty much all of my unforced
traffic errs have been in newer cars. (The most egregious of which are not
noticing pedestrians about to cross at a four-way intersection. Modern A
pillars seem deviously sized and placed to perfectly obscure the far corners
of an intersection. Though I suppose these are the errs I'm most likely to
notice as the pedestrians are revealed the moment you begin to enter the
intersection from a stop. Most other potential collisions probably go
unnoticed.)

Thankfully this year we finally leased a car with lane departure warning. It
hasn't actually prevented an unforced err, yet, but I'm glad it's there. (I
know it's there because it'll beep if there's an adjacent car when I initiate
signaling, even if I'm not moving into the lane. If a car sneaks up after
signaling it only warns when you begin the lane change.)

~~~
rhacker
Definitely true about newer cars. My wife and I shop for cars specifically
looking at the back window being small and raised too high as an automatic NO.
We last bought in 2011, and the car has one of the largest back windows on the
road today. I don't know what we're going to do when it's time for an upgrade.

~~~
Fronzie
Is it newer cars or newer US cars? I've driven a fair amount of rentals in
both US and Europe and I'm always amazed at how big the blind spot is in the
US.

In Europe the smallest car typically does not fit in the blind spot, in the US
a pick up truck fits in there.

------
wcarron
There's an even simpler, more effective way of checking blind spots: Actually
turning ones head and looking over the shoulder.

The "blind spot" doesn't exist when drivers exercise proper caution and
responsible driving behavior.

Of course, expecting this of drivers is unrealistically utopian. Nevertheless,
a "blind spot" is just another excuse for unsafe drivers.

~~~
tinbad
This is an integral part of a driving exam in the Netherlands. You are drilled
to look over the shoulder for literally every maneuver (lane switch, turn,
etc.) and if you fail to do it even once during the driving exam you will get
a fail. In other news: driving test in the US is a complete joke.

~~~
baddox
Then again, in my US driving test I was penalized (I still passed the test)
for not looking over my shoulder before one lane change. It was a two-lane
one-way road with zero traffic. There's no way a car could've gotten there
without me seeing it in my mirrors unless it had been dropped from the air
into my blind spot. I'm definitely not still bitter.

~~~
kazinator
I've had plenty of moments in my 33 years as a driver where a vehicle dropped
out of the sky and into my blind spot; they just do that!

The problem is that your attention isn't riveted on the mirrors at all times.

If you have been sternly monitoring the mirrors in the previous fraction of a
minute, then such a hypothesis does hold.

In road tests, you have to do everything by the book, though.

They want to see that you've developed the habit of checking. The habit will
save you that time when your don't-have-to-do-it hypothesis happens to have a
flaw.

~~~
AceyMan
> _The problem is that your attention isn 't riveted on the mirrors at all
> times._

This is mitigated by what pilots call their "scan" or "flow" (I've heard both
terms).

Pilots follow a visual path around the instruments to ensure they refresh
their awareness of critical values and system states (airspeed, ascent rate,
engine parameters, etc.) at appropriate intervals¹.

I argue that drivers should have a similar flow to maintain constant
situational awareness, and side mirrors are a key element in such a pattern.

I also have a pre-drive checklist that I call the "Six Ls" —

Lights (obvi), Locks (obvi) , Levels (fuel, oil press, electrical supply,
etc.), Laps (seat belts), Load (cargo secured?), Loud (radio down/pax calm).

/Acey

¹—With automatic alerting in modern planes this arguably is not strictly
needed, but pilots start in small, simple planes before moving up the tech
stack and it's a good practice at any level.

~~~
kazinator
How much does the roster of what pilots are constantly scanning have to do
with what is happening to the rear of the airplane's path of travel?

Pilots don't have the problem of a child jumping into their path from between
parked cars.

They can fly blind in a complete fog, by instruments.

In a car, your attention should be mostly toward the front. The rear action
deserves attention, but not a lot; just a glance every few seconds.

There are times in driving when what is happening rearward is very important
and deserves a lot of attention; it's generally good to keep those to a
minimum.

------
ssambros
People who drove cars in the EU and in the USA: did you ever notice how the
blind spot problem almost completely disappears in the EU? That's because US
enforces in the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard #111 [1] that the left
side rear view mirror cannot be convex, to aid the detection of the vehicles
in the blind spot. I have not yet come up with a good understanding of why
that regulation even exists, but personally I feel much safer on the road with
the European type rear view mirrors.

[1] 49 CFR 571.111 Rear visibility

S5.2 Outside rearview mirror - driver's side.

S5.2.1 Field of view. Each passenger car shall have an outside mirror of unit
magnification [2].

[2] 'Unit magnification' mirror means a plane or flat mirror with a reflective
surface through which the angular height and width of the image of an object
is equal to the angular height and width of the object when viewed directly at
the same distance except for flaws that do not exceed normal manufacturing
tolerances.

------
hitpointdrew
This is one of those things that most people do wrong and just aren't
comfortable doing it the correct way. I tried to get my mother to setup her
mirrors correctly but she just puts them back to an improper setup. For some
reason people can't get past not being able to see the side of their own
vehicle in their side mirrors. They think they need this reference point.
Drivers education should really be pushing this so at least new drivers will
setup their mirrors correctly.

~~~
nickm12
This is so true. I was fortunate to learn about the technique described in the
article when I learned to drive in high school and have used it for the past
25 years. However, I've completely failed to ever convince anyone else that
this is the right way to do it. I've mainly tried it with people I shared a
car with, first my parents and later my wife. They are so insistent on wanting
to see the side of the car, but can't explain why that matters. My only hope
is to indoctrinate my children when they start driving.

------
rrock
No. A thousand times no. I did this, on the advice of “Click” and “Clack” the
CarTalk brothers. Shortly after, I backed into a short concrete pillar and
messed up my left rear fender. The pillar was too short to see out of the back
window, but I would have seen it if my side mirrors were set correctly as they
reach you in school. You have to see where your fenders are going. Imagine if
it was a small child back there instead of a pillar.

~~~
freetime2
Yeah I also worry this advice would make it harder to back up. I drive a large
minivan and use my side view mirrors all the time to check if I’m going to hit
something when backing up. That would be a lot harder if I were not able to
see my own car in the mirror.

Although I guess all you would need to do to see your own car in the mirror
would be to lean to the side a bit... so maybe not a big deal.

------
Havoc
I can deal with blindspots.

What boggles my mind is that some modern cars still have abnormally large
ones. Cars with bad crash ratings get shat on but apparently designs with
massive blindspots are totally OK.

~~~
justtopost
Indeed. It puzzles me too how an A-pillar large enough to disapear a
motorcycle, or group of children, is somehow accepted as safe. Our
indescriminate push for safely has taken control from our hands in many
contexts it seems.

~~~
pps43
Passive safety. A-pillar might be so bulky because it contains curtain airbag
and provides structural stability necessary for good crash rating.

~~~
muzika
Airbags don’t go into the A pillars typically - they start at about the top of
the windshield, and when they blow the headliner tears, but not the plastic
covering the A pillar.

~~~
pps43
You can see at 0:44 here
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pl4-cO6pO34](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pl4-cO6pO34)
that a portion of the side airbag is in the upper part of the A pillar. Here's
what under the cover:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHRZcmA1A9U](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHRZcmA1A9U)

------
mattmg83
Related concepts, in the Netherlands they taught everyone to open their car
door with the right hand, which makes your head turn and improves odds of
spotting a cyclist.

[https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/dec/16/how-to-
sa...](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/dec/16/how-to-safely-open-
a-car-door-dutch-style)

~~~
drxzcl
I was taught (in the Netherlands) to hold the door with your right hand while
you release the latch with the left. The benefit is not only turning the torso
to see cyclists, but also holding on to the door in case there's a gust of
wind.

The latter has saved the neighbor's car door a number of times.

------
11thEarlOfMar
I've been aligning my mirrors like this for years. I prefer it because I can
see cars in immediate adjacent positions without turning my head. It's
particularly helpful in situations where I need to very quickly assess the
situation, such as unexpected debris on the road and little time to react.

As noted, however, motorcycles can draw up unseen. But more often, when it
fails, it's a car two lanes over to my rear that changes lanes towards me at
the same time I do. it can go completely unseen. So I always do a head check,
time permitting.

~~~
Noumenon72
Yes. I always turn my head before I switch lanes, but I much more frequently
am just aware that I don't need to turn my head because there is someone
beside me. And you gain continuous situational awareness that means you pretty
much always know which way you can go if you have to.

I also have had more surprise cars coming up next to me than motorcycles,
because they're so rare and they don't come ut in the winter.

------
chooseaname
My father taught me this forever ago when I was learning to drive.

If this is done correctly, as a vehicle is coming up on, say, the left of you,
as it is leaving your rear view mirror, it's entering the side view mirror. It
should actually be in BOTH mirrors simultaneously. There's no blind spot.

------
OxO4
Fun fact: European driver-side mirrors actually have a larger FOV than their
US counterparts. It took me a while to get used to that when I moved to the
US. I ended up buying some small blind spot mirrors that can be stuck onto the
car's mirrors. I've been pretty happy with that solution (in combination with
looking over my shoulder).

------
lmilcin
I have used this advice for the past decade and I could not recommend it more.
After just few days of driving like that I could not believe how it was
possible for me to drive with incorrectly set mirrors like 99÷ of car drivers.

~~~
tarabanga
I see many comments complaining about almost hitting bikes while using this
method. How is your experience?

~~~
lmilcin
Okay, so the important thing to understand that with this method your mirrors
don't overlap. Before, you could ignore your rear view mirror and just look in
the side mirror to get the same coverage but slightly extended on that side.
With correctly set mirrors you absolutely have to use both rear view mirror
and the side mirror if you want to change the lane or are looking for a
cyclist when turning.

I made some tests when I first started. I parked my car parallel to the street
and observed when cars move from behind they move out of the rear view mirror
and start appearing in side mirror before wholly disappear from rear view
mirror.

With bicycles it is more difficult, not all parts of bicycle are easy to spot.
If you just get a rear part or front wheel in the mirror you might miss it (it
may be below your vision if you have SUV or have mirrors set bit high). For
this reason I have my side mirrors set low, which also aides backing up when
parking.

It is also important to look at your mirrors correctly. If you look for things
moving faster than you, which is most of the time (for example when you are
changing lanes or looking for cyclists when turning right) then you need to
first look into the rear view mirror and then to side mirror, in that order.

I taught myself to scan all mirrors constantly when driving to have a map of
all cars and their relative positions and velocities around me. It is tiring
at the beginning but it means I am rarely surprised by normally moving cars
(ie. not doing any stupid manouvers). It is very helpful when you need to
suddenly swerve and you can frequently anticipate problems other drivers have
and accommodate.

------
deathanatos
Am I the only one that doesn't find the blind spot to be where this article
puts it? (Between the side mirror and the rear mirror's coverage areas.) I can
(barely) see the entire side of my car in my side mirror; anything closer to
behind me is going to appear in the rear mirror. The part I have trouble with
is the _other_ side of the side mirror, that is, the forward part of its
coverage. A car can sit forward of what the mirror can see, but not yet in my
peripheral vision.

So I turn my head when merging, to clear that area.

(Perhaps I have my side mirror pointing further "back" than the article?)

~~~
arnarbi
Yes, the point of the article is to adjust the side mirrors further out in
order to shrink the regular blind spot (the same one you are talking about).

I disagree with that though, for two reasons:

1\. You don't eliminate the blind spot, only shrink it. Depending on your car,
the FoV of the mirrors, and the size of the other vehicle, you might still
have a large enough blind spot so that your peripheral vision doesn't have it
once it leaves the side mirror.

2\. It risks creating an even more dangerous blind spot behind you (the one
between the mirror views). Maybe not large enough for a car, but definitely
for a motorcycle. This one is much harder to catch even if you turn your head.

I think every driver should turn their head, always.

------
cafebeen
These seem like good guidelines, although I would add that drivers should also
be aware of other cars that may merge from the side, so you cannot depend
entirely on the mirrors. This happens quite frequently in heavy traffic when
folks are eager to take any space available

~~~
techopoly
Agreed, drivers often do not check for this. If I'm merging into a lane, I
prefer to do so when not sliding next to another car. If it's inevitable, I do
it slowly.

~~~
deathanatos
Yes! I wish more people thought like this.

I've more than once been signaling a merge and had the car two lanes over
attempt the opposite merge right into the space I'm signaling into, often when
I'm already partially in it, without signaling. I'm very wary of merging next
to someone now for that reason.

------
erobbins
I've almost been hit by so many idiots who don't turn their heads and just
trust their stupid mirrors, I want to have 5 minutes alone in a locked room
with whoever wrote this article.

------
Johnny555
I rented a car once that had blind spot cameras in the outside rear view
mirrors -- when you turn on the turn signal, it displayed the camera's view in
the multifunction display in the middle of the dashboard.

It had a better field of view than the mirror, and made it very easy to see if
there's a bike or pedestrian beside you. Since it was just a rental, out of
habit I still turned my head to look, but it seemed like a useful. I think it
even flashed and beeped a warning if there was someone in the blind spot, but
that may have only worked for cars.

I think these systems should be required for trucks and other large vehicles
that have a large blind spot.

[http://www.carblogmy.com/honda-blindspot-display-
system/](http://www.carblogmy.com/honda-blindspot-display-system/)

------
parfamz
Is it legal to have European style mirrors in the us? I almost crashed due to
the stupid American bathroom mirrors.

------
huffmsa
Exactly how we were taught to set the mirrors in drivers ed.

They don't teach it in Wisconsin. Nor do they teach how to use blinkers, or to
deal with multiple people coming up to a stop sign controlled intersection.

But I digress.

------
AngryData
This is how you end up thinking you don't have blindspots and end up hitting
someone/something. Blind spots need to be checked by turning your head unless
you have 4 inch round fisheye mirrors that would fit equally well on a
dumptruck or semi-truck. Those little tiny spot mirrors on consumer cars?
Those are 4/5 times complete garbage and don't give nearly enough vision. If
someone walks behind your car, at no point in time should they disappear
without moving your head even for a fraction of a second.

------
Lucent
I looked at some other "tips" in the folder and found this:
[http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~gdguo/driving/RoadMarkings.htm](http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~gdguo/driving/RoadMarkings.htm)
which suggests it's OK to turn into any lane, near or far. That's not
acceptable in my state. You must turn into the nearest lane.

------
hyperrail
[Never mind the next para. See child comment I replied to]

In driving school, I was taught to adjust my side mirrors exactly the way
described here: rear view mirror points to rear, side mirrors just barely show
the side of the car. And still there are blind spots in every car I've driven,
no matter how much "fine tuning" I do.

This is why blind spot warning systems are a must in any new car I consider
buying.

~~~
andrewla
You might have misread this -- the way that you learned is the traditional
way. The way described on this page, you do _not_ see your own car at all in
the side view mirror.

~~~
hyperrail
Ah I see, you're right. I didn't understand what the author meant when he said
you have to lean to one side when adjusting that side's mirror.

------
Zelphyr
I have a seven year-old Prius and the support columns on the left and right of
the windshield are huge. I can't count the number of times I'll be pulling up
to a stop sign only to stop and freak out when a pedestrian walks right in
front of me. See, they're walking across the cross-walk at a pace that seems
to match my slow speed but they're behind that giant support column so I don't
see them until I've stopped. Usually, they're freaking out too and
mouthing/gesturing bad things at me for not stopping sooner. This, of course,
coupled with the fact that they were probably looking at their phone and
couldn't hear me because at that speed, the engine has shut off.

The instructions in this post are great and I'm going to follow them the next
time I get in my car. Still, I hope Toyota and other manufacturers start
making pedestrian detection systems and blind spot information systems
standard in all vehicles soon.

------
karmakaze
Side mirrors are called that either because they're mounted on the sides, or
to see what's beside you. Specifically they're not there so you can see the
sides of your own car.

As mentioned in other comments, what you seen in side mirrors are for
situational awareness. When performing a manoeuvre, turn your head around to
get the best view.

------
fierybanana
Here's a paper going into some technical details of blind spots and how to
overcome them:

[https://doi.org/10.4271/950601](https://doi.org/10.4271/950601)

The Geometry of Automotive Rearview Mirrors - Why Blind Zones Exist and
Strategies to Overcome Them

~~~
tacon
Googling that paper turned up an interesting summary of innovations in side
mirrors, etc.

[https://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/18/are-blind-
spots-...](https://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/18/are-blind-spots-a-
myth/)

------
rdiddly
If this eliminates the blind spot, what's the white stripe in the 2nd
illustration, between the side and rear mirror views? _It 's the blind spot._
And someone on foot, on a bicycle, or on a motorcycle can fit in it. Turn your
head, lazy-ass.

------
seshagiric
I like how some new cars automatically switch on side cameras the moment you
turn on the indicators. Safety Features like these should be mandatory in all
vehicles just like seat belts.

On a side note I follow the practice described in the article and found it
quite useful.

------
mstade
My driving instructor in Sweden gave me a rhyme to remember. It consisted of
only three words: blicken, pilen, filen. It literally translates to: the view,
the signal, the lane – in that order. Basically you always look through the
mirrors first and take a glance to the side your changing lanes into to cover
the blind spot, then if it's safe you turn on the signal, and then you switch
lanes. It's not entirely accurate, since you need to keep an eye on things all
the time, but it's helped me develop a routine that's pretty much impossible
to break these days. It's almost like I scan still hear him, 10+ years later.
He was a great instructor.

~~~
mlillie
US equivalent is SMOG: Signal, Mirrors, Over the shoulder, Go when safe.

Not sure whether it is better to signal before or after looking, but that was
what my partner's driving instructor taught.

~~~
mstade
The point of looking first, as explained by my instructor, was to not freak
out other drivers by signaling first. They might think you're going to
suddenly pop out of the lane, spooking them to either speed up or slow down,
or perhaps swirving, causing an accident that way. By looking first to make
sure things are clear, you mitigate this risk. Of course, in heavy traffic
this is still an issue; but heavy traffic typically means lower speeds as well
so not necessarily as dangerous. That's the bit that comes with experience I
suppose, learning when more attention is necessary.

~~~
singingboyo
My thought is that signaling before the full check gives the other driver a
chance to make sure they're comfortable with and prepared for the change, but
obviously you want to know they're there already.

I think the missing point in that SMOG acronym is general awareness. I don't
know if they teach this, but I won't signal unless I'm already quite sure I'm
lined up with a clear space I want to get into. But, once I'm aligned and
think I'm good, I'll signal, double check mirrors, shoulder check, and then
go. The only new info that gives is the shoulder check, and if you're paying
attention a shoulder check should never surprise you.

If you need to change lanes within the next 30 seconds, and don't already have
general knowledge of the destination lane's status, you've screwed up already.
[1] It makes much more sense to consider checking after signaling if it's a
double-check, not your first look at what's around you.

------
jve
Additional advice: 1\. Buy additional spherical mirrors. I bought them for
sole reason to see blind spot and they are great. There are oval ones like
[https://www.amazon.com/Blind-Spot-Mirror-Convex-Mirrors-
GUAR...](https://www.amazon.com/Blind-Spot-Mirror-Convex-Mirrors-
GUARANTEED/dp/B0093LYB20) but I actually found additional small spherical
mirrors and added them. They mount on existing mirror.

2\. Change lanes slowly so if I didn't notice someone, he can dodge or horn
me.

Those blind spot indicator ligts surely help on newer cars, but I don't have
them. I know that it is possible to buy those too.

------
InclinedPlane
1\. Adjust your side mirrors so they have minimal overlap in coverage, which
means you get maximum overall field of view.

2\. Check your mirrors routinely (though not constantly, that can be
distracting in itself). Stuff doesn't just sneak up on you out of nowhere,
unless you aren't paying attention. Cars can't materialize in your blind spot,
they have to drive there, and if you're paying attention you'll see them,
you'll know where they are even when you can't see them in your mirrors
directly. Don't just use your mirrors as a final check as you are changing
lanes or making a turn, use them to maintain situational awareness around you.

3\. Check your blindspot by turning your head and _looking_ at it with your
eyes _before_ you make a lane change or turn. This is your last minute double
check that your situational awareness map of what's around you is accurate. If
you've been paying attention then this check will almost always be what you
expect, but it's still valuable to double check (the belt and suspenders
strategy).

4\. (actually number zero) STOP FOLLOWING SO CLOSELY. Drive defensively, leave
a decent gap ahead of you, don't drive for extended periods of time side by
side with other vehicles (especially much bigger ones). This sets you up for
success instead of setting you up for failure, it means you have a buffer on
your reaction time. If you have an extra second or two of reaction time in
addition to your emergency braking distance ahead of you then even if the car
ahead of you comes to a dead stop right when you have your head turned for a
split second to check your blind spot then you will _still_ be able to come to
a stop without hitting them when you bring your head back and react to what's
going on, for example. Stack the odds in your favor, not against them. And
don't let yourself be ruled by the dumb primitive impulses that tell you
driving a car is always a race and you need to "win" and be aggressive and
dominate others, etc, it's not any of those things, relax, concentrate on
getting where you need to be safely.

P.S. Not checking your blind spots by turning your head is illegal in most
states.

------
null000
I've been doing this for years. TBC - it doesn't eliminate the need to check
your blind spot anyway (as many have mentioned) - just makes it more likely
that you catch something moving unexpectedly into your blind spot, or you
catch it before turning to look.

Also, the positioning is difficult to get used to, since you kinda have to
trust it blindly (you can't get a good idea for where it's positioned based on
seeing the side of your car) and then also it's just awful positioning for
parking. Not to mention, anyone else using or sharing your car will complain
to no end about the weird mirror positions.

------
realnameme
I read this article on Hacker News a while back and it seems on target to give
pause for thought. I recommend reading it to understand more about saccades.
This phenomenon may also help explain some accidents. Cheers, link next
[https://www.portsmouthctc.org.uk/a-fighter-pilots-guide-
to-s...](https://www.portsmouthctc.org.uk/a-fighter-pilots-guide-to-surviving-
on-the-roads/)

------
donclark
I bought these to try to help lessen the blind spot:
[https://www.ebay.com/itm/Adjustable-Blind-Spot-Mirror-
Wide-A...](https://www.ebay.com/itm/Adjustable-Blind-Spot-Mirror-Wide-Angle-
Rear-View-Car-Side-Mirror-with-
Adhesive/273433031968?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649)

------
wtmt
In India, rear view mirrors with a wider view have been available as "clip on"
options for a long time. If those are made standard in cars (instead of as
addons), the specific "blind spot" problem would instantly disappear. Many of
these aren't even highly convex, and so don't create much of a distance
perception problem.

------
janci
The problem with any adjustment is that he car can just pass from one view to
another just between you refocus your eyes between them (ie. from rear to side
mirror, from side mirror to side window).

The solution is panoramatic rear view mirror (you can see thru the rear plus
backseat side windows) and side mirrors with curved section that pretty much
eliminate the blind spot

~~~
danjayh
GM has a fantastic camera enhanced rear-view mirror that solves a lot of these
blind-spot problems ...

[http://gmauthority.com/blog/gm/general-motors-
technology/gm-...](http://gmauthority.com/blog/gm/general-motors-
technology/gm-safety-technology/gm-active-safety-technology/gm-rear-camera-
mirror/)

Hope it catches on. Can't wait till it's on more makes/models.

~~~
oftenwrong
>Researchers and engineers working on the GM Rear Camera Mirror have been
awarded 10 patents – one for the streaming video mirror and nine for video
processing. The patents cover innovations in the wide field of view camera
image calibration, de-warping, glare reduction and camera hardware design.

I assume that this will add some friction to adoption of similar video mirrors
by other automakers.

------
jimbobimbo
I drive cars that get a bad rep for visibility. This is the advice on mirror
adjustment I swear by: [https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a15131074/how-
to-adjus...](https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a15131074/how-to-adjust-
your-mirrors-to-avoid-blind-spots/)

------
pishpash
This whole discussion is aggravating. There would be no blind spot if there
were two mirrors per side, or those blind spot mirrors, or god forbid, space-
remapping cameras or proximity detectors (which now are standard on some
cars). It's at the end a cost issue.

------
amatecha
Yeah for years I've already done what the link mentions -- basically make the
side mirrors point quite some way out. Depending on the vehicle you may have a
small "blind spot" still, which is why you _always shoulder check_ before
changing lanes or turning!

------
trumpeta
Similar topic was discussed on HN a while back:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17900759](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17900759)
I'm surprised it hasn't been mentioned yet.

------
aidenn0
I cannot adjust my mirrors this way in my new car (they do not go sufficiently
far "away" from the side of my vehicle). Had I noticed before buying it, I
would have not bought it, but I'm stuck with it now.

------
jccalhoun
I saw this in a magazine years ago and have been doing it ever since. Last
semester I was driving university cars a couple days a week and I would
sometimes be amazed at how people had the side mirrors set up.

------
sizzle
Lane change assist alerting in modern cars has saved me from hitting cars in
my blind spot, this tech makes a beeping alert when you hit the turn signal
and a car is in the lane you are signaling towards.

------
sys_64738
George McFly's vehicle had a blind spot according to Biff!

------
blattimwind
> must have been in the Insured's blind spot, therefore it was an unavoidable
> accident

No shoulder check => gross negligence => revoke license

------
kpsychwave
Blind spot mirrors solve this issue, and they are very cheap. I am surprised
they are not mandated by manufacturers.

~~~
Nadya
They look ugly and people don't want them. It should be mandated by law, much
like seatbelts IMO.

~~~
snotrockets
Current US legislation forces those blind spots by requiring the driver side
mirror to not distort distances. Change that law to match the rest of the
world, where the blind sports are much smaller:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wing_mirror#Planar.2C_convex.2...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wing_mirror#Planar.2C_convex.2C_aspheric)
(and if you drive a car that has a EU-equivalent model, sometimes you can
import EU mirrors. Best $100 I spent on my VW).

And while you're at it, also match the headlights with the ECE, such as to not
blind oncoming traffic:
[https://web.archive.org/web/20170120092812/http://www.motive...](https://web.archive.org/web/20170120092812/http://www.motivemag.com/pub/feature/tech/Motive_Tech_The_Difference_Between_US_and_European_Lights.shtml)

~~~
u801e
> And while you're at it, also match the headlights with the ECE

It's too bad that's not an option for most non-European makes. That is, if you
have an Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Volkswagen, etc, they're relatively easy to
obtain and install. If you have an Asian or American make (Honda, Ford, etc.),
it's probably not an option since the overseas models may have a different
shape for the headlamp assembly (making it difficult, if not impossible, to
install them in the equivalent domestic model).

------
dominotw
anyone try the new lcd rearview mirrors. some of them claim no blindspot.
[https://www.amazon.com/Master-Tailgaters-Mirror-Adjusting-
Br...](https://www.amazon.com/Master-Tailgaters-Mirror-Adjusting-
Brightness/dp/B06XHQ1QXX/)

------
justapassenger
Blind spot can be greatly reduced. Just take a look at convex, wide-angle
mirrors that cars have in EU.

------
Jagat
A blindspot mirror costs $5. I'm really surprised it's not mandated by law in
the US.

------
BXLE_1-1-BitIs1
Been doing that for over 20 years.

------
stefan_
"Blind spots" are a sociological device to absolve motorists of responsibility
for dangerous driving.

~~~
wffurr
"Oh I didn't see them officer." "Oh I mistook the gas for the brake." "They
came out of nowhere." "I didn't have time to stop."

etc. etc. etc.

The excuses for irresponsible dangerous driving behavior are endless.

I yelled at someone for not stopping for a mother and stroller in a crosswalk.
The driver said she didn't see them. I said that meant they were going too
fast. They said no, they weren't, they just couldn't see them. It was
impossible to get through to this person that if you didn't see someone _in
the crosswalk_ then they were going too fast and not paying enough attention.

Simply amazing. I try not to think about it too hard or I'll never leave the
house.

The approach of the original post, blind spots for motorcycles and bicycles
aside, is at least taking responsibility on the part of the driver to change
behavior and drive safely. Every "accident" has a cause, somewhere down the
line.

------
adrr
Works only if lane splitting for motorcycles isn't allowed. You need to be
able to see between lanes and the rearview can be obscured by a close
following vehicle you.

~~~
snarf21
It also means you always need to re-adjust your mirrors for parking,
especially for more urban areas. I don't understand why a portion of the
mirror can't simply be made convex. There are lots of aftermarket adhesive
ones that do exactly this.

~~~
moolcool
I bought a used car and it came with the sticky convex ones applied. Never
going to go without them again, they should totally be mandatory. So simple,
so effective

~~~
jnicholasp
This, exactly. I don't understand why these aren't required stock equipment on
all cars.

