Is it just me or are support posts in cars these days really wide?

[just Warren]

Right, it's a misleading title because I know it's not just me.

Because of "safety" improvements passengers can better survive rollovers, but we are giving up a lot of visibility.

I have an Equinox and it's taken me a shamefully long time to realize just how much I can't see out of it compared to previous vehicles I've owned.

So how many people have been saved from rollover injuries versus how many people have been injured due to lower visibility? 

[dm1333]

I'll take the safety features and deal with less visibility.  I've never had an accident caused by visibility but safety features probably saved my butt in two accidents.

[HankB]

When car shopping, I've rejected some models because of poor outward visibility.

[Doggy Daddy]

If you're aware of a blind spot, you can mitigate it.

edit to add:

I believe most people do not adjust their left and right outside mirrors properly.  If you're old-school and adjust them to see a bit of the sides of your car, you're doing it wrong.

Here is a good description of proper mirror "tuning".  I've been doing it this way for years.  Works great.  Note: I do not use this method on larger (longer) vehicles where a visual of your off-tracking is needed.

https://www.scottsfortcollinsauto.com/tips-for-adjusting-your-car-mirrors-to-maximize-visibility/

[zxcvbob]

Right, it's a misleading title because I know it's not just me.

Because of "safety" improvements passengers can better survive rollovers, but we are giving up a lot of visibility.

I have an Equinox and it's taken me a shamefully long time to realize just how much I can't see out of it compared to previous vehicles I've owned.

So how many people have been saved from rollover injuries versus how many people have been injured due to lower visibility? 

I have noticed that too.  The blind spots are much larger because the door posts are so wide and in just the wrong place for visibility.  I've had a few near-misses caused by visibility, but never an actual accident.

[just Warren]

Here is a good description of proper mirror "tuning".  I've been doing it this way for years.  Works great.  Note: I do not use this method on larger (longer) vehicles where a visual of your off-tracking is needed.

https://www.scottsfortcollinsauto.com/tips-for-adjusting-your-car-mirrors-to-maximize-visibility/

We're going to try the mirror thing. Thanks.

[BlueStarLizzard]

I have noticed that too.  The blind spots are much larger because the door posts are so wide and in just the wrong place for visibility.  I've had a few near-misses caused by visibility, but never an actual accident.

I also noticed that in newer cars, but the worst have been my Dad's Ford sedans (he's gone through several) My new Kia isn't *really* bad, but it's enough that certain spots on curvy back roads are a bit more hairy than they could be.

The other visibility thing I really don't like in new cars (and this is true of my new Kia, as well as my Mom's Prius) is you can't see the front of your car.   How are you supposed to gauge where your front bumper is when you can't see the hood? From the way they are built I'm guessing this is true of all the smaller sedans.

[BlueStarLizzard]

If you're aware of a blind spot, you can mitigate it.

edit to add:

I believe most people do not adjust their left and right outside mirrors properly.  If you're old-school and adjust them to see a bit of the sides of your car, you're doing it wrong.

Here is a good description of proper mirror "tuning".  I've been doing it this way for years.  Works great.  Note: I do not use this method on larger (longer) vehicles where a visual of your off-tracking is needed.

https://www.scottsfortcollinsauto.com/tips-for-adjusting-your-car-mirrors-to-maximize-visibility/

I'll keep doing it old school. The one techy thing I LOVE in my new car is the blind spot detection warning.

[Northwoods]

Won't be too long before side view mirrors go away and are replaced with camera and display screens.  The will pretty well eliminate the issue with blind spots.  And reduce aero drag by getting rid of the mirrors.

[Doggy Daddy]

We're going to try the mirror thing. Thanks.

Most everyone I've told about that, who followed through on it, has liked it.  I like the recommendation they made to park on the side of a road and watch cars overtake you (on the left?).  You see them first in the interior mirror, then they transition to the outside mirror, then as they leave the outside mirror they appear in your peripheral vision. Setup properly, you are always seeing them in one of the two mirrors on that side or coming in to your peripheral.  Be sure that if you let someone borrow your car you make sure they check the mirror adjustment for them before they drive.

[TommyGunn]

Won't be too long before side view mirrors go away and are replaced with camera and display screens.  The will pretty well eliminate the issue with blind spots.  And reduce aero drag by getting rid of the mirrors.

That will increase the car's aerodynamic drag coefficient by 0.0000113%!   

[French G.]

We're going to try the mirror thing. Thanks.

I've done the mirror thing for twenty years. It is essential. Be very careful at first until you get used to it. I still look over my shoulder too before doing anything radical, especially for motorcycles. It is possible for a car to sneak up on you if it comes from more than a lane away and slightly behind you. Two complimentary techniques are a proper scan of all three mirrors with peripheral awareness and I am a lot happier if I can stay 2-5mph faster than traffic, makes it easier to mentally sort where all the cars are.

As far as the A posts, who cares, see what you need to see and if you don't spend time driving out of the side window you're not trying hard enough. :D on the can't see the front thing, I recommend a long test drive. I rented a Camry once, great car, something about the forward visuals made me feel as if I would fly off the road when in the left lane, damn near gave me motion sickness.

[230RN]

I'll try it, but my main "solution" to blind spots while cruising is to signal with my whole car when changing lanes --that is, change lanes slowly.

Biggest problem I have with blind spots is backing out of a space in a crowded parking lot.

In fact, in my 60+ years of driving , I found fully half of my bendy-bumps have been backing accidents.  The other half have been fronting accidents.

Terry

[freakazoid]

We have an '03 Nissan Cube that has really wide A-Pillars. Makes it very difficult to see when driving on a curving road. Here in Japan there are a lot of curving roads, and the roads are narrower than usual, and in a more residential area the two way roads are often merely a single lane road that are MAYBE a little bit wider than a US one lane road. And there are a lot of people on bikes and walking. I really hate this car.

[Boomhauer]

My Ram isn’t bad at all on visibility. Well sized mirrors are critical. Tiny ones like on my old blazer were *expletive deleted*it (had to drive it after my old truck gave up the ghost while I was finishing school). Damn tiny mirrors on it wouldn’t show a damn thing.

I also adjust mine the right way vs The taught way. Most people don’t realize the amount of visibility you get with well sized and adjusted mirrors and a rear view mirror

Another real issue is idiots who like to sit in the blind spot and match your speed on a multi lane highest

[K Frame]

My 2006 Outback had horrific visibility. One of the main reasons was that the headrests were enormous. You couldn't shoot a look over either shoulder, because where the headrest ended, the door pillar began.

[KD5NRH]

Drove a friend's Honda something or other that had A pillars big enough to hide a cyclist on either side.  Especially bad on the passenger side where cyclists usually are, since it's a bit impractical to lean all the way over there to see them out the side window. Extremely poor design.

[K Frame]

I meant to add that I've added a blind spot mirror to the driver's side mirror on every car I've ever owned.

[MechAg94]

I haven't heard of that technique for adjusting the side mirrors, but I have always tried to angle them a little further out than the side of the vehicle.  I will have to try it.  

Ever since I first got the reverse camera and radar, I have wondered when that would be in place all around the car.  It looks like most car makers are doing it in one form or another.

[Ben]

I haven't heard of that technique for adjusting the side mirrors, but I have always tried to angle them a little further out than the side of the vehicle.  I will have to try it.  

Ever since I first got the reverse camera and radar, I have wondered when that would be in place all around the car.  It looks like most car makers are doing it in one form or another.

I've done the same as you with the side mirrors and am going to try the method at the link to see how/if it changes my current setting.

On the backup camera, it's funny, but I am STILL not used to them, even after years of having them. I'm always still initially turning my head when I back out, then I'll switch to the camera for the "danger lines" only if I'm backing out of a tight spot. But for some reason, my brain won't let me watch the camera from start to finish. My cameras don't have the radar/audio. If they did, I suspect I would look at them even less and just go by the increased beeping if I was getting close to something.

[MechAg94]

I got used to it.  My previous truck's rear camera had been only working about 50% the last 6 months.  I found myself staring at the blank screen when I started to reverse instead of looking at my mirrors.  The Ford F150 has very poor visibility out the rear view mirror for that.  I just bought a Tacoma so we will see how that goes.

[BlueStarLizzard]

I've done the same as you with the side mirrors and am going to try the method at the link to see how/if it changes my current setting.

On the backup camera, it's funny, but I am STILL not used to them, even after years of having them. I'm always still initially turning my head when I back out, then I'll switch to the camera for the "danger lines" only if I'm backing out of a tight spot. But for some reason, my brain won't let me watch the camera from start to finish. My cameras don't have the radar/audio. If they did, I suspect I would look at them even less and just go by the increased beeping if I was getting close to something.

I'll probably be the same. I've only had it for seven months and I'm still automatically looking to the rearview mirror instead of the screen. Mine does have the beeping/rader for people/things crossing behind you, which I have mostly found more annoying than helpful since I've usually spotted it before the car did. It does comes in handy when your parked between two vehicles that you can't see past.
I would like the option to turn on the camera without being in reverse, though. I could see that as being very helpful (especially when the big dog in the back seat has it's big head blocking my rearview mirror  )

[Unisaw]

We have a Honda Fit for running errands around town.  The pillars on the side of the windshield (“A” pillars?) are enormous.  On a sweeping left hand turn, visibility is so poor that you have to actively shift your head from side to side to look around it.  In parking lots, a pedestrian can easily be hidden behind the same pillar.  When we replace it, we’ll pay more attention to this issue.

[Northwoods]

Yes, the pillar at the windshield is the A pillar.  The one between the doors (on a 4 door) is the B pillar.

[Doggy Daddy]

We have a Honda Fit for running errands around town.  The pillars on the side of the windshield (“A” pillars?) are enormous.  On a sweeping left hand turn, visibility is so poor that you have to actively shift your head from side to side to look around it.  In parking lots, a pedestrian can easily be hidden behind the same pillar.  When we replace it, we’ll pay more attention to this issue.

In my line, the big blind spot on a left turn is the left mirror itself.  The official term for the maneuver to "actively shift your head from side to side to look around it" is "Rock and Roll" in your seat.  A driver in a CDL vehicle travelling south and making a left turn to go East at an intersection where a pedestrian is in a crosswalk crossing North in the turning path of the turning vehicle can easily lose their view of that pedestrian for almost the whole turn.  The left-turning motion can cause the mirror to track the pedestrian as they cross. A left turn accident where the driver did NOT Rock and Roll will most likely be deemed "preventable".