Hi everyone. I'm moving to Japan this month and decided to take my Mini. Since I will mostly drive on expressways, I decided I can survive with a left-hand drive vehicle there. (When I lived in Britain and in Thailand, I bought right-hand drive vehicles, but I did a lot of two-lane driving so passing was an issue. I won't really drive much in Japan.) Anyway, my Mini's limited visibility makes expressway driving in the US hard, so it will be even harder in Japan. Does a camera help with the blind spot problem? Other suggestions? Many thanks.

 

Go to cartalk.com and have fun wading thru the site to find it or go directly to: http://www.cartalk.com/content/avoiding-blind-spot-5

The R52 has about the worst rear visibility. I've found that getting the mirrors set right and scanning them regularly keeping track of everything around is all you need. Keeping track of everything is also called 'situational awareness' or 'not fooling around with electronic crap instead of motoring'.

PS: Stay away from pachinko or we'll never hear from you again.

 

Thanks for helping with the link! I saw a link in an earlier thread on this topic, but that link was broken. This one worked great. I'm going to go try these adjustments and see how it feels. I may also try one of those special mirror attachments, though I guess not everyone likes them.

I love this car, but if I had to do it over again, I'm not sure I'd buy another. The blind spot is really treacherous. I try to put the top down in busy parking lots and when I'm on an unfamiliar expressway, but that's not always an option.

Thanks again for the advice.

 

You can eliminate the blind spot with an wide angle mirror on the passenger side. The Multivex is very wide angle and completely eliminates the bind spot. You really see everything, and it also helps with parallel parking: http://www.safetymirrorsonline.com/

Alternatively, you can get the MINI OEM Euro mirror which has a more convex outer section for wider view. You can order from a UK or European vendor such as NewMiniStuff: http://www.newministuff.com/new/shop...uctshow&id=731

I have used both on our R52. There is truly no blind spot when using the Multivex. However you must adjust to the depth perception which is different from a standard convex mirror. It was fine for me but my wife had difficulty readjusting when switching between different cars. We now use the Euro mirror, and it works very well. Not as wide angle as the Multivex but enough to remove the blind spot.

Driving a cabrio with the wrong side steering wheel sounds a bit scary!

 

Thanks RKW. With the Euro mirror, did you replace just the passenger side? I'm not handy; would I just take it to a body shop?

Yes, it seems a bit scary to drive with the steering wheel on the wrong side, but a lot of people do it in Japan. The toll booths are actually built so you can pay through either window. The thought of selling my car right now was a little overwhelming, so I decided to give it a try. If it's too hard, I guess I'll buy a local car.

Thanks again,

Cecile

 

rkw, do you happen to have any pictures of the Euro mirror installed? Do you now use them on both sides?

I just got an R57 and have ordered a Multivex for the passenger side but haven't received it yet.

 

Check with your dealer or MINI USA insure that your MINI meets Japans specs to pass inspection. At one time Japanese cars built to US specs and bought in the US couldn't be brought back into Japan because they didn't meet Japan specs.

 

I'm only using the Euro mirror on the passenger side. In a cabrio, the blind spot is huge for the passenger side but on the drivers side it is no different than a hardtop.

Here's the OEM Euro mirror on my R52 (1st gen cabrio). It looks just like a standard convex mirror, except notice the thin curved line 1/4 way in from the outside. To the left of the line, the mirror is like the standard convex passenger side mirror. To the right of the line, the mirror has a stronger convex curve that provides a wider view.



The mirror just pops off of mounting clips on its backside. It's easy to do but if you're uncomfortable with it, a dealer or body shop can do it easily.

 

Thanks everyone. The CarTalk link is great!!! I had no idea I'd been adjusting my mirrors wrong all these years.

I'm going to get one of the Euro mirrors, too, I think.

As far as importing my car to Japan, I have diplomatic privileges, so importing a car is not too hard. I might not be able to leave it there when my tour is done, though.

Thanks again to all.