Exactly! This is what is described in this link: http://www.motorists.org/other/home/...-your-mirrors/ .

 

That is one way to drive. Not the standard one nor in any way the "proper" one. If you want to drive that way then fine, however most of us use our mirrors differently and do look over our shoulders. The only reason that article gives NOT to look over your shoulder is that if you're not used to it you may unintentionally steer as part of the movement. Sure. If you're learning to drive then there are a lot of stupid things you can do but this is not a very difficult thing to train yourself out of.

Also, I'm not convinced that you can really do away with blind spots (and of course this varies by car and mirrors). This is one article in a world of drivers that adjust their mirrors in a certain way. I've messed around with my mirrors and I'm more comfortable with them in the standard position.

 

for all those people that turn their heads. just take the mirrors off. problem solved

 

Yes it could...but look at the great rear view you get...

 

Are you sure about this? When I monitor the traffic behind me, I see the cars first in the center mirror. Then as they "leave" the center mirror they appear in the outside mirror. I still glance to the side before changing lanes. Also, I don't tailgate, and I look quickly.

 

From the Oregon DMV manual:

Blind spot: If you are changing lanes, preparing to pass another vehicle, or entering traffic, signal and check for passing traffic by first using your mirrors. Once the mirrors reveal safe conditions for the lane change, check your vehicle's blind spot by glancing over your shoulder to the rear in the direction of the lane change.

 

Haha...yeah, that's what I meant

 

This is only necessary when using the mirrors in the "standard" way (set mirrors so you can see side of car while driving normally)--if you set the mirrors accordingly to what NMA and bushman66 described, then there is almost never a need to turn your head over the shoulder. A quick small headturn (15-30 degrees?) to check for cars in the adjacent lanes is enough for peace of mind.

I think they just don't know that it is possible to set the mirrors such that you never need to turn your head so much to check over your shoulder--or just trying to cover their butts.

The point of this mirror setup is to minimize the need to turn your head so much, and minmize the time you're not looking out front, while maintaining the same level of safety.

One more thing though--with this mirror setup, you still have to keep in mind that if you're on a curving road, the blind spots WILL be bigger and you will need to turn a bit more to check for cars--for example, if you're driving up a ramp from highway to merge with the road, you will have to check more carefully for cars in the lane you want to merge into. But otherwise, this setup is safer than the "standard" setup, IMVHO.

 

Oh, blasphemy!

It was THE GUMBALL RALLY!!! Not the Cannonball Run!

 

Actually, I know of a very specific case where someone was involved in an accident and ticketed because they rear-ended another car that stopped abruptly. They did not see the car stop because they were looking over their shoulder to see if it was clear to change lanes. The ticket and charge was sustained in court because, as the court ruled, in citing the law: "failure to maintain visual contact with the traffic in front of you is failure to operate your vehicle in a safe manner under the statute."

 

Reference: Texas Driver's Handbook.

HOW TO PASS ON A TWO-LANE ROAD
1. Keep enough distance between you and the car in front of you so you
can see ahead clearly. Check rearview and side mirrors and turn your head
and look back—someone may be passing you. Signal left.
2. Check well ahead for “No Passing Zone” and oncoming cars. Be sure
you have time and space enough to overtake the car ahead and return to the right lane before an approaching car comes
within 200 feet of you.
3. Tap your horn when necessary to alert the driver ahead.
4. Pass on the left and do not return to the right lane until safely clear of overtaken vehicle. Wait until you can see the car
you have just passed in your rearview mirror before returning to right lane.
5. Signal right turn to return to right lane. Be sure to turn your signal off after you have completed the lane change.

WHEN YOU ARE PASSED
1. Do not increase your speed.
2. Keep in your lane.
3. When being passed on the left, and lanes are not marked, move to the
right as far as you safely can.
4. Make it as safe and easy as you can for the other driver to pass you.
Blind Spot Driving
Don’t drive in another driver’s “blind spot.” Either pass the other driver or drop back. When you pass a car, get through the
blind spot as quickly as you can. Approach cautiously, but once you are alongside, speed up and get by quickly.

 

All that means is that you have to be smart about how and when you look over your shoulder. Lots of people get in wrecks doing the right thing in a wrong way. Also, traffic accidents are often about just being unlucky and there are situations where you just can't prevent the accident. Unfortunately for your friend, the law almost always goes to the favor of the person who got rear-ended.

All I'm saying is that the advice, "never look over your shoulder" is likely to get people (who use mirrors in the "standard way") in trouble and clearly violates most if not all driver manuals. Maybe if your mirrors are just right on the right car you don't need to worry about it but generally, for standard driving, "over the shoulder" is the preferred/correct technique for lane changes.

 

Okay, okay! If you want to do the exorcist thing, go ahead. I prefer to have my mirrors properly adjusted.

 

Sometimes old people do have hard heads and stiff necks.

 

Some people like split-pea soup.

Actually, I paid specific attention to my site line this morning on the way to work and found the mirror to be in my site line. But then I got into our Lexus and discovered the same thing.

I guess I have mentally adjusted to the fact that any mirror is always going to hang down in my site line and I adjust automatically to it, without realizing it.

 

I pulled the headrests from my car this week. Don't use 'em, ever.

I love how much this has changed the interior of the car. It feels as if I'm tooling around again in the old 911 or Bug. The car is so much more open -- I can see so much more, so much easier. And that is fantastic, on the autobahn as much as it is on the twisties. It compliments well the openess of the sunroof.

Best thing I've done to the car in a while. Wish I had done it earlier, when I had first thought of it. Not sure why I waited.

 

And you are complaining????

 

Don't ever use them??? Their purpose, despite their name, is NOT for you to rest your head on, but to protect you from breaking your neck in the event of an accident. Of course, it's your neck, but they are there for safety, not comfort.

 

If the OP was driving an Altima...or virtually anything else for that matter, then MINI visibility will take some getting used to. Give yourself time to adjust and forget a possibly knee-jerk reaction to get extra gadgets unless you are 100% sure they would help. I have an '03 with the smaller rearview mirror and it was no problem...certainly my '07 isn't either. Yes it felt weird at first, but hey, it was a MINI!!! Don't let it bother you too much...adjust!!!

 

Not.

 

It's funny how it's all about perspective. I hadn't considered the R56 mirror was oversized until the discussion started here. I still don't feel it is. What I noticed more was that the height of the windshield was much shorter than in my old civic and much farther away from the seating area.

Over the weekend, a friend of mine rode in my car for the first time and commented on how large the mirror was.

 

I am planning on buying an Autobahn Mirror for my blind spot, I saw this in my Mini dealership, they had them stuck in some showroom cars. I liked the effect...

http://www.autobahnmirror.com/

 

Someone needs to make (or better advertise if someone already does) mirrors like these for the entire MINI lineup, old and new:


http://www.stratmosphere.com/blindspot_inaction_320.jpg


Had these on each of my past VWs and they were definitely the best blindspot reduction product I've seen to date. The slight blue tint also reduced problems with night time glare induced by traffic behind me who refuse to turn off their high beams, have misfocused low beams, or are driving SUVs/monster trucks.

I have had my mirrors adjusted per the procedure in the previously posted link for 5 or 6 years now and I still do a quick check over the shoulder whenever I change lanes. Nothing exorcist style, but the 45 degree twist of the head using my peripheral vision. On a number of ocassions, this final quick glance over the shoulder has saved me from causing an accident, particularly when a low slung car is overtaking me on the left/right at a high rate of speed. If done correctly, you still have a view of the brake lights of traffic ahead from the periphery of the opposite eye.

 

There's none so blind than those who will not see.

State Farm Insurance sent me a brochure years ago that strongly recommended the procedure http://www.motorists.org/other/home/...-your-mirrors/ that you say is not the, "proper" one. You're wrong. I've used their procedure for years. What I've very much appreciated since using it is that when I glance over my shoulder after looking in the side mirror there's never a car there that I haven't already become aware of.

 

Excellent. But I think the point that the "head turners" are trying to make (and which I agree with/practice) is that even if you have your mirrors adjusted for maximum coverage, it's still a good idea to make a quick glance over the shoulder (as you stated) before moving over. When I was in driver training (something sadly lacking these days, btw), we were told not to trust your mirrors. Use them, but when changing lanes, do a quick check over the shoulder, because cars can sneak into the way where you may not have seen them in the mirror(s).

And for the "don't turn your head" crowd, the checking over the shoulder is not meant to imply that you have to turn completely around and LOOK behind you. It's simply a quick turn to the side - your peripheral vision will alert you if something is in your way (front or side), and you can then hesitate to make sure it's safe to move over.