These day's manufacturers provide us with many safety features in our cars. We've come a long way in the last decade. And mirrors are one of those important safety items, including the rear view mirror and the side view mirrors. You need to make sure you adjust your side mirror properly every time you drive.
If you do not have your mirrors adjusted properly your visibility is impaired. And even just a slight impairment can cause you to have an accident. In fact there are hundreds of thousands of accidents every year that are a result of mirrors that aren't correctly positioned. And for every accident there are 3 near misses that occur. That's a lot!
Blind spots occur when you do not have the position of your rear view mirror and your side view mirrors correct. Too often mirrors are not placed correctly so that the driver can view all the potential dangers. The best way to combat this is to check all your mirrors before you ever drive away. By doing a pre-check you'll make any needed adjustments.
Many of us have been taught that we need to align the side view mirrors until we see just the side of the vehicle from the driver's seat. This is absolutely incorrect and is actually dangerous!
The best method to adjust your side mirrors is so that you do not see the side of the vehicle in your view at all. By using this method you can see a trailing vehicle to be immediately seen as soon as its view disappears from the rear mirror.
To adjust the driver's side mirrors correctly move just slightly to the left and adjust your mirror so you can just see the side of the vehicle. You can do this by resting your head on the driver's window to set up the driver's mirror. To set up the passenger mirror just sit in the middle of the vehicle and repeat the process. Be sure that you verify that you do not have a blind spot
That's it! Now that you've got your mirrors correctly placed you are one step closer to safe driving. But you need to remember to always shoulder check before changing lanes.
The car manufacturer's can try to provide us with as many safety tools as possible to help reduce the risk of accidents and keep us safe in the event of an accident. But we have a responsibility to always practice undue care and attention when we are driving.
If you are tired, on medication, not feeling well, or emotionally upset do not get behind the wheel. Leave yourself plenty of time to reach your destination so you are not stressing. Always drive defensively and assume that the other driver will do something stupid. And always check your mirrors regularly and shoulder check when you change lanes.
Together the manufactures and drivers can work together to make the roads a safer place. Don't forget to use your side mirror!