Blind spots when driving and deadly dangers

Blind spots when driving are one of the most dangerous factors that can lead to serious traffic accidents.

Eliminating blind spots is a necessary skill for every driver because it is one of the extremely dangerous factors that can lead to collisions or even serious traffic accidents.

Basically, a blind spot is an area outside the vehicle that is obscured and not within the driver's field of vision. In other words, the driver cannot observe the blind spot through the rearview mirror or directly. Common blind spots are the blind spot caused by the rearview mirror, the blind spot in front of the vehicle, and the blind spot behind the vehicle.

Blind spots often present a particular danger when drivers change lanes, turn at intersections or park in a parking lot. At that time, blind spots prevent drivers from seeing vehicles in the same/different lanes from behind, vehicles cutting across the intersection... making turning or changing lanes extremely dangerous because drivers cannot actively observe to handle the situation.

If you don't know how to eliminate blind spots, drivers can easily get into collisions and cause unfortunate accidents.

Rearview mirror blind spot

When there are other vehicles on the right and left of the car that are not in the reflection area of ​​the side mirrors, the driver will not be able to see them through the mirrors. This causes the driver to change lanes because he thinks the road is clear. Therefore, the risk of collision is very high, especially dangerous if the car is traveling at high speed.

Blind spot in front of car

Although the front pillar of the car is quite small when viewed from the driving position, it still creates blind spots depending on the steering angle. To overcome this, the driver just needs to tilt his head to observe each time he changes direction. There are no roadside warning mirrors at the hairpin corner, so honk the horn to send a warning signal each time you enter a corner.

Front blind spots are common in high-chassis vehicles such as SUVs, pickup trucks, trucks, etc. Although high-chassis vehicles provide good forward visibility, the high hood also increases the blind spot range at the front of the vehicle.

These blind spots are often dangerous when the vehicle is moving slowly in residential areas with children. Therefore, the driver needs to observe carefully when the vehicle is moving or observe from a distance to ensure there are no obstacles ahead. Especially for those who are driving a high-chassis vehicle for the first time, they need to practice the habit of sensing blind spots.

Rear blind spot

The driver will not be able to observe the space in the rear door with the naked eye or the rearview mirror. This blind spot has a fairly large range, extending several meters from the rear of the car to the rear. This is also the cause of unfortunate accidents such as reversing the car into a child or hitting a pillar, rock, etc.

The best way to ensure safety in all situations is to equip a rear camera or rear sensors. If not equipped, the driver should carefully check the safety range before reversing, especially in residential areas or areas with children.

Causes of blind spots

The basic factors that make up blind spots in cars are the design features of the car and the size and sitting position of the driver.

The main cause of blind spots is the structural design of the vehicle. Basically, the car frame is divided into 3 pillars: A, B and C (there may be a D pillar for wagons). These 3 main pillars will support the hood and form a solid shell for the car. However, the appearance of these pillars also creates blind spots that obstruct the driver's vision. Depending on each car model, blind spots also appear at different angles and distances.

Diagram illustrating the driver's field of vision (colored areas)

According to experts, the A-pillar (the column on both sides of the windshield frame of the car) has the greatest influence on the formation of blind spots. Today, the A-pillar on many car models has been designed to minimize blind spots. However, some car models use flat windshields, so the effect of blind spots is still quite large. In addition, some manufacturers still design the A-pillar with a large size to create a sporty look for the car. This inadvertently increases the blind spot for the driver. In some car models with special designs, the B-pillar and C-pillar can also create blind spots that limit the driver's rear view.

Improper adjustment of the rearview mirror is also one of the causes of blind spots. Suppose you are sitting in the cockpit and the 12 o'clock position is in front of you, then the blind spot is usually at the 4 o'clock and 8 o'clock positions. However, you can completely adjust the rearview mirror to minimize the blind spot in this situation. Some drivers often have the habit of adjusting the mirror slightly inward to be able to observe the body of the car and even the passengers behind. This has reduced the rear view of the rearview mirror. In addition, this adjustment coincides with the viewing area of ​​the center rearview mirror in the car.

In addition, the driver's stature and sitting posture also contribute to the creation of blind spots on the vehicle. According to research, people with taller stature tend to have shorter blind spots than those with shorter stature. At the same time, the driver's posture and driving habits also contribute significantly to increasing or decreasing the length of the blind spot.

Measures to reduce blind spots

Expand your rearview mirror view by: First tilt your head to the left until it touches the window; Then adjust the left rearview mirror until the body of the car almost disappears from the mirror, leaving only the rear of the car visible; Tilt your head to the right until it is in the center of the car; Repeat step 2 on the right rearview mirror.

Drivers can see the green car but have difficulty seeing the red car, so the red car falls into the blue car's blind spot.

The above adjustment will overcome the problem of adjusting the rearview mirror too inward, reducing the driver's vision and overlapping with the vision of the center rearview mirror.

In addition, there is an effective solution that some drivers choose, which is to mount a small convex mirror on the left mirror to help widen the field of view. Do not turn your head to look directly but through the mirror system, until you are sure that the car is on your left. If necessary, you can do the same with the right mirror.

However, in addition to using the rearview mirror to observe the rear, in certain situations, you should also glance directly at the blind spots behind the car. Some experienced drivers say that this is quite effective in cases where they want to change lanes.

Nowadays, some new car models are also equipped with modern camera and sensor systems in the rearview mirror and around the car to minimize blind spots, display information around the car to help the driver observe and control the situation better. Therefore, when using the rear camera, especially in the climate in Vietnam, we should regularly clean the camera to ensure the captured image is always the clearest.

In case the vehicle does not have front and rear cameras, the driver can ask another person to help observe when parking to completely overcome the blind spots behind and in front (especially high-chassis vehicles) to avoid unfortunate accidents./.

According to VOV