The Smartest Ways to Keep an Eye on Your Car’s Blind Spots
Think back to your days in a driver’s ed. In addition to being told to keep the steering wheel in the “10 and 2” position (which is now considered obsolete and potentially dangerous), you were probably also constantly reminded to adjust your mirrors and check your blind spot.
And while some people continue to do this out of habit, it’s one of those things that’s easy to give up, especially if you’re the only driver in the car. Plus, with all the new technology that lets you know when another car is in your blind spot, it’s tempting to rely on it completely.
But for a number of reasons, this is not the best (or safest) option. Here are a few ways to keep an eye on your vehicle’s blind spots.
Where are your blind spots while driving?
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) , almost half of the space around a car is hidden by blind spots. While you should always be aware that you can’t see much of the area around your vehicle, the NHTSA says this is especially important when you encounter line-of-sight blind spots while driving. These are areas where roadside and vehicular obstacles can limit your reaction time, such as around curves in roads, and when the crest or crater of a hill is close to the entrance to a roadway.
How to watch your blind spots while driving
Most (if not all) of these probably appeared when you first learned to drive, but here’s a quick reminder (without having to spin cones in a giant car in the school parking lot):
Set up your mirrors
If you’re not already doing it out of habit, bring the habit back in right now. Check your rear view mirror and side mirrors every time you get in your car and adjust them if necessary. If you are driving a rental car, or in general any vehicle behind another person, pay special attention to adjusting all mirrors.
Clear your mirrors
The next time you fill up your gas tank, take a few minutes to wipe down the side mirrors and rear camera (if you have one) – ideally with a microfiber cloth. This way footprints, water spots or other marks will not obstruct your view.
Look over your shoulder
Like the new blind spot warning technology in new cars, we also can’t rely solely on our mirrors. That’s why it’s important to look over your shoulder at the car’s rear windows to check for blind spots, for example before changing lanes.
Stretching at home
But we’re not getting any younger, and to be honest, sometimes that look over your shoulder doesn’t feel good. So to help with that, Lynn Fuchs, founder and president of A Woman’s Way Driving School in New York City, suggests stretching these muscles at home.
“You can do exercises while sitting in a chair to stretch those muscles so you can turn around and look back,” she told AARP in a recent interview . “You can help relax those muscles so you can get that look when you need it. In the car, that last-second check should always be over your shoulder.”