Car mirrors. How to install them and how to use them?

Mirrors are an integral part of a car's equipment. They not only make driving easier, but also directly affect driving safety.

One of the guiding principles of driving safety is careful observation of the road and surroundings. In this aspect, good and properly adjusted mirrors in a car play a key role. Thanks to the mirrors, we can constantly monitor what is happening behind and to the side of the car. Recall that the driver of a car has three mirrors at his disposal - an internal one above the windshield and two side ones.

However, what and how we see in the mirrors depends on their correct setting. First of all, remember the order - first the driver adjusts the seat to the driver's position, and only then adjusts the mirrors. Any change to the seat settings should cause the mirror settings to be checked.

When adjusting the interior rearview mirror, make sure you can see the entire rear window. Thanks to this, we will see everything that happens behind the car. In the exterior mirrors, we should see the side of the car, but it should not occupy more than 1 centimeter of the mirror surface. This adjustment of the mirrors will allow the driver to estimate the distance between his car and the observed vehicle or other obstacle.

– Particular attention should be paid to minimizing the area of ​​the so-called blind zone, i.e. area around the vehicle that is not covered by mirrors. - says Radoslav Jaskulsky, an instructor at the Skoda driving school. Blind spots have been a problem for drivers since the advent of side mirrors on cars. One solution was to use additional curved-plane mirrors that were either glued to the side mirror or attached to its body.

Nowadays, almost all major car manufacturers use aspherical mirrors, called broken mirrors, instead of flat mirrors. point effect. Radoslav Jaskolsky also notes that vehicles and objects reflected in mirrors do not always correspond to their actual size, which affects the assessment of the maneuvering distance.

When using interior mirrors, remember that thanks to their design, we can comfortably use them even at night. It is enough to switch the position of the mirror to night mode. Photochromic mirrors are also available, which automatically dim the mirror when the amount of light from rear traffic is too high.

Properly positioned mirrors are not only the safety of the car, but also a guarantee that we will not become the culprits of trouble through the blind zone. Be especially careful when changing lanes or overtaking. In turn, in the summer, when both cyclists and motorcyclists appear on the roads, you should focus even more on observing the road.

Driving instructors note that a fast moving motorcycle seen in the rearview mirror becomes invisible after a while and then reappears in the outside mirror. If we don't spot it sooner and make sure we can maneuver, the maneuver could lead to tragedy.