Lane changes/ Blind spots.
 

Hey Gang, I'm new here. I'm buying an 8 in the next few months. Thanks to many of your comments, and its good looks, all other competition has been eliminated. I do have one sticking point, though.

In sitting in the car, it seems that the headrest, and the doorpost make it hard to give that quick glance over the left shoulder to make sure no one is in the left lane next to you before a lane switch.

In test driving the car, it seems that the solution might be to just give it a blast of power and move. That may not always be possible. I'd appreciate anyone's comments/techniques/experience on dealing with blind spots in this car.

I had to adjust the side mirrors to cover the blind spots. My seating is right where the post is.

Like any other car , once you adjust your side mirror you should be fine .

Plus , you;ll get used to it .

Ur gonna have to double check with a slight turn of your head to be sure. IMO the blind spot in the 8 is pretty big, due to your position in the car and the small rear view mirror. Early on i had a couple close calls relying on the mirror alone. I now automatically double check w/ a quick look prior to changing lanes....and yes i normally will give the car a lil extra rev just to be sure i clear the merge:)

The view backwards in this car - to any angle, sucks.

My answer is to keep my rearview mirrors adjusted properly. The outside mirrors are adjusted to view the entire lane next to me - if you're on the highway, you do not see your own car at all in the mirror - just that lane. The inside rear view makes up the difference - if they are adjusted right, with very little movement of your head, you can see 180 degrees around the back of the car with no blind spots at all.

BTW, this "trick" works on all cars, and is something taught in high performance driving schools like Bondurant. Most "driver's ed" courses teach you to set the outside mirrors so you see your own car in 1/4 of the mirror - but this leaves a blind spot directly to the side of the car. You can entirely eliminate the blind spot with the right mirror adjustment.

I have the same issue, adjustimg mirros does fix. I usually dont adjust because my fiance drives the car daily and it gets annoying adjust mirrors every time you get in. I just turn my head and look.

What I've done is lean my head until it just touches the window and adjust the side view mirror until I just barely see the rear of the car. After doing this, when in the normal driving position, any cars in the left lane are visible in the side mirror right up to the point where they become visible in my peripheral vision. As soon as they are out of view in the side mirror, I can see them by simply glancing left.

The key is situation awareness. Don't sit there in a fog, wondering what's around you only when you decide to change lanes. Keep your eyes moving, like they taught you in Driver's Ed. Always be aware of what's in the next lane.

The ability accelerate into a hole ahead of you, rather than drop into one forming behind you, is certainly a plus.

Ken

Look over your right shoulder for lane changes...problem solved.

Check and double check, i always adjust the mirrors anything else my heads out the window

Just get a blind spot mirror. I've had them in every car that I've owned and would not drive any of my cars without them. No need to look over your shoulders and you can see 2 lanes with them.

This is simply the best $4 mod anyone can do. Not pretty but a life saver.

http://www.care4car.com/productimage...t%20mirror.jpg

So other than mirror tricks, I'm reading that most of you have found a way to actually look in the next lane, despite the small window of opportunity. (Pun possibly intended.)

When I took Driver's Ed (summer of '74), actually turning your head to check blind spots was a requirement. Been a habit ever since. Saved several motorcyclists lives, over the years.

Yea I don't change lanes without actually looking.. I've got mine set like Stew was describing. You don't see your car in the mirrors, and when another car moves out of your mirrors view then they're right where you can see them with a quick glance.. It's dam near failsafe, but it does take some getting used too.. I felt so blind when I first started driving it, but now I feel as confident as I did with my truck....

rear view
 

I have been driving my Isuzu Vehicross for the last 3 years or so and it has terrible rear visibility but I lived with it and I always double check with a little look over my shoulder, but as for the RX-8 I personally think it has great rear visibility. Since I am 6'4" I have the seat so far back that I actually end up looking out of the small window above the rear seat and it works out perfectly. On the passenger side I cannot get the side view mirror out far enough. It is pointed out as far as it will go and I would still like it to angle out a little more, but I guess that is what I get for sitting back so far and tilting the seat back. Oh and I also tilt the passenger seat back so I can see out of the little back window when making lane changes here in Houston, helps a ton.

Yeah, In Mazda RX-8 you have a bigger blindspot problem than regular cars. Looks like bruce van has a solution

QTWRE taught me the same thing at the club meet in Toronto. I brought up the issue with the blindspot. I've only owned the car for 2 months; but ever since I adjusted my side mirrors such that I can no longer see any edge of my car, I've been good. I do that in addition to looking over the shoulder and I've been safe.

I use a 400 mm broadway mirror (convex)

+5 for the above posts.
Remembering that the SIDE mirrors are for side viewing and not for rear viewing. The inside rear view mirror is for that.
Adjust the side mirrors as stated in above posts and you will be ok.
Yes, the rear view is a bit hard to see, esp if one has tinted back window. It takes the eyes a few seconds to adjust. Just enough time to hit something, esp if one is backing up.
Take some time getting used to seeing out and you will get used to it.

yep. Anyone who says there are blind spots, does not know how to properly adjust the side view mirrors. If there is a car immediately behind you, you should not see them in your side view mirrors. You should not see their headlights, you should not see any part of your car in the side view mirrors either.

The half dome shaped mirrors that stick on the side view mirrors also help.


I didn't have my mirrors adjusted properly when I first bought my rx8 and I switched lanes almost hitting another car.


Something else to mention, the rear view mirror has 2 ball joints, from the factory the mirror is adjusted really low, blocking forward view in the front window. You should push it up and out of the way.

+1


I have no blind spots in my RX-8. I adjust my mirrors to be maximum left and maximum right (I wish I had more to go outside on the right).

You want to adjust your side view mirrors to begin where the rear view mirror ends.

This website has a good diagram. Some cars are better than others, but this is the technique everyone is talking about.
http://www.smartmotorist.com/mir/mir.htm

Two thoughts…

First, as many others here have said, make sure you adjust the side mirrors the "new way," so that you cannot see the sides of your car. Many motorists still adjust them the "old way" because that's what they were taught way back when and they don't know better.

Second, I've found that when I do the "quick look" over my left shoulder, I can see the blind spot in the lane next to me thru the small rear passenger window. (Of course, I'm 5'7" and you may not be able to do this.) Good luck.

yea look thro the small rear passenger window also, i do this because i adjust my mirror to see the bottom of my tire/rim as i do a lot of parrallel parking and parking on the street so i dont curb my rims/tires although they're already curbed to hell =/

wow, good advice on the mirror adjustments! didn't know about the "new" adjustment thing. i still leave a tiny bit of space to see my sides. so i should not see the side of my car at all? they should teach this at driver's ed schools... too many careless teen drivers in my area...