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Blind Spot behind interior mirror on windshield

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by mugurk, Mar 21, 2014.

  1. mugurk

    mugurk Junior Member

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    2010 Prius
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    III
    In my 2010 Prius,My wife and I and another friend have noticed a blind spot behind the mirror on the windshield, such that I don't "see" drivers approaching from the right on a "4-way" intersection. I am a cautious driver, yet noticed several years ago that I occasionally started up across an intersection before the car on my right....I didn't SEE THEM. This is because the mirror is mounted relatively low. I am only 6'1'' but my wife who is 5"10 also noticed this problem. In San Francisco, going down a hill, it is often hard to see a car approaching from the right.
    HAS ANYONE ELSE HAD THIS PROBLEM? I am going to the dealer for something else and will ask that my mirror be remounted.
     
  2. twittel

    twittel Senior Member

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    I am 6'2" and I have the same problem. To help minimize the blind spot, the mirror mount/stalk raises up or down slightly. Try adjusting it. The stalk moves hard, so be firm but yet not too much force you pull it off the windshield. There might be another thread about this issue.
     
  3. MarcSmith

    MarcSmith Active Member

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    My HHR was worse the Prius.

    I have the seat lowered as much as I can, (i'm 5-10) and the problem is not as noticeable. with the mirror pushed up as high as it will go.

    All Cars with low rooflines have similar problems. The key is whether or not you can get the drivers seat low enough so you look below the mirror.

    In regards to moving the mirror higher The problem is that it seems you can never get the mirror mount off when you need to.
     
  4. 1Prius4u2NV

    1Prius4u2NV New Member

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    Three
    I'm 6'2". Have not noticed this issue when driving. But I can imagine in the city this can be very frustrating.


    iPhone ?
     
  5. magnumrtawd

    magnumrtawd Member

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    2010 Prius
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    III
    Hello:
    I am a 65 year old retired truck driver. I have 3.5 million safe miles in my past.
    Over those years I have driven many different trucks and cars. The key is to adjust to the vehicle you are driving. They are all different. I always use the Look Left,right,left technique when pulling out of a side street.Depending on the vehicle I added a 2nd and sometimes 3rd look to the right .You might be surprised how the view changes at each glance. If there was a car behind the mirror the first time you will see it on the second or third glance. Lots easier to adjust to the vehicle then adjust it to you.
    You will be surprised how fast you get used to it. Even waiting for a light, When it turns green I ALWAYS use this technique !
    Also,If you have a problem seeing a traffic light when stopped at an intersection because the front roof line is to low. There is a company that sells a strip of plastic that has a prism in it that you stick to the top of your wind shield and it will give you the ability to see that traffic light when you are under it.
    LightInSight - Windshield Mounted Traffic Light Lens
     
    Playtimenick likes this.
  6. energyandair

    energyandair Active Member

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    You have to set the mirror as high as it will go and then adjust the seat height and seat back slope so that your line of sight is just under the mirror.

    Don't go too low, or you will get a large blind spot where the passenger side front pillar splits and becomes very wide.
     
  7. greendoh

    greendoh Junior Member

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    N/A
    energyandair is right - and for me it took me quite a number of years of driving to figure this out.

    These days my first step whenever I get into a new car is to push the mirror assembly as far to the roof as possible, then adjusting the mirror itself to point where I need it to. On some cars, to do this properly and gain enough forward looking real estate, you have to put upwards pressure on the stalk while you adjust the mirror itself down. Often they want to stick together, so you end up adjusting the mirror and pulling the stalk back down.

    My Prius isn't scheduled for delivery for another week or so, but I had one as a rental a few weeks ago, and I did manage to clear up the forward view by adjusting the mirror like this.

    First post! Hope it helps!
     
  8. retired4999

    retired4999 Prius driver since 2005

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    I think someone here said to turn the mirror upside down and that helps.
     
  9. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    I find it a common problem on many cars. That is why I prefer the double-articulated mounts that allow the mirror to be pushed up higher, to see beneath it.

    On one past car with the mirror mounted to the windshield glass, I was able to remove the mounting block from the glass and re-mount it higher with an appropriate adhesive kit. On another, with a fixed height ceiling mount, a friend acquired a spare from a junkyard, and in his workshop modified and shortened the arm to the ceiling mount.