How To Correctly Adjust The Mirrors

Every time we get behind the wheel of a car for the first time, one of the most important tasks to do before embarking on the brand is to adjust the vehicle’s mirrors to our needs and position in the cabin. The position of these changes for each person, so its correct adjustment is of the utmost importance.

It is true that each vehicle has a mirror whose shapes vary for design reasons, so the vision through the mirrors may be increased or impaired depending on which cases. Next, we are going to show you how to adjust your car’s mirrors correctly to improve your visibility on the road.

Driving position: vital

Before adjusting the mirrors we have to ensure our position at the wheel of the car. Placing ourselves in our place will be the first step, because it will be useless to adjust the mirrors if we later change the seat adjustments. In addition, a correct position will make driving easier and safer, delaying the onset of fatigue.

Once we sit on the seat we must adjust it until we have our back fully supported on the backrest. At the same time, longitudinally we must place ourselves in a position that allows us to step on the full pro clutch.

The placement of the steering wheel will be the last thing we will modify before moving on to the mirrors. Here we must bear in mind that our arms should be slightly bent when we place our hands at “9 and 3” according to the needles of a clock.

Interior rear-view mirror

The interior mirror is the easiest to position correctly. Once we find our position in the seat, all we have to do is place it focused on the rear window of the car. With it we can see the dangers that lie ahead or if the one behind has started the overtaking maneuver.

The internal structure of the interior mirror, with its internal mirror and exterior glass positioned at different angles, creates the problem at night of glare. The lights of other cars reflect in the rear view mirror directly into our field of vision. To avoid this we must follow the following steps.

When night falls and it is necessary to use the lighting of our vehicle, we must activate the tab located in the lower area of ​​the rear-view mirror. With this we will put the mirror in anti-glare mode, modifying the position of the mirror but maintaining a correct view through it.

In more modern cars, this tab has been replaced by photosensitive mirrors, which automatically darken when they receive intense direct light. If our car is equipped with one of these, we will only have to adjust its starting position and forget about any problems.

Exterior mirrors

The side mirrors are the most difficult to position correctly, and many drivers have them incorrectly adjusted despite maintaining enough vision, but not the correct one. Contrary to what many believe (especially for parking), the least we should see through the rear-view mirrors is our car, but the exterior.

The recommended position for these is in parallel with the horizontal of the ground, pointing towards the horizon. Slightly inclined towards the outside, we will only have to see a slight portion of the body of our car at the lower end of the mirror.

With the correct placement of the side mirrors we will reduce the blind spot, an area from which we do not have a view through the rear view mirrors or by turning our heads. Fortunately, the most modern cars are equipped with systems that warn of dangers in this area.