RE: Visibility matters more than horsepower: TMIMW
Discussion
To take the Saab example a few years further back.
The Saab 96 (1960s- to 70s) had unobstructive A pillars, but all the other pillars (behind driver's line of sight) were really strong- and it could do this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=810Fm2YZ-8I
I remember seeing them roll 360 degrees in rallies and just drive on.
Although the view out of a 900 was even better.
The Saab 96 (1960s- to 70s) had unobstructive A pillars, but all the other pillars (behind driver's line of sight) were really strong- and it could do this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=810Fm2YZ-8I
I remember seeing them roll 360 degrees in rallies and just drive on.
Although the view out of a 900 was even better.
Yipper said:
Good article.
New car designs mean drivers need to learn and adopt new driving techniques. A thick pillar, wide mirror and big hood mean you gotta bob, lean and weave about in your seat much more than, say, 10 to 30 years ago.
I'd sooner walk than look like a James Corden advert.New car designs mean drivers need to learn and adopt new driving techniques. A thick pillar, wide mirror and big hood mean you gotta bob, lean and weave about in your seat much more than, say, 10 to 30 years ago.
Yep: Toyota Aygo vs Peugeot 205: http://ducati.info/2006/12/08/safety-last/
It's also why my X5 isn't as far behind my 911 as you might think along a country road: its forward visibility is worth 100bhp at least…
It's also why my X5 isn't as far behind my 911 as you might think along a country road: its forward visibility is worth 100bhp at least…
The thing I notice increasingly often as I drive a variety of modern cars is that at a complicated traffic light controlled junction I find I make a conscious effort to check out the layout of curbs before setting off, because as you get closer you just have to rely on memory of how far they protrude from the railings and keep left islands that are the only things that are visible.
I actually went through a 6ft 6 inch width restriction in an Evoque last week which I normally go through in a BMW X5, surely the Evoque is narrower, but the low slung seating position and high scuttle line made it seem much more challenging.
Andy
I actually went through a 6ft 6 inch width restriction in an Evoque last week which I normally go through in a BMW X5, surely the Evoque is narrower, but the low slung seating position and high scuttle line made it seem much more challenging.
Andy
I have the pleasure of driving a huge range of cars - usually in and out of the workshop/around a carpark/into sometimes hard-to-fit spaces
Whilst that's no 'driving experience' I can tell you that some cars are FIENDISHLY hard to see out of and whilst almost everything has beepers, they're often quite s
t (see also many reversing cams).
Our parking spaces are surrounded with kerbs - this tends to trigger reversing sensors - as do nearby cars and the garage shutter doors and most everything else!
Add our rule that you don't move the seat/mirrors/wheel unless you cannot fit inside otherwise (at 6'5" I have to move SOMETHING) and you'll see me driving cars hanging out of the doors/windows and I'm not completely immune to some 'boom is ho' (ask any Netherlander!!)
SUVs are obviously worst - Audi TTs seem to assume their owners will never go backwards too - hell, I'll take vans out before those things tho.
"Security Glass" is another issue - indoors or in poor light it renders your interior mirror as total darkness and it's ever-more-popular for reasons I'll never understand!?
It is weird how some cars simply 'fit around you' more than others tho - it's not just size or wheel/seat position either, there's just a "perfect medium" for some people and some cars I think. Oddly I find it in things like A6s but then I did say I'm quite tall ;0
Whilst that's no 'driving experience' I can tell you that some cars are FIENDISHLY hard to see out of and whilst almost everything has beepers, they're often quite s
t (see also many reversing cams).Our parking spaces are surrounded with kerbs - this tends to trigger reversing sensors - as do nearby cars and the garage shutter doors and most everything else!
Add our rule that you don't move the seat/mirrors/wheel unless you cannot fit inside otherwise (at 6'5" I have to move SOMETHING) and you'll see me driving cars hanging out of the doors/windows and I'm not completely immune to some 'boom is ho' (ask any Netherlander!!)
SUVs are obviously worst - Audi TTs seem to assume their owners will never go backwards too - hell, I'll take vans out before those things tho.
"Security Glass" is another issue - indoors or in poor light it renders your interior mirror as total darkness and it's ever-more-popular for reasons I'll never understand!?
It is weird how some cars simply 'fit around you' more than others tho - it's not just size or wheel/seat position either, there's just a "perfect medium" for some people and some cars I think. Oddly I find it in things like A6s but then I did say I'm quite tall ;0
Edited by 405dogvan on Wednesday 14th December 01:33
Last car was a Puma. The A pillars were dreadfully obstructive. More so because you sit quite close to them. Ruined an otherwise fun car.
Current car is a mk1 Multipla.
It's like driving a greenhouse (But not as much fun as the Puma)
Added benefit? No one's been car sick in it, because you're not being shaken about in the dark with no visual cues to your motion.
Current car is a mk1 Multipla.
It's like driving a greenhouse (But not as much fun as the Puma)
Added benefit? No one's been car sick in it, because you're not being shaken about in the dark with no visual cues to your motion.
Got me thinking this, have to say going outside and sitting in our two cars which are 15 years apart didn't notice much difference. I imagine some modern cars lack visibility, but pretty sure some old ones did too. My take on it, big A pillars block visibility, yep no brainer. Although tyres trump visibility in my view (scuse the pun!)
I think the issue here is a little confused, visibility does matter, but it is a function of styling (Glass area), regulation etc, BUT I think the main issue is car size, the bigger the car and they have all grown hugely over the last 20 years, the bigger the A pillar, the blind spot, the mirror, etc etc.
The part you notice when you get into an older car is the door is very close the windscreen is nearer and at a less raked angle, the mirror is small and nearer, the glass area is lower (or you are sat higher), and most of this is a direct result of the car being smaller in the first instance.
The part you notice when you get into an older car is the door is very close the windscreen is nearer and at a less raked angle, the mirror is small and nearer, the glass area is lower (or you are sat higher), and most of this is a direct result of the car being smaller in the first instance.
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