SEE THROUGH CARS
Discussion
been young and daft i put a lot of cars through headge rows. then i got my BARS licence off the good people and fantastic christmass idea rally expiriance at Birkbecks. so then i knew how to put a car through a headge much faster 
so age and expiriance has taught me one thing , only ever drive as fast as your eyes tell you. your speed is determined buy what u can see.
But im amazed in the short time iv been driving just how hard it is to see through modern cars.
the other day i was following a pug 306 , a incodent happened up ahead , i seen it through the pug windscreen and started braking even before the pug did. but newer cars seam too be so hard to see past or through, is it me or are they all bigger wider with ten head rests two sat navs stuck too the front screen and a 3inch rear windows grr. what was a ten yard gap too see whats happening ahead is now a 20 yrd gap.
i just felt its worth a rant
so age and expiriance has taught me one thing , only ever drive as fast as your eyes tell you. your speed is determined buy what u can see.
But im amazed in the short time iv been driving just how hard it is to see through modern cars.
the other day i was following a pug 306 , a incodent happened up ahead , i seen it through the pug windscreen and started braking even before the pug did. but newer cars seam too be so hard to see past or through, is it me or are they all bigger wider with ten head rests two sat navs stuck too the front screen and a 3inch rear windows grr. what was a ten yard gap too see whats happening ahead is now a 20 yrd gap.
i just felt its worth a rant
distance seems to be the key. thats one thing i hate about transits and the like useing the outside lane. ok fine your new sprinter can rocket alonge at a 100mph, but it also totaly eradicates the site line for everybody whos 200 yrds behined it.
the scariest motorist in the world isnt drunk drivers, its them people who are happy to totter alone weadged 3ft behinde a 40ft artic
the scariest motorist in the world isnt drunk drivers, its them people who are happy to totter alone weadged 3ft behinde a 40ft artic
bobdylan said:
But im amazed in the short time iv been driving just how hard it is to see through modern cars.
the other day i was following a pug 306
the other day i was following a pug 306
As a driver of a 306 I quite appreciate it's visibility properties. I honestly think as a packaging exercise it's stunning. It looks good, has tons of space, and I never have a problem seeing all round the car, unlike the new Golf V and Civic Type R which are pretty pants behind and rear 4/5ths kinda angles... Also the dash boards are very high, so you can't really see your own bonnet.
The downsides now though, are that other cars are bigger and fatter and tougher in collisions, and they sit higher to see other other high cars, so I'm at more of a disadvantage.
Gone has the ethos of lithe handling and good visibility for passive safety, replaced by tank like vehicles with active safety.
Doh!
Dave
Yeah, following articles in the motorcycle press, the government is now funding research into the impaired visibility of modern cars.
NCAP crash tests have driven car manufacturers to produce stronger cars, but with worse vision.
This provides an acute problem for bikers, because many modern cars can hide a bike completely. It's considered one of the causes for car drivers looking but failing to see a motorcycle. (The most common form of bike accident in the UK.)
Hence why you generally need to look twice each way before pulling out of junctions.
NCAP crash tests have driven car manufacturers to produce stronger cars, but with worse vision.
This provides an acute problem for bikers, because many modern cars can hide a bike completely. It's considered one of the causes for car drivers looking but failing to see a motorcycle. (The most common form of bike accident in the UK.)
Hence why you generally need to look twice each way before pulling out of junctions.
Some modern cars are hard to see through even when you're in them!
We had an old and a new Seat Leon at Donington and the new car was much harder to sight-line through the corners. A lot of new cars have these double A-posts which take out a lot of vision. The new Leon shell seems to obstruct the apex - hardly ideal! We had four people we were doing training with and every one of them preferred the older car.
Where the cars do gain, Leon included, is the greater shell stiffness which is immediately apparent. Stiff springs but poor damping, incidentally.
The new Cupra R shares this vision negative - sat in one at Autosport and it really doesn't appeal; much as we'd like it to. Forward visibility is the single biggest reason why I wouldn't buy one.
We had an old and a new Seat Leon at Donington and the new car was much harder to sight-line through the corners. A lot of new cars have these double A-posts which take out a lot of vision. The new Leon shell seems to obstruct the apex - hardly ideal! We had four people we were doing training with and every one of them preferred the older car.
Where the cars do gain, Leon included, is the greater shell stiffness which is immediately apparent. Stiff springs but poor damping, incidentally.
The new Cupra R shares this vision negative - sat in one at Autosport and it really doesn't appeal; much as we'd like it to. Forward visibility is the single biggest reason why I wouldn't buy one.
instructormike said:
Some modern cars are hard to see through even when you're in them!
We had an old and a new Seat Leon at Donington and the new car was much harder to sight-line through the corners. A lot of new cars have these double A-posts which take out a lot of vision. The new Leon shell seems to obstruct the apex - hardly ideal! We had four people we were doing training with and every one of them preferred the older car.
Where the cars do gain, Leon included, is the greater shell stiffness which is immediately apparent. Stiff springs but poor damping, incidentally.
The new Cupra R shares this vision negative - sat in one at Autosport and it really doesn't appeal; much as we'd like it to. Forward visibility is the single biggest reason why I wouldn't buy one.
We had an old and a new Seat Leon at Donington and the new car was much harder to sight-line through the corners. A lot of new cars have these double A-posts which take out a lot of vision. The new Leon shell seems to obstruct the apex - hardly ideal! We had four people we were doing training with and every one of them preferred the older car.
Where the cars do gain, Leon included, is the greater shell stiffness which is immediately apparent. Stiff springs but poor damping, incidentally.
The new Cupra R shares this vision negative - sat in one at Autosport and it really doesn't appeal; much as we'd like it to. Forward visibility is the single biggest reason why I wouldn't buy one.
Get a Bristol!
I drive a 1972 Triumph Spitfire. Weighs nothing and is so low I could probably drive straight under the back of an artic and take my head off if I missed the brakes. It is amazing what driving an older vehicle with less protection will do for your awareness of road hazards, in particular large modern vehicles with very little glass. I imagine it is similar to what the guys who ride bikes feel!
BadgerBenji said:
bobdylan said:
got stuck behind a atom yesterday, couldnt see a thing ! tut tut
could have been worse, could have been a molecule
hey ariels new car, the ariel molecule ! its a light wieght atom, they saved wieght by removing the chasie. its a type R engine on castors with a horse saddel on top
Edited by bobdylan on Wednesday 31st January 13:19
bobdylan said:
hey ariels new car, the ariel molecule ! its a light wieght atom, they saved wieght by removing the chasie. its a type R engine on castors with a horse saddel on top
Edited by bobdylan on Wednesday 31st January 13:19
One of the problems that I found going from a Rover Metro to a Rover Coupe (I know it's not as modern and tank-like as a lot of cars), was that the A pillar was a lot bigger and shallower, which is a bugger for visibility because it can completely cover the road on a right-bend. As such, I had to seriously alter my driving style to accomodate for it, and it's a lot harder to park than a glass box with matchstick pillars!
If you just remember that everybody else on your bit of road is a bigger fool than your wildest nightmare, and that the road itself has been designed to throw you off,.. you might find the repairs bills reduce a bit and nurses will be nice girls at parties, rather than the operators of your life-support systems!
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