I disagree. Proper side view mirror alignment results in the car driver able to clearly see the dividing lines for a significant distance behind the car.
A vehicle following closely behind you does (or rather, should) not impede the side view mirrors.
It can. It doesn't always. If the driver behind you is not particularly well aligned in the lane it can be difficult. Doubly so if it is a larger vehicle, relative to you. (I drive a small sedan, for example.)
Imagine you are centered in the leftmost lane. The driver behind you is tailgating and riding close to the dashed lane divider to your right. You'd like to see down that very lane divider, to see an oncoming motorcycle.
Your rear-view is going to be obstructed by the vehicle behind you. Particularly, the right side of the view, since the trailing vehicle is to the right of your center.
You side view is also going to be obstructed, as the trailing vehicle will obscure the LoS going straight back along the dashed line. I'm able to see the dashed line, but only for a small distance; often only 0.5 to 1 seconds of travel distance. This isn't really sufficient, safety wise.
Maybe you should make an article on it. The article diagrams clearly shows a blind spot for lane splitting motorcycles just like every other article on the subject including the youtube videos showing proper alignment mirrors.
A car following closely behind you impedes the rearview mirror. Just look out of it next time your stuck in stop and go traffic where lane splitting happens.
> The article diagrams clearly shows a blind spot for lane splitting motorcycles
No it doesn't; it clearly shows a blind spot immediately next to your vehicle that can at best hide a cyclist who sticks right next to your rear passenger door, or rear left body panel. (Unsurprisingly: these are the parts of your car you don't see.)
You might nevertheless him or her in the rear-view through the rear passenger window or quarter glass.
Also, you can still see into that area if you tilt your head to the right. That's because the mirror was adjusted that way: to just see the edge of your car with your head tilted toward the side window.
I've always set up my mirrors exactly as this article suggests; I learned that in 1986. Before executing a lane change, I not only look in the rear-view mirror and side mirror, but also tilt my head left. Then just a glance left is required, because the lateral blind spot is so reduced by the positioning of the side mirror that it doesn't require a full head turn.
> A car following closely behind you impedes the rearview mirror.
Yes, a vehicle behind you can occlude a motorcyclist who is riding next to that vehicle. This will be the case even if you drive a convertible with its roof down, and turn your head to face in that direction.
If you tilt your head to the left, you may still be able to see that rider in the side mirror, unless the vehicle behind you is very wide, or positioned to the left.
In such a situation, that vehicle will be blocking more than just a stripe-riding motorcyclist; that vehicle will obstruct a significant view of the adjacent lane, preventing you from seeing a speeding vehicle a little ways back; you'd be foolish to execute a lane change while being tail-gated like that for reasons not related to stripe-riding motorcyclists.
>you'd be foolish to execute a lane change while being tail-gated like that for reasons not related to stripe-riding motorcyclists.
Lane splitting happens in stop and go traffic when you traveling at 10mph or less. People need to change lanes in these conditions like getting from HOV lane to an exit. People don't lane split when traffic is flowing.
The diagrams in the article are terrible. The only weakness in the author's argument is the poor quality of the visual aids.
Draw your own on a piece of paper with sight lines originating from the driver's position, then projected/reflected to the mirrors. You'll find there's total overlap.
A vehicle following closely behind you does (or rather, should) not impede the side view mirrors.