Worst Visibility of any vehicle. Toyota FJ Cruiser

[M A V I C]

All you guys complaining about backing up and not being able to see, you do realize many cars have an option for an assist feature which is way more accurate than your eyes, right?

[beerman]

I have a toyota solara and rear view is very bad. I put on my blinker, wait wait wait, and then start moving over. My sebring was bad but not as bad as this new rig.

[spearmint]

Quote US Today: "The Toyota FJ Cruiser come withs so many blindspots it ought to come with a white cane"

Amen.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/revi...iser_x.htm

[Z]

Oh snap!

[lost in space]

[quote spearmint]Probably fathers thinking they were protecting wife and family in big monster SUV. Too bad for the rest of us.
So they think. Ever see how good those heavy, high, soft-sprung SUVs with big cushy tires roll over?

I saw an evaluation of visibility out the back of some SUVs. In the one with the worst honors, a 3 -ft tall kid wasn't visible through the rear view mirror unless he was something like 16 ft or more away from the back of it.

[spearmint]

[quote lost in space][quote spearmint]Probably fathers thinking they were protecting wife and family in big monster SUV. Too bad for the rest of us.
So they think. Ever see how good those heavy, high, soft-sprung SUVs with big cushy tires roll over?

I saw an evaluation of visibility out the back of some SUVs. In the one with the worst honors, a 3 -ft tall kid wasn't visible through the rear view mirror unless he was something like 16 ft or more away from the back of it.
Consumer reports says up to 68 feet for shorter objectsfor a Jeep Commander with the seats all up. Yikes!
http://blogs.consumerreports.org/cars/20...s_loo.html

[spearmint]

[quote M A V I C]All you guys complaining about backing up and not being able to see, you do realize many cars have an option for an assist feature which is way more accurate than your eyes, right?
I googled these which I am not famiiar with. Seems many are parking sensors and mounted on rear view mirror. Since I can longer effectively parallel park worth a dmn would be nice however being mounted on a rear view mirror would still not get down low as a camera for safety. I do not like reliance on a camera either.

Backing out using a cell phone at the same time should get you jail time. "Honey I am leaving the store now."

[M A V I C]

[quote spearmint][quote M A V I C]All you guys complaining about backing up and not being able to see, you do realize many cars have an option for an assist feature which is way more accurate than your eyes, right?
I googled these which I am not famiiar with. Seems many are parking sensors and mounted on rear view mirror. Since I can longer effectively parallel park worth a dmn would be nice however being mounted on a rear view mirror would still not get down low as a camera for safety. I do not like reliance on a camera either.
The FJ, as many others, are sonar based and installed in the rear of the vehicle. My car, for example, gives me audible beeps when I'm in reverse. Once I get within a couple feet of something it starts beeping. The closer I get, the faster it beeps. It's happened more than once while backing up that someone walked behind me and I didn't see them before I heard the rapid beeps and hit the brakes.

The only issue I've encountered with it is when snow piles up on the bumper it thinks something is there. It's very accurate as far as distance and height goes. Anything the tail pipes can hit it beeps at. This system is one of the more basic ones.

A friend has a 7 series an it has at least front and rear sonar, if not 360°. It has a bunch of settings as well. It gives one a map of everything around them (on the dash) and it has multiple colors to convey it all. Very useful. You can sit, parked, and watch people walk around the car.

It's so much easier to parallel park, or backup in general. On the 7 series it makes it easier to tell where all the corners of the car are. Pulling into tight parking spots is so much easier as is maneuvering in any small area.

So people can complain all they want about how hard it is to see out of the newer cars, but the fact of the matter is many have options that allow maneuvering a vehicle much more easily and reliably than an older vehicle with smaller c-pillars.

[macphanatic]

The rear view camera on my Pilot is phenomenal. I can put the rear bumper within inches of a wall, etc. I still need to use the side mirrors to line up, but it's a great tool to have.

I think that car mfg's are reducing window size in an effort to make them even quieter. Large windows tend to increase noise transmission (until someone figures out how to use insulated windows :-) ). Not to mention glass being heavier than sheet metal and probably more expensive per square foot.

[Thrift Store Scott]

[quote M A V I C]All you guys complaining about backing up and not being able to see, you do realize many cars have an option for an assist feature which is way more accurate than your eyes, right? LOL!!!
Those systems are good WHEN they work, IF they work, and ONLY FOR AS LONG as they work, whereas a properly sized and placed rear window works like a charm every time provided it is kept reasonably clean.