Do you experience many "close calls" (accident situations) ???

Is it related to the -Z- blind spots ???

Does your (inside) rear-view mirror give you the (rear) view that you want?

Anyone with a (rear view) camera.......does it help ???

 

The first couple of days I had the Z the blind spot gave me a couple close calls.

 

$0.99 blind spot mirror....problem solved. Yes, I do have a lot of close calls, becuase the people in Houston drive so bad.

 

not related to blind spots, but this morning i had a close call... lady in in front of me broke hard and i almost smacked right into her... and the SUV behind me almost swiped me as well... thank god nothing bad happened... counting my blessings

 

Our brakes are so good that I often wonder if the guy behind me is going to stop in time.

Seems like there is a lot of rear-enders mentioned on this forum.

 

I find that with attentiveness, there aren't a whole lot of close calls, and with our VQ's, we can power out of a lot more.

Henry, how about that little close call you had on Highway 1?

 

$0.99 blind spot mirror.... hmmmmm - is it one of those concave (convex?) mirrors that you put on the bottom right of your passenger side mirror?

 

not a lot of "close" calls because of the Z's performance (braking, handling, accelleration). A lot of times you can avoid making a situation a "close" call just because our car ROCKS!!!

 

For me, the Z does exactly what I tell it to. It's an amazing car. It's very comforting to have a fast car that never offers any unwanted surprises. I've been driving it every day for 4 months now without even the slightest incident.

If you constantly find yourself in close call situations, you are probably not a very good driver. Don't feel bad though, most people on public roads can't drive very good anyway. You have to pay attention to what you're doing, but most of all you have to pay attention to what everyone else around you is doing. 50% defense, 50% offense. If you drive too defensively, you cause more problems than you help. If you drive too aggressively, the other fool will eventually get you, if you don't beat yourself to it!

I hear talk of this "blind-spot" in the Z, but I have yet to find it! Maybe I'm blind? Seriously though, the visiblity in the car is just fine and it takes very little adjusting to get used to. Look around, use your mirrors, don't use your phone, turn the radio down(off), and by all means pay attention! It's really not that hard.

Good luck!

 

once or twice ive tried to merge while someone was in my blind spot. thank god nothing ever happens. i swear when it does its a blow to the confidence. heh

one rainy day i had a pretty close call. turned right and took my eyes off the road for a split second (was smoking a cig so water poured in the window - was cleaning it) when this guy cuts into my lane out of nowhere.

he was about halfway into my lane - had about 6 feet to do something. breaking wouldve been useless so i just swung around em in some crazy reaction move and missed the dude.

gotta love the zs handling ability.

 

You know, one of my biggest problems with the Z from an ergonomic standpoint is the fact that because I'm 6'4" tall, the rear-view mirror is basically useless unless I want to look at the inside of my roof/3rd brake light or the strut-brace. I have to slouch to actually see out the back of the car. Blind spots? Yeah, the entire back end of the car is one big blind spot unless I bend my head down to look out the back. Not too comfortable, but it's do-able.

 

Yes, I'm only 5'8" and the whole rear of my car is a blind spot- when I back out of a parking space I just have to guess where the rear of the car might be - and be d-m careful! I often do a hard right glance before pulling into a right side lane when expressway traveling.

One thing I have learned to do in changing lanes - right or left - zip it up about 10 or 15 mph and find a nice open spot between 2 cars in the lane I want to travel - and travel at their speed. Using turn signals helps too! - people tend to watch out if they see you just turn them on - and may even hold back to avoid you taking off part of their car. They dont want to lose theirs any worse that you want to lose yours.

 

Ask your state to ban hand-held cell phones. Drivers on cell phones is where most of my "close-calls' come from. A woman on a cell nearly rear ended me last week. Some scientific studies have shown cell-phone drivers to be worse than drunk drivers.

 

I have not had any close calls but I did alter my parking in parking lots. Like most people, I pulled in frontwards & backed out.

No more.

I did not like backing out blind; so I now back into parking stalls (because I know where all other cars are at that point) and pul out frontwards where I have a clear view.

Actually, I spent several years in the 60s as a truck driver where backing into spaces was SOP. The habits came back quickly.

 

Do you happen to have one of those very long semi-trucks I could practice with? Afraid the rear of my Z would be gone just practicing.

 

LoL!

Actually, I did drive a few semi's. Even 40 years later, the Zzzz is a piece of cake by comparison.

 

I don't have any problem with the Z's blind spots. I know where they are, and I'm alert to anyone pulling into one of them. If you are alert, no one can get into one of those blind spots without you knowing.

That's the whole key to avoiding close calls, be alert to the traffic around you. You've got a car that can out-brake, out-accelerate, and out-maneuver 99% of the cars on the road. That's great, but if you aren't alert, you can crunch it by being inattentive just as you would the lowliest econobox.

You want blind spots, try driving a box van, an 18 wheeler, or the Chrysler Crossfire. Now they have *huge* blind spots. By contrast, the Z's blind spots are minimal.

 

You have to develop a "body image" of the car. You know where *your* nose is, don't you? Even if you can't see it. You know where *your* butt is, don't you? Even if you can't see it. That's called body image. What you have to do is extend that body image to the vehicle you're driving.

You should develop a sense of where the nose of the car is, even if the downsloping hood won't let you see it (try driving an Intrepid for an extreme version of this). Similarly, you should know exactly where the rear of the car is, without having to actually see it.

When you back up, you should already know where everything else is with respect to the rear of the car before you start to move. Having a good picture of that in your mind, and a good body image of where the rear of the car is, you should have no problem backing in or out of the tightest of places.

When backing out of a driveway or parking space, you should have been watching the *approaches* to your blind spots *before* beginning to move. That way no one will be able to sneak into one of those blind spots without you knowing that they are there.

Avoiding problems with blind spots is all about being alert. Don't wait until you are ready to make a move to check your blind spots. Be constantly watching the *approaches* to your blind spots so no one can sneak in there without you being aware of them.

 

I started this thread because I consider myself an excellent driver, but I have had some close-calls in the 4.5 month's I have owned this car.

I've concluded that like kcobean, I am tall and it is a disadvantage in this car.

I must be "more" aware of where my butt (sorry, couldn't resist) is than any other vehicle that I have owned.

 

How bad have the close calls been? Some details please. Do you think you can live with the Z long term?