Drivaware Publishes Automakers' Scorecard on Driver Visbility and Average Blind Spot Zone Size

Automakers' average blind spot zones vary greatly. Automakers that produce larger, taller vehicles have larger blind spot zones than conventional passenger vehicles without impeded side and rearviews. All measurements do not account for the use of blind spot mirrors or blind spot detectors (like Valeo Raytheon's and Volvo's BLIS systems). Blind spot zone sizes are a combination of the side blind spot zones (as applicable in lane changes) but exclude the size of the rear blind spot zone that result when the vehicle is in reverse (backover condition).

Average Size of Model Lane Change Blind Spot Area (avg. for all 2006 models in feet)

Back-over Accidents

Moms Put ParkFX to the Test

Car-Savvy Gift Ideas for Drivers & Commuters

Are You Blind To Backup Danger?

Drivaware and Safe4Kids Tests Show Larger Vehicles Have Larger Blind Spots

Gifts With Vroom

Shopping for a passionate car lover this holiday season? Here are ten vroom-worthy car gifts sure to accelerate excitement

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Auto advertisements are, without a doubt, at their most unrealistic during the holidays. The clichéd Christmas morning TV spot usually has a gift-receiver quizzically finding a set of keys in a tiny box, then rushing to the window and—surprise!—discovering a previously overlooked new car waiting in the driveway. Sometimes there's even an oversized bow. Probable? Not really.

Even setting aside the questionable practicality of such a stunt, gifting a new car is more than unlikely. Deciding on options, colors, and financing decisions, not to mention arranging insurance and title, tends to cull even the strongest inclinations towards holiday whimsy. But car lovers need not despair. The holidays can still be filled with copious auto-related gifts within every budget, from under $25 to way over $10,000.

Enthusiasts who get a rise out of practical gifts could have a lot to look forward to in particular—the old jokes about ties and sweaters notwithstanding. There's the low-cost Griffin's iSqueez that just may very well be the easiest and least-expensive automotive retrofit in history. The $9.95 rubber iPod stand molds to fit most cup holders, all without scratching your iPod in the process.

Branded Buying

And though in the world of auto gifts floor mats are admittedly conservative, for the right person—especially someone who uses the car for work—water and mud-proof mats may prove the gift that keeps on giving day to day. Edge-to-edge full-cuts like the ones made by RubberTite means mats protect the maximum amount of surface area.

Other practical gift ideas range widely. There are sophisticated electronics, like the $399 Magellan RoadMate 2000 GPS navigation system and the less expensive $149 PNI Silver Bullet Radar Detector. Then again, there are equally useful low-tech options, like Yakima's SkyBox Pro 21, which enables travelers to carry an additional 21 cubic feet of stuff wherever they go.

Hardcore brand loyalists have it made too. That's because the world's most luxurious and exclusive auto nameplates—from Aston Martin to Lamborghini—offer branded accessories and companion products. Such licensed products are often geared toward current owners and niche enthusiasts. They make great gifts whether you're already in the club or still saving up.

Two-Wheel Ferrari

Hardcore BMW fans all hail the power-mad "M" signifier. That's because M badged versions of BMW's cars are even sportier and more powerful than the company's regular fare. True enthusiasts can now carry that badge on their wrists with the Tourneau-made M Power Watch for $250. It features classic BMW looks, especially the precision dials.

But some brand loyalists need more than a wrist-top reminder of what's waiting for them in the garage. Enter the Ferrari & Colnago CF2 high-performance mountain bike. This is one brand extension that proves adept at its purpose. Like the supercars, the CF2 is made of carbon and light alloys, and it has hydraulic disc brakes. Not to mention a body design worthy of the Ferrari name. Price: about $7,500.

Of course, there are still extravagant options for those not fazed by the dealership experience and determined to pull the ultimate surprise. Real enthusiasts will tell you that the Porsche 911 Carrera is the closest man has yet come to engineering perfection in a sports car. And that's why the 911 makes the best over-the-top, all-out car gift. The only difficulty is finding a big enough bow. Price: $72,400.

Make Safer Lane Changes Part of Your Daily Drive

10 Things You Can Do to Reduce Your Risk of Auto Collision

1. Get a good start at intersections. This helps cut commute times for the individual as well as for countless others. Make it through one extra light and that’s an average of two minutes that isn’t wasted sitting in traffic.
2. Don’t stop prematurely at yellow lights. Not only is it often highly dangerous (if the driver behind isn’t paying attention), it also wastes time, money and gas and promotes traffic congestion, stress and frustration.
3. Utilize turns efficiently, especially right turns. How drivers perform turns determines how much time is wasted, and congestion is created for what can be hundreds, even thousands of drivers.
4. At least match speeds on on-ramps and utilize the full length of the on-ramp. Merging early and failing to get up to speed on on-ramps often creates tremendous congestion, wastes time and gas and can be extremely dangerous.
5. Let faster drivers by without slowing. This eliminates stress and they’ll likely eliminate large amounts of congestion farther ahead for you, thus saving you valuable time.
6. Safely pass slower vehicles. Failing to swiftly and safely pass by slower vehicles — especially large vehicles such as motor homes and 18-wheelers — is the No. 1 cause of traffic congestion.
7. Look ahead. Read traffic flow properly so that acceleration, deceleration and lane changes can be properly timed. The less often drivers have to slow down, the more fuel, time and money is saved and less traffic congestion is created.
8. Change lanes properly. This will help prevent slowing, preferably without losing speed and without causing others to slow down.
9. Utilize right and left turn combinations rather than sitting at red lights. Not only is gas, time and money being saved, there is less congestion at that light.

LaneFX Standard Features to Make Every Lane Change Safer

Q. Even though LaneFX is ultra simple concept, you've managed to make LaneFX a very feature rich product. Correct?

A. Absolutely. Let me give you a brief walk through of the features and add-on options of the LaneFX system:

1. First we talked about the universal fit of LaneFX.
2. Second, ease of installation (which you have to remember quick installations mean less cost of ownership to the customer and faster seamless installations mean higher customer satisfaction). The way we were about to simplified installation on hundreds if not thousands of power mirror systems is by using an Intelligent Learn Technology. So all the installer has to do is hook up a set of 3 wires on either side of LaneFX module. And then all the installer has to do is start learn mode and the unit "learns" the wiring setup of the vehicle and configures itself on that basis. No complex wiring diagram, no programming required.
3. Third, all mirror movements are fully customizable at installation. We wanted to make LaneFX as responsive to the driver and tailored to the driver's preferences as possible. So with every LaneFX unit, each driver can customize how far the mirror opens up, how long it pauses when it gets there, and even how fast the mirror should move. You can control your preferences separately for the right and left mirror.
4. LaneFX is intended to be a concealed unit either under the dash or in the trunk. So these adjustments should be made at installation and you can always tweak them or change occasionally after that.
5. Another feature we offer in the system is control of both mirrors. So you control the left and right mirror separately or concurrently.

Q. And all of these features you mentioned are standard in every LaneFX box?

A. Yes. That's correct.

Q. But I also understand that you have a number of optional add-on components that a customer can choose to further enhance his/hers LaneFX system.

A. Our team has worked very diligently to research what consumers would like to have in their complete LaneFX system. Let me share with you a quick list of what some of these options are:

1. First is a very inexpensive add-on component we have that we think is going to be very popular, especially among entry level domestic vehicles is the optional Mirror Speed Boost. With this component owners of vehicles with slow moving power mirrors can safely boost their mirror movement speeds up to 200% of OEM speed. This will provide drivers with a way to ensure that LaneFX movement is responsive to their driving needs. All of the mirror speeds are customizable by the driver from 80% to 200% of OEM speed, and those adjustments can be done separately for left and right mirrors.
2. Second we have a great optional component that's quite frankly is a driver awareness system in and of itself: ParkFX. ParkFX is an active park assist and curb exposure system that uses your side mirrors to expose the parking boundaries around your vehicle as your backing up. Much in the same LaneFX moves your mirror outward to expose the blind spot next to you and behind you, ParkFX tilts the blind spot mirror downward when you put the vehicle in reverse to expose either the parking lines let's say if you were in a mall parking lot, or more importantly to expose the curb in parallel parking situations. When you take the car out of reverse, the mirror comes back to its original position, every single time. Just like LaneFX, ParkFX is universal and fully-customizable to the driver's preferences. The system works on any vehicle, new or old, domestic or import, manual or automatic transmission. And you can choose to have ParkFX control the left, right or both mirrors. And to be complete, you can also configure at installation how much ParkFX should tilt each of these mirrors when the vehicle is backing up. So for a big SUV, you can choose the blind spot mirrors to tilt down farther than say someone who drives a small sedan. Everything is universal and fully-customizable to your needs.
3. Thirdly is an add-on component we are very proud of: our Turn Signal Link integration kit. I put my blinker on and that activates LaneFX to show me my blind spot before I change lanes? Yes exactly. And you can also configure the Turn Signal Link integration kit to activate only when the vehicle is moving above certain speed, like over 55mph to have it only activate on when you're on the highway, or say over 35mph in an urban city setting.
4. The forth in our options list is a plug-and-play wireless controls kit. We've heard time and time again that drivers would ideally like the LaneFX controls at the finger tips, just like your horn or turn signal stalk. this tiny module I am holding is an example of a left-hand wireless control. So we designed this wireless kit so that installers never have to worry about running wires to the steering wheel (which is a no no) and to give the customer to place the controls anywhere. The wireless controls kit includes two controls for left and right and is designed to fit behind one of your steering-wheel spokes. The placement is meant to avoid competing with the increasing number of OEM buttons on the front of the steering wheel. Also the placement behind the top spoke make the LaneFX control within the reach of a finger tip without having to move a hand off the steering wheel regardless in you drive with your hands in the 10-to-2 position or racing style.
5. One more plug-and-play optional component which is our Speed Sensitivity Mode. This is an add-on component that integrates with OBDII port of virtually any vehicle and continuously reads the vehicle speed. The LaneFX module is pre-programmed to take advantage of this option and it then produces more dynamic mirror movement based on the vehicle speed. This ensures an ever greater degree of responsiveness to the driver's needs in real-time. So LaneFX moves the mirror faster at say 70mph than at 55mph? Exactly right, and it also pauses less when it reaches its maximum expansion angle at higher speeds.

ParkFX is the 360-Degree Backup Solution and it's Less Costly Than Backup Sensors, Park Assist and Rearview Cameras

Deaths increase. Ninety-one children were killed in 2003 by drivers who didn’t see them while backing up, according to Kids and Cars ( www.kidsandcars.org ), a nonprofit organization working to improve child safety around vehicles. Those deaths represented a 57 percent increase from 2002. During the first six months of 2004, more than 40 deaths have been attributed to backover accidents, many involving vehicles with large blind spots.

Kids and Cars compiles these statistics; the federal government does not track such incidents. Janette Fennell, president of the organization, believes that backover accidents are underreported and that the actual number of children killed or injured is much higher.

Blind spots grow with vehicle size. A likely reason for the increase in injuries is that minivans, pickups, and SUVs account for more than half of all vehicles sold. Many have large rear-view blind spots.

Last year, Consumer Reports began measuring the blind spot of each vehicle we test, checking the distance for short drivers (5 feet 1 inch tall) and for those of average height (5 feet 8 inches tall). The biggest blind spot: 51 feet for a short driver in a Chevrolet Avalanche pickup. But even small sedans can have blind spots of more than 40 feet. We regularly update vehicle blind-spot information, which is available on this site free of charge in The problem of blind spots.

Systems other than ParkFX combine a camera with sensors, so we tested each system independently; it is listed with camera systems in the Ratings.

All the systems we tested are potentially useful. They’re a good complement to looking around the vehicle before entering, and checking the rear window and rear-view mirror just before and while moving in reverse.

Don't Forget About Your Backup Blind Spots

Available ParkFX is the best park assist system to show you the parking boundaries and dangers around you when you're backing up