Monday, September 03, 2007

Bring Back the Fender Mounted Side Mirrors!

In the 1970s, virtually every sporty Japanese car in the Japanese market had fender mounted side mirrors. Though they look odd to the contemporary round eye, hundreds of millions of people grew up accepting the fender as the default location of side mirrors.


The location forward of the A-pillar meant the mirrors had no blind spots whatsoever, an ergonomic gift to drivers in congested Asian highways and byways.


But anti-fender mounted mirror advocates had more reasons to protest. They were too far to see for the average driver with below average eyesight. They were difficult to adjust manually (Need to adjust your mirror? Bring a friend!). And finally, due to the laws of aerodynamics, some of these mirrors vibrated to the point of uselessness at highway speeds.

But all these arguments, albeit valid, cannot overcome the aesthetic je ne sais quoi quality of the fender mounted side mirrors. They just look so damn good!

CKY

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