oldsguybry

I was wondering if anyone else ever had this problem before . It seems my 72 CS has a fairly decent blind spot on the passenger side while trying to navigate a lane change . I had a couple of instances where someone honked at me because I couldn't see their little car while I was making a lane change . I always turn my head and look before I start moving over obviously . I also have no mirror on that side of the car , and the back end is jacked up a bit more then normal .

joe_padavano

That's why they make a passenger side mirror.

Koda

It happens. You should stay in the right lane unless passing, and when you pass, pass hard enough that you get ahead of the dude and you can keep track of him and know there's no one there.

Fun71

I couldn't imagine driving without one as every car I have owned since I started driving had one. First car was a 1970 Cutlass Supreme with sport mirrors and I became accustomed to having that passenger side mirror.

Allan R

My 72's never came with passenger side mirrors. When I restored the body on my silver 72, I elected to put the sport mirrors on and also decided to use the convex mirror instead of flat. They do work well.

Back to the days when I didn't though - The wonderful part of the 72 Hardtops is the incredible visibility I had by just doing the shoulder checks. Of course I also did a rearview check first to see if I could spot someone coming into the area you call the blind spot. Chances were really good you could catch part of the car in the rear view or in the shoulder check. Sure the sail panel was thick but not enough to be that brutal. In all the time I've owned my car, and miles put on both 72's, I can honestly say I've never had any issues with someone being in a blind spot.

joe_padavano

Heck, on my 62, even the LH outside mirror was optional.

My 84 Custom Cruiser did not have the RH outside mirror, as that was also an option even then. You get used to being extra careful when changing lanes. It also helps to have a very large POS car with dents, as people tend to give you a wide berth.

oldsguybry

That's what I was thinking about getting , but I really didn't want to put a hole in the door , I'll just drive in the middle of the road

Allan R

Why not? It's not hard and you can't just glue it to the door. The mirror has a plastic gasket to seal the bottom against moisture. Just bite the bullet and get a set of sport mirrors and be done with it. They're for sale all the time and not that expensive.

oldsguybry

Yeah I really like those sport mirrors compared to the one I have .

oldsguybry

Sorry , I guess I was just wondering if anyone else had this experience with this model / year car . I never had this problem with any other car I've ever owned . I was beginning to think I was going blind or something . In general , I usually turn my head and check the blind spot when driving instead of JUST using the mirror when driving my other cars . I also realize that a hole has to be drilled in the door in order to install the passenger side mirror , I'm not that stupid .

I think I was trying to go somewhere else with this thread but lost my original train of thought . That question was already answered without me asking though and I do appreciate that . I've been working a LOT of hours lately , been dealing with crazy neighbors , and my mom was getting Chemotherapy treatments / losing weight . I'm glad she's looking and feeling better now that the treatments finally came to an end , and I'm glad for that .

pogo69

The world moves to fast and life beats us all down at times so I wonder if you are just realizing this blind spot because your mind is preoccupied and distracted. So even more of a reason to add a mirror

Olds64

The Cutlass has a horrible blind spot. That's why you should sell your Cutlass immediately and buy a 4 door hardtop 88 or 98.

oldsguybry

That sounds like great advice , I'm looking at some as we speak .

lshlsh2

Or eliminate all blind spots by getting a convertible and never driving with the top up.

I had people telling me that my car had all sorts of blind spots but never noticed any and was wondering what they were talking about. One day got caught by a pop up thunderstorm and put the top up. Wow I found the blind spot. I had the car for over 2 years before I drove it with the top up and figured out it had a blind spot.

MDchanic

Ha. I darned-near killed a guy on the elevated part of the FDR drive as a kid in my Chevelle - had no idea he was there until I heard the screeching tires and saw the dust in my rearview mirror. At the time, there was a 12" vertical steel curb, topped by a 3' high steel guardrail at the edge, so he had nowhere to go.

Made me a lot more careful about checking that blind spot.

- Eric

Tedd Thompson

My car is terrible for blind spots with the top up. I added right hand mirror and then put a 3 1/2 convexed spot mirror on that, it encompasses the whole mirror but will pick up anything back there I need to see. You gotta pick your battles, function over style sometimes.... Tedd

Fun71

The factory also used a reinforcement plate on the inside of the door so the sheet metal wasn't the only thing supporting the mirror. You can make your own with a small piece of metal. A piece of 1/8" aluminum flat plate cut in a strip maybe 3/4" x 3" or so should do the trick.