The Dangers of A-Pillar Blindspots

After a viewer sent me Dash Cam footage of a crash they had at a T-junction I thought I would explore how much A-pillar blindspots actually affect our driving. In this video I suggest viewers to watch an excellent video by Tom Scott as a follow-up.
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[@grumpy989]

Ash referencing Tom Scott was something I never expected but am glad happened

[@jillp1840]

AND I knew the video he was referring to. Verily it is a good afternoon!

[@BaldMancTwat]

I feel like I could tell he watches a bit of KZbin because his editing is honestly up there with some of my favourites.

[@PedroConejo1939]

@@jillp1840 Yeah, me too. It's a shocker just watching people fly through the stop sign as he's filming.

[@donaldasayers]

In many ways it's the most important video Tom has done. See also "constant bearing decreasing range" which is responsible for keeping the other car hidden behind the roof pillar. The same thing happens with the B pillar when you join a motorway if you are in the habit of glancing over your shoulder. Has to be said the Wife's head also gets in the way turning right out of a junction.

[@freddieparrydrums]

Absolutely love that video hahaha

[@Jack-hg1hq]

This is why I love driving classic cars, all the pillars are so thin you can see everything

[@danj3789]

My 205 GTI used to have such thin A pillars I could get my hand around them, modern cars you're lucky to get both hands around them!

[@matsr_2279]

Unfortunatley those large pillars are probably there to increase rollover strength so its going to be a trade of between visibility and crash safety.

[@woutervanr]

So instead of just moving your head a bit you though "fuck it, it'll have to be classic cars for me". That's first time I've hear that as a reason.

[@Jack-hg1hq]

@@matsr_2279 true, I prefer to avoid the crash all together rather than have it and be safer

[@matsr_2279]

@@Jack-hg1hq Ah but this is the thing, thin A pillars of course don't reduce crashes to 0 at all and rollover crashes are obviously not caused all the time by people not doing observations at junctions correctly. When you engineer a car there are probably loads of trade offs like this that have to be made.

[@iandodd14]

This is nothing new. Fifty years ago my instructor stressed the danger of the "killer pillar", as he called it, even though they were much more slender in those days. He was top class!

[@TheWhiskeyMan-rk7qv]

I bet that was embarrassing at the time. Nothing trumps the shame of being at fault in an accident.

[@jillp1840]

Yeah, for all the reasons Ash discussed, plus a really complicated junction ... I can feel his pain (and ironically may not have happened had I not been extra cautious checking for bikes!!). Fortunately very minor, but watching Ash's videos are my penance to myself 🙏

[@supergeekjay]

You can tell by his embarrassed sigh, he's thinking, "How did I not see that?". It happens.

[@rufusgreenleaf2466]

@@supergeekjay and then from the other drivers point of view the guy pulling out of the junction just looked like a complete goose for not seeing him. It would be hard to justify the pillar problem from outside that car.

[@trif55]

yea once he's going he's only looking right to check his path is clear and suddenly car out of nowhere, There's one junction locally I often turn down but rarely turn out of and it's the only place I've had a couple of near misses with cars and one bike, it's on the outside of a bend with the road heading away at an odd angle, so maybe cars initially approach from behind my a-pillar, will have to check it out next time!

[@briank10101]

I think many of us find out the hard way by almost pulling out at a junction especially when turning and blindspot moves with moving vehicle. This wasn't as much of a problem when cars had thin pillars. I might DIY a mini camera on the outside of my pillar with a tablet showing the blindspot area on the inside on its screen i.e. make the pillar invisible by seeing through it.

[@mcgherkinstudios]

I can only imagine the amount of people watching this amazed that there are blind spots in front of the car! Always give your head a wobble to make sure the blind spot is clear.

[@CJax749]

I’m amazed people don’t just look around then😂

[@MrJohnny3shoes]

In that case what are their driving instructors teaching them?

[@step4560]

Yeah, well its not about "just giving your head a wobble" it's about moving your upper torso vigourousley to see around the A-pllars as Ash demonstrates at 9:00. Suggesting "jus' givin' your head a wooble" means you didn't get the message... 😮

[@mcgherkinstudios]

@@step4560 Well yes, obviously, but giving your head a wobble sounded funny so I wrote that instead.

[@step4560]

@@mcgherkinstudios No woories mate, I really shouldn't excpect others to have my obsessive compulsive precision in languaging. Cheers...

[@ProzYYnc]

I think it's pretty common to move yourself to look around your A-Pillars on junctions, but when you're just driving down the road, you're relaxed and you don't think you would need to, so that's when cars/cyclists/peds will catch you off guard.

[@Multydrifter]

I always wait 2 seconds more or look for reflections if something is blocking my view and i'm uncertain, saved me from a couple of accidents like this one

[@BaldMancTwat]

@@Multydrifter Personally, on this one I would have just emerged slower and looking to the left ready to stop because the Porsche SUV was blocking the full left view.

[@drutt1985]

I drive a couple of vans in my work. And the a pillar in them have made me have several close calls, especially in intersections with a high tempo in the mornings and when people get off work. Feel like its even more so if you switch cars often. or maybe im just a shit driver who knows

[@DracoRemixer]

Working as a postal worker, which means driving a wrong-hand drive vehicle, has made me very aware of blind spots after having several instances of other cars hiding behind them. With A-pillars being as big as they are combined with big mirrors (with fisheye lenses mounted on top of them), and with wipers not meant to wipe for optimal vision through the other side, together creates a huge blind spot. There was a few "oh shit" moments before I learned this and became much more careful at junctions and roundabouts. You live and you learn, I'm just happy I realised this in time.

[@mikehunter2844]

@8:45 is not what the driver would see. A camera only has 1 lens, a driver has 2. So if you put two cameras approx 3ins apart you would have a much better view around the pillar.

[@dougscott7079]

Great video. The A pillars are one of the biggest dangers to any driver, no matter how experienced. A moment's laziness and you could be responsible for a serious or fatal accident. Move your head, move your body, and leave nothing to chance.

[@artemkatelnytskyi]

Ashley finally had an excuse to play with his head cam and his drone :) Good video!

[@ashley_neal]

Absolutely Artem!

[@Jamesterjim]

One benefit of driving older cars is the a-pillars are typically smaller. Not as safe if you crash though.

[@melvynwoodman5787]

The benefit of these is also that they are more vertical and nearer the driver lower down resulting in being almost invisible providing the driver has sight in both eyes.

[@ryansellar9149]

As a tall person this is something that came quite naturally with driving. In most cars with the seat all the way down my eye line isn't that far below where the roof meets the top of the windscreen so I'm constantly having to move my head to see around things to begin with. In the first clip too it's another example of why you need to wait until passing vehicles clear to make sure you can safely go. A lot of people seem to go "oh I can't see past that car so it must be clear I'll just go" and then situations like that happen.

[@carlarrowsmith]

I have the same issue as you Ryan. The other problem is with traffic lights, close to the junction and you can't see them without head yoga, the French have the right idea with a tiny set lower down.

[@ganrimmonim]

Wow the amount of time a bike could spend in one of those blind spots!

[@bulwinkle]

The 1st rule of driving; if you're not absolutely sure don't move.

[@MrJohnny3shoes]

Many motorists think they are absolutely sure. When a collision occurs they say, " oh I didn't see you". In this video the car approaching from the left was clearly in view.

[@bulwinkle]

@@MrJohnny3shoes "I didn't see you" = "I didn't look", and in the UK will result in an almost automatic charge of "driving without due care and attention".

[@Duffrynmad]

Before I even started the video, I was thinking about the Tom Scott video as I'd seen it previously. It really is a great example of how the pillars do obstruct the view

[@DontPanicDear]

Me too. Highlights why staggered and oblique Justin’s need to be approached with so much more cation. It’s entirely possible the driver at the give way line, can’t see you, even though you can see the, so clearly.

[@alanhindmarch7682]

Over the 50 years of driving various cars (first 3 being minis) I have noticed all the pillars on cars have become larger not just the A pillar, but also the rear (c or d) pillars. It is amazing how many drivers are glued to the seat and only move their eyes and head. I feel Scott in the clip line of sight was blocked by the A pillar, but he seemed to rush to get out of the junction, so wasn’t given himself enough time to recheck to his left.

[@Equiluxe1]

The A pillars on modern cars are a particular gripe of mine. My wife has a Vauxhal meriva and I hate driving it due to the blind spot from the pillars, on one ocasion I nearly went over a pedestrian at a zebra crossing, having stopped to let people cross I started to move off just as a pedestrian appeared from the right. They had stopped in the road for some reason right in my blid spot so perfectly that despite trying to peer arround the pillar they could not bee seen, luckily for all concerned I was moving off slowly from a standstill and they stepped back as I stood on the brakes,not sure who was the most scared her or me. After that I started to see how much could be hidden behind the pillars and found that in the right position with a bus at the right angle a whole bus would be out of sight. Thesedays I only drive my pickup and avoid the wifes car as far as possible.

[@javonaziz5323]

Admittedly, since passing my test, I have become a bit lazy with slowing down enough for junctions/mini roundabouts. Yesterday, I was in a near miss on a mini roundabout as I had completely missed an approaching car that was briefly in a blind spot. Luckily the other driver was switched on enough to slow down and fix my mistake... But it would have totally been my fault if we had crashed. That moment and this video have helped my understand where I have gone wrong. It's the reason I still watch these videos... To keep my driving habits grounded

[@PedroConejo1939]

Great learning point. I do try to wobble-head at junctions but every now and then, on certain roads, I lose an entire car from view when I'm not expecting it. Three other things I do at most junctions: raise the sun visor (I noticed the black SUV in the clip had theirs down); lower the driver's side window if possible, mute any music that is on (I generally only have music on when on dual-carriageways and motorways). Maybe it's years of riding a motorbike that make me very aware of secondary sensory inputs but modern A-pillars certainly are a bugger. The same goes for rear views but at different times.

[@ClaireYunFarronXIII]

Wow. I thought I was the only one who had problems seeing past that pillar sometimes, and have to move around to see behind it. Everyone chastises me for doing that.

[@kthxbairofl]

I'm so cautious about the A Pillars that from the day i passed my test, i bob and weave 😂, it's saved me a few times already when if i was sat normally i wouldn't of seem them. Good video Ashley!

[@seasideafterlife8422]

The effort Ashley puts in to explain these things is actually great!

[@MrJohnny3shoes]

Shouldn't need any explanation. This is common sense.

[@seasideafterlife8422]

@@MrJohnny3shoes no need to be passive aggressive when I was being nice is there 😃

[@lidge1994]

@@MrJohnny3shoes Yes, something non-drivers have never heard of is common sense and every single instructor, regardless of their skill teaches all drivers perfectly...ohh, no, wait, people on the road are at least 30% shit drivers.

[@MrJohnny3shoes]

Only for Ashley I'd neve have known that I could see what's behind a pillar if I moved my head. Really fantastic.

[@Shyted]

I’ve become so aware of this danger myself over the last couple of years. I was approaching a junction leaving my works car park and there was nothing in either direction. I was just about to pull out but stopped for no real reason, I think I suddenly thought I’d left something in the office. There had been a cyclist perfectly hidden by my left pillar moving at the perfect speed to stay hidden as I moved forwards. Pretty sure I would have hit him. On my mind all the time now.

[@RM-qv9rb]

I passed my driving test in 96 and still remember one of the important points from my driving instructor. When you are emerging from a side road and joining in to a busy road always move your body and have a good peek both sides and pay attention to the blind spots. Never sit still in your seat and just use your eyes or just your head only. Lunge forward and even use both side windows too to eliminate any risks. Examiners used to look out for these traits and if you do a lazy head only watch and manoeuvre they tend to mark you down. I still do that when I am at busy places.

[@trif55]

I just posted about a junction i've been caught at a few times, it's about half a mile from home and always at the end of at least a 30 minute drive, i'm fairly sure I just glance both ways while still rolling without moving, the dangers of mostly driving at quiet times on quiet B roads

[@Gr33nMamba]

Even before clicking play on this video, I'm fully aware of the dangers of pillars in general. I can remember an experiance approaching an oval shaped junction, there was a cyclist that I would have had to have given way to, what I didn't realise at the time was his speed + my approach were synchronised in a way that he was visually behind the A-Pillar the entire time, it was only my final check upon the point of committing the junction that I spotted him. If I had chosen to be lazy about my approaching observations I could have easily taken him out. These days I even try to move my head to look around the pillar if the junction I approach dictates it.

[@Alan_Clark]

I noticed three vehicles coming from the right immediately after the emerge, one of them VERY close, which explains why the cammer emerged so quickly! He was in too much of a rush.

[@paulveitch]

Was going to write this myself

[@robertkustos2931]

@@paulveitch me too

[@Wetthewhistle]

My thoughts aswell to much of a hurry

[@fromthegamethrone]

This! The vehicle immediately to the right would have had to Stop/Slow/Swerve even if our cammer managed to clear the lane.

[@keith6400]

As was said in the video, the previous driver took a long time to emerge. This probably influenced the cammer into becoming hasty and when he looked left it was in short glimpses at the precise times most likely when the view of the car from the left was not available.

[@JP-mu5ic]

Thank you Ashley for your work in refining the skills and attitudes of today’s driving community. As a retired career HGV driver I would like to add a defensive driving awareness re the A pillars. HGV mirrors are HUGE and multiple, large objects are easily obscured from the drivers view. So as a car driver in the proximity of an HGV, be aware of the HGV’s A pillar plus mirrors potential blind spots.

[@jez5182]

Moving your head around in the cockpit is something taught when training for a pilot's licence. If you are flying a straight course and your craft is on a collision course with another aircraft also flying a straight course that aircraft will not move across your field of view - it remains stationary relative to you, and just becomes larger. If it's obscured by anything in the cockpit (compass, door pillars) it will remain obscured until it's so large you can't miss it - at which point you probably won't miss it. Even if not obscured the fact that it has no relative movement makes it hard to spot.

[@PedroConejo1939]

The mechanics of this can be used very effectively as a biker/driver to increase your visual speed across another road user's eye-line.

[@carlarrowsmith]

I owned a 2006 and 2010 Mitsubishi Colt, you've never seen a full blind spot until you've driven one of these! However it taught me a good lesson to move my head more and check more. Made me a safer driver.

[@paultune1696]

I had exactly this problem coming out of a T junction. A good look left and right whilst coming up to the junction, another just at the junction and third check and body move forward to widen my view when 'hey presto' a cyclist appeared just to my left. He had been cycling diagonally across the road as he intended to turn into my road. He had been behind my left pillar all the time. I was so grateful to have made that third check (and to have lent forward when doing so). Without that I am sure I would have hit him and would have quite honestly said 'I never saw you'!

[@DaveBirchmore]

You used to see accidents like this at crossroads where both you and another car are approaching at the same speed and neither see each other until it's too late.

[@tembisilenzube6753]

Spot on

[@richiebtime489]

Maybe we should call them Eh? Pillars 😂😂

[@richiebtime489]

@@ibs5080 No, British

[@Google_Does_Evil_Now]

Ashley, please try a Ford Transit or similar panel van. They have solid metal panels so the drivers cannot see around them, nor behind, only ahead or 90° left or right. So at an angled T junction there's always one side they cannot see properly. A good van driver will have that in mind as they approach to t-junction and they will actually stop and turn the van so that they try and square off the road they're going to turn into. Even though it will make the van look a little bit sideways to the person behind. Squaring off the tee when enable them to look and see fully to the left and right. Might be a good video for you because it would show car drivers just how little van drivers can actually see. Please try and use a van that doesn't have glass in the back doors, solid back doors so you there's no central mirror. So the driver literally can only see what ahead or what is 90° to the left and right only.

[@Spookyminitommy]

had this literally yesterday. had a toyota aygo hidden behind the pillar on a roundabout and i never saw them approaching

[@PedroConejo1939]

It happens.

[@twerki78]

This is another very good learning point. Top marks for the driver for offering this clip up. For me there is an element of rushing by the cammer. There's a white car turning from the right into the road before the van is visible in the video. From the speed of the van and road position I'm not 100% sure if it also turns into the road or takes avoiding action. I'm leaning more towards avoiding. Cars passing the junction on the main road from the right are positioned further to the center of the road, the speed the van is travelling appears too fast to make a 110deg turn into the road the cammer is emerging from. I think there was an element of rushing to get out before the cammer could properly assess the traffic flow. It takes longer to looks for bikers and cyclists. You brain sees what you expect to see. Another point is, never rely on a person's indication as to what their intentions are. There's another road entrance 2 meters from the road the cammer is emerging from. My Son recently passed his driving test. He has a MK6 Ford Fiesta. The A pillars are terrible, they create massive blind spots. Coming from my XC60 to driving the fiesta I'm amazed how bad the A pillar blind spots are in the fiesta.

[@sideshowmatt7119]

As soon as I saw the video title, I thought of the Tom Scott video and was about to reference it in the comments....then in the first 30 seconds I realised I didn't need to.

[@ollieb9875]

I too! 👍😅

[@DontPanicDear]

One of the best videos you’ve ever make Ashley 🤓 The blind spot is so dynamic, as that also excellent Tom Scott video highlighted. Fixed head position creates a situation, where as you move forward, a moving object can stay completely hidden for a long distance travelled. Until it’s too late.

[@ashley_neal]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@piggypiggypig1746]

Whoa! Westerham in Kent! I drive through here most days. That is a notorious junction, it's steep too, so it's hard to shift your body weight forward to look. People are always pulling out at the wrong time.

[@bbuirds]

Excellent video Ashley, I've been experiencing this very problem. Whilst i do consider my A-Pillars to be larger than average, I have found that ultimately my speed on approach to a junction is the number 1 factor in missing other road users. Needless to say corrections have been made!! Cheers.

[@heros2110]

I had it on a pedestrian crossing here in Switzerland with LHD. The bloke was starting to walk and i couldn't see him right away. Scared of me possibly running him over really pi**ed him off and i tried to apologise. It is really tricky even for experienced drivers and i found this video very helpful. Just give yourself a second more to look harder and you will be fine. Thanks for all the content. 👍

[@Maddmank]

I think if you've ridden a motorcycle before you drove you notice this more. My friend pointed out that I'm always moving my head around so I can see around the A pillar, my car is old (ish) and has thin pillars compared to my friends 4 year old astra

[@tanyapavlova4758]

"Lean back in your seat". I am 5" 3'. I can't really press the clutch unless I am all the way forward. It's not a choice, it's a necessity! It's nice to be reminded of how big the blind area is if you are that far forward though. Thanks for the video.

[@Harry-zz2oh]

My wife is 4'11" tall (yes, I'm in the USA, so measurements are the old ones). Like you, she sits all the way forward since she can't reach the pedals. I'm six ft. tall so I have the opposite problem, I sit all the way back.

[@hadtopicausername]

I'm pretty sure I fell victim to this about 1,5 years ago. I was on my bicycle, she was in a white Golf, and we met in an intersection - rather violently at that. It was her duty to yield, but I was probably hidden behind the driver's side A pillar and simply didn't stand a chance. I was able to brake for perhaps half a second, and then the laws of physics took over. I was very fortunate and only suffered a few bruises, though I somersaulted right into the tarmac. I've no idea how I avoided serious injury, apart from my helmet doing an excellent job at protecting my head. So thanks for this video. I hope it can help prevent accidents like mine.

[@steamhammer2k]

My old friend constant velocity angle, an aviation term. if you approach at a constant angle and speed you can hide behind a pillar up to the point hit each other. isn’t trigonometry fun.. not always as in this case. I used to think my old 1980`s Volvo had huge pillars; it`s nothing compared to todays cars. I wonder how many cyclists/pedestrians have been hurt as a result of modern car door pillars. Excellent video highlighting an easily missed danger area.

[@bazzacuda_]

Accident stats do show that road deaths have moved from vehicle occupants to vulnerable road users.

[@ColinMill1]

Yes, I was thinking of the similarity to marine radar-assisted collisions. Years ago I heard that, during an inquest into one such collision, a seaman was asked if there was anything wrong with the radar to which he said "no - we hit her smack amidships"

[@billyporter1389]

Looking from a camera is like looking through 1 eye.

[@paulcollyer801]

Been on the New Forest a few times but not that area. I can see why it’s such a dangerous junction, & Tom’s video is a perfect breakdown of the issue.

[@LarkspeedNL]

A very good and informative video, A-pillar blindness can be even worse just after you change cars as well. I drove a Ford Focus for 4 years and got used to the A-pillar blind spots in it and just how much I had to move to properly see around them. I then changed cars to a Citroen C2 and the A-Pillar blind spots are actually considerably larger as the A-pillars are thicker so I have to move quite a bit more to see around them properly.

[@lapamful]

The only times I had near misses was because of my A pillars. Both times were different and not covered in this video which might be of interest to viewers/students to read. The first time was sitting in a traffic jam, it was hot, I was tired and the traffic was crawling. It was my turn to wait behind a zebra crossing (until there was enough space in front to move forward) and somehow I didn't see a pedestrian come from the right. It was a crossing divided into two sections with a little pedestrian safety island in the middle of the road. As I started creeping forward he suddenly appeared and was almost on my bonnet. The other passengers asked me what the hell I was doing and didn't I see him etc. I didn't know what to say it took me completely by surprise. I must've drifted off for a split second. The second time was also on a crossing, but at night. I was approaching a crossroad junction that was small, but cars tend to whiz down this road and visibility's limited. I was on the minor road emerging onto the major bit. And I'm always a little nervous when approaching it, so as I was approaching (crawling) I was looking ahead, looking for signs of headlights approaching from either direction (looking at kerbs on the other side of the road etc) and because I was focusing further into the distance I didn't see someone approach the crossing (again behind the A pillar). Again, he was almost on my bonnet. Luckily I stopped in time, again. But the thing is, BOTH times these pedestrians had their heads buried in their phones. They did the fatal mistake of not establishing eye contact with me and seemed to be these pedestrians that think crossings are somehow magic and that drivers will always see them. They then just charge into the road assuming they've been seen, or sometimes take the attitude of walking straight onto the crossing and asserting their 'authority' because legally they have right of way. It's a dangerous game but it's the real world and there are many pedestrians who don't drive. But it's the real world and I've tried to take stock of both those incidents and learn from them. But just to clarify, I have pretty good eyesight, I used to be a photographer and was told that in the army (long before photography) I could've been a sniper if I wanted (because of my aim). I always try to excel in everything I do and that's why I'm here, 15 years after passing my test, still trying to learn more about safe road driving. Since passing my test I haven't made any insurance claims, no collisions, no scratches, no accidents, nothing. So, what I'm trying to say is if it can happen to me (conscientious, cautious) it can happen to anyone. Always check those pillars and don't only think for other drivers, think for pedestrians too!

[@grahamnutt8958]

Excellent points raised yet again. Many people, as you say, tend to be "bolted into position". I prefer a seating position that is comfortable; then just move my head and/or body to check these blind spots. Far better to remain at a junction for an additional 5 seconds than to have an impact. Depending upon how far back a driver is positioned, even the "B" pillars can obstruct your view. Stay safe everyone 👍

[@peebee143]

A million years ago when I had an Austin 1800, nearly clobbered a car on a roundabout because my A pillar blocked my view. My passenger's exclamation 'Woah, ya b**tard!' did the trick and I stopped short of the roundabout. Now, I'm mobile in the driving seat. I bob about approaching junctions, roundabouts, pulling away, reversing (looking for bollards or high kerbs), pulling off of slip-roads etc., etc. Experience, huh, priceless!

[@DashCamHull]

Was not expecting the Tom Scott reference haha! I've seen that video before, truly a nasty junction. Glad my clip was of some use, great video Ashley! 👌

[@ashley_neal]

Thanks again!

[@kathrynwhitby9799]

even after 40 years of mostly van driving, i'm finding your videos interesting & useful. thanks.

[@Nooziterp1]

I was a motorcyclist for 23 years, and I quickly learned that pillars, particularly A pillars, can be lethal as it is so easy for a motorcycle to be hidden behind it. When approaching a car in a side road I always used the rule that if I can't see the driver's face behind the A pillar then be very cautious. When I went back to a car the first impression I got was the lack of visibility, with bits of bodywork blocking my view. After 23 years of 360 degree vision it took some getting used to. Having been there myself I am extra careful to look for motorcyclists and of course cyclists.

[@will4may175]

As an Ex bus driver, I can tell you the bus pillars are huge, especially the n/s where the door is, the pillar and door are easily a foot wide, then there's the mirror added on, I was like the old laugh clown at the seaside but without the laugh, constantly back and forth/side to side at junctions, you don't realise how busy a job it is for a driver, looking for passengers getting on and off, watching your blind spots, the swing of the rear of the bus on turns, but not touch the kerb on the inside, then the width of the bus in traffic, doing maths to work out change and dealing with the odd annoying passenger especially late at night when they're drunk. Oh and for males, when you were a kid if you ever went on a bus/coach there was the chance the vibrations and how you were positioned would give you a woody, well, it doesn't change as a bus driver, having to keep my work jacket on while driving to hide it in summer was hell, and if it happens as your shift end, so much fun trying to get off the bus with it, anyway, those pillars are bad on buses.

[@ladyg3nius]

Thank you for taking your time to do these videos !

[@lidge1994]

I'm glad I noticed this and started checking around my pillars like a metalhead only a few months into driving

[@Chalkie1983]

I drive a 2013 (2007-2013) Citreon C4 Grand Picasso, I have had plenty of issues with it including multiple breaks of the window regulators when hitting a pot hole and the cabin flooding due to leaf litter in the front guttering, but the one thing I love about my car is the pillars are split into two smaller pillars creating an A shape smaller window resulting in a better viewing experience for myself when sitting in the cabin. One thing that I was taught when driving was when emerging still check left and right as you pull out incase you missed someone or you see an emergency vehicle. Anyway great video as always thanks for your efforts and work!

[@56curious]

really good representation of the blind spots, learnt something extra here!

[@fromthegamethrone]

When learning to drive I sat right at the front of the seat travel, despite being 6'2'' - but it was nothing to do with fear, it was more to do with the fact I felt like I couldn't control the pedals accurately when sat further back. Glad I got out of that habbit!

[@wumpty93]

Class video ashley, keep them coming!

[@keithnorris2104]

Hi Ashley, thank you for a good video on the "A-Frame" hazards in our cars. I have another blind spot in my car, the interior mirror. I have a Vauxhall Meriva and being six foot three inches in height and my driver seat set to the most comfortable position for me, I find that my interior mirror creates a fair old blind spot. So I am constantly moving my head to look into these three hazard areas.

[@tomvincent8403]

There was a time I almost ran over someone (at low speed) because of the A pillars. I was looking for parking in a Tesco and was at a junction turning right where there was a zebra crossing. Instead of stopping at the crossing as it would of been a hard turn, i looked at either side if the road and checked the zebra crossing from the junction. All looked clear so I headed off, after i got half way over the crossing there is a bloke jumping out the way shouting at me, I hadn’t seen him over the whole crossing and almost hit him. Ever since I’ve made sure to check all possible angles. I felt at the time I was observant enough but it is not worth taking the risk.

[@stevel875]

One point I particularly noticed when driving a couple of days after watching this video... the unswept area of the windscreen can easily triple the width of the A pillar on that side if the sun is shining at the wrong angle so it turns the normally barely visible layer of dirt into an effectively opaque barrier... I had to move quite a lot to make sure there was nothing hiding in that massive blind spot.

[@houndedheller8330]

Worth pointing out that that A-pillar blindspot is usually bigger and even more of a problem when you're not on flat roads. If you are driving down a hill, and turning onto a road that goes up hill, the area you will be looking for a car will be higher up. On a lot of cars the pillar sort of widens at the top, and some cars have more than one pillar which meet at the top. The rear-view mirror can also sometimes create a blindspot in hilly areas for the same reason. Where I live/teach A-pillars and rear-view mirrors can essentially make entire roads invisible without moving your head.

[@TheHamzaAli01]

Great explanation! Thanks for all that you do

[@robertwillis4061]

Something I read about a few years ago. Jaguar - Land Rover had an idea of a small view camera on the outside of the A posts with an LCD screen inside the A posts. To give the effect that a portion of the A post was transparent. What has happened to it? Was touted as a gimmick then, but Audi & Lexus have door mounted rear view cameras now, so why not these? Well done Ashley. A good video presentation. Liked the drone footage, as gives a true view of the ' nonvisible ' space. Trying to get pupils to Bob n weave is always a pain . I am only 5'4", so my seat is quite far forward, so I have a large blindspot, due to the proximity of the right hand post. It can help with the left hand A post as I am further forward.

[@Will-it6ds]

Great video, love the concept, people must have been wondering what I was doing whilst watching this video as when he said about the pillars I kept going forward and back and left to right to see as I was watching this on my lunch break in my car 😂. Thanks for everyone Who sent in and thanks ash for making the point :)

[@johnkeepin7527]

A good demonstration of how to do it well. I have seen the Tom Scott one mentioned, and I seem to remember commenting to it that the other form of ‘blind spot’ that is relevant is our own built-in one, in each eye. The A spots are kind of related to that, as part of our field of view is ‘monocular’, as one of our eyes is ‘blocked’ temporarily by it, so it can look alright with (say) the left eye, but our natural blind sport can be where something ( like a cyclist ) might be at the wrong time. Always pays to look twice before deciding what to do, I think. Just because we can’t see something, doesn’t meant it isn’t there, unfortunately.

[@mkcdavies]

Very clearly explained and so important, thank you

[@nayyfz]

I’ve been driving for about 8 years and never had a crash - but the closest I came to having one was last week when a car “came out of nowhere” at a junction, hidden behind the front left A-pillar. I take extra care now! Thanks for the great content Ash 👍

[@ZyNeEnZyNe]

The quality of your videos has improved so much. I love the effort into the research you do and the editing is spot on.

[@ashley_neal]

Yay, thank you!

[@Ben31337l]

Thank you for covering this! Junctions are a big problem for me!

[@josephmarsh8235]

Perfect video yourself Ashley, and this is a good example to me because my car has really large blind spots that I have to look a look past. Some car manufacturers are using cameras instead of mirrors that reduce most blind spots. Also your video is like how highway code demonstrates blind spots too.

[@ust4ever1]

Incredible production value, really awesome work! B)

[@core5450]

Nice drone work and editing there! Keep up the good vids Ashley (Y)

[@ashley_neal]

Thanks so much!!

[@supergeekjay]

Admittedly I nearly missed a motorbike once pulling out of my street, it's a T junction. I always bob and weave, but still missed him. I slowly pulled out and was able to stop when I suddenly saw him. My low speed helped me keep quite far away from him/her.

[@WestYorkshireGREAT]

Maximum effort in this Video Ashley, good job

[@MK-1973]

Superb video, beautifully put together- one of your best yet.

[@ashley_neal]

Many thanks!

[@tommyxx55]

Thanks for all the effort put into not only this video but all of them

[@ashley_neal]

Glad you like them!

[@Adrenaline4real]

I remember a few years ago when I approached a mini roundabout and had a van obscured by the right A-Pillar in my former Corsa. We both slammed on soon as I saw his bonnet. Luckily no collision and he waved and smiled in a friendly manner because he realised I hadn't seen him. Still... I agree its always worth slowing down and checking!!

[@ric4397]

I had an incident where I had a little bump into a cyclist on entry into a roundabout. Cyclists easily hide behind the A pillars, and on approach to a large roundabout, the road often curves to the left, so your A pillar can follow with whatever comes round the roundabout if you're going at just the right speed and angle. The cyclist popped out from behind a big lorry on entry and was hidden behind the A pillar as he went round, and so I never saw him until he was right in front of my bonnet.

[@sillybait1329]

I've just watched Tom's video you referred to, It's a very scary junction which really does highlight what is hidden behind the A post's I'm also now worried about this as a large amount of people seem to plough on regardless at roundabouts and coming out of side roads maybe they genuinely haven't seen myself coming and this is a clear warning that we need to be aware that someone may pull out even though we're traveling quite often up to 60mph we really need to think, can they see me and slow down just in case , It's a real eye opener and I think Tom's video is something every driver should watch, even to the point of adding it to the theory test

[@phillwainewright4221]

My instructor told me to 'bob and weave' at junctions over forty years ago, and I still do it now. It becomes second nature.

[@tonyb1223]

Yes do the same, if you just move your head you won't see everything.

[@MVS501]

A craking video this one 👍 This very thing has nearly had me a few times . I changed into an SUV from a hatch back a few years ago and have found i have to double & triple check these areas with a good move of my head to see . The A pillars of most modern cars now also contain AirBags which means the trims in these areas are now larger to accommodate them . A typical example of one safety feature making occupants safer but creating other safety issues for drivers.

[@AndyJay15]

I think something you could add to your list of making those blind spots bigger is wind deflectors.. I've got a new vehicle with fitted deflectors and although they don't 100% obstruct they are very dark and definitely increase the risk.. I've only ever really noticed the problem as I approach roundabouts, sometimes they look clear when there is in fact a car going around and hidden from view. I didn't have this problem in my old car so I was a little lazy at first - but now I always make sure to move my head back and forth to check behind those pillars and deflectors..

[@__Razer]

Love the "bob and weave" technique. I found that I do this naturally. I guess there's people out there that don't bother with all that movement and just trust that what they can't see won't hurt them.

[@paul756uk2]

There was talk about car manufacturers putting led screens on the pillars with cameras on the outside to give a continuous view. For me, the most pertinent aspect of this is when 2 moving objects jeep the other vehicle almost permanently in the blind spot.

[@steviebarrett]

Great video, it does help explain why some people emerge from a junction into on-coming traffic

[@johnpoole8332]

Thanks for the video, it was well explained. It would be interesting to see more clips with the head cam if possible, it may be useful for discussing mirror blind spots, checking over your shoulder, etc.

[@ashley_neal]

Will do

[@Manekinos]

Thanks again for the great video, Ashley. I'll be sure to move my head more, at T-junctions too. Being quite tall and driving a dinky little Peugeot 107, I've often found that my rearview mirror can also act as a blindspot - not on T-junctions, but on motorway slip-roads. A couple of times I've been cruising down a dual carriageway in the slow lane and not seen someone joining the motorway to my left, simply because they happen to be in the right spot, 'behind' my rearview mirror, matching my speed, and I don't see them until they're very close. Now, I consciously move my head around whenever I go past a joining slip-road.

[@haydensmall8826]

I have wind deflectors on my car and a few times I’ve arrived at a roundabout only for a car to be hidden by them. Great video Ashley btw

[@davidrumming4734]

Excellent. Since changing my car, I now have 2 significant front blind spots. The little windows in the split A pillar design are not big enough to compensate. Feels like driving a little van. Always leaning in different directions to see round the blind spots.

[@aconnion]

Excellent video which perfectly sums up the SMIDSY scenario.

[@jimmycburfield5997]

Aye the Tom Scott videos are excellent. Anyone who watches football at Goodison park knows how frustrating pillars are in terms of obscuring their view and limiting their understanding of what is going on.

[@eddierose0608]

Thanks for another great video. The missus always asks why I still watch your videos even though I've been driving over a year now. Always learning and they are entertaining.

[@ashley_neal]

That is awesome!

[@bri77uk1]

I know this one. I had a GT86 Toyota, and the mirrors were huge and exactly in my eye-line when the seat was set to my preferred setting. Talk about bobbing and weaving! The main thing is being aware that there's an issue and mitigating that risk.

[@bazzacuda_]

Not every driver has the physical mobility to move around these days. It's one reason, as a cyclist, I try to make eye contact and think 'has that driver seen me?'

[@PedroConejo1939]

I was also taught as a motorcyclist to move towards the centre of the road if someone's on your left at a junction. Not only does it create a safety zone but it also increases the apparent speed at which you cross the waiting driver's eye-line. It's much better if a driver overestimates your speed than underestimates it. Not always possible or safe on a push bike though.

[@chinapig71]

@@PedroConejo1939 I do that as standard at all times, it is a good technique. Over the years as situations have arisen, I have had the occasional passenger comment that my reactions are unusually fast, but they are mistaken. What is happening, is that in the event the other car makes a mistake , my reaction had commenced beforehand as it was part of the defensive driving plan to begin with - therefore it is a simple matter to continue an evasive maneouvre that you have already started rather than be faced with a situation where you have to change course unexpectedly. There is also the loss of reaction time before you act, as the brain doesn't need the split second to process the sudden and unexpected change of plan before sending the signals to instruct the limbs to act. That to me is the beauty in the art of driving. It's not about dealing with seperate events one after the other. It's about knitting it all together in one smooth continuous flow.

[@PedroConejo1939]

@@chinapig71 The art of driving. Yes, it is an artform sadly neglected by many.

[@Harry-zz2oh]

@@chinapig71 Very nice way of driving. The "Art of Driving" is a great way to think of it. You are practicing what you will do IF NEEDED. Over time, this creates a habit with muscle memory so you continue to do this even when you are not actively thinking about it. Very well done.

[@pedalpusher2008]

Great video mate

[@spodule6000]

This problem is 10 times worse on lorries, because of the huge mirrors. I nearly wiped out a motorcyclist one time when I was pulling out of a junction on a quiet industrial estate. I looked to the left as I approached the junction, and again before emerging, then suddenly he was right in front of me. Actually shook me up a bit, especially as I thought I was being careful.

[@ernestbywater411]

Over the50 years I've been driving I've driven hundreds of different vehicles and each had a different area blocked by the pillars when looking around for traffic. One of the things I've noticed over the years is that the movement of the side mirrors from the fender wings to the sides of the doors expands the blind spots of the pillars. There is also a related problem with the blind spot over the shoulders due to the middle and back pillars. When I started driving I was taught to drive seated in an upright positions with the angle at the hips between the thighs and the back being at 90 degrees and the angle at the shoulders be at 45 degrees so the elbows are at 90 degrees and the hands rest comfortably on the wheel at the 10 - 2 position. While driving your head should be in constant movement slightly to the right, left, forward, and backwards to ensure your vision sees around the front pillars while driving and when checking over your shoulders for turns, lane changes, and reversing you do similar head movements to get vision around those other pillars. I was also taught that when driving you should be aware of everything around your for about five car lengths in front and back as well as three car widths to each side at 35 mph and the zone should expand exponentially as your speed increases. Soon after I started driving I found the above became a habit and I also found that I was much more aware of the other traffic than when I had been a passenger. I also found that what you can see in any position varies a great deal with the design of the car, thus having the habit of constant head movement ensures good vision regardless of the car's design. BTW: I saw that Tom Scott video the day after he put it up and it's extremely good.