Good quality blind spot mirrors
 

As anyone knows driving an X5 with the stock side
mirrors dosen't solve the blind spot problem.
Does anyone know if BMW has those attachable
mirrors?. No not those round or square
cheapies at the auto store, Something that not
only solves the problem but looks nice as well?

I don't plan on buying these but this is an interesting
reference. http://www.safetymirrorsonline.com/?source=google

bmw has the euro side mirror lenses that have an angle in them for many other cars. not sure i've seen one for the e53x5 but i know they exist for the e39m5 and e46m3.

on the other hand, you can eliminate your blindspots by correctly setting the side mirrors. 95+% of the driving population have thier side mirrors set incorrectly. side mirrors are meant to view the side, not the rear of the car. once set correct to view the blind spots, it takes a little getting used to but it is 100% effective and thats how I drive. this is one of the things that are taught on track, how to set your mirrors.

to do this:
+ Driver side first.
- lean against the window
- adjust the mirror so you can barely see the side of your car.
- adjust the viewing hieght as normal

+ Passenger side
- lean to the center of the car.
- adjust the mirror again to barely be able to see the side of the car
- adjust the viewing hieght as normal

once set like this, you will see cars move from the main rear view mirror to the side mirror then to your peripheral vision. there is no blind spot if you set this correctly.

EXACTLY... you took the words right out of my mouth.

See X5monkey's euro mirrors in this post - http://www.xoutpost.com/showthread.php?t=180

At the chance of offending the elitists/purists here, :bustingup

I use those cheapazz, round convex stickons, :o

I have 'em on the Vette, daFridge, All my Sleds and,
the X5. None have fallen off, they work like a charm
and, on the X they are not too noticeable.

I've had a few people say, "Nice X or BMW or..."
I've never had anyone say, "those funky cheapazz
mirrors look like crap."

As for no mirrors besides the standards, I gotta disagree w/hayaku and gresch: it's that 5% that May allow one to
clip a car or a sumpin'else out there in that blindspot.
No Non-convex mirror can Eliminate blind spots.

Once you are used to some kind of blindspot mirror, it's very hard to drive without them. My 25cts.

Pics: w/flash on, which exaggerates the ugly look, but they fooking work for me. BR,md

I agree MD, I use the cheapies too. They are easy enough to replace once the plastic/finish wears off :D

CF: "wears off"? You must be buying the ReallyCheapAzz ones, :rofl: The X's are almost 4 yrs old, the Vette's are 3+, the GoldWing's are 11 yrs, one of the HD's are 15 yrs old, and the 'Cane's are 18 yrs old. They still look/work like a mirror and have never fallen off.

I'll shut up now...I can sense the gang is Not into round convex stick ons. :bustingup

I agree that nobody sets their mirrors correctly. I set mine so I barely see a smidgen of the car if I move my head an inch one way or the other. Who needs to look at their OWN car while driving anyway! :driver:

Not sure about suggested mirror adjustment process....
 

I've read this before. I've tried it. It just doesn't work for me to adjust the mirror to where you can't see your own vehicle. I am not saying I just want to look at the side of my own vehicle, or that I waste much of the mirror real estate on my own vehicle, but I always use my vehicle as a reference point.

- Without dual convex mirrors, you will still have some blind spot, you are just moving it to a different location.

- Even then, nothing replaces looking over your shoulder, every time. There is a reason you will fail a driver's test for no shoulder check.

- When parking, I am not interested in the next lane. I am interested in how close I am to the post. With the mirrors adjusted out, I would be adjusting them twice a day to each position, seems like a waste of time.

- From driving heavy trucks, I am used to not having a rear view mirror sometimes. I always use it when I have one, but I expect the side mirror to also show me what is behind me. Adjust the mirror out to the next lane, and you lose the ability to see what is directly behind you. Of course side mirrors are meant for seeing what is behind you; reference many vehicles that don't have a rear-view mirror.

I understand it for track purposes, just not for the street.

don't mean any insult, but i would think that is dangerous to set your side mirrors to also view part of your vehicle, especially if its a big heavy truck with no rear mirror. your blind spots are more important then your ability to park the vehicle since cars on the street will always be in them. i've driven lots of heavy work equipment trucks before (24 to 36 footer trucks) with no rear mirror (nor suspension for that matter) and the mirror method works perfectly (except when i hit a bump or pothole and hang on to the steering wheel for dear life as i'm being tossed all over the cabin)

this method does getting used to and is awkward at first. but i have no blind spots. it takes most people about 1 week of daily driving like that before you trust your side mirrors.

on track, you can't turn around and look over your shoulder. if there is a car in your blind spot, which there always will be when you race wheel to wheel, you have to be able to spot them with your side mirrors. the helmet, HANS device, harness, and head protectors on the seat limit your viewing to about 90 degrees of forward vision only. plus having window nets make it impossible to look over your shoulder. this is the only way possible in race cars and is 100% effective when set correctly.