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by giantg2 1766 days ago
"I could definitely see myself accidentally hitting a pedestrian and not even noticing it."

Is this more hyperbole? I don't know how you could not notice hitting someone. You should feel/hear it, even for animals or objects way smaller than a person.

"I would say yes, you need to see things immediately in front of you. I’m not sure how that’s even a question."

How do you handle the normal blind spots in all cars? You handle this the same way - mental object tracking and awareness. It doesn't matter what car you're in, you can't see the pavement immediately in front of the tires, yet you can still avoid potholes.

Edit: why downvote?
1 comments
jkelleyrtp 1766 days ago
Failure to check blind spots is the cause of many accidents on the road. They’re called blindspots for a reason. Large trucks, like mine, have blindspots closer and lower. I can mentally track as much as possible, but if a small person leaps out from between a parked car, they’re likely ending up getting squished. In a smaller car, lower to the ground, you can see small people without having to peer over the sides of the vehicle.

Even after years of driving it, I still have issues time to time with the size of the truck and curbs. The reality is: the larger the vehicle, the more space you have to watch out for, and the greater the chance that you mess up and hit something.

I’m glad you feel confident driving your truck, but you can’t deny the reality that bigger trucks are more challenging to manage in pedestrian environments.

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zdragnar 1766 days ago
People here seem to be obsessed with the 2-3 feet directly in front of the trucks, but comparing my truck to my wife's car, I can promise that I have much better visibility in many directions and fewer blind spots- between towing mirrors, sitting up higher, and perhaps most importantly, the windshield design doesn't leave gigantic blind spots at the 10 and 2 positions from the steep angle of the A pillars.
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giantg2 1766 days ago
"In a smaller car, lower to the ground, you can see small people without having to peer over the sides of the vehicle."

That's an incorrect generalization if you've driven some if the newer camaros or mustangs.

I have no trouble at all in pedestrian environments. I really don't see why so many people have trouble with it.

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