Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood2

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Fri 30 Jul 2010 20:18
Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood2 - eustace

Hello,

Can anyone give me information regarding what I can fit on the hood of a car, so that both edges of the front side of the car are visible from the drivers seat?

I have driven the HM Ambassador (based on the Morris Oxford) extensively wherein you could see the rims of the 2 headlights, while driving the car. This made negotiating narrow spaces a breeze, as you had a good visual reference.

I miss this feature in the modern cars, where the hood is completely below your view and you need to maneuver by dead reckoning.

There used to be a bayonet like metal piece available, which could be fitted to the corners of the front fender. But now with modern cars having headlights, which wrap around the edge, fitting such an object may obstruct the headlight.

Is there any similar device that I can use for this purpose, such as rear view mirrors on the edges of the hood, radio antennae, etc?

Would fitting of such an object require either drilling or welding on the body?

Any advice would be appreciated.

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Fri 30 Jul 2010 20:45
Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood2 - Armstrong Sid
There used to be a bayonet like metal piece available, which could be fitted to the corners of the front fender

What, so you can lance any nearby pedestrians?

Nothing like that would be legal these days. For obvious safety reasons, there's no way you can have any metal object protruding inside or outside a vehicle. I imagine even old-style mirrors on the front wings are no longer acceptable, nor radio aerials which could scratch or poke someone's eyes out.

Is your seat height adjustable? Have you tried some kind of extra cushion to give a better view out? If you can't see the extremes of the car you're driving, do you have a clear unobstructed view of the road surface ahead of you? Or can you only see the distant horizon?

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Fri 30 Jul 2010 21:04
Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood2 - Campbell

The soon-to-be-replaced Nissan Micra has moulded bulges in the tops of the headlight for this very purpose.

I have to say though that in my car I cannot see the end of the bonnet. From the drivers seat I can only see the windscreen wipers and the top edge of the bonnet....has never bothered me.

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Fri 15 Oct 2010 14:32
Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood - eustace

So does anybody know of any kind of object that can be fixed either on the bumper or the bonnet so as to improve perimeter visibility from the driver's seat?

It would be usefull when giving way on narrow roads or parking in tight spots, to know the precise boundaries of the car.

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Fri 15 Oct 2010 14:44
Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood - eustace

Please see links to images which illustrates what I mean:-

http://www.loupiote.com/photos/3740818562.shtml

http://rajdeepbhaduri.blogspot.com/

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Fri 15 Oct 2010 16:51
Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood - LucyBC
That looks lethal.

Do a search on "bumper guides". They have them in the US on trucks and SUVs but I don't think they are legal in Europe. But I have a feeling you may not be in Europe.

The device in the picture certainly would not be legal in the UK.

In terms of the law two jurisdictions apply:

In the UK Regulation 53 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 says:

"No mascot, emblem or other ornamental object shall be carried by a motor vehicle first used on or after 1 October 1937 in any position where it is likely to strike any person with whom the vehicle may collide unless the mascot is not liable to cause injury to such person by reason of any projection thereon.

Clearly the spring loaded Mercedes and Rolls Royce mascots are deemed to be legal under this definition under British law because the spring mechanism makes it 'not liable to cause injury ....'

The second is European legislation, the External Projections Directive of 1993, applying to all member states (including the UK). As ever in any test case European law will supercede member state law.

The European External Projections Directive of 1993 specifically allows spring loaded mascots but bans fixed ones.

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Fri 15 Oct 2010 18:41
Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood - eustace

Well actually, I am in UK now. However most of my driving before coming to the UK has been on the Ambassador as shown in the above pictures.

Is there any "non-lethal" object that I can use, which will serve a similar purpose, and is legal in the UK? How about using objects like rear view mirrors or car radio antennae on the bonnet? Can that be legally done?

Edited by rohann on 15/10/2010 at 18:52

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Sat 16 Oct 2010 00:05
Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood - bathtub tom

Learn to guess like the rest of us. You learn quite quickly if you get it wrong and it costs you money!

I was surprised yesterday when I saw how close I was to my garage side after I got out of the car. I hadn't even considered it at the time. I'd parked it up tight on one side to do some work on t'other.

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Sat 16 Oct 2010 05:46
Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood - LucyBC
You can fit a marker but it cannot potentially cause injury. So it would have to be hinged like on a Mercedes or similar. I have seen a marker fitted on a tight spring about 250mm high with a bobble on the top for this purpose on vans and lorries in the UK but I have no idea what they are called - perhaps someone else can help. They would almost certainly be legal.
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Thu 21 Mar 2013 19:53
Toyota Avensis - visual reference indicator on fender / hood - eustace

Hello All,

Sorry to re-open an old thread.

I find that when I drive on motorways, I have a tendency to stay close to the white line on the right side, as I can judge distance better when I can see the bonnet on that side.

If I don't stay close to the line, I keep checking the wing mirrors to see whteher I am close to straying from the lane.

Hence something to reference the front end of the vehicle would be very useful.

2 options I am considering.

1) Stick a rubber capped plastic dart (the type that comes with toy guns), on either end of the bonnet, using super glue.

Does any one have any idea as to whether this is legal and safe (as in whether it may come off, and can it cause any damage if it comes off while travelling on a motorway at 70mph)?

2) Get a pair of car eye lashes. See attached link

www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product...y**_165675

The point that concerns me is that some reviewers of this product on amazon have commented that they can be twisted back at motor way speeds and can damage the paint on the bonnet.

www.amazon.co.uk/Car-Headlight-Eyelashes-Universal...1

Has anyone used this product and any comments on the same?

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