# Cars in the US: why are side mirrors on the doors instead of the hood? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 24, 2024, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265 "2024-06-24T10:19:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/1 "2024-06-24T10:19:39Z")
Pretty much every car sold in the US has its side mirrors mounted on the doors. **[In Japan, most taxis](https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=3741ee2dab0636c6&rlz=1C1GCEA_enUS930US931&sxsrf=ADLYWILOejzygYCwbEdADcFmvDpyGFEHHg:1719224126175&q=japanese+taxi&udm=2&fbs=AEQNm0BglSNKPbDQcL4Et01QEIYvJ5VGsHgUL_tsKqYywhWXkknveTpaLEIQiU02u5i1FK60ElrIW9FFtqgEnQbUPTP1zxqGla5j1IzIScdXkUnE6dTEgdKr4nk3YQU3LgXsr2_4qlU0Iwoc3371V43cEWWV0CSZCW8Lzkil2m3u9_tR8xKihKCw3JRp-chjohO6jVW0yEZDyb5MdDDozlKkV-ziQmBUgQ&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwisy9H6gPSGAxXlAHkGHfTWDH8QtKgLegQIGhAB&biw=1993&bih=1714&dpr=1)** (and some privately owned vehicles) have the side mirrors mounted on the front fenders. It seems like this would do a better job of minimizing or eliminating the blind spot that results in so many American drivers attempting to change lanes without realizing there’s a car or motorcycle next to them. So why aren’t fender-mounted side mirrors more popular on private vehicles in Japan, and why don’t they exist at all in the US? Is there a regulation that prohibits them? ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/2 "2024-06-24T10:35:29Z")
From a practical standpoint, hood-mounted mirrors wouldn’t be as convenient to adjust. Of course, these days mirrors are all powered, but back in the day it we all had to reach out and move the mirror by hand. Throw in a bit of inertia and you get mirrors on the doors. Besides, the visible size of the mirror to the driver would be substantially smaller–you wouldn’t see as much in it, even if it were able to reflect things in a better way. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/3 "2024-06-24T10:52:01Z")
I haven’t experienced them but [this article](https://jalopnik.com/fender-mirrors-look-cool-are-useless-1841366022) seems to confirm the obvious – since they’re far away, you can’t see much in them. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/4 "2024-06-24T10:54:36Z")
This writer agrees that the greater distance between driver and mirror meaningfully decreases useful visibility: > **[Fender Mirrors Look Cool, Are Useless](https://jalopnik.com/fender-mirrors-look-cool-are-useless-1841366022)** > > There are some pretty great automotive designs from the past that have fallen out of use for one reason or another. Some of them, like fins and rocket-shaped tail lights, should make a comeback. But most of them are gone for good reason, like mirrors... I didn’t find anything to suggest that fender mounted mirrors are illegal anywhere in the US, which surprised me, because there’s a variety of [legislation intended to protect pedestrians](https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a15118822/taking-the-hit-how-pedestrian-protection-regs-make-cars-fatter-feature/) who roll up onto the hood when struck by a car (cf. Virginia’s detailed [specifications](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title46.2/chapter10/section46.2-1088.1/) on size and shape of scoops). I would have assumed that a pointy bit of metal sticking up and out would be barred as an injury risk, but I didn’t see any such rules. Edit: ninja’d on the Jalopnik article by three minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/5 "2024-06-24T10:59:57Z")
I wonder how fender-mounted side mirrors would change blind spots. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/6 "2024-06-24T11:23:20Z")
If fender mirrors are so bad, then why do they persist on Japanese taxis? **[This article](https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/11/18/reference/fender-mirrors/)** claims that when door-mounted mirrors were legalized in Japan, private owners preferred them basically because they looked cool, not because they performed better: > Once the market was liberalized, Japanese consumers overwhelmingly choose cars with side mirrors. “This was a time when many Japanese aspired to foreign-made products,” according to Osuga. “Customers thought cars looked snazzier, and more like foreign cars, when they came with door mirrors instead of fender mirrors.” Even when fender mirrors were offered as an option, so few customers opted for them that manufacturers eventually phased them out completely. The article claims that Japanese taxi drivers, who are arguably less concerned about looking cool, still prefer fender mirrors because they are better: > The one exception was taxi drivers, who had such a strong preference for fender mirrors that cars built for the taxi market continue to come with fender mirrors as standard equipment. “The main reason taxi drivers prefer fender mirrors is that they provide better visibility,” Osuga explained. “There is less of a blind spot so it’s easier to confirm what is happening at the rear and side of the car, especially on the driver’s side.” ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/7 "2024-06-24T11:40:50Z")
I’m not convinced that they are superior for blind spot prevention. There are ways of positioning door-mounted mirrors that greatly reduce blind spots, if that is what you want. For some reason folks who use this alternate mirrors-out approach are quite passionate about convincing everyone else that they are doing it wrong. Go ahead and use whatever works for you–I’ll stick with my more traditional position. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/8 "2024-06-24T12:40:45Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > If fender mirrors are so bad, then why do they persist on Japanese taxis? WAG, but maybe fender mirrors have an advantage in busy urban areas but not so much in other driving situations, like out on the highway? ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/9 "2024-06-24T12:47:39Z")
In the goode olde days, side mirrors were mounted on the door itself - the holes drilled in the door were a prime spot for rust. The little triangle at the front of the door window was for a vent window. The first car I saw with the mirror mounted into the triangle corner of the front door window was my 1985 Honda Civic. It was the usual example of (i presume) clever Japanese engineering. The mirror simply bolted into place where there could be a plain triangle. My _el cheapo_ Civic came with just the driver side mirror, and a year later I bought the passenger side mirror and replaced the blank piece myself, with a screwdriver. As I understand, it can now be simple dealer prep. The car ships with blanks, and the mirrors in packages on the seat. The dealer installs them. One less odd protrusion to be damaged during shipping. No risk of rusting. Easily replaced if broken. (IIRC the mirror on my Civic was plain black, so no need to stock multiple different colours at the time.) The same ccould be said of antennas, back when cars had them. Originally they were mounted on the front fender (sometimes rear) and were a classic point for rust to start. (My Civic had the antenna in the front door pillar. Once again, it came with a tiny cover plate no antenna, that I unscrewed and inserted the antenna, then fishing the wire from under the dash. It had the full wiring harness for a radio, just connect radio, antenna, and door speakers) Perhaps the more populated areas of Japan don’t experience the weather extremes that can lead to excessive rusting? Maybe taxis are replaced soon enough that rusting is not an issue? ---
**Author:** ![jjakucyk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3d9bf3/32.png) [@jjakucyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjakucyk)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/10 "2024-06-24T13:10:26Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > WAG, but maybe fender mirrors have an advantage in busy urban areas but not so much in other driving situations, like out on the highway? That’s my thought as well. Better visibility at close range perhaps? Also, side view mirrors are perhaps the single biggest impediments to aerodynamic performance of anything on a vehicle that doesn’t need air slamming into it (such as the radiator or engine intakes). I suspect the drag from them being up on stalks above the hood is noticeably worse than when they’re tucked into hood/door/windshield transition area. This wouldn’t be much of a factor for a city taxi or a delivery truck, but for most other vehicles it would be. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/11 "2024-06-24T13:16:25Z")
In the majority of cars, if there’s a blind spot, it’s not because of the car’s design, but because the driver has adjusted the mirrors incorrectly, as I explained, with authoritative cites, in 2017. > [@Why do cars still have blind spots?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-cars-still-have-blind-spots/783527/41): > > They can be, and the vast majority of cars ever made have been, and still are, designed not to have blind spots. The cause of “blind spots” in 95% (WAG) of ordinary passenger vehicles is not the design of the car, but\*\* the way the driver has adjusted the side mirrors\*\*. Sigene got it right in post 3: If you don’t trust Sigene, here are some more authoritative and detailed explanations: [Car and Driver](http://www.caranddriver.com/features/how-to-adjust-your-mirrors-to-avoid-blind-spots)[AAA](http://seniordriving.aaa.com/improve-your-driving-skills/prepare-drive/how-use-adjust-your-mirrors/) If you can see the sides of your own car in your side view mirrors, you (not the ca… ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/12 "2024-06-24T13:27:16Z")
I endorse this post. (I also have to adjust my mirrors back out whenever I’m driving my car after my wife has borrowed it.) ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/13 "2024-06-24T13:40:56Z")
Years ago someone on this board posted a bland statement that, if your mirrors are adjusted properly there is no blind spot. Despite years of both driving and violent head turning experience I decided to try his/her advice. I set the mirrors as recommended and drove home largely in the middle lane of a 3 lane road. Just as advertised, every car that passed me or I passed was always visible in one or both mirrors or alongside me. This has been true in very car I have driven since. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/14 "2024-06-24T13:44:34Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > If fender mirrors are so bad, then why do they persist on Japanese taxis? Simple inertia explains a lot of things. And human beings are very good at finding ways to justify their choices or biases, especially when it means not changing from the status quo. It is possible there is some objective, measurable benefit to their preference, but one that is not based on “we like it this way” has yet to present itself. Anecdotal, but I knew at least one Japanese person who claimed milk that did not come in bottles (or at minimum paper cartons) was just wrong. After decades of using half or full gallon plastic jugs, I just chalked it up to a cultural preference. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/15 "2024-06-24T16:43:35Z")
When I first started driving in the late 50s, side mirrors (if fitted) were usually attached to the front wing (fender) and were pretty useless because they were tiny and tended to vibrate. A decade or so later, they were still an optional extra but usually attached to the door, often only on the driver’s door. Since 2010, all cars have to have an external mirror on both sides (_visible to the driver, when in his driving position, through a side window or through the portion of the windscreen which is swept by the windscreen wiper_) and an internal mirror unless there is no view to the rear (like in a van) ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/16 "2024-06-24T17:36:12Z")
Because the turn signal indicators are mounted there! My first car was a 1968 Plymouth with no passenger side mirror, the fender-mount signal indicators and no rear defroster. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/17 "2024-06-24T18:35:16Z")
My transfer to Japan back in 1982 was real eye-opening. Rural Hiroshima (anything outside of Tokyo was the boondocks) with little to no English language signs, traffic on the ‘wrong’ side of the road, shifting my Civic with my left hand (thankfully the pedals weren’t reversed - whew!). And car mirrors on the fenders. It was explained to me as the six inch rule. The roads in Hiroshima were wide boulevards necking down to two lane bridges (urban renewal back in the 40’s). If your car was six inches ahead of the adjacent vehicle, just fire up the turn signal and take the lane. This was especially common at traffic lights. The light would go green - a brief pause as 7 taxis blitzed through the intersection - then hammer it to the next light/bridge to get ahead in traffic. A shopping commute from where I lived thru Hiroshima to the military base could take as little as two hours once I got the hang of things. Five to six hours in my timid times. Travel back in recent times and the traffic was much better with more lanes, expressways and more romaji markings for us gaijin. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/18 "2024-06-24T20:05:41Z")
Government regulation is the reason why such mirrors disappeared in Europe. They are deemed to be too hazardous to pedestrians in collisions. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/19 "2024-06-24T21:07:11Z")
A somewhat related observation I made last month when I was in China: the rearview mirrors (the ones attached to the windshield) in many of the taxis were not actually mirrors; they were live video from the rearview camera on the car. In some taxis, the feed was not even displaying; there was just some sort of text display. (I can’t read Chinese, so I had no idea what the display said.) I can’t imagine that such a setup would be legal in the US or most European countries. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2024, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265/20 "2024-06-24T21:15:29Z")
Modern European trucks have cameras instead of mirrors. /[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11TmY-CvntA&t=5s&ab\_channel=Carscoops](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11TmY-CvntA&t=5s&ab_channel=Carscoops) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-in-the-us-why-are-side-mirrors-on-the-doors-instead-of-the-hood/1003265.md?page=2)