How to Determine the Distance Between the Car and Obstacles or Pedestrians on the Left and Right Sides?
2 Answers
Methods to determine the distance between the car and obstacles or pedestrians on the left and right sides are as follows: Method 1: When driving on roads other than in cities or highways, to judge the distance between the right wheel and the roadside, look diagonally through the center line of the car hood. If this center line has reached the roadside line, it indicates that the right wheel is at least 30 centimeters away from the edge line. Exceeding this range may mean the wheel is about to cross the edge line. Method 2: To judge the distance from the right side to an obstacle (or pedestrian), look out from the right side of the car hood. If you can see a very low position, it means you are still far from the obstacle. If you can only see a high position (such as above the knees of a pedestrian), it indicates you are very close to the obstacle and need to be cautious.
In my daily driving, I mainly judge the left and right distances by visual reference points. For example, when checking the position of the left wheel, if the curb just appears at the lower left corner of the windshield about a fist's distance away, it usually means the wheel is about 30 cm from the roadside. For obstacles on the right, I prefer to observe the overlap between the rightmost line of the hood and the curb—the more they overlap, the closer I am. When reversing, if the door handle and the rear obstacle are about two fingers' width apart in the rearview mirror, it's roughly 50 cm away. For electric scooters in the blind spot of the rearview mirror, I usually check the reversing camera first and then turn my head to confirm, especially when turning at intersections—I always make sure to turn my head. Adjusting the rearview mirror so that the sky occupies 1/3 and the ground 2/3 helps me better gauge the car's position.
