Do I Really Need Towing Mirrors?

[Countryboy59]

People who get that angry about being “cut off” need to be off the road no matter how much they feel the need to enforce the law. Mirrors and rear cameras work well but there’s no excuse for someone causing an accident to avenge a near miss. Check out the guy in Colorado who’s doing life after he tried to teach someone a lesson a few years back.

Too many dash cameras out there these days. People need to relax voluntarily lest they are forced to do it long term at taxpayer expense.

[Pimms]

Originally Posted by Paprika

"I bought a 2016 Ford F-150 and the dealer tried to install the them and they would not work."

I bought a 2017 Ford F-150, and more recently a 2019 F-250, both equipped with trailer towing packages that included Ford's electric extendable towing mirrors. Guess what? The mirrors are too short when fully extended! I can't see the rear side marker lights on my 2017 27FB. I can't see traffic immediately behind me. Yes, I have a rear-view camera on the trailer and the truck has blind spot alert, but they are not replacements for good side mirrors. Ford really should have made these mirrors extend far enough to see around a common travel trailer.

Paprika - I find this post a bit disturbing as I am just now considering ordering a 2019 F150 with the factory power extendable/folding tow mirror. We are towing a 23 which is just 5.5 inches narrower than the 27. In your opinion, would that difference, (along with decreased trailer length), make the F150 mirrors useful?

Current tow vehicle is a Tacoma with the clip-on Dometic Aero3 mirrors, which are nearly useless. Since the F150 cab is wider than the Tacoma I had thought we'd be in good shape if we went that route with the factory tow mirrors.

[ROBERT CROSS]

...Ive never seen the rear AS marker lights except when turning...when did that become a requisite for towing mirrors?
Having a clear view of the passing lane is no longer enough? 😳

Bob
🇺🇸

[Rounder44]

Originally Posted by SnowWanderer

Nothing better to do than insure the safety of all the motoring public? Try thinking beyond your hood ornament! It is just as important to be cognizant of traffic behind you as well as in front! Why....? So you can get out of the way of emergency vehicles approaching from behind.... enroute to, maybe, save someone's life or home. So you can merge back into a lane without side-swiping or cutting off another vehicle.... ever heard of road rage and what some drivers do when you drive like a fool?

How about being a responsible enough driver and equipping your vehicle so that officers don't have to stop you for not having common sense safety equipment?

Officers do have more important things to do. You know, like putting the big pieces of victims in body bags after they were killed by run away trucks they never noticed approaching from behind.

But since officers are charged with enforcing all traffic laws and some people don't have the sense to equip their vehicles to enable them to be cognizant of traffic around them, officers also have to address those violations.

So.... if you think officers should be handling more important matters, then don't waste their time by giving them cause to address what you consider a minor issue. After all, after you zip your first child in a body bag, knowing that it was a minor traffic offense that got them killed, you tend not to overlook the minor offenses either. I lost count of the number of body bags I have zipped. Interesting thing..... dead is dead, not matter if being slammed into from the rear, side-swiped, hit head on or the intentional victim of the road raged maniac you inadvertantly cut off because you didn't see them.

That' not the point at all!

The 2 versions I have tried provide minimal extra coverage. If my trigonometry is semi accurate a regular mirror provides a 16° angle from mirror to AS tail. A 6" extension provides a 21° angle. That's not much more of a line of sight in reality and would only indicate jack wagon tail-gater IF you don't have a rear camera.

I'm not convinced they are that beneficial and in my minimal time have not found them to be so.

Thanks,

Warren

[ROBERT CROSS]

Hi Trig..

When you find a RV mirror that will render a tailgater let me know...even Meat Loaf got it wrong. 😂

"But it was long ago and it was far away, oh God it seems so very far.
And if life is just a highway, then the soul is just a car.
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are"


If you feel they are not needed...never mind your too far away to cause me worry...😘


Bob
🇺🇸

[DKB_SATX]

Originally Posted by Pimms

Paprika - I find this post a bit disturbing as I am just now considering ordering a 2019 F150 with the factory power extendable/folding tow mirror. We are towing a 23 which is just 5.5 inches narrower than the 27. In your opinion, would that difference, (along with decreased trailer length), make the F150 mirrors useful?

Current tow vehicle is a Tacoma with the clip-on Dometic Aero3 mirrors, which are nearly useless. Since the F150 cab is wider than the Tacoma I had thought we'd be in good shape if we went that route with the factory tow mirrors.

IMHO the tow mirrors on the F150 are fantastic, even when I'm not towing. They're much bigger and somewhat wider than the base mirrors, even when retracted. When adjusted in a rational fashion, I just don't have a blind spot with the big wide-angle portion combined with the large flat portion. When I first sit down in the car after driving the truck for a few days the mirrors seem TINY.

People more into appearance than performance sometimes say they look too big (one of the pejoratives on the F150 forums is "Dumbo ears") but I wouldn't want a truck with little mirrors. I wouldn't mind if they extended another couple of inches. I haven't measured, but I'm guessing they may extend as much as is legal... and bigger Airstreams are as wide as is legal.

[Mattirs]

Originally Posted by ROBERT CROSS

Hi Trig..

When you find a RV mirror that will render a tailgater let me know...even Meat Loaf got it wrong. [emoji23]

"But it was long ago and it was far away, oh God it seems so very far.
And if life is just a highway, then the soul is just a car.
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are"


If you feel they are not needed...never mind your too far away to cause me worry...[emoji8]


Bob
[emoji631]

There ain't no way you'll ever see behind you, but two out of three ain't bad.

[PKI]

Hmmmm - lets see .... thinking, thinking ....... How about good mirrors to see at distance behind the trailer, a wide angle spot mirror on each side to see vehicles passing and a quality backup/rear view camera to see those tailgaters? Just wonder if that would work. Pat

[CanyonMan]

I have a backup camera on my truck and find it useful for backing up. I would find a backup camera on my trailer useful for the same reason. I am wondering how using the backup camera while driving would help me avoid an accident?

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by CanyonMan

I have a backup camera on my truck and find it useful for backing up. I would find a backup camera on my trailer useful for the same reason. I am wondering how using the backup camera while driving would help me avoid an accident?

Aim the camera so it sees traffic behind the trailer. Wire it so it comes on with the lights (mine came that way from Airstream). With tow mirrors and that camera there’s no blind spot whatsoever.

[CanyonMan]

I never really cared what was behind me since those vehicles are literally impossible to hit. I am, however, always concerned with what is beside me. I'll pass on the rear camera on the trailer for now. I am considering a dash cam for documentation purposes.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Just installed the camera last Season, nice to have the complete coverage, especially when backing. 👍
No holes drilled, camera held with...velcro. 😳
I wired ours on its' own switch, no lights needed.

Bob
🇺🇸

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by CanyonMan

I never really cared what was behind me since those vehicles are literally impossible to hit. I am, however, always concerned with what is beside me. I'll pass on the rear camera on the trailer for now. I am considering a dash cam for documentation purposes.

Dash cam is a good idea. Make sure it’s always turned on. Mine records a four hour loop so even if the truck is parked and gets hit I might get a plate number.

[Caffeinated]

Originally Posted by Rounder44

That' not the point at all!

The 2 versions I have tried provide minimal extra coverage. If my trigonometry is semi accurate a regular mirror provides a 16° angle from mirror to AS tail. A 6" extension provides a 21° angle. That's not much more of a line of sight in reality and would only indicate jack wagon tail-gater IF you don't have a rear camera.

I'm not convinced they are that beneficial and in my minimal time have not found them to be so.

Thanks,

Warren

Interesting. I find quite the opposite. I drive a 09 Silverado crew cab, towing a 27ft FC. I use the (I think they are Cipa) kid that clamp on and a round rod lets you extend them a bit and adjust them. I find they are very useful, providing a much better view of when it is safe to change lanes, see where the wheels are tracking on the trailer during sharp turns, say in a gas station, etc. Of course, I haven't done the math, I just put them on and use them.

Mike

[SnowWanderer]

CanyonMan, consider suddenly being forced with the decision to execute a panic stop or rapid lane change... if you can't see a vehicle immediately behind you, you may decide to panic stop and subsequently get rear ended. Had you seen/been aware of the tailgater, you might have chosen a different evasive maneuver and avoided being struck altogether.

The whole idea behind having adequate mirrors is to know what is going on behind you so you can also put that into the equation should a sudden need for evasive driving occur.

[MontyV]

i would not tow without good mirrors.

[Gene]

In most states you have to see 200' behind you. Few people seem to get stopped for not seeing the cop following, but some do. Like a lottery, when you are stopped (or buy a picket) you lose. I don't know where the 200' is measured from—cop's eyeball to my eyeball? Bumpers? I sure do want to see behind me as best as possible. Sometimes all I can see is a shadow of a car/tailgater.

By the way, the Forum seems to be slower and slower to respond.

[ronderful]

FYI The age the rear view mirror is almost over. Automakers have petitioned the Feds to allow substituting cameras. GM is offering them in place of tow mirrors on some future trucks.

[PKI]

The rumors of my death are greatly over blown. Better cameras are required for that introduction to have traction. Pat

[ROBERT CROSS]

Yes, I've also heard that cameras are taking over, with the image displayed in the same place. 😳

Bob
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