Knocking Wing Mirrors

[Craggles]

Hi,

I've read a little on here about accidentally knocking mirrors off/back (and sometimes delibratley) whilst filtering.

Well.. it happened to me today. I was coming out of Southampton during rush hour, and was squeezing through a rather tight gap - something must have worried me (I think the line of traffic to my right started moving slightly) and I wobbled and knocked the person to my right's wing mirror forward.

I couldn't do anything but ride on - else I would have got squashed by traffic coming from behind... or viciously attacked by the person in the car who starts swearing and honking his horn! Hopefully its just knocked out of place and not broken - I know they can be expensive!

I'd like to know what other people would have done in this situation - bearing in mind its happened in the middle/outside lane of a 3 lane dual carridgeway, during rush hour with no hold ups aside from that caused by shear traffic volume (and some roadworks).

I feel really bad for riding off - I think technically its leaving the scene of an accident... but I didn't know what else I could do (especially with blokey in car going crazy on his horn and with the language!)

Craig
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[tokarev]

I haven't knocked anyones wing mirrors off...yet. But the way i see it is that if the gap is not big enough for me to comfortably ride through(i.e. without going 0.5mph, looking eachside to see if im gonna connect) then i don't bother going for it. The guy in the car could be a nutter for all you know...not worth it.

Anyway at least you got away.

[stinkwheel]

It'll be ok, car wing mirrors are designed to flap back when pushed that way. You just snap them back into place. No harm, no foul.

If your speed in relation to him was fast enough to break the mirror, you were going too damned fast to be filtering that close and I am amazed you stayed on the bike.
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[Gazdaman]

I've knocked wing mirrors before, but only once, but I did 2, one on each side.

(If I do something I do it properly)

They were van ones and they're at funny levels, so you judge the gap, and the gap was fine, but I didn't take into account their mirrors were the same height as mine.

Gaz

[Frost]

Don't mean to put you down but i think if theres a chance you might not fit through a gap you shouldnt be attempting it. No doubt you would be hugely pissed off if a car tried to squeeze past you and scratched your bike.

[culpan]

One option would of been to stop and say sorry but like you say you had to continue because of traffic behind so there is not much you can do, end of the day if was an accident its just one of them things really, just dont get mad if it happens to you then it might balance out in the grand scheme of things

[Craggles]

[headlamp]

As most of my 20 miles on the bike to work & back home again on a daily basis involves filtering I am usually knocking wing mirrors at least once a week. I usually reserve it for cars that have either strayed over the white line in the road or drivers yacking away on their mobile (it's usually people talking on their phones that have strayed in their lanes).

I have only ever had one incident where I have knocked off someones wing mirror deliberately. A chav in a BMW purposefully blocked my filtering lane - used his car as a weapon - weaving to try and knock me off. I saw an opportunity to get past and as I did used my hand & gave his onside mirror an almighty whack & left it dangling - speeding off between two lanes of traffic, leaving him mirrorless and stranded. That was a couple of years ago and I'm much better behaved now !
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Using a mobile phone while driving a car should be made a capital offence!

[Johnny GSX-R]

To cover your ass you should report it to the local plod coz if the driver got your number you could be prosecuted for failing to report an RTA...... The mirrors on my car are in excess of £150 a side to replace, if you'd taken one of those off i'd be mighty pissed with ya.
As Tokarev & DaFrostyOne said, if you can't fit don't do it.

Just cover your back and tell the fuzz, tell them that it was unsafe to stop because of the situation on the road and the drivers obvious aggression.

[DukeRed]

I try not to but still happens alot.
Tend to pretend it never happened and keep going maybe switching lanes if your paranoid about them getting your plate.
You see quite alot of cars round here without right wing mirrors so I guess it's quite common.
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[loply]

Ive knocked one once but unfortunately at that low speed in the tight gap I couldnt stop to say sorry or let go of the bar to wave a sorry to him. Just had to ride on.


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Yamaha SZR660 Caution to the wind, the throttle pinned!

[Sadie]

[bazza]

Wing mirrors are designed to move, so causing some cager a minor inconvenience is a fair play if they drive like an inconsiderate cock.
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