What Should Your Side Mirrors Show?

The best thing to do is to sit down in the car and make sure your side mirrors are all adjusted to your needs. The driver's side mirror should always go first. The driver should make sure the side mirror reflects the road and only a tiny sliver of the car. The mirror should show the road next to you.

What should you see out of your mirrors?

You should give yourself the best possible view of the road behind, but exact vertical placement often comes down to personal preference. You don't want to see too much sky or too much road. Instead, it's best to balance the position of each mirror so you can see traffic clearly as well as curbs while parallel parking.

How often should you check your mirrors?

You should check your mirrors enough that you know what's going on around you. When you're driving on a piece of straight road this should be around once every 8-12 seconds.