How to adjust your RV MIRRORs properly - driving safely in your Class A Motorhome

The proper adjustment of the Mirrors on your RV is critical for on the road safety.

Your Rig or Motorhome generally has two 2-piece mirrors extended on 2 adjustable arms on the front of the Rig for use by the driver.

Before adjusting the Mirrors, you must realize that these mirror bodies extend outside of a very wide vehicle. With this in mind, look down the edge of your Rig, and always adjust the Body of your mirrors to have their edge aligned right at the very side of your Rig, and no further out.

A typical Class-A MotorHome, will be close to or right at 8-feet, 6-inches wide, the legal limit in most states. And, remember, these mirrors, that extend beyond that limit, will be the first things to get hit by, or to hit, other things when driving, parking, etc.

So, I recommend that you set your right and left mirrors as shown in Figure-1 so that you have the field of views shown.

Doing this will give the driver the best combination of views when operating the Rig on the road, as well as when backing up.

Typically, the lower, smaller mirrors are fixed, while the upper larger mirrors are adjustable from inside the coach. This is true for most Rigs, although some models are reversed.

Ideally, if you have not adjusted your mirrors before, you should first loosen the lock-down bolts on the mirror frames and pre-set the frame as described, and then pre-set he adjustable and fixed mirrors to the middle of their range.

Then, you sit in the drivers seat, while someone adjusts the mirror frame to where it is close to the setting shown in the figure and described below.

Once you are this close, lock the mirror frame bolts down. These are generally Allen wrench bolts.

The Top, larger, mirrors are not magnifiers, and give you a larger field of view down the road behind you. So you set these to allow the driver, once he is comfortably seated in the drivers seat, so that he/she can see the edge of the RV, as well as down the road starting at a point, about halfway down the RV's body.

The lower, smaller mirrors are magnifiers, and give a smaller field of view, so set the edge further in on the mirror as shown, and so the driver can see the Bottom of the RV body about 8-10 feet behind the driver.

This should give the driver a decent view of almost all vehicles that might be driving directly beside the RV.

In the drawing, you will notice the stars on the lower mirrors.

This is a handy trick you should try. While sitting in the driver’s seat, have your Navigator stand directly beside your rear tire on one side of the RV.

Make a small mark on the mirror where the Navigator's knees are.

Then place a small colored dot where you marked the mirror. Repeat this for the other side of the RV.

Now, when you are parking the RV, you have a nice clear indication of roughly where the rear wheels are. This is especially handy if your wheel wells are hard to see in your mirrors.

Another aide you might try is the following.

Often, even with a rear view camera, you can have a hard time judging when to go back into a lane after passing another vehicle, especially when towing.

Hook up your tow to your RV, and have your Navigator walk back and stand parallel to the rear of the Tow vehicle.

Mark another spot on your larger mirror at your Navigators knees, and then place a colored dot on that spot on the large mirror.

Repeat this on the other side of the RV. Now, when you are passing another vehicle, and it is a decent distance beyond the dot, you have another indicator that you are safe in returning to your lane.

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