Actually, yes the A-pillars are part of Honda's ACE body structure which is supposed to make our little civics fare a bit better in a crash with a larger SUV or something. You can see the whole thing in action at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hniXnLwKws and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbl_YAgz0K4&feature=fvw

it really makes me glad it's there even with the "adjustments" I have to make in order to see those spots lol. Then look at the crash tests of other modern small cars like the toyota Yaris Vs a Camry in a head-on you can watch that here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHiYSAenanM&feature=fvsr

and an Accord Vs a tiny little Jazz(aka Honda Fit) which is smaller and lighter than our civics with the Ace structure you can see how much better the cabin fares with those annoying A-pillars here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjEUv...eature=channel

Oh and in case you have never seen it here is a classic crash test 1959 chevy bel air vs 2009 chevy malice :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joMK1...eature=related

Also...here is why older 70's and 80's cars should all just be taken off the road IMO. So many deathtraps still out there especially with the smaller cars.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRbwT...eature=related

Last one. Now the chinese are preparing to ship us cars like this one….sigh hope our trade relations don't force us to accept them:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5SRy...eature=related

 

So what you're saying is that although Civic drivers are more likely to kill someone due to the car's frontal blind spots, we're more likely to survive the crash than if we were driving other models.

 

Survival of the fittest. We win.

 

Very good comparisons! Thanks Jamchel. H

 

No problem I was reading up on the ACE body Honda has developed and I am quite happy I am driving one of them.

…..and to steven it might actually play a factor in an accident or two…. I hope they can improve visibility while still maintaining the integrity of the system lol.

 

You're right, those pillars are terrible. You can compenstate for the passenger side pillar on right turns, by concentrating hard to scan for pedestrians through both the front window and side windows.

What I haven't been able to solve is the driver's side pillar blind spot going in to sharp right curves on country roads. It really limits visibility to oncoming traffic; I have to physically shift my head right and left of the pillar to make sure oncoming traffic is on it's own side of the road. It's just a terrible design

 

Ever since posting that I hadn't yet had a problem with it I've caught myself moving my head to look around it. That thing can hide a truck lurking at just the right angle.

 

My 2010 Civic is not a hybrid. I was just searching the internet to see if anyone else had this blind spot issue. I nearly mowed down pedestrians like three times last night and i was not on the phone or texting or drinking! I simply didn't see them until they were in front of me. I am really, really concerned about this.

 

Glad that you didn't have a bad result in your close calls. I am much more cautious now that I'm aware of this spot, and I expect you will be, too. It's still a major design flaw, in my opinion.

 

I agree