eye strain from the windshield
 

Hi all -- I'm new here; I've had my 2010 fit for about a week, and love it in every way except one. I'm getting painful eye strain from looking through the drastically raked windshield. I don't notice it on a 5 or 10 minute drive, but this afternoon after a half hour of driving my eyes were aching. This has nothing to do with sun; today was overcast and showery. I think it has to do with vision distortion from looking through extremely slanted glass. As I was driving, I kept glancing out the side window, and each time I did, it felt very restful to my eyes, in contrast to the view out the front which makes my eyes ache.
Obviously I can't drive while looking out the side window! I'm sad about this, because in every other way I am very fond of the car. I'm desperately longing for a more upright windshield. I haven't read anything so far from anyone having a similar problem -- eye strain from looking through such slanted glass. I have no idea what I am going to do, or if my eyes will just get used to it over time. Has anyone else had difficulty with the 2010 Fit windshield, visually/optically speaking?

That's a new one. I've never heard of it before or ever experienced it for myself. I hope you can sort it out.

I've never heard of this before neither. I don't think it has to do with the glass being slanted though because it's not like the glass has any magnification or anything like glasses :/ I think LOL

Well limabean,
go back to the dealer and test drive another Fit & see if the same thing happens. Could be your windsheild?

(Me again.) I'm wondering if it's just that I'm not used to such a gigantic expanse of windshield, and my eyes are unconsciously going all over the place, near focus, far focus, upper windshield, lower windshield, the road, the trees, the windshield again, and my eyes are just getting tired from doing all that. I'm constantly aware of looking through near glass and far glass at the same time, and that is very disconcerting. But the more I think about it, the more I think it's just that I'm not used to it.. Optical stuff (I think) only happens when the glass is right up close to your eyes -- as in glasses!

Maybe it is that my eyes are still being drawn to the windshield itself because this type of windshield is so new and seems so strange to me (to have an almost horizontal windshield) and in time my brain will adjust, and I'll start simply seeing through it (not looking AT it) and the problem will resolve. I hope so! Your responses are reassuring.

Yeah, that's a new one. Are you sure there isn't any kind of wax or cleaner on the outside of the thing?

This may have nothing to do with it, but make sure you clean the inside of your windshield. It may look perfectly clean, but I found when my '09 was brand new the inside of the windshield got filmy every so often. That can creep up on you and strain the eyes. Give it a clean and see if it helps. And on rainy damp days, it almost always a given you'll need the defrost going- if only on low.

Opps- you posted while I did. Perhaps you just need to get used to it. You need remember only one thing- keep your eyes on the road! LOL! Good luck.

Dan

My money is on this theory. I think you are looking at the windshield rather than through it, and down the road. Honestly, I don't see why the slant of the windshield should make any difference at all. If anything, the large expanse it creates gives the driver a nice feeling of added visibility and roominess so I'd say give it some time and it will take care of itself. If it does not, I would drive another Fit (or Civic for that matter, because it has a similar windshield) to rule out that there is not some sort of deformity in the glass.

Need more info. How old are you? Bi-focals? What did you drive before?

Hi -- I'm 59, wear bifocals (but I've worn them for the last umpteen years, no problem) and drove a 1997 Civic. :-) (Sloped windshield, but no where near as sloped as the Fit). I'll try cleaning the inside of the glass. (the outside I've already given a good bath!) I've been noticing other kinds of cars, and it looks to me as if there are some (??) that have equally sharp-sloped fronts. So... there must not be an inherent problem with that, or lots of people would have noticed it by now.
I'm going to give this time, and suspect I'll adjust just fine. I LOVE the way the car zips around -- it's the first time I've ever had power steering! I have a base model, manual shift, and I've never had a car that shifted so smoothly. It's like cream.
Thanks, all.

One more thought, gazing out the kitchen window: When you're looking through glass perpendicularly, you're looking through just the thickness of the glass. Say, for example, 1/4". When you tilt that same glass more than 45 degrees, you are then looking through twice as much thickness, because diagonally the depth is greater. If there is any distortion in the glass at all, it will be magnified by the extra thickness. I think it may be bothering my eyes to be looking through twice as much thickness of glass than my old car. Even without any defects in the windshield, there's still going to be some optical distortion. (the more thickness, the more distortion) Ack. I hope I get used to it!

You are just young fellow. I am 67 with bi-focals and I have no problem. I also drive a Dodge Caravan.

Never heard of this kind of problem before..but check your eyes man, seriously.

it took me about a week to adjust i know what your talking about my eyes kept looking at the windsheild rather than though it i drove a truck with a flat small windshield so the fit was omg what is with the dash i can see everything now when i drive another car i get annoyed at how small the windshield is

It could be that our eyes are changing and it is time for a new prescription for glasses... I started needing bifocals about 20 years ago after wearing glasses for 20 years but in the last year or so my vision of things in the distance has returned to 20-20 and I can drive without glasses.... The eye doctor told me that this is a common occurrence.

I'm 58, and wear no-line bifocals and have no problem with the windshield. then again, my last two cars were Dodge Neons, and they have strongly sloping windshields as well, so I may be more used to this.

It might be that your eyes are distracted by the window pillars and the corner windows and trim. I did notice this when I first got the car. The shape of the windshield (tall and narrow) and the corner windows did tend to distract my view a bit until I adjusted to it. If it doesn't ease up in a few weeks, it might be time for a visit with your eye doctor.

I just found the following "question and answer" on the Honda website, in the FAQS section of their website. It discusses "cross-car distortion", a visual distortion that occurs when one is looking at an angle sideways through the windshield. I think what I'm experiencing must be the identical phenomenon. I'm going to talk to Honda about it. WHY they would ever intentionally design a windshield where the driver has to look through the windshield at an angle *all the time* (thus experiencing the distortion constantly, not just while looking at an angle across the car) is beyond me! I must be more sensitive to it than most people, but this convinces me that it is indeed the severe angle of the windshield that is the problem, and not my eyes. Here's the quote from Honda:

"Q: When I look through the side of the windshield on my car, it’s all wavy and distorted. Is this normal?
"A: This distortion is called “cross-car distortion.” You will notice it when you’re watching a vehicle cross in front of your car and also when you’re turning left and looking through the right side of the windshield at other vehicles. Front-seat passengers see the same distortion when they look through the left side of the windshield. Since cross-car distortion occurs when you look through the glass at an angle, it may be even more noticeable for short drivers. Wearing nonprescription sunglasses, which tend to reduce depth perception, also may increase the perceived distortion.
Some cross-car distortion exists in the windshields of Honda vehicles manufactured since 1994. In fact, all of these recent Honda windshields have this distortion to some degree, and the condition should be considered normal. Because the aerodynamic windshield of recent Hondas is at more of an angle than in the past, the cross-car distortion may be slightly more noticeable, even though the jump distortion is at the same low level as before. These windshields meet all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards for glazing materials, and this minor distortion is allowable within the industry specifications for automotive glass."

I'll just have to get used to it! I hope I can. Thank you all for your input.

Cars made in the late 1950s had what was advertised as wrap around windshields that were even worse..... Think about the 57-59 Ford products.

Glad you figured it out. I think you will adjust and love the car.

first i've heard of this!