Photos of wide angle rearview lens

Hi:
Some updates on my experience with the fresnel lens rearview idea:

1. Rear window defroster use does not seem to be a problem. I was concerned that the wires might be damaged by the plastic, but so far, not so. Plastic is unaffected by wires. I don't think the wires get hot enough to do any damage and the defroster itself has an auto shutoff (in case you didn't know).

2. I experimented with centering the lens, but the vertical space in the middle of the lower window is narrower and cut into the overall field of view. Whatever works for you, though.

3. The lens can be had at an RV supply store. Most auto parts stores don't carry them, but Recreational Vehicles use them a lot for obvious reasons. You'll need to trim it down and if you do, trim from the outer edges towards the center, i.e. cut your pattern with the center of the lens remaining in the center of your finished cut out. The lens has concentric circles to create the enlarged field of view and if you don't keep the circles centered, you lose the effect.

4. Installation is easy. To make your pattern, you can slip a sheet of paper between the rear window glass and the plastic frame; the paper will slip down about 1/2 an inch. When you get the paper positioned, just mark the edges with a pencil and cut out your pattern. Put the center of the pattern over the center of the lens and trim away. Make sure you cut the lens so that the rough side faces away from the glass. Cut the lens slightly larger (top and bottom) than the actual margins; the excess lens material will fit nicely into the space between the glass and the plastic framing and will help keep the lens in place.

5. As an added "geek" factor.....I used an orange traffic cone placed behind the car and measured the minimum distance from the rear bumper at which the cone was visible in the lens. I then positioned the cone so that it aligned with each of the four wires in the defroster. By noting the distance from the rear bumper at each wire alignment, I had a scale. I made a vertical strip with four number on it: 3, 6, 9, 25, which is the distance in feet behind the car with the orange cone aligned with each of the four defroster wires, reading from the lowest wire to the top. Surprisingly, it's accurate enough that I can back up to something, like a car behind me, and know how far the guy's front bumper is from HUMU's rear bumper. Very very helpful in parallel parking.

Bob