michael769 wrote:The assumption that SUVs are bad for people outside the car is less to do with height and more to do with their traditional slab front - something that is less common these days (even the Range Rover manages to beat the Astra with a 63% rating).
That's good for pedestrians. But once you put an SUV or proper 4X4 in a collision with another, smaller, vehicle, more of the collision's overall energy will be absorbed in the opposite vehicle.
While bigger and heavier vehicles are believed to provide better safety, their safety "benefits" only come to play when it's a multiple-party collision (i.e. not hitting a solid object) with a smaller and lighter vehicle only , and even than it would provide better safety on the expense of other road users.
Using a likewise small but better designed car (in terms of crumple zones) would reduce the overall collision forces for all collision types and for all parties involved in the collision, which makes them my preferred choice.
Also, many 4X4 and trucks have a very poorly designed passenger compartment with poorly designed belts, seats (e.g. the typically short middle seat in most lorries) and very few airbags. This might make them overall less safe than a smaller but more sophisticated car.
As for the OPs question, if the tilting the inner glass (the switch) does not do, signal the car behind to pass by means like subtle deceleration or signals. If passing isn't possible, tilt the mirror itself and consider pulling over if you find it necessary.