What is the primary purpose of using side mirrors while driving?

The primary purpose of using side mirrors while driving is to check for blind spots. Blind spots are areas around your vehicle that cannot be seen through your mirrors alone, which can make it difficult to detect vehicles or obstacles that may be beside or slightly behind your car. Regularly checking your side mirrors helps you become aware of these blind spots, enhancing your awareness of surrounding traffic and improving overall safety while making lane changes or merging.

While the other options provide some valid uses of side mirrors, they are not the main reason for their importance in driving. For instance, aiding in parallel parking is a useful function of side mirrors, but it is a specific situation rather than a primary driving purpose. Monitoring the rearview is typically the role of the rearview mirror, which is designed for that specific field of vision. Reducing wind noise is not a function of side mirrors, as they are primarily there to provide visibility rather than noise control.