End of the road for car mirrors

Time is running out for old-fashioned rear-view mirrors as high-tech cameras bring a new view of traffic to Australia.

Digital interior rear-view mirrors are already found in a number of new vehicles and have been available in aftermarket circles for years, but the first camera-based system to replace the traditional wing or side mirror has just arrived Down Under.

And the technology is expected to migrate rapidly through a world where oversized old-school wing mirrors are the enemy of airflow.

Cameras on small stalks on the sides of cars will cut wind noise and improve visibility at junctions, but the big advantage is in reducing drag, thereby improving aerodynamic and fuel efficiency.

The all-electric Audi e-tron will be the first car sold in Australia with digital side ‘mirrors’, but the first vehicle with a system is the heavyweight new Mercedes-Benz Actros prime-mover launched this week.

The Actros is fitted with a system called MirrorCam, which won the 2020 Trucksales Innovation Award for a range of new technologies including its rear-view package.

Apart from cameras mounted on small stalks at the top of the cab on both sides, the system in the big Benz has a pair of large display screens that sit just below the base of the A-pillar to replicate the view of old-fashioned mirrors.

Away from the Actros, the MirrorCam system has been fitted to a number of Mercedes-Benz concept cars over recent years to highlight the efficiency but also the styling advantages.

MirrorCam is fitted to the Mercedes-Benz EQS that was driven by carsales when it visited Melbourne for the aborted Australian F1 Grand Prix in March, although the system was not operational for our brief preview drive.

Audi says its system is fully developed for passenger cars and is part of the package on the e-tron SUV and e-tron Sportback that will land in a few months.

“It will be available on the e-tron, which launches in September. It’s also on the [e-tron] Sportback, which is coming at the same time,” confirms Audi Australia spokesman, Shaun Cleary.

“In this particular instance it brings a benefit in range, which is one key to electric vehicles at the moment.”

Like the Actros, the e-tron still comes with minimalist stalks to house the cameras and there are small screens at the base of the A-pillars to package the picture, and there is still a conventional mirror in the centre of the cabin.

Clearly says the camera system is superior to a glass mirror in dust and low-light conditions, where it reduces flaring and enhances the image.

Mercedes-Benz Australia cannot confirm any future plans for MirrorCam, and it is not visible on spy pictures of the upcoming S-Class limousine that is otherwise a hotbed for future technologies including a new dashboard design and layout.

“I cannot confirm if they will be on one of our production cars,” says Jerry Stamoulis, spokesman for Mercedes.

Even so, and given its history with technical innovations – including giving free access to patents for safety technologies over more than 40 years – it’s only a matter of time before MirrorCam is fitted to the C-Class and the rest of the Benz family.