While Cadillac in the US has replaced the rearview mirror with a screen showing what's going on behind the car using a camera, now Audi is set to go the whole way with the production version of its e-tron electric crossover.
This feature will be an available option when the e-tron comes to market, so instead of wing mirrors there will be cameras mounted into small winglets placed where the mirrors would normally have been located on the Audi.
When it comes to the driver seeing the images from the camera, it appears there will be an additional screen located on the driver's side between the instrument cluster and where the door meets the dashboard.
A feature like this could easily be dismissed as something of a gimmick, especially if all it did was replace mirrors that already work pretty well with something more complex and potentially less reliable.
However, the cameras that are much smaller than wing mirrors also have to work in conjunction with the air suspension that can lower the e-tron to its most aerodynamic position. This reduces the claimed drag coefficient of the e-tron so it cuts through the air more easily than the smaller Q2 crossover SUV.
On a normal vehicle this would make a difference to acceleration, top speed and fuel efficiency, which would all be very welcome. But it's even more important for a vehicle like this because it helps to increase the available driving range on a full charge of the battery.
Audi is claiming that without the drag-reduction technology employed by the e-tron, the sizable electric SUV would have a range 21 miles shorter than it is with the tech. With the full complement of aerodynamic technology the e-tron has a range of 248 miles.
And that's according to new WLTP standard which is a new procedure that measures fuel consumption, CO₂, NOx, particulates by mass and number, and carbon dioxide. The new system covers a greater range of vehicle and engine speeds, engine load, gear changes and temperatures than the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) it replaces.
The e-tron is to get its official launch in August, and it will be the first of a trio of battery electric vehicles the German luxury brand will be introducing by 2021.
