Luxury Lotus Eletre gets digital mirrors as US$2,225 option to add range like Tesla's Cybertruck

Lotus, the company whose Elise sports car served as the base for the first Tesla EV - the Roadster - has now become the first brand to issue an electric vehicle with digital rearview side mirrors in China. The set allows for extended field of view compared to regular mirrors, according to Lotus, as well as a nighttime view that is as bright as during daylight.

The digital rearview mirrors of the premium Lotus Eletre SUV also allow for a lower drag coefficient hence added range on a charge, and contribute to the freedom of the design team to create a mirror form that matches the aggressive styling of the "hyper SUV" itself. The e-mirrors are covered with water-repellent material and can be heated to melt ice or snow. The set also warns when there is a door open and features blind spot coverage.

The view from the mirrors is projected inside on 720p displays with adjustable brightness that allow for a 50% wider lateral field of view, tips Lotus. The camera software algorithms and their image adjustment help visualize the road much better, too, especially during night driving. 

The digital rearview mirrors are sold as an option and Lotus, which is now owned by Geely, started delivering the first Eletre SUVs with them this month, as soon as the Chinese regulators allowed the technology on retail vehicles. The option costs the equivalent of US$2,225 which may not sound affordable, but is a relatively low ball compared to the US$115,000 starting price of the luxury SUV.

The Lotus Eletre is built on a modern 800V drivetrain and offers up to 2.9s 0-62mph acceleration, a 112 kWh battery, as well as numerous premium technology bells and whistles such as the "first end-to-end autonomous driving" LiDAR kit.

Elon Musk is on record saying that the side mirrors of the Cybertruck are modular, so that the owner can can easily remove them after delivery and rely only on the electric pickup's cameras. Those pesky legal questions remain, though, since on federal level it's still not allowed to drive without mirrors.

At the time, he mentioned that the removal of the Cybertruck's side mirrors alone would increase its range 5% at highway speeds, so that's what Lotus may be referring to when saying that the new design that its digital mirrors brings range increase to the Eletre.

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