BMW shows off mirrorless car at CES

And because of the placement of the display screen, passengers have a full view of what’s happening behind. In the most simple of terms, BMW has taken off the mirrors from the i8 and replaced them with cameras improving the aerodynamics of the auto.

The other BMW concept shown at the CES 2016 event was an exhibit called the BMW i3 Extended Rearview Mirror. The latest word is that BMW is going to remove every mirror on the i8 and replace it with video cameras. They also look pretty damn snazzy and mean the camera can be positioned urther away from the body of the vehicle, thus producing a more useful picture of your surroundings.

The Bumper Detect system, displayed at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas overnight, will even send images of car-damaging culprits to a smartphone, complete with the time of the incident. BMW implements a representation of the i8 in the middle, which helped me understand the viewpoint, so it seems like the camera view is looking back from above the car’s canopy. Moreover, the holders channel rainwater round the side windows. However, a traditional blind spot monitor system isn’t necessary here, as the camera view completely eliminates blind spots.

As part of the system, BMW uses Gorilla Glass as a cover and has a heating element to melt any snow, making the system far more weather-resistant than a simple mirror.

If, for example, drivers signal with their indicator that they are about to overtake, although a auto is coming up behind which is traveling much faster, a striking yellow warning icon immediately flashes on the display and this increases in size as the hazard intensifies.