Digital Rearview mirrors

[Sherminator98]

I first saw this in a loaded Santa Fe a few summer ago, I wasn't impressed with it-it seemed to suffer from "input lag" i.e. the images it was displaying where ever so slower then what you would see with a standard rearview mirror.

 

Anyways I noticed a Toyota Corolla Cross in front of me had one-a product that is much lower down on the product lineup...which had me wondering, outside of a being able to display some additional information, often that isn't really necessary, what is the actual point of having these style mirrors? It seems pointless to replace something that costs maybe 10-20 bucks with something that costs 10X as much, especially in lower end product where pricing is a bit more sensitive. 

 

Do any Ford or Lincoln products offer anything like this? I haven't noticed. 

[akirby]

2 advantages I can think of.  Doesn’t get blocked by people or cargo and it doesn’t reflect headlights in your eyes.  But neither of those seem worth the extra cost and complexity to me.

[fordmantpw]

One other advantage...you don't have to adjust it when driving after someone with a vastly different height.  After my wife drives, the rearview mirror shows me nothing but the back seat.  This could eliminate that.

 

But, again, doesn't seem to be worth it.

[Motorpsychology]

The other advantage is that it can be made available only in a certain trim package or option group, bundled in with other options. Maybe even subscription-based; free for 1year, then reverts back to a conventional mirror, or displays only in black & white if you don't subscribe.

Where is the camera(s) for it? if it utilizes the same one as the backup camera, it will lose clear visibility in the rain.

[Sherminator98]

31 minutes ago, Motorpsychology said:

Where is the camera(s) for it? if it utilizes the same one as the backup camera, it will lose clear visibility in the rain.

 

IIRC on the Corolla Cross I saw today, it looked like the camera was set up much higher then other backup cameras I've seen-like in the spoiler above the rear hatch glass. 

[rmc523]

2 hours ago, Sherminator98 said:

I first saw this in a loaded Santa Fe a few summer ago, I wasn't impressed with it-it seemed to suffer from "input lag" i.e. the images it was displaying where ever so slower then what you would see with a standard rearview mirror.

 

Anyways I noticed a Toyota Corolla Cross in front of me had one-a product that is much lower down on the product lineup...which had me wondering, outside of a being able to display some additional information, often that isn't really necessary, what is the actual point of having these style mirrors? It seems pointless to replace something that costs maybe 10-20 bucks with something that costs 10X as much, especially in lower end product where pricing is a bit more sensitive. 

 

Do any Ford or Lincoln products offer anything like this? I haven't noticed. 

 

No, no current Ford products have it.

 

The idea is it eliminates blind spots altogether - no pillars, people, cargo, etc. in the way, but they can be turned off and use a regular mirror, if desired.

 

I could see it being useful on something like Bronco, where the tire out back can limit visibility.

 

I view it as a "keeping up with the Joneses" type option - competitors have it, so it should be offered, but Ford doesn't seem to care about that type of thing lately (i.e. removing features to save a buck....while charging more).

 

30 minutes ago, Motorpsychology said:

The other advantage is that it can be made available only in a certain trim package or option group, bundled in with other options. Maybe even subscription-based; free for 1year, then reverts back to a conventional mirror, or displays only in black & white if you don't subscribe.

Where is the camera(s) for it? if it utilizes the same one as the backup camera, it will lose clear visibility in the rain.

 

Usually they're a separate camera - sometimes they're mounted up in the rear spoiler of SUVs, sometimes they're right next to the backup camera.

[Motorpsychology]

13 minutes ago, Sherminator98 said:

 

IIRC on the Corolla Cross I saw today, it looked like the camera was set up much higher then other backup cameras I've seen-like in the spoiler above the rear hatch glass. 

Still susceptible to obfuscation (popped up on my word of the day this past wk) by road grime, but probably no worse than looking through a splattered rear window with a conventional mirror. PU's and sedans naturally keep most of the spray from hitting the window. 

Some worker bee at NHTSA will probably draft a regulation making rain sensing rear window wipers mandatory, or outlawing SUVs & hatchbacks.

Edited November 17, 2025 by Motorpsychology
Make grammar gooder

[Sherminator98]

5 minutes ago, Motorpsychology said:

Some worker bee at NHTSA will probably draft a regulation making rain sensing rear window wipers mandatory, or outlawing SUVs & hatchbacks.

 

My Bronco wipes the rear window if I backup and have my wipers on

 

I can see a sprayer above the camera instead 😛 

[Sherminator98]

11 minutes ago, rmc523 said:

The idea is it eliminates blind spots altogether - no pillars, people, cargo, etc. in the way, but they can be turned off and use a regular mirror, if desired.

IIRC in the Santa Fe it didn't actually have a mirrored surface when it was turned off....but I could be wrong.

The view was identical to a standard rearview mirror and to be honest the additional camera views the Santa Fe had while driving it made the dash entirely too busy and distracting to me IMO. It would be great for parking or other slow speed things (like in my garage), but for everyday use, its information overload. 

[Dlcorbett]

From my understanding, no new Ford or lincoln product has this feature.  However, there are some fords that will display a timed rear feed using the back up camera in the main display if you hit the camera button at a certain speed.  I dont think any of the newer lincoln products can do this though.

[Motorpsychology]

12 minutes ago, Dlcorbett said:

From my understanding, no new Ford or lincoln product has this feature.  However, there are some fords that will display a timed rear feed using the back up camera in the main display if you hit the camera button at a certain speed.  I dont think any of the newer lincoln products can do this though.

10-4, Ranger at least has an option to keep the rear camera on up to about 4-5mph, after initially putting it in Reverse.

[rmc523]

22 minutes ago, Sherminator98 said:

 

My Bronco wipes the rear window if I backup and have my wipers on

 

I can see a sprayer above the camera instead 😛 

 

I was surprised when Bronco didn't have a rear camera washer - they routed the washer line/power cords on the drivers side instead of the passenger side, where they could've run a line through the swing gate.  Bronco would be a model you'd think they'd want to have a camera washer on if you're doing offroading.

 

12 minutes ago, Dlcorbett said:

From my understanding, no new Ford or lincoln product has this feature.  However, there are some fords that will display a timed rear feed using the back up camera in the main display if you hit the camera button at a certain speed.  I dont think any of the newer lincoln products can do this though.

 

I can't see why the Lincoln's wouldn't have the same timed camera thing - that setting has to be turned on.

[scode1]

The 2026 Bronco Raptor has one. It's referred to as Full Display rear view mirror. The reason it is unique to the Bronco Raptor has to do with the limited visibility caused by the spare tire.

[bzcat]

Seems like another one of those solutions searching for a problem inventions. 

[morgan20]

18 minutes ago, scode1 said:

The 2026 Bronco Raptor has one. It's referred to as Full Display rear view mirror. The reason it is unique to the Bronco Raptor has to do with the limited visibility caused by the spare tire.

 

Yea, it's available with the Lux package on 2026 Bronco Raptor. One of the Bronco 6G group members took photos of this feature on his vehicle

 

 

 

[joseodiaga4]

27 minutes ago, morgan20 said:

 

Yea, it's available with the Lux package on 2026 Bronco Raptor. One of the Bronco 6G group members took photos of this feature on his vehicle

 

 

 

I still don't understand why this feature is not available on the Navigator, Expy and other Lincolns. They offer it on models sold in China

[rmc523]

2 hours ago, scode1 said:

The 2026 Bronco Raptor has one. It's referred to as Full Display rear view mirror. The reason it is unique to the Bronco Raptor has to do with the limited visibility caused by the spare tire.

 

1 hour ago, morgan20 said:

 

Yea, it's available with the Lux package on 2026 Bronco Raptor. One of the Bronco 6G group members took photos of this feature on his vehicle

 

 

 

 

 

Interesting, I didn't realize they added this feature - apparently the camera is in the upper brake light - I'm surprised its view doesn't get blocked by the tire below it....

 

 

Edited November 17, 2025 by rmc523

[Sherminator98]

4 hours ago, rmc523 said:

Interesting, I didn't realize they added this feature - apparently the camera is in the upper brake light - I'm surprised its view doesn't get blocked by the tire below it....

 

 

 

I'm venturing a guess that it works in conjunction with the backup camera also and the image merged together. 

[rmc523]

11 hours ago, Sherminator98 said:

 

I'm venturing a guess that it works in conjunction with the backup camera also and the image merged together. 

 

That's possible.

 

One would think they'd have it part of Sasquatch too.  i'm sure we'll see it eventually.

[Andrew L]

GM vehicles have had this as an option for a few years now mostly on Cadillac and GMC models.  My sister and BIL have a Denali 3500 to tow their boat and the camera rear view mirror is nice especially if you have 3 adults across the back seat their heads don't block the way.  You can zoom in and out if you want a wider view.  Also for those who hate cameras if you don't want to use it you can turn it off and it turns into a normal mirror.

[Dlcorbett]

21 hours ago, Andrew L said:

GM vehicles have had this as an option for a few years now mostly on Cadillac and GMC models.  My sister and BIL have a Denali 3500 to tow their boat and the camera rear view mirror is nice especially if you have 3 adults across the back seat their heads don't block the way.  You can zoom in and out if you want a wider view.  Also for those who hate cameras if you don't want to use it you can turn it off and it turns into a normal mirror.

 

Not just gm, every manufacturer from jeep/ram to nissan has this feature as an option.  Ford is the only one that doesnt offer it in the pickup or suv markets(except bronco).

[rmc523]

35 minutes ago, Dlcorbett said:

 

Not just gm, every manufacturer from jeep/ram to nissan has this feature as an option.  Ford is the only one that doesnt offer it in the pickup or suv markets(except bronco).

 

That's what I was saying above, it should at least be offered since most others have it.  It's limited to Raptor only on Bronco.

[Andrew L]

On 11/19/2025 at 8:52 AM, Dlcorbett said:

 

Not just gm, every manufacturer from jeep/ram to nissan has this feature as an option.  Ford is the only one that doesnt offer it in the pickup or suv markets(except bronco).

 

Correct but I could be wrong I thought GM was the first.  They have had it longer than most to my knowledge.  I am surprised Ford hasn't offered it at least on the Lincoln line but we all know Lincoln doesn't mean much to Ford these days.

[tbone]

On 11/19/2025 at 7:52 AM, Dlcorbett said:

 

Not just gm, every manufacturer from jeep/ram to nissan has this feature as an option.  Ford is the only one that doesnt offer it in the pickup or suv markets(except bronco).

Shocker. Ford is happy to charge similar prices to their competitors and give you the standard mirror though.  

[Dlcorbett]

11 hours ago, Andrew L said:

 

Correct but I could be wrong I thought GM was the first.  They have had it longer than most to my knowledge.  I am surprised Ford hasn't offered it at least on the Lincoln line but we all know Lincoln doesn't mean much to Ford these days.

Actually nissan and infiniti were the ones that introduced it, followed by Toyota.  Thats why when ford revealed that they were adding it to their commercial cars, it was a big deal since it was still an industry baby, but then reneged on it.  I believe the 2021 gm fs utes or the ct6 were the first gms to use the feature.

Edited November 22, 2025 by Dlcorbett