The flatter mirror on the driver’s side produces a more accurate depiction of what’s behind the car with a more narrow field of view, since light bounces off in the same direction that it hits ...

However, the passenger side mirror can be convex, which gives a wider field of view. This combination of flat and convex mirrors helps the driver understand the car's surroundings.

It’s a warning you see in basically every car: “Objects in mirror are closer than they appear.” But why can’t passenger-side mirrors display objects accurately? Well, it’s actually a ...