Earlier this year while squeezing into a turning lane past a stationery ute, my left side mirror smacked hard (I was doing 40-50kmh) into the ute's aluminium tray and folded against the door. When I pulled over to assess the damage, I was surprised to find nothing more than a smudge on the plastic cowling, which I've since buffed out. Flimsy? Hardly.

I actually have a bad track record with side mirrors. I'm very good at judging the width of my car within an inch or two, but I always forget to account for the side mirrors. I smashed the glass of my first car's side mirror on a wheelie bin by the side of the road in 1997, and then clashed mirrors with a parked EF Falcon in 1999 - that cost me $160. No damage to mine. I then clashed the mirror of my girlfriend's car on another parked EF Falcon in 2008 while avoiding an oncoming car not giving me enough room - that one cost me $200. Again, no damage to her car.