2. This is a personal choice.
Personally, I love rear-view mirrors. I use 6 of them all the time on cars, SUVs and vans. First is the normal one looking out the back, the next four are flat plus convex looking down the left and right sides, showing the distant traffic, the outside lane, plus the rear tire position when backing. The sixth mirror is either an added mirror or the passenger's visor mirror looking out one of the right side windows to see if anyone is in my blind spot. I've developed my position scan using all of these for many years.
BUT - then there are the convex mirrors required for buses in school service, so drivers can see down to the road in front of the bumpers so as to not accidentally run over daydreaming toddlers. I think all the brackets and tubes make the front of the bus look like a jungle gym. I prefer the clean truck-like look of a bus nose without them.
Also, during the first gas crisis of the 1970s, Car and Driver did an aerodynamics test on a full-sized van, to try to get a few more MPG when pushing a shoebox through the air. They tried smoothing plates under the chassis, an air duct front-to-back over the roof, and a wing or spoiler to fill the vacuum behind the vehicle. The only modification that actually produced a noticeable decrease in drag and increase in MPG was to take the outside mirrors off. While removing side-view mirrors that were once an option in no longer legal, that test has stuck in my mind for four decades.
Removing the convex mirror and its supports wont help mileage much, but it won't hurt it either.
So, though I cannot recommend it for anyone else, my personal choice would be to clean up the front end by removing the mirrors and brackets, and pay attention to what is in front of me, as any truck driver would (or should).
