I'm interested in knowing as well, however, I have a Dec. '04('05 model year) R-53 MCS, but I have NO auto climate control, No Cruise or any controls in the steering wheel, and no factory security system, so I'm then assuming I won't have a provision for the mirror since my MCS doesn't have those options. The thing is that I don't know if those mirrors are the same as the BMW ones in the way that you have to have rain sensing wipers in order to have auto dim/homelink, and for you to have rain sensing wipers, basically you have to have a full-blown optioned car. I don't even know if rain sensing wipers were even an option on MINIs, (need to read the owners manual again)...

 

Yes I have a friend that has the Homelink only mirror.

As for how well the auto dimming mirror works, for me it works well. As good as the one in our Subaru. Although I miss the compass & Homelink that Scooby has.

For a definitive answer I'd call Jason at Classic MINI parts. He will know what fits what for sure. He is a great parts guy.

 

I'm pretty sure you didn't need rain sensing wipers to get auto-dimm. I do know you don't need rainsensing on an R56 to get auto-dimm. You can get the convenience package these days which gets you all of those options and keyless entry, but they were all available separately, they still are available separately (for R56s) except you can't get homelink without autodim (but could on an R53).

You can and could get rain sensing wipers, we didn't bother as the price of a replacement screen was scary. Replacing a normal screen was bad enough.

 

I have a 2006 MCS with auto-dimming mirror. No rain sensor wipers of convenience package on my car. The mirror was ordered ala carte.

 

I emailed Jayson at Classic Mini asking him if they planned on doing the 10% over cost special anytime soon as there were several NAM members that were interested in purchasing stuff.

His response was: "Unfortunately, I am not anticipating another 10% over cost sale. The last one we did was kind of a bad deal for us and ended up hurting us."

I did get NAM pricing on the following:

Mirror w/ Homelink No AutoDim: Retail $368.85 / nam price $295.08.

Mirror w/ Homelink and AutoDim: $549.17ea / nam price $439.34ea.

So it boils down to this: It is pretty expensive to add these... OUCH!


I will try to convince my wife to let me trade one of my children to the dealership in exchange for one.

 

I'm looking for the Mirror w/o Homelink and w/AutoDim, but I don't think it'll be that much less than the prices above.

Oh well, I'll just get some other mods.

 

Would this mod work on a 2004 MCS?

 

All,

I just purchased an Auto Dim with Homelink from a Salvage yard. It comes w/ a 90 day warranty and I saved close to $300.

Contact:

Casey Shults
Apex Auto Parts, Inc
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
888-868-3550 Toll Free
405-735-6400 Local
www.apex-auto-parts.com

They have a network of Salvage yards they can contact to get their hands on other mirrors.

Someones totaled Mini loss is your gain!

Best of luck!

 

There's an auto dim/(no homelink that I see) mirror from an '05 actually in "the bay". I'm also watching it....

Jim:
Would you be kind enough to post a "how to" remove and replace the mirror with the homelink/auto dim upgrade in case I find another one? (If have photos better yet)
I can't see any threads on a how to do it and am afraid of breaking the mirror base attachment points.

Thanks

 

I got out bid by a "Sniper Service" (an automated service that jumps in at the last second) last week. Funny thing was, I was using Ez-Sniper myself! Foiled by a better sniper service!

I read a thread on NAM that stated: "Grab the mirror by the base and turn it right or left 1/4 turn and it will unlock. Reverse the process to get it back on."

I will post my installation w/ pics. Unless I break it, in which case I will not brag about that fact!

 

Can you retrofit the self dimming/homelink rear view mirror on a 2008 Clubman S? My wife made the mistake of not ordering it and now we have to deal with a pesky remote gate door opener in her sunvisor.

I have the self dimming/homelink mirror from factory in my 2005 R53 S and love it. Not having to carry a brick gate opener and spend in batteries and such is the best thing ever. Clean, simple and elegant solution and works really well. You can program up to 3 separate Homelink devices (Its got 3 separate buttons).

If anyone has retrofit the homelink mirror on a R56 or R55, please let me know as I am seriously considering doing it.

 

Actually, I don't think it was a sniper service. The reason is I am pretty sure it was me. Sorry about that. I have been sniped so many times that I occasionally do that to try and get an item. The other reason I did it was I have been nailed the last four of these I have tried to buy one of these so I was antsy about winning this one.

These mirrors show up every few months on ebay. Once in a while several will show up over the coarse of a week or two.

The straight auto-dim ones show up at least once or more a month.

If you have ebay set to show you matches in international auctions they show up on the UK site quite often too. The price of the mirror and shipping has mostly been similar to buying in the US. I am pretty sure the homelink mirror has never been offered in europe but I could easily be wrong.

 

WOW, Sniped by a NAM member! Well, I guess I couldn't have been sniped by a more well deserving person...

Instead of waiting for another one to show up on Ebay, I went on a nationwide Salvage Yard search, found one (Auto Dim & Homelink) and purchased it for $172 shipped. I think you paid about the same?? So I guess it worked out for both of us. I just hope mine works when I get it and I do not have to deal with any hassles. My luck buying stuff via the Internet and Ebay has sucked lately. Wrong stubby antenna shipped, Carbon Fiber JCW Scoop did not fit correctly, yada yada yada. Grrrrr. My patience is being tested.

We should both post "How to's" of the installs up here for others to check out.

 

Thanks Jim!:

One other thing. I took a much closer look at the mirror I actually have (as a matter of fact I never paid close attention to find out if I had the Auto dim or not) and I noticed that mine has a little hole in the back of the mirror on the pass. side, same as the one that's in the auction currently, so that means I DO have auto dim, right?

Thanks,
Carlos

 

Hi Hunter!:
Nice to see another "motorer" from the Raleigh/ Durham/ CH triangle area!

Thanks

 

That's a good question? I do not know if they put that sensor hole in ALL of the mirrors or just the one's w/ Auto Dim. Does your mirror have a **** on the bottom of it? I suspect that that if yours has a **** or lever on the bottom that it DOES not have Auto Dim as you would not need to manually tilt it w/ the **** to avoid glare. I am almost positive that Auto Dim mirrors DO NOT have the ****/lever. I assume that the Auto Dim mirror exhibits an Anti Glare behavior & change in color that is hard to miss?

HTH

 

Jim, I am glad it worked out for you and hop the mirror works right out of the box. Installing one of these is pretty easy an takes only a few minutes, literally.

My normal mirror had the sensor and the wiring was already connected. What it is for is the remote locks. The antenna is located in the mirror.

Bond007, Glad to find another from the area too. You should check out the tar heel minis. www.tarheelminis.org There are quite a few of us here in the triangle.

 

Yes, I do have the **** on the bottom, so I assume they only make one mirror casing design with the hole included even if you don't have the auto dim feature.

Thanks

 

To get auto dim you need a sensor on the front of the mirror as well. The standard mirror doesn't have the hole on the front and does have the twisty **** on the bottom.

 

My 12/04('05 model year) MCS DOES have a hole in the back of the mirror(towards the front of the car), and I DO have a fully working "twisty ****" at the bottom of ther mirror.... weird.....

 

Ohhhhh, the mirror mystery! I got a hole. I got a ****. Shhhhh, I got a hole and a ****. Crap, my **** fell in the hole.

I am getting a little anxious, my new mirror is sitting at home on the back porch where the UPS guy left it at noon time. I have 2 hours before I can leave work to go and fetch it. I hope I do not get caught speeding on the way!

 

I just got finished installing my new Autodim mirror and programming the Homelink. I am happy to say that it all works. The mirror arrived and sat outside in 9 degree F all day, so when I opened up the box and took it out in the warm damp air of my house, frost formed on the mirror! I thawed it all out, dried it off and cleaned it up. I decided to wait a few hours before I installed it so the insides would not have any condensation.

Removing the old mirror is a piece of cake. Grabbed the base and twisted to the left and it came off. I was surprised to find it was connected by wires that ran up into the head liner. I figured this must be for the keyless entry as previously pointed out in another post. I assumed I would be fishing for the harness, but it was all ready for me. In order to remove the plug I discovered that you need to remove the "clamshell" cover that goes over the mounting base. (See pictures)

Installing the new mirror involved plugging the new one into the cable and reassembling. This is a bit tricky as putting the "clamshell" back together with a broken thumb was rather difficult. Not having 2 properly working paws was troublesome. Also, holding your arms straight out for several minutes at a time was tiresome. Getting it all back together PERFECT was a bit of trial and error. I had to take a couple of breaks to go blow off steam. There's not much room to manipulate large paws up by the mirror.

After I got it installed I took Pepper for a ride to check on the AutoDim. A BMW SUV pulled up right behind me with it's Xenons blaring and the AutoDim toned it down nicely.

When I got home I decided to program the Homelink and had prepared for the task by downloading the instructions from www.homelink.com The instructions were clear and I discovered I had to do some extra work because I have "revolving code" door openers. But I finally got both doors programmed. I have NOT tested range yet. I hope it can reach from the end of a 50 yard driveway.

This is the 1st time I have ever purchased anything from a "Salvageyard" online, and this was a success. I paid $172.00 delivered for something that was going to cost me $439 + shipping (NAM discount at Classic Mini) to purchase new. Someones wrecked Mini now gets to live on in Pepper. Kinda like an "Organ Donor"!

 

Thanks Jim!!!
I'll see if I can get another one of those form the same recycler. Sounds very easy to swap. I like that upgraded mod!!!

bond007

 

I started to play with the "range" (distance the Homelink can transmit) this AM when I left for work. I worked from about 75 feet away and I will keep testing.

The "clicker" that came with the opener would only work very close to the door. Maybe the 9 volt battery cannot push the transmitter hard enough? I assume the Homelink is driven by 12volts and is maybe more powerfull? Granted it is in the mirror right next to the windshield, but I tried my clicker holding it in the same position and it did not seem to matter.

I am pretty happy with the Homelink and I am trying to convince my wife to let me "upgrade" the mirror in her Toyota Highlander! (She could care less, but this is all about me having fun!)

 

Jim:
May I "borrow" you autodim/homelink mirror picture? I want to put a "wanted" ad here as well.

Thanks