Hi all... my new(used) 04 MCS didn't have the Premium Package so lacks the dimming mirror and CC and I forget what else. Anyway, all I really want is the mirror. I know it's easy to just flip the lever but I was spoiled with my last car and if it's an easy add-on it might be worth it.

TIA

--JJ

 

i dont have a hard answer. If the cable is already run to the mirror(i dont know if MINI runs this wire regardless) you should just be able to just swap out the mirror.

usually, the IC for detecting/ auto tinting would be within the mirror itself and all that mirror would need is the power from the car. You could buy the mirror, and take a look yourself(you can always return it if you dont find that it works this way). I am intersted, myself. If you have a bit of wiring/electrical knowledge, you could wire it into the clocks circuit(if that wire is not already run in the MINI). If the wire is already run, you should be set with just buying and doing a swap(should be). if the wire is NOT run already, you should be able to tap into the clock's line.

how much the mirror cost. I may just do this myself

 

This is an easy install. The wiring is already there....all you do is rotate the one you have 90 degrees, it comes off, you see the wiring, you connect the wiring to your new mirror and install the reverse of how you took the other one off.

 

im not sure. I just went out to mine(03 MCS) and there was no wiring going to the mirror. I have no upgrade packages

 

If you go after-market all they need is power. ITs a great feature that I would not be with out.

 

Did you pull your mirror off? The wiring is normally up in the headliner but easily accessible once you remove your mirror.

 

What are prices and availablity of this mirror, and is the OEM one or are there others available?

 

i pulled the mirror off, and the clock. the only wiring i have there is coming from the frame(battery/internals) then going to the clock and the RF transmitter/receiver(whatever that is). there are no other connecters

 

i have a year old parts list, it has prooved to be fairly accurate to actual dealer prices though (maybe 10% off).

im listing

mirror w/o auto dimming $57 (51 16 1 508 455)
mirror w/ auto dimming $164 (51 16 1 508 456)

 

Maybe someone can tell us why your car doesn't have the wiring. My 06 had the wiring in place so I could swap with my daughter's 05 since she didn't need the homelink garage door buttons.

 

well, that could very well be the answer. if would make sense for MINI to run the wiring at the factory in EVERY mini, regardless of wether it has this kit or not. this way, when someones wants to add this kit at the dealer, its just a parts install, rather then a re-wiring job.

question1: can you add a package in an 03 after it comes out of the factory?
question2: can you add a package in an 06 after it comes out of the factory?

the answers to these questions might be different, and thus, there's your answer

im not sure though...any help out there?

 

I didn't think to try and get a mirror through MINI, might look into it. I didn't want the whole convenience package, had no need for it. I'm looking to add the auto-dimming aftermarket as well. Wondering how the wiring would work on this, in principle it's the same mirror that BMW uses, GENTREX.

Here's a Ebay listing for auto-dimming mirrors. I don't know for quality, I know that most regular stores are charing a LOT of money for these, like $400 and I don't know why Ebay is that much cheaper for 'em, but it's something to look at anyway:

http://search.ebay.com/search/search...dimming+mirror


The only thing that I don't like about some aftermarket mirrors is they include a lot of what would end up being redundant with what comes with a MINI, like temp sensing, cold weather alert, etc... I do like the compass feature though that most of these have.

 

i would LOVE a compass. i wonder why the mini doesnt have one of these..i thought of this when driving around in a friends older blazer that had this feature. another feature it had was auto(HUD lights). that is an AWESOME feature!

 

Really? I dont see the big deal. My last car had it, my parents cars have it, but my MINI doesn't (to the original poster, it comes in the convenience package, not the premium).

I dont really care about it....I dont miss it at all. It's not a big deal to just twist a **** to dim the mirror, imo.

I would much rather have the garage door opener from the convenience package over the dimming mirror...either way, I dont have much interest in either...not a big fan of the convenience package.

Back on track: Yes, I think the swap would be pretty simple/inexpensive. I don't see the benefit, but that's just me.

 

Last year, Wanda's auto-dimming rearview mirror went haywire and was too dark in the daytime. I took her to Bryan Harris MINI in Baton Rouge when I was on the road for a pre-Dragon check-up and to have her brakes bled. They noted in my MINI records that it was malfunctioning, but didn't have the part on hand. When I got back to California, I had it replaced at Long Beach MINI. However, I believe there was some programming involved...I don't think it is strictly a plug-n-play situation. Maybe someone else can confirm that?

 

I've looked into this for someone else, and well I don't have the Bentley wiring diagram to give an answer to the original question, here is what I found out(those looking to do this on pre-04 MINIs should be able o find where the wire would be if MINI made them pre-wired). At the end of the 04 production in August, MINI switched to a larger rearview mirror, to improve visiblity, in doing so they also relocated the RF reciever for the front half of the mirror elcosure. So anyone looking to go the aftermarket route on 05 and newer MINIs would need to take this bit of electronics into account so your key fob would still work. Now from 2Miniacs post it seems as though MINI has made the new mirrors pre-wired, which makes sense because it is less labor with the extra electronics in the new design, but until the Bentley update is available or someone pulls their mirror apart we won't be sure. Also remember that the garage door and auto dimming are two different systems, the dimming needs a power supply and the opner just needs to complete a circut, and programming could easily be else where in the ECU or headliner, not very sure though.

Hope this helps.

 

I have been trying to do this myself for a long time now. I have an '04 and would love to add the autodim/Homelink mirror from the '05 - up. If someone that has this mirror could remove it and tell us what the plug for it looks like (a picture would be great), we could try to find a match for it in our cars. I know that there are a couple of unused plugs in the headliner of my car and they may work with the newer mirror.
Also, does the newer mirror have a different mount? If so, can that also be adapted to the older cars?

 

I believe that the mirror is a direct swap into an 05 or 06. The wiring seems to be missing in the earlier cars. Wiring it up seems like it would be a simple job. I don't believe the car has to be programmed for the mirror. Classic MINI has very good pricing on the mirror. Although it isn't cheap.

 

The '04 and earlier mirror needs only three connections to function - ground, switched power and an 'inhibit' signal that comes from the reverse lights. Nothing else, and no programming needed.

 

You got a link for Classic MINI, typing that into Google comes up with primarily stuff for the classic mini, not a specific shop.

I'm torn between an OEM and one with a compass in it.

 

Classic MINI (dealership) and their parts department are NAM sponsers.

 

Ya know it even occurred to me to look and see if they were sponsors or not then I had a brain short circuit. *bonk self* TY.