I have the auto dimming interior mirror as part of the Convenience package. I know that Mini had an option for auto dimming of the two side (exterior mirrors)

How are the exterior mirrors different from the standard.
Can you replace the standard exterior mirror with the auto dimming type.

Also, for the interior auto dimming mirror, How will have the rear glass tinted effect the operation.

thks

2011 Mini Clubman

 

Not sure if there is such a thing as auto dimming side view mirrors? Are you sure you are not thinking about auto FOLDING mirrors?

If lights in your side view mirrors are bothering you then you probably don't have them aimed properly.

I aim mine so that when a car just about to pass me in the next lane over I see one headlight in the rear view mirror and the other headlight in my side view mirror. This almost totally eliminates the blind spot until the other car is right alongside. You don't see headlights or anything at all in the side view mirrors until the other car is about to pass.

 

I'm pretty sure that MINI has never offered exterior dimming mirrors. Just interior.

 

Seems they do.

 

What year?

 

I'm curious too. I checked the MINI USA website and they list nothing that I can find. Maybe offered in another country? Where's that pic from?

EDIT: I found exterior dimming mirrors listed by an * under the interior dimming mirror. It says they are available at an additional cost but they are nowhere to be found in the Configurator or in the Specs. So I'm still not convinced they are offered. I'm going to my dealer soon so I'll ask them. It would be a nice retrofit (probably requires running a few wires to function) but probably more hassle than its worth.

 

The picture is from the Configurator. Been up since they added the 2011 model year stuff. Don't see any mention of it in RealOEM either.

 

Yes they do offer exterior dimming mirrors for 2011.

Its a $500 option my freind has them!!

 

to: TheMadDane:

Do the mirrors on your friends car have any sensors on the front side. Ie do they look different than regular mirrors.

Also, I like the trailer . Looks good

 

I have it on two Audi's--photochromic mirror glass. First, the mirrors are typically expensive as replacements if they have this option, and it is often combined w/ heated mirrors too. Second, it needs several inputs to function. On my Audi, it gets one input from the light switch, then if I remember right another from the photo sensors tied into the autodimming feature for the interior mirror. For the few Audi posts I recall where someone was asking, I think the car had to be recoded to recognize the feature too. Recoding accessible modules on Audi's seems like child's play with easy to buy and use tools compared to the crypto BMW stuff I have seen thus far.

Good luck nonetheless, but I would be pessimistic it would be easy or cheap, even if the option is out there from the factory.

 

I agree,considering that it's a $500 option from the factory. The dealer forgot to put on my $250 (factory option) rear wing. They wanted $650 to put it on after the fact. I finally wiggled them down to $325 painted and mounted, they claimed that was cost, but they ended up losing a lot more on it as the body shop took 6 hours to install it! They had to remove the entire rear interior to install it.

You can imagine what the $500 dimming mirror option would cost from my rear wing experience!

 

Back to your OP. Window tint doesnt do anything to the interior auto dimming mirror. I have 5% tint and ive noticed that my mirror doesnt "Dim" as it doesn't need it.

I assume you want the side dimming mirrors because of the glare. the way i sit in my cars it doesnt matter how i adjust them they shine right back at me. Of course a cheaper alternative and helps alot better then the auto dimming function is any % of tint on the front windows. I have 5% and I am about to go even darker all the way arround.

 

below is what I copied from another link on this web site.
It mentions retrofitting mirrors to make them self dilmming but is for models prior to the 2011.

I wonder if this would work for a 2011f, vs having to first buy power fold mirrors for 500 and then add selfdimming feature for 250

YES! Here is the part numbers for the kit and the prerequisite options. Looks like you need the auto dimming interior mirror (that I think you have).

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...& hg=51&fg=95

You may want to talk to your dealer about it.

Now that I am looking at it closer, that is just the harness...So the harness is only $15 from parts.com.


So here are the mirror housings from the R56 LCI model (2011):

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...& hg=51&fg=07

I am really not sure if you need to order the glass or not. The Glass section doesn't specify any options.

The mirrors are about $175 each. Doesn't look like you need any programming. But there are instructions specified for the retrofit your dealer can print out for you.
__________________

 

Fixed link.

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...97&hg=51&fg=07

 

As a general comment: vehicle programming issues aside, I'm thinking that somewhere in the mix you need to have (or retrofit) the interior self-dimming mirror to make outside self-dimming mirrors work. I think the interior mirror is the one that contains the ambient lighting sensor that triggers the self-dimming feature? If you don't have the sensor in that interior mirror, I don't think the exterior mirrors will respond to lighting changes.

At least that's the way I've seen how it's set up on other (GM) vehicles...

 

Any body ever make any headway with this?

I found the glass part numbers:
51169803804 right
51169803801 left

these puppies are coming in at a fresh $200/each. There has to be a better way

 

I looked into retrofitting the exterior dimming mirrors a few months ago. If I remember correctly, the wiring (according to the Bentley manual) which allows dimming comes depends primarily on the internal rearview mirror sensor (so all mirrors would be dimmed in unison). Wires would need to be installed from the interior rearview to the exterior rearview, and if I understood the wiring diagrams correctly, the wiring might not even work correctly with the retrofit interior dimming mirror harness. In other words, REALLY not worth the time, in my not so humble opinion. If you have your external rearview mirrors correctly set up you would save yourself >$500 and never really get blinded by your exterior rearview mirrors.

 

I have the dimming rear view mirrors too. I find them useful, I think if I recall the inside rear view auto dimming mirror controls (as Avuton said) them all. The dealer left the service number paper that hangs from the rear view mirror on once. It was sunny and bright and I couldn't figure out why but all the mirrors kept dimming. Finally I realized it had something to do with the service number blocking the front sensor and I guess imitating night time.

 

Another option is to replace the factory mirror with a blue tinted mirrors like on BMWs. This would reduce the glare from the cars light behind you.

Below is a site that sells them in UK. I plan on doing this myself

ebay.co.uk/itm/MINI-COOPER-07-WIDE-ANGLE-HEAT-MIRROR-GLASS-P-/330571252272?p

Scroll down and you can get to the link for all their factory replacement mirrors to include the blue tinted ones, either heated or non-heated.

 

I have them on my 2012 Clubman S. You can tell, because if you look on an angle, you can see 2 oval edges. I didn't know about them, and I thought the bra installer had put the vinyl on them (in the daytime, that's what it looked like). But in the evening, when I was driving, it looked just like the interior rear view mirror (kind of a dark greenish kind of reflection). I don't think it changes anything in the daytime. At night, I really like it because my eyes are sensitive and I have slight night blindness, and I can see much better. Hope this helps...

 

Anyone made the change? I asked this in another thread:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ml#post3872772