auto-fold mirrors

I haven't tried them, but I can't imaging why anyone would ever need auto-folding mirrors on a Prius. The Prius is so skinny it should easily fit into any normal parking space. Now if I were driving a Hummer...

Tom

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(qbee42 @ May 1 2007, 09:49 PM) [snapback]433697[/snapback]</div>

you need them to park next to a hummer. <_<

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jgills240 @ May 1 2007, 11:03 PM) [snapback]433708[/snapback]</div>

But a hummer wouldn't need them to park next to a Prius, just flatten it like a piece of tin foil.

Tom

 

I want them! It's the one thing I really miss. Mirrors get kicked off your car here (happened to me twice), unless you fold them. I now have a routine of manually folding my mirrors. That of course did not stop someone from writing a graffiti tag on the rear spoiler yesterday, using a permanent marker...

How do I get them?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(qbee42 @ May 1 2007, 10:49 PM) [snapback]433697[/snapback]</div>

My mirrors have been whacked off twice just parking on the street. Wouldn't have happened if I had taken the time to fold them, or if they had auto-folded.

I'm guessing you don't park on narrow city streets much.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tempus @ May 2 2007, 08:58 AM) [snapback]433854[/snapback]</div>

True, the parking is pretty good around here. Compared to the stories posted here, people in this area are incredibly civilized. We generally don't have problems with people whacking off mirrors or tagging spoilers with permanent markers. Many people leave their keys in their cars, most don't lock their houses. This little village is essentially Mayberry, so my world view tends to get filtered through rose colored glasses. The bicycle rental shop doesn't even bother to lock its bicycles after hours; they just leave them out on the front lawn.

I'll bore you with one more small town story. It's so typical of how things work around here:
One morning I was sitting in the bakery drinking coffee and helping to solve the world's problems, which is what we do at the bakery. It's a local hang-out for all of the older non-working folks and some of us with flexible schedules. Right in the middle of one of the discussions, someone interrupted and said: "Hey Bob, isn't that your car driving off?" Bob looked up and said: "Oh yea, it's only Frank; he'll be back." A few minutes later Frank parked back in front of the bakery, having finished his errands, never realizing he had gotten into the wrong car!

Tom

 

The JDM mirrors that you buy from Sigma and others (Not the eBay ones) have the auto-fold motors built into them. When purchasing these mirrors, they come with the shell (and LED turn signal light), motor mounts and wiring for the LED's.

There is a terminal for this motor on the mount that holds the up/down/left/right motor. Wires need to be run from this terminal, through the door and into the car body.

I have mine hooked up but be aware that the driver's side wirror doesn't fold all the way up against the window. It sits about 30 degrees off of it.

I emailed Edward at Sigma to let him know that the mirrors he sells has this auto-fold motor built in and he has decided to sell the auto-fold module.

Cheers,

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(qbee42 @ May 2 2007, 09:33 AM) [snapback]433873[/snapback]</div>

Just to be clear, this isn't a vandalism or civilization problem. The streets are just so narrow that if two cars meet head on, they are likely to bump the mirrors on the cars parked on the sides as they try to maneuver past each other.

 

Thanks Bob (and car for bringing it up)! So what's the word? You've done the mod/install on these. Would LOVE to have them on mine!

 

I just ordered mine after reading this post. I hope that by the time mine comes in the mail, that someone will finally post a step-by-step installation for it. Um, DocVijay, are you reading this? hehe.

Vince.

 

Do these auto-fold mirrors have heating? The mirrors that ship with the Prius in Oz don't have heating and I need/miss/want it. Could get 2 birds with one stone.

 

The mirror case and assembly from SigmaAuto uses your preexisting mirror. So, if your car comes with the heated mirrors, it will work with the existing wiring. On the other hand, if you car didn't come with heated mirrors, then it won't.

Vince.

 

OK... please excuse my ignorance here.

1. Has anybody yet installed these?
2. Does the module go inside each mirror shell?
3. Why are heated mirrors needed for this to work? (We all have power because of the power adjustment... is there something else important about having them heated as well?)
4. How can you tell for sure if your mirrors are heated? (I believe I read about heated mirrors in the owner's manual, but it wasn't clear which models had it). My sticker for my 2006 Package 6 doesn't list it as a feature.
5. Has anybody translated the Japanese instructions?

Other than that, I'm ready to go!

 

Hey Darell,

If you have bought the JDM mirrors (Sorry, I can't remember if you have or not) throught Sigma et als, you've got the auto-fold motors already. It's a matter of getting the JDM module to get the"auto" in auto-fold.

The module should reside inside the car with only wires running out through the doors to the terminal in the back of the mirror as shown in my photo above.

Side note: Sorry all, in that last photo, I neglected to tell you what you were looking at. This is the motor mount that comes with the JDM mirrors. This piece goes inside the mirror shell and holds the mirror adjustment motor that is not shown. You are looking at the backside of this motor mount which sits up agains the shell. It's also upside down. The photo was to show you the little white terminal in the lower right of the mount. This is the power connection for the auto-fold motor that's built in.

#3. Heated mirrors aren't needed for this to work. People are just concerned that they would lose their heated mirrors if they got the auto-fold module or the JDM mirrors. If you have heated mirrors, you won't lose this feature. The reeaon is that you re-use your OEM glass. The JDM signal mirrors don't come with the glass.

#4. Sorry, I don't know the '06 packages but I'm sure you can look it up someplace on line to find out if you have the heated mirrors. Or, you can pop the glass off quickly and look. Here's how: Tilt the glass part of the mirror up as far as it can go (Best to do with the power adjustment control pad). With a flashlight, look up behind the glass from below. If you do this on the driver's side, you'll see a white plastic piece that the glass attachesd to. Look closely and you'll see two little beveled areas in this white plastic. You stick a screwdriver into each beveled area and turn the screwdriver to pop and release the two clips. Do this in both spots. You can do one and then the other. You don't have to do both at the same time. Before doing this, put some electrical tape along the bottom edge of the plastic housing so that the screwdriver doesn't mar the finish. When these two clips are released, you'll then be able to pivot the glass up and out. See the instructions below. You'll know if you have heated mirrors because there will be two leads coming off of the back of the glass.

For those with poor math skills, this is what 30 degrees looks like. The mirrors are folded (closed) in both of these shots. Another caveat: The passenger's side mirror bumps up against the window.

A how to write up will be forth coming some time this summer (Along with a bunch of other mods). But gotta get through the school year first...

Cheers,

 

Thanks Bob!

I don't really give a diddly if mine are heated - I was under the (apparently mistaken) assumption that the things NEEDED to be heated for this to work. Never mind!

OK, we're narrowing this thing down every time. From what I understand, both the JDM signal mirrors AND this "auto module" AND your factory glass are all needed for this fun little project. You can't use the NA factory mirrors and just add the module (regardless of having heated mirrors or not) correct?

One day I'll understand it all. And all will be right in the world. And soon after, Bob's install notes and my own editorial comments will probably be up on my site.

(Note: Odd that one mirror doesn't close all the way and the other closes too much! Maybe if you just park at a slight angle they'll work better. )

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(darelldd @ May 3 2007, 09:22 PM) [snapback]435159[/snapback]</div>

Correct! Need JDM mirrors and module and OEM glass.
Correct again. Can't use NA mirrors as there's no fold motor in them (At least not in my '05)....

-bob