power folding mirrors, an xm first

[flez1966]

Ok bit of a worklog, always wanted power folding mirrors, so decided to have a go at building some from a set from another car.

Problem was finding ones which are not too high, a day spent walking round a scrap yard later, nissan sunny ones...

So, heres how its gone so far, nissan mirror mounts into Citroen shells.

end of day one so to speak.


The mirror bases are completely different


The new motor is considerably higher than the manual mount



So, problem, as can be seen here, with the bottom aligned, its just a bit big for the cars mirror, as you can see with it sat on the front cover



.
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bum.....
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So, time to go outside and make a start...




new casings wont do, they dont fit to the car.




time for some cutting.....

Dont know if you can see where the cutting is, its to the left and right of the base, and the screw holes are to be made all the same height



So with that done first test fit...



not too bad...



now to put all the screws in, once i have drilled for them, remove a lot of the nissan mirror backplate, fit it to my casing with some form of strong glue, and replace my mirrors motors and glass!

*************************************************************************************************************************************************************


DAY 2
------

More success... I'm on a rolll...

A lot of cutting had to be done with great care and precison from Mr Angry Grinder, as no mistake could be tolerated, due to no spare mirrors...

So, a few mm were gently removed...



A bit of the outer shell was trimmed carefully, once again by Mr Angry Grinder



This allowed the motor to sit in the right spot.




Angry also had a look at the motor, and asked it to lose weight around its rear




Removed unnecessary bits form the original position motor mount



All this cutting got it all into the case, and the fit much improved.



And on youtube, a motor test....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXYAxU5scPU

[Dean]

Hi

Very interesting work, i have in the back of my mind thought about this before, i think it would be easier with MK1 Xm mirrors as they are bigger and importantly taller than the MK2 ones that you have but unfortunatly the bases do not pivot in the way which would allow you to fit the mech, good work though i like it!!

D

[flez1966]

well rain stopped play so came inside and started on the retro fit of the bmw dimming interior mirror, with added on reverse sensor display.....

Fitting the bm mirror is easy, 3 wires, but then getting the silver coating off to replace with a 75% silver coating is another matter, or the reverse sensor display wont show through.....

those bm mirrors are great, not as good as the ones in vauxhall omega elites, but great.

[flez1966]

Thread updated, first post now has a day2 section and a link to a youtube vid of the first test

http://www.club-xm.co.uk/forum/viewtopi ... 4885#p4855

[Dean]

yeah i'll give you 5 strs for that

D

[jorgy]

Nice one Lez!

So, Dean, u say this mod can't be done with S1 mirrors then (never seen an S2 mirror)? Shame....

cheers
George

[flez1966]

I see no reason why a S1 can not have it done, but the thing is, the hinges on S1 are so pitifully weak, there going to break one day in standard form, then you have to start all over again...

[Dean]

It would be a pita to do though, mk2 ones pivot in the right place, mk1 ones unclip and fold back in a rather bizzar citroen fashion and as lez has said are kind of weak, really the easiest way would be with the mk2 ones but then i think you have to change the plastic moulding on the top rear corner of the wings too.

D

[jorgy]

Thanks for explaining guys.
cheers
G

[Ciaran]

Well Lez did you ever finish these?

I came across your Youtube video again last night, and wondered if you'd ever got the passenger side done, and them painted up. Something I'd be interested in doing, one day...
The good thing is there's a growing abundance of new cars with the folding mirrors, so its possible something which is a slightly better fit will come along and save so much intervention by Mr Angry Grinder

A silly question, the Nissan Sunny mirrors you found, did they have a folding function originally? If so I didn't know those Sunnys ever had that feature, quite ahead of their time and a high-end function for a small car!

Also been following your BMW mirror thread on the DC site with interest

Ciarán