Autodimming Mirror From A 2000 Into A 93?

chrispiss · December 19, 2004

Hey I am able to get an autodimming rearview mirror for pretty cheap and I was wondering if I could make it fit (and work) in my 93? I know there won't be a plug for it but if I routed wires up there or something would it work, or is there a separate computer thingy it needs or something?

Also, my dome light..when it fades out, it fades out kinda chunky. Like it's not smooth, you know? I was just wondering if there is a way to fix that to make it smoother, like cleaning the bulb contacts or something. Any ideas?

Thanks, you're all wonderful!

steviej · December 19, 2004

look up member "squarehat" and contact him.

he did the Gentex mirror swap on his early model ES, I think. It worked perfectly.

or your could seardh on Gentex and mirror, open your search to over a year.

steviej

sorry, can't help you on the dome light. It sounds as though it would be the resistor or the bulb.

SKperformance · December 20, 2004

the mirror uses its own optic eyes (photoelectric) front and rear just add power and you are done

I just wish oem made mirros big enough to see what you need to from them,

I perfer the asian insipred wide tall mirrors for perfect veiwing.

otherwise i would have gotten a oem mirror with homelink and dimming

chrispiss · December 20, 2004

thanks for the heads up! I did a search on ebay and found lots of those gentex mirrors..I think I might go with one that has a compass in it. I also found a lot of mirrors manufactured by gentex but they were out of chevy tahoe's and such, and they were a bit cheaper. I'll let you guys know what happens if I get one..I need to recover from my christmas spending first. :)

SW03ES · December 20, 2004

Tahoes are fine, its the same mirror ;)

squarehat · December 20, 2004

The toughest part of doing this mod on a 92-96 is that you'll have to change out the windshield mount for the mirror, as they used a odd, square shaped mount with incredibly strong adhesive (97-99 use a "universal" mount, so it's a much easier mod on those cars). I had to call at least a half dozen auto glass shops before I could find one willing to pull off my Lexus mount--most places said I was nuts, and that the windshield was certain to break. I finally found a shop willing to do it (for free, no less!, and it happened to be a shop that the dealer used for repairs, so I figured I'd go for it). The technician carefully worked with a rubber mallet, tapping a small putty knife gently under the mount, while applying counter pressure to the appropriate spot from the outside of the windshield. Luckily, the windshield didn't break, and he even glued on the new button for me. Even though he refused to charge me, I slipped the guy a nice crisp $20 for his 5 minutes of work--I had finally found somebody willing to do what shop after shop said was "impossible."

I bought mine from a Nissan dealership--it was an accessory for the 350Z and features auto-dim, compass, and a 3-channel HomeLink transmitter. Wiring is fairly easy--take the screws out of the little center sun blind and the driver's side sun blind, so that you can tuck the wire under the headliner. Then, carefully remove the A-pillar trim, and a little piece of wire mold that goes between the side of the the dash and the driver's door. That should allow you to drop the wire into the fuse panel area, where you can use fuse taps to attach it to a source that's switched to ignition (models with HomeLink have a second power lead for the HomeLink transmitter that's wired for "always hot").

By the way, the 2000-2001 ES used an autodimming mirror with a custom mount that suspends the mirror from the headliner, not the glass. This would be very tricky to mount and make look "stock." You're much better off going with one with a "universal" windshield mount, like the ones for Nissan/Infiniti, GM, Toyota, and some newer Lexus models (the 02-present ES and 03-present GX use universal-mount Gentex mirrors, too) :)

I love this mod--I'm just envious of the newer cars that have the outside mirrors dim, too.:D That would be very handy when a Yukon pulls up behind me at a light just to the left of me, putting it's entire headlamp reflecting back through my outside mirror...

byohzrd · December 20, 2004

While we're on the topic of swapping mirrors, I have a question: Will a rear view mirror from an RX300 or IS300 (with the built in compass) fit in my 2000 ES? The windshield mounts appear to be the same, and I am hoping that it will just be a matter of unplugging my mirror and plugging the new one in. Could it possibly be that easy? :unsure:

chrispiss · December 21, 2004

The toughest part of doing this mod on a 92-96 is that you'll have to change out the windshield mount for the mirror, as they used a odd, square shaped mount with incredibly strong adhesive (97-99 use a "universal" mount, so it's a much easier mod on those cars). I had to call at least a half dozen auto glass shops before I could find one willing to pull off my Lexus mount--most places said I was nuts, and that the windshield was certain to break. I finally found a shop willing to do it (for free, no less!, and it happened to be a shop that the dealer used for repairs, so I figured I'd go for it). The technician carefully worked with a rubber mallet, tapping a small putty knife gently under the mount, while applying counter pressure to the appropriate spot from the outside of the windshield. Luckily, the windshield didn't break, and he even glued on the new button for me. Even though he refused to charge me, I slipped the guy a nice crisp $20 for his 5 minutes of work--I had finally found somebody willing to do what shop after shop said was "impossible."
I bought mine from a Nissan dealership--it was an accessory for the 350Z and features auto-dim, compass, and a 3-channel HomeLink transmitter. Wiring is fairly easy--take the screws out of the little center sun blind and the driver's side sun blind, so that you can tuck the wire under the headliner. Then, carefully remove the A-pillar trim, and a little piece of wire mold that goes between the side of the the dash and the driver's door. That should allow you to drop the wire into the fuse panel area, where you can use fuse taps to attach it to a source that's switched to ignition (models with HomeLink have a second power lead for the HomeLink transmitter that's wired for "always hot").

By the way, the 2000-2001 ES used an autodimming mirror with a custom mount that suspends the mirror from the headliner, not the glass. This would be very tricky to mount and make look "stock." You're much better off going with one with a "universal" windshield mount, like the ones for Nissan/Infiniti, GM, Toyota, and some newer Lexus models (the 02-present ES and 03-present GX use universal-mount Gentex mirrors, too) :)

I love this mod--I'm just envious of the newer cars that have the outside mirrors dim, too.:D That would be very handy when a Yukon pulls up behind me at a light just to the left of me, putting it's entire headlamp reflecting back through my outside mirror...

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Hey dude thanks for the info! I'll have to call around about removing the old mirror. Is the adhesive really that good? You'd think a shot of rubbing alcohol and a couple hits with a chisel would work..I don't understand how the windshield would break from that.

squarehat · December 22, 2004

Hey dude thanks for the info! I'll have to call around about removing the old mirror. Is the adhesive really that good? You'd think a shot of rubbing alcohol and a couple hits with a chisel would work..I don't understand how the windshield would break from that.

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It's some very strong adhesive--I (and the shop) tried solvents much stronger than rubbing alcohol, with absolutely no luck (the guy at the auto glass shop said this was perhaps the strongest adhesive he had seen). I would tend to shy away from using a chisel--it's thicker than a small putty knife, and it has no "give"--one tap too hard and you've got a major problem :o

In regards to the question about the compass vs. non compass retrofits for an 00-01, I've seen the swap done within a same model, same body style ('02 RX mirror with compass into '99 RX, '02 GS mirror with compass into '98 GS, but never a confirmed instance across different models). You need to make sure the screws for the headliner mount are identical, and that the wiring harness matches (I think it's just a two wire quick-connect harness, I suppose splicing could be used as a last resort).

chrispiss · December 24, 2004

alright... well I'll take your advice and call around, i guess it's better safe than sorry. That would suck trying to install a better rearview mirror and end up ruining my windshield.