Electric mirrors anyone?

[rodgeydodge]

Hello from Australia.
My original external mirrors failed: the zinc die-cast ball joint inside the mirror fell to bits.
I replaced them with a set of chrome after market mirrors and within a few months they became spotty with corrosion.

I have decided to fit electric mirrors off another vehicle.
There are not many that are suitable as most mirrors nowadays are fitted where the old quarter vent used to be; not to the body of the door.
In my search, I found a set of mirrors that might suit: off a 2018 mustang!
I am presently making adapter plates to fit the new mirror base to the 1973 Mustang doors. Fortunately the 71-73 Mustang doors are made of heavy steel so they should handle the weight OK.
It is a major task and has burnt up about 50 hours so far.
To give you an idea, the original mirrors weight 440 grams each (about a pound). The Scott Drake replacement chrome ones are about the same.
The 2018 Mustang ones are a whopping 1.5kg or nearly 3 and a half pounds each. And we wonder why the new cars are so heavy?

Once these are done I will make a silicon mold so I can cast as many as I like in black epoxy.
I will then look for a suitable mirror controller so that I can supply the adapter plates and the controller as a package to anyone who is interested.
I have an electrician mate who will help me with the wiring and I will put together a wiring diagram to go with it.

Then I will have an all Mustang assembly with electric mirrors, indicators, a folding function and the mirrors will project a little horse light on the ground when I open the door . . . . .err.
I may even look at central locking while I have the doors apart.

So, there you go. I will keep you informed on my progress. I'll send some photos as well.
If there is enough interest, I can have the adapter plates scanned and send the file to save on postage which seems to have become expensive recently. That way, you can have the things built up with a 3D printer. We'll see.

Cheers, Roger

I got called “pretty” today. Well actually, the full statement was “pretty damn annoying”. But, I only focus on the positive things.

 

[Animal Lawyer]

Definitely interested

 

[will e]

I have one of those steering wheel locks. Works great for adjusting the passenger mirror too.

20 year ago when it was a daily driver I would have loved electric mirrors but no adays I don't drive it much and I am pretty much the only driver so mirror adjustments are not required. But I love your idea!

 

[Don C]

These might be helpful to you:
https://7173mustangs.com/threads/power-mirror-tutorial-by-austin-vert-parts-1-to-4.40108/https://7173mustangs.com/threads/power-mirror-tutorial-by-austin-vert-parts-5-to-10.40109/

 

[rackerm]

Hello from Australia.
My original external mirrors failed: the zinc die-cast ball joint inside the mirror fell to bits.
I replaced them with a set of chrome after market mirrors and within a few months they became spotty with corrosion.

I have decided to fit electric mirrors off another vehicle.
There are not many that are suitable as most mirrors nowadays are fitted where the old quarter vent used to be; not to the body of the door.
In my search, I found a set of mirrors that might suit: off a 2018 mustang!
I am presently making adapter plates to fit the new mirror base to the 1973 Mustang doors. Fortunately the 71-73 Mustang doors are made of heavy steel so they should handle the weight OK.
It is a major task and has burnt up about 50 hours so far.
To give you an idea, the original mirrors weight 440 grams each (about a pound). The Scott Drake replacement chrome ones are about the same.
The 2018 Mustang ones are a whopping 1.5kg or nearly 3 and a half pounds each. And we wonder why the new cars are so heavy?

Once these are done I will make a silicon mold so I can cast as many as I like in black epoxy.
I will then look for a suitable mirror controller so that I can supply the adapter plates and the controller as a package to anyone who is interested.
I have an electrician mate who will help me with the wiring and I will put together a wiring diagram to go with it.

Then I will have an all Mustang assembly with electric mirrors, indicators, a folding function and the mirrors will project a little horse light on the ground when I open the door . . . . .err.
I may even look at central locking while I have the doors apart.

So, there you go. I will keep you informed on my progress. I'll send some photos as well.
If there is enough interest, I can have the adapter plates scanned and send the file to save on postage which seems to have become expensive recently. That way, you can have the things built up with a 3D printer. We'll see.

Cheers, Roger

I got called “pretty” today. Well actually, the full statement was “pretty damn annoying”. But, I only focus on the positive things.

I used 1997 Tbird motors and 2008? Explorer joystick stick controller mounted in my center console. Also added cool LED sequential directional arrows.

 

[InjectedMach]

These might be helpful to you:
https://7173mustangs.com/threads/power-mirror-tutorial-by-austin-vert-parts-1-to-4.40108/https://7173mustangs.com/threads/power-mirror-tutorial-by-austin-vert-parts-5-to-10.40109/

Hey why don't you tell them who really gave you the idea and details on this? Here you go I'll save you the trouble it was Robin Persad from Birmingham AL, USA. We talked about folks like you who take credit for other people's genius. SMH!

 

[rackerm]

Hey why don't you tell them who really gave you the idea and details on this? Here you go I'll save you the trouble it was Robin Persad from Birmingham AL, USA. We talked about folks like you who take credit for other people's genius. SMH!

Sir, I don't see anyone claiming how to power your side view mirrors as their idea. There are many ways to do it. We are sharing information on the topic, or sharing our experiences on this topic. I think the idea to do this is not unique to any person. How one does it may also be different than another person's. The writeup posted is very detailed and I certainly would give any who takes the time to write it up and share on this forum kudos for doing so.

 

[Don C]

Hey why don't you tell them who really gave you the idea and details on this? Here you go I'll save you the trouble it was Robin Persad from Birmingham AL, USA. We talked about folks like you who take credit for other people's genius. SMH!

Personally, I never heard of Robin Persad. How about some more details of who he is and an example of what he came up with. I didn't join this forum until 2012, so may have missed what he did. As far as ideas, when I first got my '71, around 2001, my passenger mirror was flopping around and I took it apart and tightened the base, so it was better. I also thought that it would be good to come up with a remote of some type. Torinos had a mechanical remote with the control in the dash, similar to our driver's mirror, but they are like hen's teeth. I often thought about trying some electrical remote, but Austin Vert beat me to it around 6 or 7 years ago, and came up with a great tutorial.

 

[Mister 4x4]

Hey why don't you tell them who really gave you the idea and details on this? Here you go I'll save you the trouble it was Robin Persad from Birmingham AL, USA. We talked about folks like you who take credit for other people's genius. SMH!

Maybe if you'd actually taken the time to read the cited thread, you'd see that Greg had indeed mentioned Robin in the first paragraph of the first post. smh

In all actuality, there was another thread kicking around on the same topic prior to Greg's execution and tutorial where a bunch of us had discussed doing this very thing. I mentioned thinking that '97 T-bird actuators might not be a bad way to go, since my Mom had managed to rip both electric mirrors off her car, and I hung onto them thinking I might be able to use them on my '71 Mach 1. Greg took the idea (along with other inspirations and his own genius of design and fabrication) and ran with it.

Lots of people have great ideas, but only a few actually get around to capitalizing on them. Greg just happened to be the first one on this site to actually make it happen and was gracious enough to share how he did it for all others to enjoy. I'd never heard of Robin before either... mostly, because I don't frequent other Mustang forums looking for information on model years I don't own. Sorry, if that seems weird.

 

[rackerm]

There are plenty of threads on the site covering this topic. Don't know which one came first or who posted it. What is and always has been important is that we are all here sharing our ideas and experiences in an collective effort to help each other.

Remote Motorized Side View Mirrors​

• Thread starter rackerm
• Start date Jul 17, 2019
• Jul 17, 2019

 

[rodgeydodge]

Hello dear InjectedMach,
Stone the Flamin' Crows mate, settle down. No-one "gave" me the idea to fit electric mirrors to the car. The credit should be given to the millions of late model cars that are fitted with them, including the other two I own. I joined this site less than a year ago, so matters pertaining to previous efforts at electrically powered mirrors were not in my domain. I don't doubt for a second that others have gone down this path, but I have never seen a single example of an early Mustang in Australia that has been fitted with electric mirrors, so it was all news to me.
My research was quite independent of others and my purchases of the late model Mustang mirrors predate my joining this site by years.
I would be surprised if this matter had not turned up before but had no way of checking. I would have liked to have done so as it may have helped me.
I have since come across the previous power mirror story by Persad or Vert? The concept of using Ford Thunderbird power mirrors is really not much use to anyone outside of continental USA where second hand T'birds and after market parts are rarer than hen's teeth.
I have looked at remote controlled mirrors before, usually cable operated, but they are not much use to me. They usually operate the passenger side mirror as the driver side is easily accessible. But remember, I live in Australia and my car is RHD, so this is not a lot of help to me as the passenger side on your car is the driver side to me and I can get to that one easily.
I only looked at this matter for my own purposes but thought that others might be interested as well. A wiring setup can be swapped over from one side to another without any trouble.
I also thought it would be nice to have it all Mustang albeit late model.
Happy to give credit where it's due, but you can only do it if you know it.

Anyway, I did not join this forum to get involved in petty politics of who did what first. I did it to talk with other like-minded individuals about the cars we are passionate about and to gain insight or clues on how to go about things.
That is not easy to access in Australia where the popularity of the 71-73 models and support is limited or nil. Even your USA Mustang parts sites, support and parts for the 71-73 models is much less that the earlier models.

On another matter, when I started fixing my 73 about 10 years ago, the Australian dollar had parity with the USA dollar. It was about one for one. Freight costs were also about one for one. If I bought $400 worth of gear it cost about $400 to get it from the USA to AUS. Now it costs us $1.45 to buy one US dollar. As well, freight costs have gone insane. I bought a small part for a firearm, a piece of aluminium metal about the size of a spark plug: $25 to buy it and $85 to have it freighted by the cheapest method. It is just not practical to get stuff from overseas any more. Not like it used to be.

Anyway, I'll keep working on my mirrors and let you know how it turns out.
Cheers, Roger
Been there, done that. Then been there, done that several more times, because apparently, I never learn.

 

[Austin Vert]

Hi to all,

Thought i would jump in on this thread just to help clarify a few things.

History lesson............................................

We go back to around the year 2016. I was looking around at that time, at other Classic age Mustang Forums, and i happened to stumble on an article put up by a Mister Robin Persad from America, who had gone to the trouble of inventing and making up a set of power mirrors for his 1969 Mustang from his home workshop. Until then, i had never seen anything dealt with this subject before at all on the Internet per say.

I decided to reach out and make personal contact with Robin to learn more about his project and what he had done. I was very impressed with his discoveries and achievements. We ended up getting on very well, and formed a loose friendship over the net, and i told him i wanted to jump in and try and invent a power mirror system for our '71 to '73 Mustangs, based very much along the lines of what he had done himself. He gave me the thumbs up, and we talked about my project for many months into the future. He was very helpful and offered up many a good suggestion to help me out with my project.

I was very enthusiastic about the project, and decided to commit myself into getting the whole thing off the ground and following through till the end. That project took me about spending around one year of personal R&D research plus the making and manufacturing of the mirrors. I would have put or invested about $2,000.00 plus Aus Dollars into the project to see it through till the end. I spent hundreds of man hours on the project, and took hundreds of photos as i went along.

So basically, when you look at it, Robin takes full credit for being the first around the world for inventing or coming up with the idea of power mirrors for classic Mustangs. I came along a little later and take credit for being the first to invent a power mirror system specifically for the '71 to '73 Mustangs only. My system is based on Robin's initial invention, but with a lot of upgraded refinements on what Robin had done himself. When i eventually finished my mirror project, he congratulated me on what i had done, and what i had achieved. I was very proud with what i had achieved at the time.

When i was thinking of taking this project on back in 2016, i touched base with Mister 4x4 first on our Forum and we kicked a few ideas around about the need for power mirrors for our 1,2,3 Mustangs. He thought it was a great idea, but at that time, could not find the time to jump on board with any follow up on the idea. I decided to go it alone, and commit to starting and finishing the project on my own.

Once i had competed my project, i wanted to share with the world and our Forum on what i had done and achieved (just like Robin did), so if any interested people wanted to take up with what i had done and make my system for themselves and enjoy the final product like i have done, then they now have the opportunity of doing so. I went to a lot of time, effort and trouble of getting a 10 Part tutorial together and presenting it on the Forum many years ago. At the time a few Forum members gave me a very enthusiastic response back in what i had done, but sadly almost no one took the challenge and tried making my system for themselves. I guess they thought there was too much time, money and effort in producing something like that for themselves. It's always easier for people to go to a shop and buy a ready made product if they can find one. You can't, so there in lies the dilemma for folks out there today. Like Roger, you have to go and make something up for yourself. (Give me a shout out Roger if i can be of any help)

Time marches on, and over the years since i initially posted my 10 Part Tutorial, it has attracted little interest, or a rather luke warm response from our chat Forum. I think a lot of Forum members would not be even aware that i had done the project and posted it on the Forum at all. So there you go - that's the whole soggy saga to the story of the Mustang power mirrors thing! When i signed off on the project back then, i put up a short video on the final product to the Forum. For those who may have missed it, here is a link to it again................................................



Many thanks again Folks,

Greg.

 

[InjectedMach]

Hi to all,

Thought i would jump in on this thread just to help clarify a few things.

History lesson............................................

We go back to around the year 2016. I was looking around at that time, at other Classic age Mustang Forums, and i happened to stumble on an article put up by a Mister Robin Persad from America, who had gone to the trouble of inventing and making up a set of power mirrors for his 1969 Mustang from his home workshop. Until then, i had never seen anything dealt with this subject before at all on the Internet per say.

I decided to reach out and make personal contact with Robin to learn more about his project and what he had done. I was very impressed with his discoveries and achievements. We ended up getting on very well, and formed a loose friendship over the net, and i told him i wanted to jump in and try and invent a power mirror system for our '71 to '73 Mustangs, based very much along the lines of what he had done himself. He gave me the thumbs up, and we talked about my project for many months into the future. He was very helpful and offered up many a good suggestion to help me out with my project.

I was very enthusiastic about the project, and decided to commit myself into getting the whole thing off the ground and following through till the end. That project took me about spending around one year of personal R&D research plus the making and manufacturing of the mirrors. I would have put or invested about $2,000.00 plus Aus Dollars into the project to see it through till the end. I spent hundreds of man hours on the project.

So basically, when you look at it, Robin takes full credit for being the first around the world for inventing or coming up with the idea of power mirrors for classic Mustangs. I came along a little later and take credit for being the first to invent a power mirror system specifically for the '71 to '73 Mustangs only. My system is based on Robin's initial invention, but with a lot of upgrade refinements on what Robin had done himself. When i eventually finished my mirror project, he congratulated me on what i had done, and what i had achieved. I was very proud with what i had achieved at the time.

When i was thinking of taking this project on back in 2016, i touched base with Mister 4x4 first on our Forum and we kicked a few ideas around about the need for pwer mirrors for our 1,2,3

Thanks for clearing that up and happy everyone chimed in. I won't bring up how he now has developed a door window indexing system to mimic the new cars Dude is next level. Thank you to everyone who responded, good day ladies and gents.

 

[Greg]

I'm baffled as to why do this as for me mechanical always worked fine. If not working fine, seems a lot easier to fix or replace with factory. I had a 74 Ghia that had a passenger one operated from the drivers side that was handy , but I'm the only driver and don't need to adjust mirrors often.

 

[Melfunctions]

Hello from Australia.
My original external mirrors failed: the zinc die-cast ball joint inside the mirror fell to bits.
I replaced them with a set of chrome after market mirrors and within a few months they became spotty with corrosion.

I have decided to fit electric mirrors off another vehicle.
There are not many that are suitable as most mirrors nowadays are fitted where the old quarter vent used to be; not to the body of the door.
In my search, I found a set of mirrors that might suit: off a 2018 mustang!
I am presently making adapter plates to fit the new mirror base to the 1973 Mustang doors. Fortunately the 71-73 Mustang doors are made of heavy steel so they should handle the weight OK.
It is a major task and has burnt up about 50 hours so far.
To give you an idea, the original mirrors weight 440 grams each (about a pound). The Scott Drake replacement chrome ones are about the same.
The 2018 Mustang ones are a whopping 1.5kg or nearly 3 and a half pounds each. And we wonder why the new cars are so heavy?

Once these are done I will make a silicon mold so I can cast as many as I like in black epoxy.
I will then look for a suitable mirror controller so that I can supply the adapter plates and the controller as a package to anyone who is interested.
I have an electrician mate who will help me with the wiring and I will put together a wiring diagram to go with it.

Then I will have an all Mustang assembly with electric mirrors, indicators, a folding function and the mirrors will project a little horse light on the ground when I open the door . . . . .err.
I may even look at central locking while I have the doors apart.

So, there you go. I will keep you informed on my progress. I'll send some photos as well.
If there is enough interest, I can have the adapter plates scanned and send the file to save on postage which seems to have become expensive recently. That way, you can have the things built up with a 3D printer. We'll see.

Cheers, Roger

I got called “pretty” today. Well actually, the full statement was “pretty damn annoying”. But, I only focus on the positive things.

Hi Roger,

Greetings from Melbourne, Australia.
I have done done exactly what you are trying to achieve by using a set
of Australian delivery (RHD) 2019 Mustang mirrors.
It was not that difficult to cut the skin and fabricate and inner door mounting
plates - it was done prior to painting and the result is excellent.
I have not sorted all of the electrics yet but I know they will work - more importantly,
they look super on the car.
I absolutely agree with you about us Australian guys struggling with parts, costs and shipping -
I wish we could all communicate with each other somehow and share our unique problems.
Regards,
Mel (Melfunctions)

 

[Don C]

Hi Roger,

Greetings from Melbourne, Australia.
I have done done exactly what you are trying to achieve by using a set
of Australian delivery (RHD) 2019 Mustang mirrors.
It was not that difficult to cut the skin and fabricate and inner door mounting
plates - it was done prior to painting and the result is excellent.
I have not sorted all of the electrics yet but I know they will work - more importantly,
they look super on the car.
I absolutely agree with you about us Australian guys struggling with parts, costs and shipping -
I wish we could all communicate with each other somehow and share our unique problems.
Regards,
Mel (Melfunctions)

Got any pictures you can share with us?
Thanks, Don

 

[Mister 4x4]

I'm baffled as to why do this as for me mechanical always worked fine. I had a 74 Ghia that had a passenger one operated from the drivers side that was handy , but I'm the only driver and don't need to adjust mirrors often.

I actually found a passenger mirror with remote from a Cougar on ebay, but the cable was cut (probably in order to get it out of the car or something). The swivel is super loose, and not being able to adjust it (or use it, really) is annoying. Like Greg, mine's a restomod with old school styling but with modern amenities - I added power windows, locks, alarm, upgraded stereo (Retrosound), Classic Auto Air HVAC, and all sorts of other things that aren't outwardly apparent, but help modernize the car for better daily driving (which still has yet to happen in my case, if it ever does).

I know my mirrors seem to be in different settings each time I get in - being 6'5", it's a challenge to comfortably drive this car. Sometimes I scooch down a little, sometimes I'm up against the headliner - it just depends on how my back feels that day. Having the mirrors remotely adjustable is really handy, but I admit I've gotten spoiled with my other dailies over the years. My toys are anything but modern ('71 Mach 1 and '80 CJ-7), but having some 'luxuries,' even as simple as they are, makes loving them even more just that much easier.

 

[Austin Vert]

I actually found a passenger mirror with remote from a Cougar on ebay, but the cable was cut (probably in order to get it out of the car or something). The swivel is super loose, and not being able to adjust it (or use it, really) is annoying. Like Greg, mine's a restomod with old school styling but with modern amenities - I added power windows, locks, alarm, upgraded stereo (Retrosound), Classic Auto Air HVAC, and all sorts of other things that aren't outwardly apparent, but help modernize the car for better daily driving (which still has yet to happen in my case, if it ever does).

I know my mirrors seem to be in different settings each time I get in - being 6'5", it's a challenge to comfortably drive this car. Sometimes I scooch down a little, sometimes I'm up against the headliner - it just depends on how my back feels that day. Having the mirrors remotely adjustable is really handy, but I admit I've gotten spoiled with my other dailies over the years. My toys are anything but modern ('71 Mach 1 and '80 CJ-7), but having some 'luxuries,' even as simple as they are, makes loving them even more just that much easier.

Hi Eric,

Hope your traveling OK these days. Hey, i thought i would ask you out of curiosity, what brand or style of power windows and door locks did you end up getting for your Mustang, and what did you think of the windows you installed? Thinking about going down that road myself.

Thanks, Greg.

 

[Melfunctions]

Got any pictures you can share with us?
Thanks, Don

Hi Don & Roger,
Here are some shots of the mirrors I have fitted to my 71 MACH 1.
The mirror stem is actually recessed into the door and attached to the base I
fabricated - it was quite easy to do and in my case, at the stage we were at it
did not cause us any paint or fitting problems.
I have found the Forum excellent and I appreciate all of the information I can
access - perhaps by doing a restomod there is some reluctance to help - I note
in the references in this subject there was a query from me below on door cards I received
without cut out holes - 100+ reads but not one reply to assist me.
When you are remote or a world away, you certainly need to build a group of local
knowledge as well as the Forum.
Regards,
Mel

 

[Don C]

Well done, looks great.