MirrorJohn.com
I
am a BMW M car specialist and passionate BMW E46 M3 owner. I have owned an E46 M3 for 10 years now (I am on my second one) and often attend BMW shows and meets. I am also a Forum Sponsor on specialist M Car Forums: M3Cutters.co.uk and TotalMCars.com. Buy from a fellow enthusiast and BMW specialist. I stock and sell Auto-dim replacement glass
for many different rearview mirrors, replacement Alarm LED covers, wing mirror glass and wing
mirror repair brackets. I also am a stockist for Turner Motorsport (USA). Please
look at my other
Ebay auctions to see the wealth of products on offer and visit the M3Cutters and TotalMCars forums to see the Forum member
DISCOUNTS available. You will also find my positive customer feedback thread here:
http://forums.m3cutters.co.uk/showthread.php?t=108035
***This listing is for brand new auto-dim glass unit only (for DIY fitment). This will only fit the Oval rearview mirror fitted to the E46 M3. For other shape mirrors please contact me. I keep many different mirror types in stock available for immediate delivery. I also offer in-house repairs if you don't want to undertake the repair yourself. By appointment you can also visit me for repairs onsite while you wait. For repairs of your existing mirror or to purchase a refurbished rearview mirror, please see my other Ebay listings***
I am sure you are here reading this because your current Oval rearview mirror has failed. You may have experienced some of the following symptoms of your rearview mirror:
- Mirror is no longer dimming
- Mirror has a yellow tinge to it
- There are patches or bubbles in the glass
- Tide line or variations in colour
- Dust behind the glass
- Halo effect or inner circle present
- Mirror has leaked. Damage to the mirror casing or interior trim
How an Auto-dimming mirror
works:
An auto-dimming mirror is comprised of two
pieces of glass that are sealed together along the edges and then metal contact
strips attached to both edges.
An
electronic circuit board is attached to the rear of the mirror with a wire
soldered to teach of the contact strips.
A
conductive liquid is then injected and completely fills the area between
the two pieces of glass and then sealed at the injection point. The back of the
glass is coated with a silver mirror coating and under normal (non dimming)
conditions the fluid is completely invisible and transparent. It works just
like a normal mirror should, reflecting all light. The mirror housing contains
the electronic circuit board and photo-sensors that measure ambient light, one
facing toward the front of the car and one facing out towards the rear window.
The forward facing sensor tells the mirror whether it's day or night and
enables or disables the auto dimming function accordingly. If a sufficient
amount of light is hitting the forward facing sensor the mirror will conclude
that it's daytime and will not dim the glass at all, regardless of what the
rear facing sensor sees. When the front facing sensor see reduced levels of
light the electronic circuit board will begin applying very low levels of
voltage to each piece of glass and the conductive fluid will begin to darken.
The level of tinting is varied almost infinitely depending on the
conditions. At night the mirror will be
dimmer than during the day, however, when the rear facing sensor detects light
(from a cars headlights behind) the mirror will actually dim even darker. This
effectively reduces the amount of light that hits the mirror coating and
eliminates glare. You may also notice your mirror dims if you drive under tree
covered roads or through a dark tunnel.
The level of dimming is constantly adjusted depending on light
conditions. Another neat trick, is that if you put your car in to reverse at
night, the mirror automatically un-dims, so that you can see where you are
going! It’s all rather clever really!
Unfortunately there was an issue with manufacture of these original mirrors which causes them to fail. They will all fail sooner or later. It is more 'When' the mirror will fail rather than 'If' the mirror will fail. Due to the poor original design, when the mirror fails it can cause devastating permanent damage. There is a (dimming) fluid sandwiched between two pieces of glass and this liquid is highly corrosive. When the mirror fails it can allow this liquid to leak out. When it leaks out the glass it will eat its way through your mirror casing and then damage anything it drips on to. I have have had unlucky customers who have had centre consoles damaged, gear knobs, seats and even a dashboard. It all depends on what the fluid leaks on when it drips out the mirror. This can make it a very expensive failure indeed. Especially if you need a new mirror too. A new mirror from BMW is over £400 and still uses the same (flawed) technology as the original. Some customers look to buy another second hand mirror as a replacement, however these carry the same risks of failing as the original. It isn't worth the risk. Your best option is to repair your current mirror only replacing the part at fault, the dimming glass unit. This is where I can help you.......
If your mirror has any of the above symptoms; the best thing you can do it remove it from your car straight away. Please bear in mind if you have a Convertible M3; by removing your rearview mirror some functions will stop working. You will no longer be able to lock your car with the remote fob. The central locking will no longer function and neither will the alarm. You can still lock the car manually using your key until the mirror is repaired and refitted in the car. If you have a Coupe, everything will still work as normal even with the mirror unplugged.
Once you have removed your mirror, I recommend following my DIY guide to strip the mirror down and remove the defective glass unit. This will minimise any damage potentially caused by the leaking fluid. The DIY guide to remove the mirror from your car and carry out the full repair is located on my website here:
http://mirrorjohn.com/How_To_Fix.php
The only tools you will need are a soldering iron (and solder), a small screwdriver and a knife. You only need to unsolder and re-solder two wires and you do not need to be that precise with these two wires. Therefore, if you did a little soldering while at school; that is the only knowledge you need to perform the repair! It really is easy. 30 minutes maximum if you take your time.
You will also obviously need to purchase my NEW replacement auto dim glass that I am selling in this auction. The glass that I sell is the best available on the market today. It uses the latest, state of the art dimming technology. Rather than a liquid, my glass uses a special dimming 'Gel'. It is not corrosive and will not leak out like the original glass. It also dims quicker and goes slightly darker (when required). It really is far superior in every way to the original. It also gives you the peace of mind that it will not fail again and cause damage to your mirror or interior trim. The quality is infact so high and so superior to all other glass on the market that it is offered with a THREE YEAR WARRANTY*. This warranty covers any manufacturing defects with the auto-dim glass unit for three years from the date of purchase. The warranty obviously doesn't cover sensors or circuit boards within the mirror or consequential loss. The warranty is on the glass unit you are purchasing in this auction. I have never had to replace one of these glass units and I have sold many many hundreds over the years I have been specialising in mirrors. However, if you do have an issue with the glass during the three years I will replace it (if the glass proves to be faulty).
Buy the Best product on the market today from a passionate BMW M car specialist.
Any questions please ask; I am always happy to help.
John@MirrorJohn.com