JDM Folding Outer Mirrors Walkthrough

[Leonardo]

Mirror housings are different so if you don't have an 05-07, don't get it them, get the style that is like yours.

[Windy Road]

Thats what I was thinking was the case. No biggie, I'll just hold out for a set to pop up. I'll just push the button while I pull back the drivers mirror to act like they are powered lol.

[BlackHole]

Couple of comments:

 

2)Disassemble JDM mirrors

a.Heat the black trim around mirrors (about 2 minutes) and very carefully remove the mirrors by prying the mirrors up with a couple of small flat head screwdrivers. Mirrors are held on with black adhesive. If the JDM mirrors have the heated option, disconnect the two wires and skip to #3.

 

The adhesive is not at the edges, but two thick vertical strips at about 1/4 and 3/4 across the mirror (wish I had a pic). I used a heat gun on low setting to warm up the whole area for about 2 minutes, then pried using a non-metal trim removal tool. Be careful with screwdrivers - the inside of the mirror flakes off pretty easily (learned the hard way).

 

When reinstalling, I re-heated the adhesive for maximum stick - you may want to re-install using a towel to press on the mirror surface to prevent singed fingers.

 

4)Put the side mirrors back on the car. I wanted to keep the car’s wiring intact, so I cut the side mirror harness #2 and #5 wires and tapped in the two wires for the heated mirrors onto the stubs left on the plug. The #2 and #5 wires to the mirror are the brown (fold) and gray (unfold). I connected these wires to some 22 gauge wires (red and green).

 

Easier way, less cutting - use the sharp tip of a safety pin to release the folding wire connectors from the plug. Push from the front to release the plastic catch towards the middle of the connector and then the whole wire will release. Insert the heated mirror wires and plug back into the stock wiring harness.

 

FWIW, removing the US mirrors from the car and fully swapping over the US heated mirrors to the JDM folding and reinstalling took me a good two hours the first time, being careful and figuring it all out. The second one took 30 minutes. I still have to run the folding switch wiring, but in the meantime I have fully functional US mirrors.

Edited November 9, 2012 by BlackHole

[Blink]

Here you go...

[Blink]

If you get a set of JDM folding mirrors with heated lenses, the mirror harness will not fit the US car harness; the JDM plug is wider because it includes 2 added wires for the fold motor. The easiest solution is to carefully cut away one side of the car harness plug with a Dremel tool.

 

 

The JDM plug will now fit just as the US plug does, and using the pin swap method mentioned above by Blackhole, you must swap the fold motor wires (brown & grey) with the heater wires (black & black). With the fold motor wires on the exposed end of plug, it is a simple matter to tin the ends of the wire leads from the fold switch and plug them into the JDM mirror harness. Secure the wires to the car harness with electrical tape. (photos taken b/f I secured them)

 

 

I don't like altering the car's harness, but this was so clean & simple. And most importantly, the US plug still works just fine. The guides along the other sides of the plug and the catch all function to keep it together so the removed side is not even missed.

[Blink]

@ Windy Road - you can swap the guts between '05-07 and '08-09 mirrors. Everything matches except the connection for the signal lights (different plugs) which can be easily switched.

[Leonardo]

I have a switch in the classifieds if anyone needs one.

[Blink]

Bump for a great price on that switch. I paid almost twice that for mine from Japanparts.

[BlackHole]

Here's where the adhesive was on the back of the mirrors:

[Power6]

Sorry for the old thread bump, I have imported and sold a number of the JDM Impreza mirrors and some of the Legacy ones too.

 

I noticed you guys posting tips to heat up the mirror, wanted to make sure that you know the mirror glass just snaps off with the plastic as a single unit, no need to dismount it ;-) from the Impreza manual but the Legacy is the same:

 

http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv233/monkiboy/removalandreinstallationofglassfrommirror.jpg

 

Also with regard to the 10-pin plug on a JDM heated mirror (vs 8 for the heated mirror US Legacy) you could also browse the junkyards for Nissans, many of them have the 10 pin male plugs in various locations as they use similar connector series to Subarus. This way you just de-pin and re-pin (see my WRX DIY above) and you have 10 pin plug on both sides. Cut the connector with some extra wire length from the boneyard Nissan, you can use the snipped terminals to solder to your new wiring and it will snap into the connector like stock.

 

@ Windy Road - you can swap the guts between '05-07 and '08-09 mirrors. Everything matches except the connection for the signal lights (different plugs) which can be easily switched.

 

Are you sure about this? I have handled many of the Impreza/08-09 Legacy signal mirrors and at one time I thought the innards were the same and could be swapped with an 05-07 mirror, but I think after looking at them closely the shape of the mirror motor unit is not the same and would not screw into the same places. As you pointed out the signal unit plug is different too.

Edited April 8, 2013 by Power6

[Blink]

@ Power6

 

With firsthand experience, I can confirm the internal mechanics are definitely exchangeable between Rev.A and Rev.D Legacy mirrors, USDM and JDM units. I have never seen the Impreza ones, so cannot comment on those.

 

IIRC, Momswagon removed the mirror glass from the frames b/c he was adding the heated mirror function, but you're correct that otherwise the glass does not need to be dismounted from its frame.

 

Thanks for the tip about the Nissan plugs!

Edited April 15, 2013 by Blink

[Power6]

@ Power6

 

With firsthand experience, I can confirm the internal mechanics are definitely exchangeable between Rev.A and Rev.D Legacy mirrors, USDM and JDM units. I have never seen the Impreza ones, so cannot comment on those.

 

Thank you sir, good to know. FYI the GH/GE/GR/GV Impreza mirrors are the same as the BP/BL Rev.D Legacy mirrors internally, the only difference is the "triangle" base that mounts to the car.

 

http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4151/5011353257_982ab188b2.jpg

 

Also the Rev.A mirrors have the same housings LHD vs. RHD, the Rev.D/Impreza are different, so when doing the swap with the newer mirrors one should swap the power unit into their LHD housings.

 

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4153/5443370307_a4cbbbd9eb_z.jpg

 

The mirror adjuster units are actually different LHD to RHD they have spacers molded in to adjust their relative position, but I've never swapped those they seem to have enough range to cover the LHD vs RHD angle difference.

 

I am working on reproducing the signal harness and plug inside the mirrors, the newer one with the white plug, to make it easy to swap signals into non-signal mirrors. Would make the old mirror power unit to new mirror swap easier too.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8244/8570724380_61fd79227e.jpg

 

I am finally getting a set of mirrors I will keep and put on the wifes Outback instead of selling them off like I usually do. I will make a DIY like the one for the Impreza for this swap when I do.

[Sublimejoe]

About to start on wiring up the mirrors I bought from Power6 and wanted to verify. I need to splice into these two wires and run new wires down to the switch, correct?

 

Also, since the power folding mirrors are heated I am understanding that the plug from the new mirrors won't plug into the one from my car, right?

Edited May 6, 2013 by SBT
Resized pic to fit

[Power6]

Hey bud sorry busy week! I'll reply here since it might help others later.

 

You are exactly right, what you are doing is run 2 wires into each door, get them connected to the gray and brown wires. Those will go to the switch in the dash. You join the gray wires from each mirror together, same with brown, behind the dash switch.

 

With no heated mirrors I think you'll have a 6-slot connector to your mirror. What I would do, for the wiring, is de-pin the mirror connector, do the same to your stock mirrors, put the 6-pin housing on your JDM mirrors. Some info on that is in my Impreza DIY, you take the terminal locks off, then use a safety pin to release the terminals, it does take some practice to get this right.

 

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5109/5629857336_65f2660514_z.jpg

 

Then you'll have the stock functions plug and play with the heat and fold wires hanging free, you can use whatever you like to connect to those, taps, solder etc.

[Sublimejoe]

My car currently has heated mirrors, does that make a difference?

[Power6]

not much difference, you'll have an 8-slot plug instead of the 6. Still do the same thing, swap the stock plug over to the JDM mirror, so you can plug it into the door wiring. Leave the brown and gray wires free and do your wiring from there.

[Sublimejoe]

But but, what if I am selling my USDM mirrors?

[Power6]

But but, what if I am selling my USDM mirrors?

 

Ahh I see. You'll want to come up with another solution then ;-) You could:

 

-hit the junkyards and look in some nissans for the 10-slot mate for the JDM connector, I've found these in some Maximas or Infinitis in the doors. You swap that into your door so you have a 10 pin plug for the JDM mirror.

 

-You can hack the plug as seen earlier in this thread, so the 8 slot plugs into the 10.

 

-Before you do that...let me look in my mountain of spare mirror parts and see if I have any 8-slot plugs. They are not common on a JDM mirror but I'll see what I have. If I have I'll drop a set in the mail to you, I'll e-mail you about that.

[Sublimejoe]

My hero ❤

[Sublimejoe]

Headed to the junk yard now, I will buy as many connectors as I can find.

[BarManBean]

Headed to the junk yard now, I will buy as many connectors as I can find.

 

Which yard are you headed to?

[Sublimejoe]

Which yard are you headed to?

 

Banks in Manassas. Right near my house.

[Sublimejoe]

No luck. Looked in dozens of Nissans and couldn't find a single suitable plug.

[Sublimejoe]

Installed! The only issue I am having is the passenger side signal and adjust do not work, are the pins different on the passenger side?

 

Edited May 5, 2013 by Sublimejoe

[Power6]

Reverse the wires for the signal at the mirror plug. LED, being a diode vs a bulb, needs proper (+) and (-) polarity. Over the years the mirrors seems to have alternated in the ways the signals are wired up. This has been the problem in 100% if the cases when someone let me know a signal wasn't working.

 

The adjusting wires, you might want to check on them just make sure they are in the right slots, below is a general guide, the colors don't always match in the mirror side, so if they don't match below you might have to do some testing yourself. Below that is a terminal map (look at the "base" one for the 8-pin connector) remember that is looking at the backside of the plug on the mirror (wires facing toward you)

 

1 - Signal (+) (white)

2- Folding(out) (brown)

3- Common (blue)

4- Signal (-) (green)

5- Folding (in) (grey)

6- Up/down (pink)

7- Right/Left (purple)

8- **Unused**

 

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5022/5631656026_fce0f3fdf3_m.jpg