Miata Mailing List: March 1996, Message #34
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   From: fvpdda@web.apc.org (David Allen)
Subject: Rear view mirror question
   Date: Fri, 1 Mar 1996 12:53:54 -0500


>>> I was wondering if any of you know of a rear view mirror mod that will
>>> place the mirror higher.
>>

I find the rear view mirror to be so obtrusive that I've removed it
completely and do not miss it in the least, except occasionally when in
heavy multi-lane city traffic.  So far I've had no law enforcement hassles,
though I'm told that (at least here in Ontario) it's illegal to drive
without a centrally mounted mirror.  (How motorcycles and semi trailers get
away with it then becomes the obvious question.  And, compared to, say, a
Honda Gold Wing, the left-hand mirror on the Miata is closer to me than the
left-hand mirror on the Wing would be, and the right-hand one isn't much
further away.)

>>Here's a couple:
>>
>>Buy a generic mirror from an auto parts store that mounts to the glass,
though it will have a wider range of motion.  I am not sure how much of an
>>improvement it will give you.

I have bought several cheap auto parts store replacement mirrors.  They have
all disappointed me.  I've bought them for two reasons: to have one readily
at hand to stick into place should I be inspected by our friends in the law
enforcement community, and to attempt to find a way to mount a replacement
in a place where it won't be cluttering up my field of vision.

One mirror does succeed in meeting the first goal.  I've glued its plastic,
groooved base to the interior bottom surface of the windshield frame, just
above the location of the stock mirror base (on my '95 model).  The mirror
stem slides onto and off of this small base easily, and it is largely out of
the way as it overlaps the windshield frame without extruding much into the
windshield area.  Problem is that the plastic covering on the windshield
frame is not firmly attached to the underlying metal.  Consequently, the
weight of the mirror pulls the plastic away from the frame ever so slightly
and, as a result, the mirror vibrates enough to make its effectiveness less
than desirable.

>>
>>Mount the mirror to your dash upside down.
>>

I've tried this with a few of the suction cup mounted mirrors.  Problem is,
those suction cups only adhere to glass, not plastic or whatever the dash
surface is made of.  So to affix a mirror to the dash you'd have to glue or
screw it on, neither of which would likely solve the problem of vibration
and the resulting fuzzy image.

So, I've pretty well resigned myself to the last suggestion made:
 
>>Remove the mirror completely and use only your side rearview mirrors.  It
takes a while to get used to it, but it works.
>>
>>I think one of the vendors sells a mirror that is mounted to a thin rail
>>that runs vertical from the top of your windshield to the bottom.
>>Height is completely adjustable, and I'm sure price is very expensive.

The metal rail entailed in this option would defeat the purpose of the whole
exercise for me.

Hope someone else has solved these problems of obtrusiveness, stability and
alleged illegality.

- Dave Allen, Ottawa
       and
    The RoadSurfer  
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