Towing mirrors
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More Turbo
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 593
Likes: 15
From: Wichita, KS
Towing mirrors
Okay, this may be a bit long winded, so get comfortable...
First a story about buying local. I have been looking at towing mirrors for my '00 F150 Super Cab for a few weeks now, and finally, last week decided to pull the trigger. But, there were some questions about what I was seeing available. So, I decided to go to my local truck store, Truck Stuff, thinking that they would have towing mirrors. And I was wrong. They did have the little clip on things, but I told the salesman right off the bat that I wasn't interested in them. I wanted replacement mirrors. Still he insisted that they were his best selling mirrors. Hard for them not to be, when they are the only mirrors in the store. After convincing him that I wasn't buying them, he said that was all they had and I started to leave. Then he stopped me and said that he could order others. Well, it doesn't really help me look at them before I buy them, but let's see what he can come up with. After about 10 minutes of him fumbling with the computer and finally resorting to Google, he still couldn't find anything to fit my "very rare" truck. He decided that there must not be any made for it. So, I finally left. It's hard to buy local when that's the kind of support you get for your dollar. And this isn't the first time I've run into this sort of worthless local help.
So, I went back to work and ordered these:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/381002271833?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Pretty happy with them so far, but I've only driven to the grocery store and back so far tonight. My truck had power mirrors with built-in turn signals, and these match that. They bolted right up, but the wire harnesses were both about 3" too short. Lucky for me, as an electronics tech, I have a full suite of tools for fixing that sort of problem. I added the 3" necessary (thus, surely voiding any warranty they may have), and they plugged right in. I kind of feel like they are at an odd angle, pointing upward at the ends, but maybe it's just my perception. I'll get some photos tomorrow when it's light out.
Dave
First a story about buying local. I have been looking at towing mirrors for my '00 F150 Super Cab for a few weeks now, and finally, last week decided to pull the trigger. But, there were some questions about what I was seeing available. So, I decided to go to my local truck store, Truck Stuff, thinking that they would have towing mirrors. And I was wrong. They did have the little clip on things, but I told the salesman right off the bat that I wasn't interested in them. I wanted replacement mirrors. Still he insisted that they were his best selling mirrors. Hard for them not to be, when they are the only mirrors in the store. After convincing him that I wasn't buying them, he said that was all they had and I started to leave. Then he stopped me and said that he could order others. Well, it doesn't really help me look at them before I buy them, but let's see what he can come up with. After about 10 minutes of him fumbling with the computer and finally resorting to Google, he still couldn't find anything to fit my "very rare" truck. He decided that there must not be any made for it. So, I finally left. It's hard to buy local when that's the kind of support you get for your dollar. And this isn't the first time I've run into this sort of worthless local help.
So, I went back to work and ordered these:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/381002271833?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Pretty happy with them so far, but I've only driven to the grocery store and back so far tonight. My truck had power mirrors with built-in turn signals, and these match that. They bolted right up, but the wire harnesses were both about 3" too short. Lucky for me, as an electronics tech, I have a full suite of tools for fixing that sort of problem. I added the 3" necessary (thus, surely voiding any warranty they may have), and they plugged right in. I kind of feel like they are at an odd angle, pointing upward at the ends, but maybe it's just my perception. I'll get some photos tomorrow when it's light out.
Dave
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More Turbo
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 593
Likes: 15
From: Wichita, KS
I had read somewhere in a review of these or similar mirrors that they tended to move while going down the road. Not the vibration, which you would expect, but they gradually extend themselves. Well, sure enough, they do. It isn't something I'm going to lose sleep over, but I have noticed in the days since I got them put on, the driver side mirror has crept out about 3/16". No big deal, but some might not like that. Still, these are about the best looking mirror out there, IMHO, and they are priced right. I doubt that the ones that look the same, but cost twice as much are any better. Knowing now how these are put together, if I wanted to tinker with something, I might look into some SD mirrors and remove the base and make a new one. Might as well put the machine shop in the garage to some use, right?
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