Dumb little mirror project.....

[kilodawg]

Just got the 944 repainted and after reassembly I couldn't stand the look of the dried out rubber surrounding the side mirrors. Everything else on the exterior was perfect. I didn't want to go the 968 route so in a search on Ebay I found a nice used set dirt cheap. Only problem was that they were from an '87 and mine's an '84.

I read that electrically they were not compatible but I picked them up anyway. Wiring schematics confirmed that due to the different motor config. and switching a wiring splice was a no go. Yes I could settle for one axis operation but I didn't really want to have a cosmetic upgrade be a functional downgrade.

So after some thought I considered a "mechanical" solution. Noting that both mirror configurations mount to the same flag base at three attachment points. I broke out the Dremel. This might be an option for others who are looking to achieve a similar result.

First I cut off the rubber around my motor mounting hardware for easier access


Then I cut out the motor hardware from the old base


Next I cut out the motor mount from th new rubber base


After that it's just make a simple motor/base sandwich and attach to the three flag mounting points

[fmartenies]

What is the 968 route?

Its hard to beat new but Mothers make a product that brings black plastic and rubber back. It's not perfect, in harsher cases it seems you have to apply it every few weeks (prob by design lol) but the results are pretty good. No substitute for new, but a good alternative due to $$.

[ideola]

Originally Posted by fmartenies

What is the 968 route?

[fmartenies]

I like the 944 route, good call. The squared mirrors give it that period character.

[kilodawg]

My rubber was shot. It was pitted and even the trim dye I used did little more than keep a black sheen on it. While it works far better than Mothers and needs to be reapplied only once a year or so, it can't cure pitting. I scored the new mirrors for $40 a pretty cost effective upgrade

[968 GUY]

Nice write up. Always good to have someone do a potentially complicated or seemingly impossible project, then share it with others without a long;drawn-out, boring droning, and excessive explaination in order to be the posting king...like someone on this and other forums.

[nightheart]

nice project, now for the little hijack. Is there anywhere to get just new rubber just for the outside of the mirrors? the pet cataloge only seems to list the whole mirror?

[kilodawg]

Uhm no that's why I had to go the route I did. If you look at my first pic the rubber is molded onto the metal mounting base regardless of which year mirror you have.

[mistertate]

Originally Posted by 968 GUY

Nice write up. Always good to have someone do a project, then share it with others without a long;drawn-out, boring droning, and excessive explanation in order to be the posting king...like someone on this and other forums.

+1
ha ha, I don't know who you're talking about specifically but it's funny because it's true. I just glaze over on some of the how-to/project posts people write