Heated mirrors

trufflestu

trufflestu

A2OC Donor
I wanted to use mine this morning and assumed they would work from the rear heated window switch.

They didn't, so i thought I would dig out the manual to see how they worked.

According to the manual they are "heated according to the outside temperarture when the ignition is one"
1. Anyone any idea what temperature it has to be to get them to kick in?
2. Also does this mean they could be permaenently on all the time thus taking a charge from the alternator as well as eating at away at the fuel I put in the tank?
 
They will kick in at 5 celcius, but they also work at any temperature via the heated rear window switch - I use mine quite a lot to clear water droplets in a morning.

Cheers,

Mike
 
Just out of interest how quickly do yours clear?

Mine only just started to clear by the time i'd got to work 20 minutes later and I was expecting it to be a lot quicker.
 
trufflestu said:
Just out of interest how quickly do yours clear?

Mine only just started to clear by the time i'd got to work 20 minutes later and I was expecting it to be a lot quicker.
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Mine don't take anywhere near that long - several minutes in fact before there is a notable improvement.

Are you certain that you have heated mirrors fitted to your car?

20 minutes sounds more like they started to clear on their own with the air mixture/change of atmospheric conditions whilst driving?!

If in fact you find that you don't have heated mirrors fitted, the wire should already be pre-installed from the factory and replacement glass from somewhere like VAGparts is all that should be necessary. (A simple DIY number to fit).

As Mike says - 5 Celsius or the heated rear window switch.

Cheers,

Darren
 
I retrofitted the heated mirror glasses to my 2001 car and am (almost) sure they only work when the heated rear screen is switched on. I'll pay more attention this autumn but had assumed the auto switching at 5C only applied to mirrors included in the factory fit winter pack.

Cheers Spike
 
spike said:
I retrofitted the heated mirror glasses to my 2001 car and am (almost) sure they only work when the heated rear screen is switched on. I'll pay more attention this autumn but had assumed the auto switching at 5C only applied to mirrors included in the factory fit winter pack.

Cheers Spike
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Hi Spike what would be the difference ?, the cables are there and you are fitting the mirror glass as if it had broken and you was replacing it, so suraly its the same because you don't have to program them. Only fitted mine early summer so will see this winter

Cheers Phil
 
I'm not sure if i have heated mirrors?

I was under the impression that it was a standard on A2's, why put electric mirrors in if your not going make them heated as well?

Is the connector going to be loose in the casing if i haven't got them and it would be a case of plugging it into the mirrored glass with the heating element on the back if i acquire some?
 
Yes the cable is loose in the casing all you need is the new glass if you don't have them fitted (about £55 for both). to be honest i would say its cheaper to have one wiring loom to make, rarther than different ones depending on the spec and it makes it easier to up the spec if you want to

Cheers Phil
 
trufflestu said:
I was under the impression that it was a standard on A2's, why put electric mirrors in if your not going make them heated as well?
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I stand to be corrected, but I believe that heated mirrors where only available as part of the "winter pack option" which also included heated windscreen washer jets?! I don't believe that they where ever a "standard" item. As Phil suggests, it would have been a far simpler manufacturing process to have just one loom supplied and installed; however penny pinching it might seem for Audi not to have included the heater element glass too.

The connections should indeed be loose behind your current glass. If you are going to remove them, I would suggest that you tape the glass up to avoid any shattering and once the mirror is adjusted toward the vehicle you should just about be able to get your fingers or a suitable flat edged tool behind the outer edge to lever it out. Others have removed the lower part of the mirror casing first, but I personally found this to be unnecessary.

Cheers,

Darren
 
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''Hi Spike what would be the difference ?, the cables are there and you are fitting the mirror glass as if it had broken and you was replacing it, so suraly its the same because you don't have to program them. ''

Hi Phil
This is my logic...... Factory fit heated mirrors only come in the winter pack combined with heated washer jets. The jets need to be thermostatically controlled as they would be pretty pointless if they only worked when the rear screen element was on. Its therefore reasonable to assume cars with the winter pack have an additional temperature controlled circuit for the washer jets and mirrors which can be overridden by the rear screen switch - on a misty day for instance when its not really cold but the back windows and mirrors fog over.

Cheers Spike
 
Darren C said:
I stand to be corrected, but I believe that heated mirrors where only available as part of the "winter pack option" which also included heated windscreen washer jets?! I don't believe that they where ever a "standard" item.
Cheers,

Darren
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You are right! But! The cables are the only extra part in the A2 which are there in every car. So everyone can install the heated mirrors and only on some they must be programmed in the central coltrol unit (I posted elsewere).

Themperaturcontrol for the mirrors: There is a bimetal right behind the glas/part of the mirror! So simple.
And yes, as far as I know the whasher jets always heat.
 
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Well yesterday was the first cold, rainy day here, and my mirrors had water drops on them. I pushed the rear window button, the mirrors cleared in about 4-5 minutes. Really useful.
 
I've done a bit of research on getting some new mirror glass made up with a heated pad on the back.

This is what one guy said he could do for me?

Opinions?

I'm very sceptical of it being any good, but looking at other DIY jobs, i maybe being over scepticalView attachment 1981
 
trufflestu said:
I've done a bit of research on getting some new mirror glass made up with a heated pad on the back.

This is what one guy said he could do for me?

Opinions?

I'm very sceptical of it being any good, but looking at other DIY jobs, i maybe being over scepticalView attachment 1981
Click to expand...
For the price you'd be paying, why not just get a proper set of Audi heated mirror glasses?

They work briliantly and just plug straight in ((I've yet to find a UK model that doesn't have the necessary wiring already in place).

Cheers

Mike
 
At £12 each I'd be saving a fortune.

The Audi guy i spoke to this afternoon, said the drivers side would be £32 + vat and the passenger side £28 + vat.

My concern is the price the guy is offering is too cheap for it to be any good.
 
True, but VagParts are £24 and £29 for ns and os respectively. Thing is, the Audi parts work and work well, so you won't be wasting money, but you may be with the Heath Robinson contraption, even if it;s only £12.

Cheers,

Mike
 
Unfortunately I don't have access to a parts catalogue, so can't help with the part number identification.

All I can offer is my opinion.

I would guess that the part numbers will refer to the entire mirror housing and will not be specific to the glass panels themselves.
Assuming that they are the heated elements and assuming that you can purchase the ebay item for the current starting bid price; I would say that a final bill of £60 inclusive of P&P isn't worth the money/hassle just to obtain the heated glass, unless you intend to resell the housings minus the glass elements of course. If it is just the glass that you are after, you would be far better placed purchasing the glass panels direct from VAGParts, (as previously recommended), and make life easier for yourself - unless of course you are now able to confirm that your own mirror housings are not pre-wired, which is probably a whole other ball game?!

If you are adamant that you want to make the above purchase, then you can always email the seller and ask them to check.

Darren

trufflestu said:
Can someone check the the part numbers in this advert for me (or point me in the right direction of how to find out please)

I want to know if they are heated or not?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Audi-A2-mirro...40:1318&_trksid=p3911.c0.m14#ebayphotohosting
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Thanks.

I'd already tried the ask the seller route and that is how he came back with the parts numbers.
 
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