# Gentex (Auto-Dim + Homelink) Mirror in Beetle = Mission Accomplished



## Farnsworth (Jan 26, 2010)

"Mission Accomplished" = I'm about 75% done  I'll get to that later.

I installed one of these:










Which requires a mirror mount adapter:










And the _short_ mirror wire cover:










And to finish off the parts list, I also needed a couple of add-a-circuit fuses from the auto parts store, and a #10-24 3/4" machine screw from Home Depot.

I started from the directions here and here. But there are key differences. YMMV.

First, I ran the supplied wiring down to below the fuse box in the driver's footwell. There doesn't seem to be good +12V-constant in the overhead console (due to e.g. auto shut-off of map/dome lights), and it looked too crowded to stuff all the wiring into anyway. So I started from the mirror base and went along the headliner, down the A-pillar trim, and into the dash via the endcap trim piece.

Once there I had to punt. You get T-taps from Gentex, but I've yet to determine which wires are +12V-constant and +12V-switched. So I used the add-a-circuit fuses plugged into fuse locations 55 (high-beam flasher) for constant power, and 30 (cig lighter / power outlet) for switched power. _When we know more about The Beetle's wiring I'll probably go back and splice the factory wires with the provided T-taps._ For ground, there are good clean metal nuts/bolts near fuse box (behind the in-dash storage compartment - check your owner's manual) so I bolted the ground wire onto one of those.

(At this point I plugged in the new mirror temporarily to make sure it was getting power correctly and reliably.)

Second I removed the stock mirror. A small strap wrench and a firm-but-gentle turn clockwise and it came right off. (Counter-clockwise didn't work - the mirror wouldn't budge.) Make sure you turn the wrench in the plane of the windshield - do not push into/pull off of the glass! I'm not buying you a new windshield  

Last came the new mirror. The adapter above fits very very tightly onto the factory mirror "button." It takes some careful, patient wriggling to force it on there, but it will eventually go and seat properly. _Make sure you have it on the right way by checking the new mirror's base._ Then tighten the provided tiny Allen screw to eliminate what little play there is.

The mirror itself proved the most challenging for a simple, stupid reason: 1 screw. The mirror comes with a black-anodized Torx screw *that is way too short* :banghead: Home Depot to the rescue, where I bought an assortment of screws with the same threading but different lengths. The one I listed above fits perfectly. An important note here is that with this machine screw, there is no "play" in anything, so you can ignore any/all advice to shim things with electrical tape.

(Since it was late, I didn't get to paint this screw like I did the mirror mount adapter. I'll get some bottled paint and just paint over the head in-place.)

Re-visiting wiring, painting over the replacement screw, and 1 more reason this isn't 100% done: The wire cover. The Gentex folks said to buy the long mirror wire cover, but it is way too long. I just ordered the short one, which will take ~ 1 week to get here. $2.50 + $12 "shipping and handling" :sly: 

But - the mirror is firmly and cleanly affixed to the Beetle, the Homelink/Compass/Auto-dim all work perfectly, and the mirror is reliably getting the correct power. And everything went back together without any "spare parts" left over :beer:


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## Farnsworth (Jan 26, 2010)

If it helps, this is the add-a-circuit fuse I used. The Beetle has a mix of both small and large fuses, and this product fits the larger ones.


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## kendalyn (Sep 3, 2012)

That looks nice!

Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk 2


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## Farnsworth (Jan 26, 2010)

Thanks! I've had auto-dimming in my last 3 cars now so I wanted my wife to have this too (it's her Beetle, I have the CC). VW doesn't have anything like this in the parts bin, at least in the US. It's also nice not to have an ugly garage door remote creasing the visor any more.

And, the field of view is much better. That tiny stock mirror's a little scary to try to see out of.


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## Anthony_A (Feb 1, 2013)

Hey. So, can anybody confirm the colors of the wires for +12V-constant and +12V-switched?


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