Auto-dimming Wing Mirrors Useful??

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How useful/necessary are the i3's auto-dimming side/wing mirrors?

Thinking of switching out my existing wing mirror glass with aspherical (Euro) mirror glass which includes a blind-spot wide-angle section at the far side of the mirror. Really liked that extended field of view on a EU rental I drove.

Only problem is the aspherical Euro mirrors don't come with the auto-dimming feature.

View attachment Euro Mirror.jpg
 
I like the effect, as it can be quite a distraction when someone behind you has lights somewhat maladjusted, or sits on your bumper at a light. It can mess with your night vision.

Most people do not adjust their mirrors properly. The best technique I've found is to lean as far as you can to your left then right, and adjust each mirror so that you can barely see the side of the car while there. Most people tend to adjust it too close in, which limits your view too much.
 
Even with adjusting the wing mirrors according to the recommended blind-spot elimination settings, have found that small cars coming up in the next lane will disappear from the rear-view mirror for a split second before appearing in the side view mirror. After looking at European mirror replacements that were pretty $$$, found a company that makes glass (not plastic) blind-spot add-on mirrors specifically for the various BMW wing mirrors, that look pretty much OEM when added - and work very well. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0855D8DX7/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Mirror.jpg
 
How useful/necessary are the i3's auto-dimming side/wing mirrors?


Hello MKH! A bit late, but...

After a prang in 2016 I needed to replace the passenger's side-view mirror. The correct replacement mirror glass (photochromic) was US$350 while the non-photochromic glass was US$90.

I went with non-photochromic and I've never missed the auto-dimming feature since.

That said, a non-photochromic driver's side-view mirror might be more objectionable.

n.b. When I had the car in for dealer service a few years back, the service techs made note that the car reported a non-standard mirror on the passenger's side! :shock:
 
Yeah, I was looking at doing the same - swapping out the passenger side for either the lower-cost non-dimming mirror or biting the bullet for the more expensive dimming mirror. To and from on my commute I exit a three-lane tunnel, and have to immediately merge into a lane to the right that parallels the tunnel lanes, to get into that lane to be able to turn right at the next corner, with traffic in that lane doing 40+. To make matters worse, on the morning trip, the lane I'm trying to merge right into, also has traffic merging into it from the left, as those two right lanes collapse into one lane within the next block leading up to the corner I turn right at, and traffic in the lane I'm trying to merge into is also trying to merge left into my tunnel lane, to get into a left-turn lane at the next light. Made for a pretty hairy situation in heavy traffic. When I found the stick-on mirrors, thought I'd give them a try before spending the $$$ on either a non-dimming or dimming euro-style glass replacement. Glad I did. These add-on mirrors work so well, now don't need to look further. Instead of just being a generic 'fish-eye' like the cheap plastic ones, they look to be optically curved glass specifically made for the BMW side mirror to give the exact view you need. Using them I get a perfectly clear view of the entire next lane from my passenger or driver's door back almost a dozen car lengths. Really solved my problem. :D
 
I just last week put a set of the real glass corner mirrors that are designed for the BMW mirrors. They work great and are well worth the cost above the plastic ones. I had tried some of the cheap plastic ones and they now reside at the bottom of my trash barrel.

Oddly enough, my cheap Ford Fiesta came with the corner mirrors built in and they are very good.
 
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