Interior Mirror: Design & Functionality

This morning, I was looking at why there's dripping around the gear lever. It smells similar to the evaporation tubes on the radiator and feels oily. After wiping it away and starting to drive, it dripped onto my hand – it's strange where this is coming from. I don't have a sunroof or an antenna above the interior light, but I found the culprit: the ABB rearview mirror is leaking . I've never seen anything like that before!
Okay, so it's already disassembled and taken apart. You can clearly see that there are two glass halves filled with liquid, where one becomes darker under voltage, or vice versa. The glass halves were carefully separated, the liquid was wiped away, and then they were reassembled and installed. Now, the ABB (likely referring to a specific device or system) is no longer working, so I need a new one. Does ABB sell the mirror glass separately?

Part number for the complete mirror: 3B0857511C.

"Or which models do these mirrors fit? Do they also fit the Toledo or the A3?"

"Huh? What's its purpose? Is this supposed to be an auto-dimming mirror? I'm only familiar with those that use a light sensor and a liquid crystal layer controlled by it, which can darken almost seamlessly."

The Bora, Golf, Passat, and Polo models produced between 1997 and 2002 (depending on the specific model update) had this type of mirror.

Hutfahrer wrote:

Huh? What is its purpose? Is it an automatically dimming mirror? I've only seen those before with a light sensor and a liquid crystal layer controlled by it, which can darken almost seamlessly.

Yes, it is!

I still have one Golf in light gray available. If you are interested, please send me a private message.

And yes, this happens from time to time; you can read about it more often in the Golf 4 forum.

Hi,

As far as I know, the glass is not sold separately. Unfortunately, the mirror costs almost €170 before tax.

Installed in:

Cordoba/Vario 1999-2005
Ibiza/ST 99-05
Leon/Leon 4, model years 2000-2006.
Toledo 1999-2004.

Bora/Variant 1999-2001
Golf/Variant 1998-2001
Passat 1997-2000.
Passat Syncro 1997-1999.
Polo 2000-2002

Skoda/Audi: Not found.

Roger wrote:

Hi, As far as I know, the glass is not sold separately. Unfortunately, the mirror costs almost €170 before tax. Installed in: Cordoba/Vario 1999-2005 Ibiza/ST 99-05 Leon/Leon 4, model years 2000-2006. Toledo 1999-2004. Bora/Variant 1999-2001 Golf/Variant 1998-2001 Passat 1997-2000. Passat Syncro 1997-1999. Polo 2000-2002 Skoda/Audi: Not found

.

170 Euros for an old mirror .

Thank you for the information . What else should be different about Skodas or Audis? My Toledo looks like an A3 from the inside!

T3Surfer wrote:

Thank you for the information. What else should be different about Skoda/Audi? My Toledo looks from the inside like an A3!

The number does not exist with either brand. It is probably listed under a different number .

Does the "rearview mirror" function work even without the liquid? If so, then the automatic dimming feature would be lost, but I wouldn't spend 170 euros on the mirror.

Hutfahrer wrote:

Does the "rearview mirror" function work even without the fluid?

Yes, of course.

Hutfahrer wrote:

I wouldn't spend 170 euros on the mirror.

I already made him an offer.

Already read it. I would verschandeln it, install some LED lighting , and continue to use it...

Yes, it works now after I disassembled the two glass halves and cleaned them with brake cleaner (Blinziblank)! Before, the liquid inside the mirror was visible and looked like the water level.

Before I buy another one, I'm going to test this makeshift mirror at night first.
Actually, I rarely look in the mirror; instead, I use it to sign with other deaf friends . Because of my 13 years of driving a T3, I'm used to doing everything using the rearview mirrors! I would never spend €170 on that; I'd rather do without it!

Hutfahrer wrote:

Already read it. I would verschandeln it, install some LED lighting , and continue to use it.

It's already cleaned and installed! How do you plan to handle the LED lighting?

Something like the "puff light" on Audis that shines red downwards?

For example! I've been wanting to build something similar for general lighting again. However, with orange LEDs. It makes it easier to orient yourself and grab your coffee cup, etc. - but it shouldn't be blinding.

"I also have some things lying around that might be useful. The idea is to run it with a light sensor and have the brightness automatically adjusted based on ambient light. It should generally be switchable, but would automatically turn off during daylight hours. I was planning to get another Peugeot/Citroen interior light and modify it for this purpose, incorporating all of that into the design. There's plenty of space; I could even fit a second 12-LED cluster in there as regular interior lighting."

But that's going off-topic now...


Regarding the mirrors: After years of driving vans, I'm used to having two exterior mirrors. In the "Bummsmurmel" (likely a specific car model), the tinted windows make it impossible to see anything inside in the dark, but conversely, this eliminates the need for a dimming function on the rearview mirror. Even cars with high beams behind me don't really bother me. The right exterior mirror is positioned quite low; you can just barely see the rear right wheel and any potential curb edge in it. I manually turn the left mirror away if anyone behind me is blinding me.

Okay, done. I'll take the one from the GTI and transplant it into the Toledo.

Hutfahrer wrote:

For example! I've also been wanting to build something similar for general lighting. However, with orange LEDs. It makes it easier to orient yourself and grab your coffee cup, etc. - but it shouldn't be blinding. "I also have some things lying around that might be useful. The idea is to run it with a light sensor and have the brightness automatically adjusted based on ambient light. It should generally be switchable, but would automatically turn off during daylight hours. I was planning to get another Peugeot/Citroen interior light and modify it for this purpose, incorporating all of that into the design. There's plenty of space; I could even fit a second 12-LED cluster in there as regular interior lighting." But that's now going off-topic... To the mirror: After years of driving vans, I'm used to having two exterior mirrors. In the "Bummsmurmel" (likely a specific vehicle type), you can't see anything inside in the dark due to the window tinting - but conversely, this eliminates the need for a dimming function on the interior mirror. Even vehicles following behind with their headlights on don't really bother me. The right exterior mirror is positioned quite low; you can just make out the right rear wheel and a possible curb edge in it. I manually turn the left one away if anyone behind me is blinding me...

The "puff lighting" is too dim for lip reading, but I always find this stuff anyway. For sign language and lip reading, I use the three-beam interior light on the right side.

The beer can holder is positioned so that I can always find it easily. More often, I have a large plastic water bottle under the armrest in the middle. I almost never use the handbrake; instead, I use it for drifting.

Okay, done. The mirror for the GTI was completely replaced in just 2 minutes, and it's .
Okay, here's a photo I took of the Putten Hig-Tec mirror without its housing.

The sticker with three corners is a memento from my best friend *laugh*.