Wiring a Rear View mirror with map lights

[SandyEggoE30Girl]

A little while back I bought an M3 rear view mirror. It did not come with the wiring harness, so I was wondering if anyone here has a spare one, and how easy is it to install?
The two map lights would be so great to have since I hate having to reach around to turn on the interior lights that kinda suck any way for trying to read stuff in the front at night. :puppy:

[MikeE30325i]

i think you can just run a wire from the power for the sunroof to the lights in the mirror. thats what mr. deagle did. at least i believe so. works just as fine.

lighted mirrors kick ass.

[erik325i]

The easiest thing to do would be to wire it up to the wires for the overhead check panel. Depending on what wires you splice into, you can either have those maplights able to turn on all the time, or only able to turn on with the key on.
I have mine wired so that I can turn them on any time.

-Erik

[Mike325]

Just find a circuit that is hot all the time. Or at leat on that is hot with the key in the run position.

[SandyEggoE30Girl]

Thanks for the input............... how hard is it to pull the mirror off, and install the new one?

[franco90]

here you go i hope this helps

http://e30.bmwdiy.info/lighted-mirror/index.html

[MikeE30325i]

Thanks for the input............... how hard is it to pull the mirror off, and install the new one?

Very easy, just make sure you have some sticky stuff to keep the new one on.

[franco90]

Very easy, just make sure you have some sticky stuff to keep the new one on.

what you mean sticky stuff it just snaps on I mean the mirror

[SandyEggoE30Girl]

Well I have not as yet installed my mirror, but after hooking it up to a 12v power supply, I saw that the lightbulbs in it were well............... rather anemic. So I thought about LEDS??
Went to Oznium.com and bought some of thesehttp://www.oznium.com/prewired-superflux
in white.
I have been taking pictures, and as soon as I get it installed I will take some more and post what I did.
They are much brihgter though than the 12v bulbs, and they do not produce heat like a halogen bulb (I thought about installing those first) as to melt the mirror housing.
I am thinking about trying to make bulb replacements for the interior lights, using two of these LEDs together. That would make the rather dim interior rather bright me thinks??:crazy:

[franco90]

sandy please posts pics of your set up when its done

[mck]

Ive wired mine to the interior lightsdome light, so when you open the door the mirror lights come on, and ive also removed the dome lights so the mirror is my only light source.

[SandyEggoE30Girl]

This is kinda the surgery ging on right now. To do this I would sugest that you have a good soldering iron, small cutters, a good wire stripper, JB weld, dremel with a small grinder bit, small flat screw driver, phillip screw drivers, and maybe a hemostat to hold wires, and bits, and a VOM to measure continuity, Heat shrink gun or a really hot hair dryer, heat shrink tubeing assorted sizes.
One thing also to remember is that LEDs are different beast than light bulbs. They require to be hooked up by polarity + & -
Other wise you will get really frustrated when they do not light up.

OK like I said I was using the (pre-wired) superflux 4 chip LEDs on the map lights. If I was to do it again I would ask oznium for the LED holders that they use for the prewired units, but just don't put the resistor (150 ohm, 2w) on yet.
The reason being is you need the holder, but the wired resistor will need to be moved.

Here is the stock module:


Every thing removed from the module:


The prewired LED as shipped to me from oznium:

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t8/dustyginsd/IMG_00091.jpg

The LED notched with the dremel to fit in the relector hole:

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t8/dustyginsd/IMG_00101.jpg

SO I then attached the LED in the reflector hole with the aid of our good friend JB weld.(Make sure not to get it on the lens of the LED, and aim it in the direction of the lens.

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t8/dustyginsd/IMG_0013.jpg

I then tried to use all the factory wireing "just modified", cut the resistor off of the wire, and installed it on the wire leed from the switch.

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t8/dustyginsd/IMG_0017.jpg

OK more to come in a day, but after all this there is a problem, and I will tell you about it after I work it out a bit.

[Mike325]

^^Nice:D