Multivex Mirror review

[Imolas54]

they were backordered for a while, i finally got mine today after 3.5 week....

[charliex]

and of course i check the mail box and there they are! i love t'internets

[charliex]

ok so i did about 20 miles with the drivers side only, i took the passenger one off coz i err um put it on backwards you really don't want to do that it looks bizzare, and don't sign for ups parcels while installing the mirror or talk about the car.

they're pretty good, however there are two problems with them for me, one of them is related to the S, the other me.

First issue with the S, since i have no rearview camera i rely on the wing mirrors a lot, i have them setup so i can see all around as stock. Now as i found out with the multivex you cannot get depth information from the mirrow when its on the outer edge so when i was doing a lane change there was a big flat front of an SUV in the mirror, it looked like it'd already run me over, but i manged to change lanes ok. This might be helped by getting hte mirror to be further out, but its at the limits of the stock mechanism so i'd have to remove it and wedge it out.

Second problem is dear lord does it screw with my eyes, so much so i find if i close one eye it doesn't make my eyes tingle ( yes i did use both eyes when doing a lange change ) switching form eye to eye you can really see the FOV change drastically which no doubt is making my brain hurt since my brain is tuned for normal eyesight FOV. but it definetely feels wierd, using the glance method helps but when you're reversing with no rear view mirror you have to look in it.

Its a little difficulty to reverse out of a tight driveway with a wall since you lose all perspective are where everything is , your eye is saying that you're scraping up against the wall, but the brain is saying its 1 metre away.

otherwise i'm pretty happy with them and hope that i won't go crosseyed.

for removal they suggest razorblades and all that junk, but i just got a piece of thin multicore copper wire and took off the insulation, and gently sawed up and down through the double sided pads, and it popped right off in about 10 seconds, a strong piece of thread would work just the same and it doesn't run the risk of damaging the stock mirror or fittings, or you, the residue came off just fine.

[kestrel74]

You'll get used to them in about a week. After that you'll never want to look in another mirror again. Dental Floss is how to take them off.... believe me I had a lot of the mirrors on my car when we were testing them and the different curvatures.....

[uclacyc]

You can always mount the rear view camera that people have been talking about recently.

[kestrel74]

Originally Posted by uclacyc

You can always mount the rear view camera that people have been talking about recently.

79.00 at pep boys

[uclacyc]

Originally Posted by kestrel74

79.00 at pep boys

Really? With the LCD?

[kestrel74]

Originally Posted by uclacyc

Really? With the LCD?

yep...same one I have. I paid 100.

[uclacyc]

Originally Posted by kestrel74

yep...same one I have. I paid 100.

Hmm, I bought the Elise, though, so I have a rear view mirror. Although a camera for parking is tempting, I've never had to "park by feel" before.

I'm still very tempted by Randy Chase's cam, though I don't think that I'll track that much. Good for recording accidents, though. I've been a witness twice times in the last two months.

[knucklehead]

Originally Posted by charliex

they're pretty good, however there are two problems with them for me, one of them is related to the S, the other me.

First issue with the S, since i have no rearview camera i rely on the wing mirrors a lot, i have them setup so i can see all around as stock. Now as i found out with the multivex you cannot get depth information from the mirrow when its on the outer edge so when i was doing a lane change there was a big flat front of an SUV in the mirror, it looked like it'd already run me over, but i manged to change lanes ok. This might be helped by getting hte mirror to be further out, but its at the limits of the stock mechanism so i'd have to remove it and wedge it out.

Second problem is dear lord does it screw with my eyes, so much so i find if i close one eye it doesn't make my eyes tingle ( yes i did use both eyes when doing a lange change ) switching form eye to eye you can really see the FOV change drastically which no doubt is making my brain hurt since my brain is tuned for normal eyesight FOV. but it definetely feels wierd, using the glance method helps but when you're reversing with no rear view mirror you have to look in it.

Its a little difficulty to reverse out of a tight driveway with a wall since you lose all perspective are where everything is , your eye is saying that you're scraping up against the wall, but the brain is saying its 1 metre away.

otherwise i'm pretty happy with them and hope that i won't go crosseyed.

Hey Charlie,
I'm certain you'll get used to the mirrors within a week or so. One hint as far as looking at the mirror is to only focus on the closest two thirds of the mirror and not staring at the outer portion. Looking at the outer part of the mirror using only a peripheral view. I'm not sure I know why this helps my eyes to not go wonky , but it does.

good luck

[GaryD]

Originally Posted by charliex

ok so i did about 20 miles with the drivers side only, i took the passenger one off coz i err um put it on backwards you really don't want to do that it looks bizzare, and don't sign for ups parcels while installing the mirror or talk about the car.

they're pretty good, however there are two problems with them for me, one of them is related to the S, the other me.

First issue with the S, since i have no rearview camera i rely on the wing mirrors a lot, i have them setup so i can see all around as stock. Now as i found out with the multivex you cannot get depth information from the mirrow when its on the outer edge so when i was doing a lane change there was a big flat front of an SUV in the mirror, it looked like it'd already run me over, but i manged to change lanes ok. This might be helped by getting hte mirror to be further out, but its at the limits of the stock mechanism so i'd have to remove it and wedge it out.

Second problem is dear lord does it screw with my eyes, so much so i find if i close one eye it doesn't make my eyes tingle ( yes i did use both eyes when doing a lange change ) switching form eye to eye you can really see the FOV change drastically which no doubt is making my brain hurt since my brain is tuned for normal eyesight FOV. but it definetely feels wierd, using the glance method helps but when you're reversing with no rear view mirror you have to look in it.

Its a little difficulty to reverse out of a tight driveway with a wall since you lose all perspective are where everything is , your eye is saying that you're scraping up against the wall, but the brain is saying its 1 metre away.

otherwise i'm pretty happy with them and hope that i won't go crosseyed.

for removal they suggest razorblades and all that junk, but i just got a piece of thin multicore copper wire and took off the insulation, and gently sawed up and down through the double sided pads, and it popped right off in about 10 seconds, a strong piece of thread would work just the same and it doesn't run the risk of damaging the stock mirror or fittings, or you, the residue came off just fine.

Charlie - start with the assumption that if you can see a car in the outer wierd third of the mirror, it's too damn close to pull in front of. Don't try and judge the distance. Only judge the distance or decide it's OK to go if the car is in the near two thirds of the mirror. Your brain will thank you for this - it's a simpler deduction to make

Another thing - Look at the traffic adjacent to you when you are stopped in traffic or waiting for a light to change - you will get an idea of where the neighboring cars are in the mirror / physically on the road as they coast up next to you if your lane is stopped. Better to learn when you are stopped or doing 5mph rather than freeway speeds.

Lastly, when backing up I don't worry about the wierdness as the objects in view do the reverse black hole thingy - just make sure you can see the edge of your car and there is daylight between it and the object you are trying to pass. If the edge of the car is overlaping the edge of the garage door frame, you are on course to hit it. If there is a gap between the car edge and the door frame you manage to maintain - even if it looks like its some nano measuremnt - you are going to miss it.

...erm... of course you might wipe the mirror itself clean off the car when you get to that part but by then you should be looking sideways

[mike325ci]

After reading through this entire thread (whew it was long!), I think the only way to see if this will work for *ME* is to buy a set and test it out... As everyone is different in their mirror experience/habits. Will report back once I have these installed and tested.

FYI, my habits/experience:
1) I have a habit of scanning my mirrors constantly-- rear view, driver side, passenger side-- while driving. I try to stay out of other people's blind spots and am constantly aware of who and when other cars are in my blind spots.

2) I am used to driving with a wide convex rear view mirror ("Broadway" brand, JDM), especially in hatchback cars (I can see almost the entire rear hatch glass with these mirrors) like my Celica or my sister's Tiburon, but also in my MR2 (similar to Elise-- has rear wing and "pillars" to the side behind rear window). I tried using this in my coupe (BMW) and found I didn't like the fact I can see too much of the inside of my car, so using the stock flat mirror in that car. Otherwise I've been driving like this for many years now, so the distorted depth I am used to and can gauge distance fairly well, although I do cross check with my driver side mirror and always turn my body and look back through glass while backing up / out of parking spots.

2b) To reiterate, I am in the habit of turning my body, putting my hand on passenger seat/headrest, and looking out the back window while backing up. Backing up with just mirrors (in my Exige-- but also when I rent a cargo van for exampel) makes me uneasy. I can do it, but not as confidently. I also never change lanes just based on mirror alone. I always look over my shoulder or look through the passenger side rear (if applicable) window or passenger window to cross-check. It's a habit that I've started when I first started learning to drive and never broke the habit, which is good thing.

3) My driver/passenger side mirrors are always adjusted so that from driving position, I do not see the side of my car, but if I turn my head slightly, I can.

4) *BUT* in my Exige, I adjusted the driver side mirror closer to me so that I can actually see the end of the rear clam and part of my rear wing. I found that this way, I can use the driver side mirror as a rear view mirror-- I can see who is directly behind me. And I really need to see behind me (i.e. when backing up), I press my head against the driver side glass and I can basically see everything behind me. It functions like a rear view mirror for me, and being flat, I can judge distance well. This is what worries me about replacing the driver side with the Multivex right now. I am used to seeing convex (see Broadway mirror comment above) and "adjusting" my brain for the difference in depth perception.

Again, only way to find out is to actually test it myself and use it, unless someone has the EXACT same driving habits as I do, which is why I listed mine above.

Thanks for all the post and photos, especially the ones showing from the cockpit how images look (esp. the one showing the lines of the inside garage door-- that was GREAT!).

[Artisan]

My experience with the Multivex install: I thought for a while about replacing the stock mirrors as described in this thread. I bought some epoxy, some plastic container to use for the 1/8 in thick backing, paper plates etc… I started thinking that the plastic was not heat resistant enough and would cause problems later, pulling the stock mirror may be a pain etc… I decided to just install them over my stock mirrors. They look fabulous; there was no need to remove the stock mirrors. For that I would just recommend you buy the aftermarket mirrors available with housings.

However, there are some changes / additions I made. I would recommend going to your local hobby paint store and buy a black paint pen. I used the “Sharpie Paint Fine Point Oil Based Paint Marker”. The same one I used to paint the numbers in my stick shift. I painted the edges of the mirror before installing and will touch it up now that they are installed.

Also, I removed the very thick backing provided on the mirrors. I did this partly because they did not look like the correct product for this application and also because they were too thick for this install.

Instead I used a more dedicated product. 3M Automotive Acrylic Plus Attachment Tape. Black, Part# 06384. This tape is designed to hold body side moldings, claddings, rocker panel trim, wheel flares, and other exterior trim parts on outside of vehicles and is rated for extreme temperatures. It is also much thinner / narrower at ½ in wide and .045 in thick. It is all that is really needed and keeps the mirror much closer.

So, go buy some:

3M Double Sticky Tape Part# 06384
Sharpie Paint Fine Point Oil Based Paint Marker

Just my addition to this great thread.

[Elise72]

I've ordered these twice and haven't received them once.

[ace10]

Originally Posted by Elise72

I've ordered these twice and haven't received them once.

from which website?

[dododge]

Originally Posted by Artisan

Also, I removed the very thick backing provided on the mirrors. I did this partly because they did not look like the correct product for this application and also because they were too thick for this install.

This may be an issue with a change in Lotus mirror design. My passenger mirror got broken and had to be replaced. I also installed a replacement Multivex panel, but it fell off because the tape wasn't thick enough. Multivex sent me another one with thicker tape, and may have switched to that as the default for Lotus panels.

The strange thing is that when I examined my old Lotus+Multivex mirror (glass is cracked but still mostly intact), it appears that the original Lotus mirror was curved, and the new one is flat. I keep forgetting to check the mirror on someone else's car to see if there's actually any difference.

[Artisan]

I have only had my mirrors on for a day though I would say that it is unlikely that a thicker substrate would create more adhesion or be necessary. I would welcome some insight into the style of adhesive and substrate they are using for their pads.

Thickness does not increase the permanency of the mount. IMHO they are using a sticker similar to those found at Home Depot. These do not seem to be designed for vehicular use, though it is more cost effective for companies to include on a large scale. While the 3M adhesive is much more expensive, it is designed for just this application and would not need full contact to adhere to the mirrors.

Though most people will likely not see a problem with the default, if you had a problem in the past you should consider upgrading. Multivex should look into this as well.

[uclacyc]

Use black caulk. Better than tape.

[insane]

Originally Posted by uclacyc

Use black caulk. Better than tape.

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....or the SNL version:

http://www.evtv1.com/player.aspx?itemnum=1353

[dododge]

Originally Posted by Artisan

I would welcome some insight into the style of adhesive and substrate they are using for their pads.

The ones I've seen came with 3M heavy-duty mounting squares.

Thickness does not increase the permanency of the mount.

The issue is contact. When I tried mounting my replacement panel (mentioned above), with its thin tape, it ended up like this:



Only the very edge of the tape was even making contact with the Lotus glass. It held while I was installing it, but opening and closing the door was enough to shake the panel off. The thicker tape on the replacement made much better contact. Multivex says that half the surface area of the mounting squares should be sufficient; with the thin tape I wasn't getting even close to that.