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"Export" vs "Domestic" side mirrors

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I was able to buy a pair of EU-style mirror glass and here's how they look compared to the original mirrors.

Left mirror has a much wider field of view, although I'm not sure how it compares to Suma's. Photos from driver's position, eye level, super unscientific.

With the original left mirror, you can see about 9 planks of the wooden fence beyond the car body.
IMG_20191210_165021.jpg

With the EU left mirror, you can see about 17 planks, and start seeing the pickup truck's mirrors. The plank widths seem to be uniform, so it is a simple convex mirror, not aspherical where the far edge curves even more. (I can probably adjust the mirrors to point outwards more, now that it is showing much more of the car body.)
IMG_20191210_165712.jpg


Here's how the pickup and my car are positioned:
IMG_20191210_165909.jpg

Right mirror is exactly the same, just without the "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear" text.
IMG_20191210_171301.jpg


If any of you are holding off on Suma's product due to the blue tint, or due to lack of auto-dimming, this might be worth looking into.

Cost me $179 USD equivalent for a new pair from an overseas service center. I think all Model 3s outside North America use the Export version, so if you happen to be traveling, or know someone close to a service center overseas in a Model 3 region, you might be able to buy it direct, but need to deal with the logistics yourself. Or you can just wait for them to show up on ebay or auto salvage websites and pay for international shipping.
 
I made an international phone call to the service center. (Choose whichever country most convenient for you)
The mirrors being over-the-counter (No VIN) parts, they shouldn't need the VIN to match. They just needed a VIN to open a receipt. So I gave them my USA VIN. It worked, no questions asked.

I traveled there and picked them up, pay at location with credit card.
 
The driver's side "Export" mirror definitely has sufficient field of view to cover the blind spot. I can still see at least 1/4 of the back of a car when the front comes obviously into view beside me. (So maybe I'll still be blind to a smart car or a motorcycle.)

Best of the burst photos I was able to take blindly without taking my eyes off the road, hope you get the idea:
IMG_20191212_100724_1.jpg
 
The driver's side "Export" mirror definitely has sufficient field of view to cover the blind spot. I can still see at least 1/4 of the back of a car when the front comes obviously into view beside me. (So maybe I'll still be blind to a smart car or a motorcycle.)

Best of the burst photos I was able to take blindly without taking my eyes off the road, hope you get the idea:
View attachment 487777
You could have used AP if you wanted to take a pic! :D
 
You could have used AP if you wanted to take a pic! :D

Was already on AP. Gotta keep eyes on the road still right? ;)

How’s installation? Is there just a cable to pop out and pop into the new mirror for the dimming?

As easy as it can get, no tools required.
Point the mirrors max towards the car body, reach into the gap into the mirror cap, and yank out the old mirror.
Unplug the 2-pin connector for the dimming, and two single-pin wires for the heater.
Replug them to the new mirrors.
Push-click them back into the mirror assembly.
Readjust driver's side mirror angles. (Passenger side restores to the correct position already since the field of view is the same.)
Save to profile.
 
I made an international phone call to the service center. (Choose whichever country most convenient for you)
The mirrors being over-the-counter (No VIN) parts, they shouldn't need the VIN to match. They just needed a VIN to open a receipt. So I gave them my USA VIN. It worked, no questions asked.

I traveled there and picked them up, pay at location with credit card.

Travelled where, exactly?

Also do you have the part numbers? I imagine the UK mirrors are reversed with the right side being wider FOV since we drive on the left there? So I’m guessing in the USA we want to avoid UK (and other countries similar) mirrors. Someone correct me if I’m wrong.

Great thread info, btw.
 
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Travelled where, exactly?

Also do you have the part numbers? I imagine the UK mirrors are reversed with the right side being wider FOV since we drive on the left there? So I’m guessing in the USA we want to avoid UK (and other countries similar) mirrors. Someone correct me if I’m wrong.

Great thread info, btw.

Here's the interesting thing. It doesn't matter!

LHD and RHD regions make no differentiation on the side mirrors they use; all use the same part numbers. That means both sides must have the same curvature to serve equally as the "passenger side" wide FOV mirror for any region. The driver's side becoming blind-spot-free is a side-effect, not a feature, of this simplification.


Ext Mirror Glass, Premium, Domestic, LH M3 1130651-00-A
Ext Mirror Glass, Premium, Domestic, RH M3 1130652-00-A
Ext Mirror Glass, Premium, Export, LH M3 1130653-00-A
Ext Mirror Glass, Premium, Export, RH M3 1130654-00-A
 
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Here's the interesting thing. It doesn't matter!

LHD and RHD regions make no differentiation on the side mirrors they use; all use the same part numbers. That means both sides must have the same curvature to serve equally as the "passenger side" wide FOV mirror for any region. The driver's side becoming blind-spot-free is a side-effect, not a feature, of this simplification.


Ext Mirror Glass, Premium, Domestic, LH M3 1130651-00-A
Ext Mirror Glass, Premium, Domestic, RH M3 1130652-00-A
Ext Mirror Glass, Premium, Export, LH M3 1130653-00-A
Ext Mirror Glass, Premium, Export, RH M3 1130654-00-A

Thanks for the part numbers. I don’t really understand your explanation of how there can be no differentiation, though...
 
To be fair, that passenger side mirror is not legal in the US simply for the fact that it doesn't have a "objects in mirror are closer than they appear"
As simple and silly as that is as a rejection to legality, if you get into the import world at all, it is little things like that that make it difficult to say, import a Nissan skyline from Canada into the states and register it.
 
These certainly are nice.

But I have no problem with the current mirrors if you use the "trick" for adjusting mirrors to view your blindspot.


Most people are told to adjust their mirrors so you can just barely see the back quarterpanel of your car.

This is still true. The trick is, when sitting in your seat slide your upper body / head sideways toward the mirror side you are adjusting, until when you are looking straight ahead, you are looking down the edge of the steering wheel. (Left mirror = left edge, right mirror = right edge).

Then in this position adjust it so you can barely see the quarter panel. When you move back your mirrors will have view of your blind spot.
 
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Thanks for the part numbers. I don’t really understand your explanation of how there can be no differentiation, though...

I'm not sure how to further explain the FOV part, but technically there's literally no differentiation because a Model 3 in UK (RHD) and a Model 3 in Germany (LHD) both use the same "Export" mirror part numbers. You can go to epc.tesla.com to double check any other region. Is this convincing enough? :D
 
I'm not sure how to further explain the FOV part, but technically there's literally no differentiation because a Model 3 in UK (RHD) and a Model 3 in Germany (LHD) both use the same "Export" mirror part numbers. You can go to epc.tesla.com to double check any other region. Is this convincing enough? :D

Yeah I don't understand why from the driver's perspective in different countries the mirrors would behave differently. You'd think the wider FOV would be on the side closer to the driver in every location, no?
 
To be fair, that passenger side mirror is not legal in the US simply for the fact that it doesn't have a "objects in mirror are closer than they appear"
As simple and silly as that is as a rejection to legality, if you get into the import world at all, it is little things like that that make it difficult to say, import a Nissan skyline from Canada into the states and register it.

You wouldn't even need to replace that mirror, no? Just the driver's side.
 
Yeah I don't understand why from the driver's perspective in different countries the mirrors would behave differently. You'd think the wider FOV would be on the side closer to the driver in every location, no?

It is actually to the contrary.
You want the far mirror to be wide FOV at the very least. Driver's side can be flat, can be convex, no big deal.

Because you are so far from the passenger side mirror, if that mirror were to be flat, you won't be able to see anything useful in the entire mirror area.

Try sitting on your passenger side and look through the driver's side mirrors to convince yourself :)
 
It is actually to the contrary.
You want the far mirror to be wide FOV at the very least. Driver's side can be flat, can be convex, no big deal.

Because you are so far from the passenger side mirror, if that mirror were to be flat, you won't be able to see anything useful in the entire mirror area.

Try sitting on your passenger side and look through the driver's side mirrors to convince yourself :)

You’ve lost me. Sorry. In the USA is the passenger mirror wider angle than the driver’s side?