Power Mirror Info

[RandyP]

Ok, lets talk about the power mirrors that were available in the last years of the square body suburbans, K5's and crew cabs. I know people on the forums here have done the swap, need to pick some brains.

Do these mirrors use the same mounting holes that the elephant mirrors used? Do the factory plugs go directly to the harness under the dash, or is the dash harness different as well? I know the wiring harness with power mirrors has two plugs once it appears through the hinge pillar and under the dash, but I don't want to tear in to my '87 R10 to see if the plugs are the same or not. I have the complete wiring harness, even under the dash, but know for a fact it will be different due to the electronic speedometer and such.

Just wondering how big of a deal it would be to swap my mirrors for the power ones, my main concern is their mounting location and the wiring. Thanks for any information!

[trout]

the mounting location is diffrent so(body work has to be done) u will have no problem with that lol and as far as the wiring harness it bassicly goes right in(i had to make mine couse some one had cut the mirror harness) i did this on my 87 also and love them so much now i have to finish body work around were i welded the holes up and stuff

[RandyP]

So as long as you swap out the entire door wiring harness, it plugs right up under the dash as long as the truck had power windows/locks?

I was hoping they used the same holes in the door... as much as I'm hating the fight to keep the elephant ears in place (a short trip down the highway and you can watch the SOB's move in), I'm not sure I can convince myself to tear in to the fresh paint. Not just yet. I'm still recouping what all that truck cost me!

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by RandyP

as much as I'm hating the fight to keep the elephant ears in place (a short trip down the highway and you can watch the SOB's move in),

I think you can adjust the tension on those big mirrors; just take out the screw at the bottom of the mirror base cover and slip the cover up - you should find a single bolt that you can crank down on the mirror stem.

If that's your main complaint this might take care of it for you.

K

[RandyP]

I've done that twice Keith, it'll work for a little bit but then they loosen up. I blame the repop mirrors. Next time I get mad enough about it I'll toss my old ones back and live with the dents in the chrome just to have mirrors that stay in place.

Thanks for the info all, saved me from 'trying' just to be disappointed with the mounting.

[tucsonjwt]

My elephant mirrors would move every time I closed the doors. I did as Keith describes and they have stayed in place since. I would think some locktite would help if the screws keep backing out. However, if rust is involved then all bets are off - my AZ truck is rust free, so I don't have that problem.

[trout]

think you can put in the harness on any model level truck just depends on how you wire it.... but scence u just painted i would be leary to but trust me you'll loe them pic of mine as of sunday

[Captkaos]

Wiring isn't an issue if you have a 81-87 fuse panel, it should just plug in. The mounting holes are no where near the same, you will have holes that need to be drilled/located and some that need to be filled.

[trout]

thats what were here for

[78 Chevyrado]

I just fixed my dumbos that had this same problem. this will only work for stainless mirrors or you'll have rust running out of it before long.

I tightened mine up and they still moved even when super tight, so i had to do something else. mine are aftermarket, the nice SS set from LMC with the LH and RH specific bases.

Inside the base you have the stalk the mirror head mounts to, the part that clamps down on the stalk, and mine has a rubber tube around the stalk i guess for grip (didnt work though)

I took my mirror head off and got an angle grinder and roughed up the surface on the stalk and the clamp itself, only where they contact, and then tightened it back up and they dont move anymore, actually they are kinda hard to set since they grip so good.

Mark the stalk BEFORE you take the base cover off so you dont grind on a part thats normally visible.

you try to make things smooth when you want them to slide, so you have to rough some stuff up sometimes to keep it still. I used I think a 36 grit disc, and kind of tapped it to the metal to make it as rough as possible, and i went all the way around the stalk tube, and did the inside of the clamp itself also.

[RandyP]

I might have to try that Kenny, those are the same mirrors I got. They were the only ones I could find that were true left and rights.

[jitteryguy]

I used the power "dumbo" mirrors off a late 80's early 90's van, they will mount in your original mount'n holes, as far as the wire'n is concer'd you may have to get creative (I have'nt wired mine yet).

[Mr. 250r]

Dang jitterguy beat me to it lol I have a set of original power mirrors but I dont like how they mount on your glass as opposed to the dumbo mirrors so I noticed our mid to late 90s dodge work van has the same mirrors but power I also plan on doing that swap
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[c10sport]

This has been a planned mod. I have a set of the black power mirrors but not the doors. I have been looking at Dodge and G van mirrors though.