I found this in the back seat of an 86 trans am that i am going to part out
it has a matching wire at where it mounts so it was used on this car at some time but is it original or aftermarket? never seen one like it.

 

Yes they were an option. It was a predecessor to the Liquid crystal dimming mirrors only a few years later. I have never used one, and they tend to be problematic, but when they would detect someone behind you they would automatically flip up to block the reflection in the mirror. In effect there was a small solenoid that would flip the mirror for you instead of doing it manually.

The stories I have heard is they can be a little distracting as they would make a noise when flipping... Just a small "dink" noise.

Starting as late as 1990, probably earlier, when they would go bad under warranty they would replace them with the LCD version. which work very well... I have installed the LCD ones in several cars without problems...

There should be 3 wires. A Red Wire for switched Power, Black for Ground and I believe a green wire. The Green wire was for reverse, when you back up it would turn it off, it connects to the backup lights.

 

The mirror works great. When you put the car in reverse, it automatically adjusts the mirror to normal. There is a light sensor in the front and also facing the rear. If the light in front is darker than what is sensed from the rear, the mirror adjusts. Old rear view mirrors had a flip lever on the bottom so that the driver could manually flip the mirror and use a different reflection to see out the back rather than using a direct reflection. This mirror has a motor that automatically adjusts for you. This was the first generation of self dimming mirrors. Pretty cool technology really until the new self darkening mirrors came on the market. They don't flip anymore, they just darken.

 

Great, thank you very much
now i can list this for sale knowing that i am labeling it correctly.

 

NICE!! Yeah, super rare option from what I can tell. That's one of a dozen or so things I always look for on a parts car though...still have yet to find one in the yard and have been looking since 2005. Sucks to hear they were so problematic though...

 

I do not know how problematic, I had a few friends with them and they both had problems... When it went bad the dealer replaced it with a Liquid crystal one. I would imagine since there are moving parts inside that they would not last as long as a liquid crystal version. The Liquid Crystal ones should last longer as long as they do not get damaged. What I find is the Liquid Crystal ones will Yellow badly or turn brown when they go bad, usually this happens to the side mirrors that are left in the elements, or have a heater attached to them...

John

 

Scott,
That has to be the dirtiest part on your car... what is up with the grime in the corners?

 

Huh, pretty cool!

 

Ah yes, I've seen many C5 Corvettes with "burnt" side mirror glass. Makes sense.