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MG MGA - wing mirrors ?

Hi MGA people , it is time to fit wing mirrors but just where is the best position . I have looked all over & cant decide as to where from the driving seat , hope you can help again only the best advice on this site & see you all at Silverstone ,
Colin , Devon
colin daly

Colin, I've read several threads on this subject and have a suggestion. If you can find some large disc magnets try mounting your mirror on these and then you can try different placements on the wings until you find a spot that gives you the best vision.
Bill Young

http://mgaguru.com/mgtech/accessories/at103.htm
D Sjostrom

Colin

On the wings is a pain - you can't adjust them easily. They also get in the way when working on the engine, and being so far away, you get a very narrow field of view.

On the tops of the doors works great - easy to adjust, and a much bigger view area, plus they never get in the way of anything. They are also shielded from passing knocks by the proximity of the windshield frame.

Dominic
dominic clancy

My MGA and several others of its era (1956 and on) had the fender mirrors located directly above the hubs for the front wheels. My mirrors were flat, and at that position, they provided a decent rear view when properly positioned.

You might try Barney's option as it seems helpful to really seeing well to the rear. However, I am just old enough, I guess, that the view from the wheel opening positioned mirrors seemed every bit as good to me. JMO

Most of the time, my rearward vision was compromised much more by the vibrating dash mounted mirror until I tried another BBS poster's solution to use a hard rubber pad/gasket between the cowl and the mirror's mounting plate. That was a good tip and certainly did as claimed.
Bob Muenchausen

Placement is up to the owner. Most , if not all, of these were dealer installed. I chose to place mine 1/2 way between the center and the rear of the wheel opening. From looking at many photos, this is where the factory rally cars had them. I use the convex mirrors on both wings. Between the two wing mirrors and the center rear view mirror, I have a pretty good field of view.

Watch out for placing the side opposite the driver. If you place it too far forward, your mirror may be blocked by the dash mirror. of course, this all depends on where the seat is located.

If placed too far rearward, the wing's inner splash panel may have to be removed for the install or retightening.

Chuck
Chuck Schaefer

Colin, if you put the mirrors close to you don't drill any holes, like I did, until and unless you are sure there is enough adjustment in the mirror to look at what you want to from the drivers seat. The bullet shaped mirrors especially have limited adjustment range. Steve.
Steve Meline

Colin, I made a bracket out of stainless steel that mounts onto the windshield post. I then used a standard wing mirror on the bracket and am very pleased with the results. It doesn't interfere with the side curtains, and it can be removed quite easily for that "original" look. The bracket is held in place on the windshield post by one of the existing screws that hold the windshield frame to the post. I can e-mail photos to you if you are interested.
Ed Bell

I have my mirrors mounted above the front hubs as mentioned above and although I like the look of them there they are a pain. They are always in the way and get bumped a lot plus the far side one is almost lost behind the rear view mirror. When I repaint I will move them.
Kris
Kris Sorensen

many thanks to you all for your thoughts allways a good response regards colin
colin daly

Mirrors suck they look awfull arn't big enough to do any good and leave holes in that long sensual fender. They get in the way and are always out of adjustment out front. They look funny near the windshield and you have to look around the post to use them. And Please never in the doors. If you must have them follow the advice above and make them removable. Look at American street rods and you can find small ones that can mount to the windshield posts.
One opinion
Randy
R J Brown

What's wrong with a mirror on the door? I have one which gives excellent rear visibility and am very happy with it.

Clausager shows two cars with door mirrors apparently fitted from new.
malcolm asquith

The real argument for me is one of art over funtion and with an A art always wins. No MGA ever came with a mirror. All were added later. The door is a perfectly funtional place to put them. I will never again drill a hole for one esp. not in the aluminum.(that goes for boot lid luggage racks to.) MGAs are beautifull and I think that mirrors detract from that beauty. Like I said before it is just my opinion,but if you insist on mirrors please use one that doesnt require damaging the bodywork.Leave the top in the garage where it belongs use your ears and turn your head.
Randy
ps I still have a pair of new in the box lucas ones that came with one of my cars 15 years ago that I couldn't bear to install.
R J Brown

MGAs are art, but adding an artful mirror can be a good thing. Adding an ugly one is obviously not! If the car came without a windshield it would look better imho, but I'd still install one because it's practical! In defense of fender mirrors, the trick is to fit a high-quality convex mirror. Cheap ones are too distorted to see anything and flat mirrors have too small a field of vision.
Steve Simmons

I put them on the doors for practical and aesthetic reasons. Practical reasons I have already detailed. Aesthetically, if they are in all the clutter of grab handles and windscreen, they do not break the line of the rest of the car.
dominic clancy

I saw a coupe in Grand Rapids last year that had a driver side mirror mounted on a graceful bracket that clamped to the top rear edge of the front fender. The part of the bracket that reached to the underside of the fender just fit between the door and fender, in the gap (a little difficult to describe, but I have a picture of it). I wasn't able to ask the owner, but I wonder if this was an MG option or some period accessory mirror. It sure was nice, never seen another.

G Goeppner

This thread was discussed between 12/07/2005 and 14/07/2005

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