rb23lb

Can you get the 09' Rearview mirror with compass retrofitted in the 08' w204?

Assuming you can get the part # eventually, would it work?

My friend was drunk the other day when I picked him up and all over the place and some how he bumped his stupid head into my rearview mirror and cracked the right side of the casing...

Figured I might as well order one of those cool 09' c class rearview mirrors that have the compass built in

maninblack

i want to know too

Azn_C300

that's actually a great question. I'd definitely be interested in making this mod.

benzmodz

If you show me a pic of the feature I can probably work out what you need.

keith100

Get lost a lot?

benzmodz

Maybe he wanted to know which direction he was heading in when his friend was throwing up in the back seat.

My friend is a local government officer and he uses his compas to send infringement notices to people who throw things out of their car. The report needs to state the details of where and how (including direction).

chilledbenz

I will take a guess and say the answer is no. I only say this because when I was researching the C class before I bought mine I wanted to get a base model car and just add the Homelink review mirror. I thought it would be simple enough, go to the parts department, order up the homelink mirror, remove the original and put it in its place. Wrong, I was informed that it wasn't prewired for such a swap, they only wire what is ordered for the car, not like previous models where all the wireing was there no matter what version you bought. There is a slim chance that if you have a P1 or P2 car that has homelink there is already power running to it and it might be able to tap into that, but it sounds more like there would be yet another wireing harness for the compass module.

benzmodz

Sorry to say this but those guys are whacky. Homelink just needs power and nothing else. You plug it in and learn the remotes. That's it.

rb23lb

Not at all, especially with the NAV...

It just would look way cooler to have a digital compass on display at all times...

I hate that they didnt have it in the first place... always fun to know exactly which direction you are going...

BF_JC230

Can it be fitted (With work) to a 2005 w203?

I too just want to know...I don't get why a luxury brand is missing so many things...a 1998 Chevy truck has a mirror and compass....a 2005 Chevy Cobalt has an MP3 AUX input...

Thanks,
Jake

trial0r

+1

dalazernet

Well, all of them have the AUX input now, and as for the compass -- I had this in a 1995 Chevy blazer that I considered absolutely useless. Heck, I remember driving on Rt. 46 Westbound and it saying "East" because it happened to curve around a bit. Not even helpful to tell if your going the right way :P.

Now lets talk luxury features -- automatic closing of doors anyone? I'm tired of slamming them shut, I want to close them quietly to a click-point and have them pull closed the rest of the way...

Flame3g

yeah like the s class " soft close feature" yeah i don't get it either why are so many features missing or considered options

chilledbenz

Thats just it, if you don't order the P1 package there is wiring running up to mirror, it would be a royal pain in the a$$ to run power up to it. So my thinking is that the compass mirror will need to get power from somewhere, so if you don't have p1 or p2 your out of luck and even if you do have it you would most likely have to tap into the homelink connection to get power for it. Probably throw all sorts of codes at you or not even work without the proper connection.

micropower99

Isn't there power running up to the mirror for the reading lights?

white46

i did it to my previous car e46 3series.
few things to make sure.
1. find out whether compass module is built inside mirror or is it getting the information from the car and mirror is just displaying the direction.
if it has built in compass, then it is easy. if not, forget about it.

2. find out if the mounting is the same. (i'm quite positive on this)

3. find source for 12v. this power shouldn't be switched, it should be turned on as you turn the key.

Simon

benzmodz

Im so interested in busting this myth I am going to open my internet connection and read the diagrams.

These connectors are marked on the control module itself where the wires go in.

Overhead control panel (without CAN) [aka cheap-*** module]
--------------------------------------------------------------
Socket
A = Power and data from front fuse box
B = Homelink / dimming mirror
C = Reading lamps
D = Rain and Day sensor
E = nothing
G = Teleaid
J = Panoramic sliding roof
I = Alarm related


Overhead control panel (with CAN)
----------------------------------
A = Power and data (5 wires)
B = Homelink / dimming mirror
C = Reading lamps
D = Rain and Day sensor
E = normal sunroof
G = Teleaid
J = nothing
I = Alarm related

No mention of a compass. Sounds like a prank.

But at least the homelink is plug and play.

benzmodz

That and the sunroof.

chilledbenz

You know I stand corrected, I went back and looked at that thread on here and it was the cost of the parts ($500 for the mirror $200 for the homelink module) not that it wasn't wired for it. I was thinking of the thread about swapping the radios in a base car and a p1 car. Although I keep hearing that this new car isn't prewired for everything over and over again. At any rate it sounds like it would be costly to do the factory version, but there are after market suppliers making review mirrors with a compass. Sounds like it would be cheaper to just buy a Garmin and be done with it.

benzmodz

Got a photo of the compass ? It is not listed in the cars specification.

jay-q

hi all.... sorry to drudge up such an old thread.... but thought i'd update it with some new information.... i was successful last night in installing a homelink, auto-dimming rearview mirror into a base C300 (no P1 or P2).

the mirror i replaced was a manual dimming mirror w/o homelink.... the old manual mirror has the identical wiring harness as the new homelink/auto-dimming mirror..... it is just a matter of removing and unplugging the old mirror and then installing and plugging in the new one.... the hands-free bluetooth was unaffected by this mod

the mirror is held by a spring into the car, a tip i found was that you can compress the spring with a c-clamp which engages a smaller clip that holds the spring while its compressed to ease in installation (this will make more sense when you see the part)

anyhow, for those c300 base model owners looking to add homelink..... i was able to find a part of off LKQ from ebay for ~$80..... the mirror i transplanted came from an '08 (no compass)..... and it was successfully installed in my 2010 c300.... i tried to do a lot of research on the internet (there isn't much), but after much planning, it took less than 30 minutes to install..... hardest part was figuring out how to disassemble the overhead control unit, turns out it swings away on a hinge to reveal all the wiring... had i known that in the beginning the mirror would've took less than 10 minutes to install....
-J

Derspeed

It's still a relevant thread. Good to know that it's not that difficult.