Rear view mirror

[Labrauer]

Trying to find some mirrors that can go on the outside of the doors on a  48 Plymouth P15 that you can see the traffic. I have two on my car now but you can't see anything in the one on the passenger side of the car because of the vent window blocking the view. Does anyone have any idea or pictures of what you have. 

[DonaldSmith]

I cobbled a bracket to clamp a peep mirror to the top of the door.  I painted the bracket to match the door and roof.   

And I pivoted the mirror down into the field of view.  It works.  

 

 

[Dan Hiebert]

I don't have pictures handy, but I've seen aftermarket mirrors designed just for hanging from the top of the door a la DonaldSmith's solution above.  They clamp directly to the door frame so you don't need to fabricate an additional bracket.  You have to get used to looking a tad further back to catch the mirror, though.  Hot rod and custom supply shops may be the best option to find those.    EBay occasionally has swan's neck mirrors that everyone seems to like both the aesthetics and function of, but some you have to drill into the door frame to bolt on.

[Sniper]

I put a set of swan necks on my 51, got them from Speedway.  Location is important, lol.

 

[Sam Buchanan]

Here is my solution, some may not like how it looks but it works pretty well. Stick-on blind spot mirrors are available nearly anywhere accessories are sold, mine came from Harbor Freight.

 

 

[Adam H P15 D30]

[Plymouthy Adams]

the modern readily available swan necks that are stud mounted with ant-rotational stud included work well.  Admittedly mine are mounted onto my P15 via what I call tiara trim from a donor car carefully worked to fit the shape of the P15...the mirrors are functional but would like them to be about an inch larger in diameter if my opinion means anything.....pictures taken during assembly, third pic may show them in a frontal view.....

 

 

Edited May 31, 2023 by Plymouthy Adams

[greg g]

I have sat in the drivers seat of 3 or 4 P 15s with the original cowl mount swan necks.  Regardless of where the seat was positioned the passenger side mirror was pretty useless.  Had to position my body 3/4 of the way across the seat to see anything.   They look nice but aren't as good as clamp ons.

[Plymouthy Adams]

I pretty much think all are in agreement to the cowl mounted mirrors....none are being shown here....and later on in the 50 with the fender mounted mirrors, pretty much the same....while the drivers side if somewhat effective, the passenger side is all for balance and show it seems.  The curve of the door at the top makes finding any mirror that will set and look less than tacky add on is very hard to come by.  

[Ivan_B]

I use a standard aftermarket 4' clamp-on, with a somewhat longer pole (there are different types available). In terms of visibility, if you are looking for a wide panoramic view and redundant coverage you find with modern cars/trucks, you'll never get it, unless you mount one of those truck mirrors ?

 

A while back, many cars only had the left and center mirrors, and even more while back, only the center mirror was available. The way I see it, when the car is using small mirrors, the right one is mainly for the blind spot. You position it in the way allowing you to see the curb from the second-to-the-right lane. This way, you are mainly driving with the left and center mirrors, and only use the right one for a quick reference peek before turning your head while merging right. The right mirror will show if there is a car in your blind spot. It gets a little practice to get used to, but seems to work well. Also, it is generally useful to drive in the right lane so that you do not have to merge right too often. ?

Edited May 31, 2023 by Ivan_B

[Labrauer]

I like the ones Sniper and Plymouth Adams has mounted on the cars but as Sniper said location is the key. I know it seems everything is some what hard to find and a lot of times it take some engineering to make it look halfway decent. My 48 four door sedan has the ones similar to Donald's and they do pretty well I just don't like the look on the car. Sorry Donald. I just don't know if I am qualified to install the ones like Plymouth Adams or Sniper. Question for you two is there a method of finding the location for drilling the holes besides sitting in the car and having someone hold the mirrors in place and still clear the vent window when it's opened.  

[Plymouthy Adams]

an assistant is always handy for such as this...BE AWARE...the passenger side is the hardest to set practical usage and I recommend you check that fit first and then for balance see if it will work equally well for the drivers side.

[Sniper]

1 hour ago, Labrauer said:

Question for you two is there a method of finding the location for drilling the holes besides sitting in the car and having someone hold the mirrors in place and still clear the vent window when it's opened.  

 

If there is I don't know it.  I had my trusty assistant hold the mirror while I looked at it from the driver's seat, lol.

[Ivan_B]

I'd advise getting a clamp-on, and modifying it if necessary. Nothing is worse for your classic car than having holes where there aren't supposed to be any (well, almost) ?

[Plymouthy Adams]

when you are seated in driving position, an assistant is holding the mirror....would be hard to make a hole where it should not be...now it is easy to make a hole, mount the mirror and later say I don't like these....worse when one get busted and you cannot find a replacement...therefore, yes....a clip on would like be your best move.  These later swan necks have been out there for years and I feel they will still be available years down the road.  The task is often only as hard as you make.

[andyd]

Of course in the pre internet days, like 40 yrs ago I couldn't find a mirror to suit my Oz 1940 Dodge and USA sourced Ford swan neck mirrors or hinge mounted ones didn't fit so I made my own using the top of some old accessory mirror welded onto some steel rod and strip, had the lot chromed and 40 yrs later it still works........can't find any better pics...........car looks better without the vinyl roof it had for 30 yrs, 1975 to 2005...lol.....andyd 

[Ivan_B]

Oh yes, I forgot all about the door-hinge-mounted ones. Saw those on old Fords, so it must be an accessory

[capt den]

i have settled for the blind spot mirrors. tried others, like the swan necks but could never get one to be useful. i have spots on my 06 chevy truck, and on my wifes honda.they do the job and make driving safer.       dennis