Any Regrets Getting Tow Mirrors?

[2014fx4]

Hi, those that have tow mirrors, does the passenger side mirror (top mirror) look almost distorted from the drivers seat? My 21 lariat has these mirrors and while driving looking at the mirror the objects look "weird". Thanks.

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[Portcallahan]

Absolutely love these power folding mirrors and the feature in Sync which automatically folds/unfolds them when locking/unlocking the truck.

 

[jj4567]

Absolutely love these power folding mirrors and the feature in Sync which automatically folds/unfolds them when locking/unlocking the truck.

Wouldn’t it make more sense if they auto-folded when putting the truck in park?

 

[Portcallahan]

Wouldn’t it make more sense if they auto-folded when putting the truck in park?

Not in certain instances when you’re towing, like launching a boat or driving away after fueling up with a trailer. Situations where you want to check your mirrors before putting in drive.

 

[jj4567]

Not in certain instances when you’re towing, like launching a boat or driving away after fueling up with a trailer. Situations where you want to check your mirrors before putting in drive.

Fair points. How about this then:
- Tow mode = Auto-fold on lock.
- Non-tow mode = Auto-fold shifting into park.

 

[daemonic3]

I'll give my experiences.

I had standard mirrors, non power, on my '17 XLT. I used full snapover tow mirrors to get the extra wide view when towing. The snapover (not the clip ons) is probably the most stable fit you can get and it still was a little blurry due to vibration, but acceptable. Regarding folding to get into spots, I never really needed to, except for having to roll down my window and manually folding the driver side to get into my own tight garage.

Now I have the tow mirrors on my king ranch, and NO regrets. That being said, I have to power fold them in a lot when parking. Sometimes to get past pillars in garages, sometimes in tighter spaces and I don't want them hit by doors or other drivers, or people walking between our cars. I will say IF I had an XL or XLT, I would really regret them because if I did not have a passenger I'd have to get out to fold the passenger mirror or give up the spot or parking garage altogether.

Regarding the auto-fold feature, I absolutely disable mine, and only use the powerfold button when needed. 95% of the time if you had to fold them to get into the space, you will need to keep them folded until fully OUT of the space as well. No desire for them to unfold automatically when unlocking or starting the ignition and then I have to fold them manually just to back out again. Also don't want to actuate the motors every single time since they likely only last some limited actuations before dying.

 

[jj4567]

I'll give my experiences.

I had standard mirrors, non power, on my '17 XLT. I used full snapover tow mirrors to get the extra wide view when towing. The snapover (not the clip ons) is probably the most stable fit you can get and it still was a little blurry due to vibration, but acceptable. Regarding folding to get into spots, I never really needed to, except for having to roll down my window and manually folding the driver side to get into my own tight garage.

Now I have the tow mirrors on my king ranch, and NO regrets. That being said, I have to power fold them in a lot when parking. Sometimes to get past pillars in garages, sometimes in tighter spaces and I don't want them hit by doors or other drivers, or people walking between our cars. I will say IF I had an XL or XLT, I would really regret them because if I did not have a passenger I'd have to get out to fold the passenger mirror or give up the spot or parking garage altogether.

Regarding the auto-fold feature, I absolutely disable mine, and only use the powerfold button when needed. 95% of the time if you had to fold them to get into the space, you will need to keep them folded until fully OUT of the space as well. No desire for them to unfold automatically when unlocking or starting the ignition and then I have to fold them manually just to back out again. Also don't want to actuate the motors every single time since they likely only last some limited actuations before dying.

Good points!

 

[ramse]

Love 'em - I don't trailer anything right now, but these trailer mirrors give great visibility and prefer them over the standard mirrors. Had a 2013 F150 and the standard mirrors were a bit larger than the ones that come standard with 2021 F150's.

 

[FSUDrew99]

Has anyone installed these on a truck without 360 camera option and then had them programmed to run the side cameras and the original rear camera? Looking at a pair from ford but they all come with the camera on the all power option. Just want to see if I can make the side cameras work since they come on the mirrors.

 

[pavementends]

Has anyone installed these on a truck without 360 camera option and then had them programmed to run the side cameras and the original rear camera? Looking at a pair from ford but they all come with the camera on the all power option. Just want to see if I can make the side cameras work since they come on the mirrors.

I had my tow mirrors installed yesterday at a dealer and they were unable to activate the mirror marker/running lights using their software, let alone add camera functionality. Anyone who adds these mirrors after purchase should be aware that the swap DOES require Forscan programming to activate, at the very least, the factory mirror marker/running lights (if that's important to you). So budget another ~$75 for the Forscan connector and software license plus another several hours of learning all about Forscan (what I'm doing today) if you want the mirrors to work right. Again, my dealer can't change mirror types/functions in their software and I called another dealer and same story. Else, all other functions that the came with the standard mirrors were plug'n'play.

 

[FSUDrew99]

I had my tow mirrors installed yesterday at a dealer and they were unable to activate the mirror marker/running lights using their software, let alone add camera functionality. Anyone who adds these mirrors after purchase should be aware that the swap DOES require Forscan programming to activate, at the very least, the factory mirror marker/running lights (if that's important to you). So budget another ~$75 for the Forscan connector and software license plus another several hours of learning all about Forscan (what I'm doing today) if you want the mirrors to work right. Again, my dealer can't change mirror types/functions in their software and I called another dealer and same story. Else, all other functions that the came with the standard mirrors were plug'n'play.

Thanks for the reply.....

So the amber running light on the side will not work with the trucks running lights is what you are getting at?

 

[pavementends]

Thanks for the reply.....

So the amber running light on the side will not work with the trucks running lights is what you are getting at?

Correct. Everything else work. Personally, I really like/want the amber running lights to work.

 

[FSUDrew99]

Correct. Everything else work. Personally, I really like/want the amber running lights to work.

Same here….. hopefully they can make it work on mine. Gotta be a way.

 

[pavementends]

Same here….. hopefully they can make it work on mine. Gotta be a way.

I'm giving up on dealers doing it and diving into the Forscan rabbit hole. See this thread for more confirmation that dealers can't help and confirmation of the (hopefully) 5 minute Forscan change... https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/threads/enable-tow-mirror-running-lights.6356/

 

[pavementends]

Same here….. hopefully they can make it work on mine. Gotta be a way.

But please PM me and/or post up here if your dealer can actually make them work unlike mine...

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