Product Link: http://www.dietechoffroad.com/produc...rorbracket.htm
I want to drive my Jeep topless and doorless in the summer, so that means I need a mirror solution. I need something quick and easy that allows me to swap doors/mirrors on and off quickly. My jeep stays parked outside, and my other vehicle is a motorcycle, so I can't really keep it doorless/topless for long periods of time. The easier it is to take the doors off, the more likely I am to do it on short notice for a nice day.
I tried the cheap option of a motorcycle mirror. It technically worked, but the mirror was small, in an awkward location, and it looked kinda ghetto. I also don't like the idea of relocation brackets that mount the mirrors to the A-pillar. Some people say the mirrors are quite a bit less usefull in that location when the doors are on.
For maximum ease of swapping, best appearances, and best mirror location/size, I opted to go all-out on a set of Dietech Offroad mirror brackets and a spare pair of OEM-style mirrors off of EBay.
The DieTech brackets are compatible with 2007+ JK Wranglers and OEM-style non-powered mirrors (including Bestop's HighRock mirrors), and put the mirrors right in the stock location as if they were mounted to the door.
First thing I noticed about the brackets is that they are bigger and sturdier than I expected. They appear to be made from a mix of 1/16", 3/32" and 1/8" thick steel. They are e-coated and powder coated, and the powder coating has a textured finish that almost exactly matches the textured plastic of the OEM mirrors (both in color and texture).
I'm also impressed with the OEM knock-off/clone mirrors I got from EBay. I cannot see a difference between them and OEM mirrors. And they were only about $65 for the pair! They include foam padding for a nice vibration/noise-free fit, but they did not come with mounting hardware.
If you were to just swap your stock mirrors over to the DieTech brackets, then you would re-use the original mounting bolts. Since I'm using a second set of mirrors, I went to the local hardware store and found bolts that would work (M8, 1.25 pitch, 50mm long).
NOTE: I would NOT recommend using these to mount mirrors onto a door! The OEM bolts have a large flange to spread the load across the relatively thin sheet metal of the door. I'm not worried about the lack of flange on these bolts because I'm only using them on the DieTech brackets, and they are being tightened up against a 1/8" thick steel plate.
Now that my spare mirrors are mounted on the brackets, they will stay together forever. With the doors off, first you need to loosen the middle bolt of the upper hinge. My only complaint here is that the bolt head is painted, so it inevitably chips/peels off on the corners the first time you tighten them back down with a socket. It's relatively unnoticeable, so I don't really care. Still better than a shiny non-painted steel bolt head.
Slide the pin of the mirror bracket down into the top hinge, making sure the support arm slides down behind the loosened hinge bolt. Instructions recommend tapping the bracket down into the hinge with a rubber mallet if it doesn't slide in nicely. I got lucky and was able to push it down. Now re-install the stock hinge pin screw/cap (you know, that little thing that holds the door hinge pin in the hinge that many people never bother re-installing after removing doors for the first time), and tighten the hinge bolt against the support arm. That was easy.
Everything fits very nice and is solid. Due to approaching rain, I had to throw the door back on and haven't actually driven with the mirror brackets yet. I'll report back later on whether there is any vibration blur in the mirrors while out on the road, and then again at some time in the future when I get off-road with them. I'm not too worried though. According to DieTech, "This design eliminates the vibration caused by wind and the amplification of road vibration that other simple hinge-mount designs cannot offer."
Costs:
DieTech Mirror Brackets: $70.99 + $15 shipping
EBay Mirrors: ~$65 with free shipping (depending on seller and timing)
Bolts: $3.60
Total: ~$154.59
A bit expensive, but I don't think I would be happy with any alternatives, so it's definitely worth the cost to me.
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