Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

Hi. I would like to replace the flag mirrors on my '89 944 S2 with the teardrop door mirrors. Having looked into this recently, I know that I also have to also replace the door mirror mounts too. Having priced it up, it going to be around £500.

At a 'Cars In The Park' meet at Harewood House in October, a Boxster owner told me that there is a clip on teardrop moulding that just needs spraying the correct colour and then clips over the existing flag mirror. I could see how this is achieved as there looks to be a channel around the flag mirror. Anyway, having scoured the net looking for this supposed cheaper option I have turned up nothing. Can anyone shed any light on this? Or has someone been doing some leg pulling??

I know a lot of people will be aghast at me wanting to replace a set of perfectly good door mirrors. This is purely a aesthetic exercise.

Cheers for any help, Ben

The teardrop mirror is significantly smaller than the flag mirror in height, and a little bit longer. I can't see how something that clips over the flag mirror could be anything other than huge and therefore simply wouldn't look right.

The motor and glass mount of the flag mirror is virtually identical to the teardrop one so it's possible someone makes a shell that looks like a teardrop mirror that fits to the stub of frame the flag is attached to. If you look at the flag it is in 3 pieces; the base, the mirror back and a vertical piece that swivels through the base and holds the back on. You might be able to attach something to the vertical piece, but again I can't really see how it would look right as the teardrop has a curve on its inner side which is an integral part of the shape.

If you do find the parts you have been told about I think you should look very carefully at them before you commit to make sure it's going to look acceptable.

£500s a lot for somthing that doesn't make it go faster but each to his own! Look out for some second hand ones on ebay for sensible money. They pop up now & again as so many of these are being scraped.

Thanks for the tip. I'm beginning to think this was definetly leg pulling going on.

I'm hearing you. I don't really want to pay that amount. (I'm a Yorkshire man and get low blood sugar levels when I have to open my wallet for large sums of money, especially as you say its a non-performance enchancing part).

I've been checking eBay but the mirrors are going for silly money. I think eBay sellers know Porsche enthusiasts like to enhance their cars with these mirrors so price accordingly. One seller had a heated electric pair for a RHD car at £269 + £12 postage. You also had to buy the correct mirror mounts for a 944 at £37 + VAT each. Then you've got the added cost of getting them sprayed right. Fitting shouldn't be too bad.

I guess I'm going to stick with what I've got until I see some teardrops at sensible money.

i know its not teardrops but its along the same lines and a bit cheaper http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Door-Handle-Cover ... 240%3A1318

Hi Ben,I remember meeting you at that Harewood show last year,glad to hear you are enjoying your car.It certainly is a nice one.Autograph Specialst Cars in Wakefield were supposed to be getting those mirror conversions in.worth a call on 0800 0125 731 ask for Jeff.Also there is a swiss based company http://www.deutschnine.com who may make those,they have a uk sales office number on that website.Regards John

Personally I like the elephant ear jobs on the 944, the fashion for smaller mirrors on modern cars is a pain. What with that & people staying in your blind spot on the motorway is the reason for quite a few m/way accidents. Rant over!
I've heard that tear drops are getting stolen in London at quite a rate, so quite feasible that the ones on fleabay have a dodgy heritage

I prefer the bigger original ones too and at the prices quoted to upgrade to teardrops...no way

It's a personal preference thing and I'd agree not worth £500, though I embarked on fitting them many moons ago before realising that was the true cost.

It's also a good point that LHD ones are different - the ones I picked up "cheap" for my 964 were LHD but luckily the ones I had on my second 944 to have them came with RHD 911 bases that were kicking around in my garage.

In terms of performance as I mentioned above they are longer than the flag types and as such if they are properly adjusted I'd argue you actually get a better indication of what's behind, specifically in the common blind spot around the rear 3/4.

Hiya John,

Glad to hear from you. I finally got round to joining TIPEC. Had the leaflet you gave me sat around for ages before I did anything about joining.

Anyway, thanks for the links. I'll look into it. How did you get on with the passenger seat? I seem to recall you had a small tear that needed a bit of stitching. Did you use Walker Upholstery in the end?

Cheers, Ben

Hi. You're right about the heritage part of the mirrors. You don't have anyway of knowing when buying from the aforementioned auction site whether or not the items for sale are genuine or stolen. The only way to be sure would be to get through OPC, which = mega££££££££££££££££££££.

My drivers mirror doesn't have a blind spot section on the mirror anyway. I don't know if this is typical for cars of this period. I just have to have a glance over my shoulder before committing to that overtake!

Thanks for the comments. Ben

Hi Ben,no I havent done anything about the seat yet but can you just remind me where Walker upholstery is? its not that high on my list of things to do but could be handy to know anyway.Good to hear you joined up,you ll soon get the membership fee back in discounts on parts /accessories etc and also its a real fun club to be in in terms of events/activities throughout the year which as much as possible are aimed at family entertainment.as you are very close to our area have a look at our regional website at http://www.synn.org.uk .theres a trip to the Ginetta factory planned for January,unfortunately I work nights so cant go but that should be a good trip! Regards John

If you get a price from Autograph, shop around as he is expensive

Hi John,

I've looked at you're clubs website already. You look to have a good spread of Porsches and outings judging from the gallery.
Anyway, Walker Upholstery can be found on the following link: -

http://www.walkerchaircare.co.uk/specialist/index.html

I haven't used them personally but I have heard good things about them. Let me know if they're any good.

Cheers, Ben