Principles of Operation

PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION

There are 3 exterior rear view mirror options, a power adjustable aero-style mirror, a manually adjustable telescoping trailer tow mirror and a power adjustable telescoping trailer tow mirror. Power mirrors allow the driver or passenger mirror glass to be positioned automatically. The position of the power mirror glass is controlled by the exterior mirror control switch. Adjusting the exterior mirror control switch to the LH or RH position determines which power mirror glass will be controlled.

Heated Exterior Rear View Mirror
The power exterior rear view mirrors are available with a heated glass option, which heats the mirror glass to remove frost, snow, ice and condensation. The heated exterior mirror system does not have switch, the mirror glass is heated any time the ignition is in the ON position. Power is supplied to the heated exterior mirrors by the heated mirror relay, which is active any time the ignition is in the ON position.

Auto-Dimming Mirror
The interior rear view mirror may be equipped with an auto-dimming option. This feature automatically reduces the glare caused by headlamps reflecting in the mirror. The auto-dimming feature is disabled when the vehicle is in REVERSE. Power is supplied to the auto-dimming interior mirror when the ignition is in the RUN or ACC position.

The automatic dimming feature has 2 photoelectric sensors that detect forward and rear light conditions. Based on these inputs, the automatic dimming feature adjusts the reflectance level of the mirror glass to eliminate unwanted glare. The reflectance level of the mirror glass is variable and depends on the amount of rear glare in relation to ambient light conditions in front of the interior mirror.

When the forward sensor detects daytime conditions, the rear sensor is inactive and the mirror stays in a high reflectance mode. When the forward sensor detects nighttime conditions, the rear sensor is active and detects glare from the headlights of vehicles approaching from the rear or other glare-producing light sources. To provide increased visibility when backing up, the mirror will automatically return to a high reflectance mode whenever the shifter is placed in REVERSE.

If the forward or rear sensors are blocked, the automatic dimming interior mirror might not work correctly.