Finally got my adapter mount in the mail for my Gentex Homelink / Auto-Dimming mirror from a 2006 Subaru Forester. My local dealer wanted double the price for the adapter, no thanks and bought it online for $7.80. I bought other misc. items that I will install next summer, when the weather is warmer to justify the shipping. The Subaru wire cover did not actually sit flush with the windshield, leaving a gap. I found a Gentex wire cover off a Cadillac in the junk yard and piggy-backed the Subaru wire covers off the Gentex to fill the gap. I got tired of the glare with the cars behind me at night and wanted auto-dim. I tried out the mirror driving home from the mall tonight, I think my Volvo S60 R auto-dimming rear view mirror is better.
Sirtef9, above the courtesy lights & sun roof controls, in the headliner, there is a connector that you can connect the mirror's wiring harness. You have to remove the courtesy lights & sun roof controls to see the connector where the mirror's harness plugs into. Before I bought my mirror on EBay, I looked at the pictures carefully to make sure that the mirror's wiring harness would fit to the connector in the headliner. The connection for me was "plug & play", no cutting or splicing.
When I bought my 2000 Outback new, I did not opt for the auto-dim/compass mirror, so I remember about some type of possible connection. I don't think Homelink was offered back then.
I went back and took off the courtesy lights/sun roof switch and took some pictures to show you what the connector looks like & location of it. When I was planning to do this mod on my Outback, I found a wrecked LL Bean Outback in the junk yard with a Donnelly mirror (smashed mirror), but I got the mirror's wiring harness to test fit the connection in my Outback. The Donnelly harness is the same as Gentex wiring harness only where it connects with the connector in the headliner, the other end of both wiring harnesses is different, where the harness is plugged into the mirror. Hope this helps.
Not really understanding your question. I think you are trying to ask; " Does the Homelink work independently from the car?" If that is what you are trying to ask, the answer is yes. For that reason alone, I did not program the Homelink with my garage door opener, or on my wife's Lexus RX350. Anyone can just Hotwire your car parked outside on the driveway & be able to get into your garage. Once I knew that, I disabled the connection on my wife's Lexus.
If your mirror does not have a Homelink, go out & buy a mirror with Homelink feature off EBay, there is allot of them out there.
Which mirrors are compatible on our '00 OBWs? I am planning on doing this upgrade too.
Is it any gen3 Subaru? Or can it also be from a later gen4 or gen5 Subie?
You can use pretty much any wedge mount mirror if you get the cam-to-wedge adapter. . . it's about $10 at the dealer. Beyond that it's just a matter of wiring it. If you pull it from another Subaru and get the harness that goes up to the courtesy light, it's pretty much plug and play. if it comes from another brand of car (nissan/etc.), you'll need to do some tinkering.
You can buy wire harnesses on ebay that have the specific mirror connector (Gentex or Donnelly are the 2 popular ones. . .early Donnelly mirrors are the ones that get spots/cancer so avoid those) and a pigtail you can wire up yourself. I've done that once or twice.
Do the gen2 vehicles have a 5 pin wire harness?
I am looking for used ones on eBay (can't find any decent condition used auto-dimming ones locally).
From the OP's pictures - it looks like the gen3 mirror he installed came with 3 pin connector? Problem I am running into is - no one seems to selling the other side of the connector (the one that's buried inside the headliner).
The connector you are referring to, the one in the headliner came standard from the Subaru factory, my Outback is a Limited. Your Outback is not Limited, perhaps on the base model, it was not an option & the connector was never there from the factory. When I bought my car, I originally opted out on the auto-dimming mirror, but since I had my Volvo, the auto-dimming feature grew on me. My Outback is my daily driver, so I got tired of the glare in the rear view mirror. I knew that there was a connector up in the headliner. If I were you, I would be going on a junkyard hunt to a local "Pick & Pull" junkyard to see if you can find a Limited Outback and get the connector in the headliner. The mirror that I bought on EBay came with the wiring harness. Even check out your local Subaru dealer, if they sell the wiring harness separately. Good luck.
I believe the option was available irrespective of trim - base or limited. I have most of the other interior options except for the leather seats, leather gear shifter and leather seats (none of which matter to me).
People seem to love to have their high beams on even in bumper to bumper traffic especially in the winter and it pisses me off.
I am installing my replacement cabin rear view mirror (OEM Donnelly), bought on eBay for $ 50, this weekend - on my 05 OB LLBeaner....it's a simple plug-n-play installation and a simple calibration afterwards....
Start looking at junked Cadillac sedan cars, I forgot the specific model, but some of them have the Gentex wire covers to hide the wires from the base of the mirror to the headliner. That is where I found 3 of them. Allot of times people don't care and rip off those wire covers & break them. Just look at the pictures & my original post about this topic.
Here's what I have found so far -
a. Gen2 vehicles have the 3 pin connector. This design is carried over to gen3, gen4 and gen5 vehicles (except ones with compass and/or homelink). These additional features add 2 more pins = 5 pin connector.
b. Based on images I saw on google & ebay - the connector design has changed on gen5 compared to previous generation vehicles.
Feel free to correct if I am wrong. I cannot find a compatibility chart anywhere.
Hate to bring this old thread back to life - but I took apart the console and found this connector. It was tucked into plastic part of the console versus how everyone else finds it attached to the metal part of the roof.
Am I looking at the correct connector?
Edit: Just bought an auto dimming mirror from ebay for $50 with connectors.
There are five styles available that fit most autodimming mirrors - you will need to select from the following:
7 pin - for use on Gentex 177 and 455 autodim or compass autodim mirrors, or MagnaDonnelly/CIPA autodim or compass autodim mirrors with the flat 7 pin plug on back.
10 pin - for use on older Gentex 313 autodim Homelink or compass autodim Homelink mirrors.
10 pin - for use on some newer Gentex 453 autodim Homelink or compass autodim Homelink mirrors.
10 pin - for use on Gentex 536 autodim Homelink or compass autodim Homelink mirrors with a 10 pin plug attached to the mirror bracket.
12 pin - for use on Gentex 651 autodim or compass autodim mirrors, or on some Gentex 453 autodim Homelink or compass autodim Homelink mirrors (some of the Homelink mirrors use a 10 pin plug, some use a 12 pin plug...check your mirror before ordering), and Gentex 687 autodim Homelink or compass autodim Homelink mirrors.
16 pin - for use on Gentex 261 and 511 autodim and compass-autodim mirrors.
The white connector interface on the vehicle roof is the same across gen2, gen3 & gen4.
I have Gentex mirrors on 4 cars, including 98 and 01 OBWs and they work great. The original mirror on my 01 OBW failed and it was a Donnelly (my experience is that Donnelly is a poor copy of Gentex). There are basically 4 wires: switched power, ground and 2 non-polarity thermistor connections (if the mirror has an exterior temperature function). There is a 5th wire called "inhibit" that clears the mirror when the car is put into reverse gear. I never hook that one up. I put standard pucks on the windshield or adapters (for the Subaru cam-lock) on the cars. I usually get the mirrors off of junk yard GM/Ford cars (usually $5 or less) and the puck and adapters from the local windshield replacement retailer. The mirrors can be hard to find since they come off really easy and can be sold online for a good price also. For junk yard, don't forget to get about 12 inches of the wiring and connector. Several online places (Fee-Bay) sell the complete wiring kits but they can be expensive.