RAV4 Mirror question

Question. On the RAV4 mirrors there are two metal pins sticking out the back (red arrows).

I installed the new passenger side RAV4 Mirror. The bottom mirror in the photo is the passenger side mirror that I removed from my 4runner. I just noticed there are no pins on it.

So, when I "ripped" off the 4runner mirror, either the pins got left behind or they weren't there to begin with. Which is it??

That is my question.

 

Honestly I don’t remember I did my mod a couple of months ago. I really didn’t worry about them and put the Rav4’s On anyway. I’m happy to dig out my old ones and look for you if needed.

 

Nah, no worries, thanks though. I think I'm just gonna pull the RAV4 Mirror off and see what's going on in there. I'm thinking maybe the 4runner mirror didn't have the metal clips to begin with. There's no sign of stressed plastic on the one I removed.

 

Well, this is weird. I went and pulled the RAV4 Mirror from the passenger side of my 4runner. I could clearly see that these pins don't latch into anything. There more like guides that slide in and out when you move the mirror. And I think they maybe help keep the mirror still in wind, etc.

You can see the pins from the side without removing the mirror if you just tilt the mirror all the way in toward the vehicle. The pins slide in and out as you move the mirror.

The strange thing is that my 4runner mirror was MISSING the pins. There's no way they would have been pulled out when I removed the mirror from the truck. And if you look closely, you can tell that the pins don't remove easily (if at all). They're essentially locked in place.

I pulled the drivers side 4RUNNER mirror and the drivers side DOES have the pins.

I can only suspect that my passenger side 4runner mirror came from the factory without the pins, as they are seemingly an integral component and not simply a difference between the RAV4 mirrors and the 4runner mirrors.

 

If anyone is bored, you wanna tilt in your stock passenger side mirror and peek inside and see if you can see the pins?

Now I'm curious to know if all 4runner passenger side mirrors are lacking the pins or if mine is an aberration.

 

the runners mirrors do not have those pins. i wondered the same thing when i got the rav mirrors too...

 

My drivers side T4R mirror DOES have the pins. Or did you just mean passenger side?

 

I have these & love them. great safety improvement !

 

What about the pins on the mirrors? Did your T4R mirrors have the pins?

 

Oddly enough, I don't know. I met up with a member who was selling them cause he did not like them. CAREFULLY pulled of the glass, CAREFULLY pushed the new mirror back into place. Took 5 minutes - literally. Since the T4R does not have blind spot monitoring, i find them invaluable. Note: I live outside of Phoenix, both mirrors are supposed to be heated (for melting ice and snow), but i've never this function (unless it automatic when you use the rear window defroster).

 

My daughter has a 16 RAV4 I will look and see if they look like in back.

 

To summarize:

The Rav mirrors I just bought and installed-- both driver and passenger have the pins.

On the T4R mirrors that come on my truck, only the drivers side had the pins.

 

I second this.... Got out to the garage and found the original 4Runner mirrors. The driver side had pins, the passengers did not.

 

Good to know. Thanks for taking the time to check! It was driving me nuts not knowing if I somehow lost the pins from my stock passenger side mirror.

I even went out and crawled around the garage floor this afternoon to see if they fell out.

 

Now the question is... why would they skip the pins on the passenger side T4R mirrors?

And should the pins be removed from the passenger side rav4 mirror before install? They don't seem to be causing any problems.