Wing mirror base length

[paddockman]

I've inherited a 230SL that I've spent some time restoring. Looking at the wing mirrors it seems the car has been fitted with aftermarket items and I'm wanting to fit genuine ones. The only issue is the ones fitted have been screwed into the door and the base is quite long with the screws at the extreme ends of the base. What I would really like to know is; would the base of the correct Merc ones, early type, cover the existing holes?

If anyone is near their car and has early type wing mirrors fitted could you please measure the base length and let me know, I don't want to order the new ones and find the existing holes are visible post fitment.

Very my appreciate any help.

[Jordan]

The length of the base, including the gasket, is 62mm.  That is the longest dimension.   It's a bit shorter at the corners as each side is curved.  The maximum width is 33.5mm, again including the gasket.

[doitwright]

The original mirror holes should be found inside the door. I believe I heard that mirror locations on left and right side on 230’s and early 250’s may be slightly different. Left and right hand drive cars may also be different.

[Tomnistuff]

The answer to your question is no.  I have a long base Italian mirror which leaves either the front or the rear hole in the door exposed if the correct mirror is installed on the driver's side.  I will have to clean the hole down to the base metal and fill it.  Then I will have to figure out how to retouch the paint so that it doesn't show.  Good luck to me.
Tom Kizer

[DaveB]

The base of the original mirror is fairly short (I agree 62 mm) so it doesn't seem likely that it will cover your incorrect holes.
Frank has a good point about the difference left and right. This image shows the placement for the driver's side. The passenger mirror should be set further back otherwise the mirror will be partially obstructed by the A-pillar. Most cars seem not to have a passenger wing mirror, I think it was an option not standard.

[Aaron h]

Have a look at the picture below.  It states for the 230SL "Spiegelbildlich zur Fahrertür", which translates to "Mirror image of driver's door".  Essentially, the book says the mirrors are placed in the exact same locations on both doors.  I guess you could mount it further forward if you wanted to, but I guess it depends on how finicky you are about originality.  However, bear in mind that the mirror opposite the drivers side is to have a convex glass to allow viewing from a distance.  The part number for the left side mirror is 113-810-06-16, and the right side is 113-810-05-16. 

[paddockman]

Thank you so much for your responses. I've learnt so much in a short space of time. As with Tom, I have Italian mirrors fitted so need to consider filling the holes and going for a full new mirror set-up.

I've not been very fortunate with what I perceived to be 'simple' repairs - I had to change the wiper system which I thought would be an easy enough task, until we looked into it. Many man-hours later we had a good result but nothing simple.

I can see the importance of really planning all the tasks before starting any rebuild, I set about getting the car into a strong workable car but, now looking at the detail, I could have used my time and money more effectively. Still there's a lot of pleasure in the learning.

Thanks again - I'll work out the best option and hopefully will have some pictures once complete.

Cheers

[doitwright]

With your style mirror be sure to confirm proper visibility of a passenger side mirror to avoid conflict with blockage by the windshield frame.