4WDs are pretty high-tech these days, not just under the bonnet and on the dash, but even our side mirrors. Some mirror features include Outside Air Temperature (OAT) sensors, GPS, AM-FM, blindspot monitoring systems and 360-degree cameras.
So as you kit out your rig to better suit off-road driving conditions and towing, you don’t want to lose these features when it comes to swapping out the side mirrors. After all, it’s your hard-earned efforts that paid for the vehicle. Why lose some of the features as you deck it out?
The next generation of mirrors
Sadly, stock standard just doesn’t cut it for towing and off-road driving and when it comes to mirrors, replacement mirrors are the gold standard. However, it seems that Clearview has once again levelled up the game with the launch of the new Next Gen Mirrors, allowing you to retain most, if not all of your existing features.
“Our customers don’t want to compromise on their vehicle’s features when they install towing mirrors, and it’s for this reason that we’ve remained at the forefront of emerging mirror technology,” explains Mike Cowan, Co-Founder of Clearview Accessories.
“We have long-standing relationships with the vehicle manufacturers and work closely with them to develop OE Authorised Towing Mirrors. This becomes more and more important as technology advances and unapproved mirrors can result in fault codes and loss of functionality, such as driver assist functions.”
Features we didn’t know we wanted until now
Two mirrors for ultimate coverage
Clearview’s Next-Gen Mirrors feature a larger mirror on top and a smaller mirror on the bottom. The larger mirror is flat and provides a narrower field of view, reflecting the true distance for reversing. The smaller mirror is slightly curved, making the objects appear closer than they are but allowing a much wider field of view and thus reducing blind spots. This smaller mirror gives you a better idea of what’s happening around your vehicle.
It retracts to virtually the factory profile of the mirror you replace
Actually, we told a bit of a porky because we actually did know that we wanted this feature and we’re so glad it’s been included in the Next Gen Mirrors. The Clearview Next Gen Mirror is a smaller mirror that sits on a double slide, allowing it to slide right back into the vehicle when you’re not towing. They remain unobtrusive during your daily community and obviously, it’s also handy for those tight off-road tracks.
You don’t lose your existing mirror features
All Clearview towing mirrors are engineered specifically for each vehicle so you can retain most, if not all, of the functionality of the original mirror. They are true replacement mirrors, designed to use the same holes, fitting and wiring (where applicable) as your original mirrors for plug-and-play installation.
There are three positions to choose from
Using a telescopic two-stage extension, the Clearview Next Gen Mirrors provide three towing positions to choose from and won’t retract when passing larger vehicles or when driving at high speeds. They extend up to 180mm for towing.
They fold both ways if struck
Clearview towing mirrors fold both inwards or outwards if they’re accidentally struck while on the tracks or in a tight parking lot. This is great peace of mind! Nothing worse than having your mirror swiped clean off by some dunderhead in the parking lot.
Next Gen Mirrors for the Next Gen Fords
Clearview Accessories has been working with Ford Australia for the last 12 months and have proudly launched the new Next Gen Ford Ranger and Ford Everest Towing Mirrors that match the vehicle’s advanced features, technology and capabilities. Currently, the non-camera models are available with an announcement to be made soon on the camera models.
Mike said, “Our new 360-degree camera-model towing mirrors have also been approved by Ford as a Ford Licenced Accessory, but we are currently awaiting stock of the coaxial cable that we require in order to commence production of these new mirrors.”
Gone are the days of the humble towing mirror
Clearly, the days of the basic towing mirror are almost gone as we usher in these new high-tech replacement mirrors. And given the convenient features of these new Clearview Next Gens, it’s not so hard to say goodbye to the old-school in this case.
