Towing Mirrors - Recommendations Please

[Sam_374394490]

Hi

We bought some very sub standard towing mirrors (cheaper make as we were on a budget starting out caravanning)

They were completely useless. They kept slipping and I had my head out of the window on the M42 in the wind and pouring rain trying to adjust them some hubby could see :-0

We are going away again at the end of May for the second time and cannot go through all the stress again. The old saying "you buy cheap,you buy twice" was certainly true in our case.

Please can you recommend me some decent ones.

Thanks guys

Sam x

 

[mealsonwheels]

Sam

We have Milenco Grand Aero mirrors. They are top notch and have come top in several towing mirror tests.

Milenco do a range of mirrors - their website has details of the full range that they do.

 

[AlanJ]

Hi

I went for the Milenco Aero Mirrors (Towsure Twin Pack

 

[JD6620]

I bought the Milenco Aero mirrors last year after many years of having the strap over type. Very good, no vibrations and very easy to fit. Well worth the money.

 

[KnL]

Another thumbs up for the Milenco Aero's from me too, I cannot fault ours.

 

[cooky1]

Yep, Milenco Aero's for me too. They still vibrate a bit, but I think that is because of my car mirrors that they are attached too.

 

[Mel]

us too. Aero mirrors are the job. Previous strap on ones slipped constantly.

mel

 

[Sam_374394490]

Thanks everyone.

The Aero's it is then x

 

[Reg]

Thanks everyone.

The Aero's it is then x

Unhappy with my single clip on mirror I thought I would revisit mirrors and see if the Milenco was the one for me also.

Being unsure as to what the legal requirement actually is regarding mirrors I decided to do some research and came across this website

http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2005/uksi_20053165_en.pdf
It would seem that some advice being given is not quite correct. I was under the impression that I am legal if I only had one extension mirror but after reading section 8, which I believe that that my 2003 car comes under, I am legally required to have 2 mirrors as I cannot see through the rear screen with the interior mirror.

Also I was curious to see what an E11 compliance mirror actually was and it seems that there is no specific requirement for the construction of the actual mirror and casing except for an internal mirror. It also states that the mirror should be stable and does not vibrate and the mirror on the drivers side adjustable from the drivers seat.

The mirrors should not project "greater" than 20cm or 25cm past the width of the caravan (depending on when car was first registered) and not be more than 2 meter above the gound.

No mention of E11 marking and technically I could still use my old wing mounted mirror on the off side if it conforms regarding position i.e. 20 or 25cm.

Are there any legal-beavers out there who could say if I have interpreted it correctly?

 

[Reg]

Blast wrong place again............

Unhappy with my single clip on mirror I thought I would revisit mirrors and see if the Milenco was the one for me also.

Being unsure as to what the legal requirement actually is regarding mirrors I decided to do some research and came across this website

http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2005/uksi_20053165_en.pdf
It would seem that some advice being given is not quite correct. I was under the impression that I am legal if I only had one extension mirror but after reading section 8, which I believe that that my 2003 car comes under, I am legally required to have 2 mirrors as I cannot see through the rear screen with the interior mirror.

Also I was curious to see what an E11 compliance mirror actually was and it seems that there is no specific requirement for the construction of the actual mirror and casing except for an internal mirror. It also states that the mirror should be stable and does not vibrate and the mirror on the drivers side adjustable from the drivers seat.

The mirrors should not project "greater" than 20cm or 25cm past the width of the caravan (depending on when car was first registered) and not be more than 2 meter above the gound.

No mention of E11 marking and technically I could still use my old wing mounted mirror on the off side if it conforms regarding position i.e. 20 or 25cm.

Are there any legal-beavers out there who could say if I have interpreted it correctly?

 

[John_miller]

Following the wholesale endorsement of the Milenco mirrors, I'm curious. We had a set of Milencos a few years ago and I eventually binned them because the screws which clamp to the top of the mirror had a round "foot" which was on a plastic ball & socket joint. It worked OK, but the plastic foot fell off just about every time we attached the mirrors and I got fed up searching for them in pebbles or long grass, etc. Are the newer models fitted with a more secure clamping arrangement?

John M

 

[Mikey1]

I purchased the Milenco Grand Aero after a few weeks with the normal type,i felt the tear drop size cut out too much vision on the outside.

The Grand aero ones are great i can see from the road upto 3/4 quarters of the van.

I spoke to Milenco as i had the same issue as John and they popped a couple of new ones in the post,same design but these stay on

 

[cooky1]

John M, I had the same problem with the small round feet. I bought a few spares for when I lost them. Yes the new version of the mirrors have re-designed feet which are much bigger and do not come off so easily.

Graeme.

 

[BillD.]

Fully endorse all the praise for the Milenco. I had similar problems with fitting my previous ones but the Aero is superb, fits in a couple of shakes, a nice large secure pad, stainless steel and brass fittings. A classic case of worth paying a bit more for the proper job.

Bill D.

 

[Big S]

Sam,

We had a similar problem to you in that our rubber strips that secured our towing mirrors to the cars mirrors snapped a couple of times and they were also suseptible to vibration.

I decided therefore to upgrade to Rock Steady universal Towing Mirror's which I obtained from the Carvan Accessory Shop website. These mirrors are suitable for vauxhall vectra, volvo, astra, mondeo, rover, nissan, and many more. Quick and easy to fit, aerodynamic and durable and have proved an excellent purchase.

 

[Zafiral]

In our experience the Milenco Aero mirrors are not completely universal as I could not get a decent fixing onto our Zafira. The fitted brilliantly to our Civic we had before.

I currently use the Sucker ones from Pyramid as you can adjust them using your electric mirror controls. They do block some of the main mirror so are not ideal. Also (as recommended) I have a convex one on the passenger side which gives a large field of view, but I find it very difficult to judge distances. If I was buying again, I would get two flat ones.

 

[xtrailman]

sam

I have just asked the wife how long we have had our towing mirrors, and we just can't remember, it's well over 10 years, maybe 15.

I would never fit the clamp type mirrors personally, to much stress in a small area.

We have the SMAT magnum, in al the time we have had them the rubber straps have not failed, never had vibration either, but then i stuck some rubber on the smat to act as a interface, but only to stop the mirror rubbing on the painted mirror.

There is an advert for them in the latest issue of the CC mag.

 

[tycerdd]

I use Milenco Grand Aero too. They are not cheap but of all the types I saw these are the best and they come in their own bag too.

 

[MikeMc]

After seeing them come top in the Caravan Club test I bought the Suck it and See type. They have a sucker that sticks to the exiting mirror. This arrangement is both good and bad. The good is that you can still use the cars electric mirror adjustment to adjust the mirrors as you drive along. The bad is that the sucker renders that part of the exiting mirror useless. I have a 4x4 with big mirrors so it does not matter. Also as it is connected via the glass there is zero vibration.

Mike Mc