Street legal: side view mirrors

BigClay

BigClay

Knower of useless ZJ things
Joined
Sep 24, 2008
Location
Winston-Salem
What are the NC requirements for side view mirrors? Do you have to have both? Do you have to have just the driver? Do you need either to be street legal?
 
Last time I went in missing a passenger side mirror...I was told if it came with it, it needed it to pass. So they failed me, I went to the JY, grabbed one, screwed it in, took the vehicle back, and it was passed.
 
a) No person shall drive a motor vehicle on the streets or highways of this State unless equipped with an inside rearview mirror of a type approved by the Commissioner, which provides the driver with a clear, undistorted, and reasonably unobstructed view of the highway to the rear of such vehicle; provided, a vehicle so constructed or loaded as to make such inside rearview mirror ineffective may be operated if equipped with a mirror of a type to be approved by the Commissioner located so as to reflect to the driver a view of the highway to the rear of such vehicle. A violation of this subsection shall not constitute negligence per se in civil actions. Farm tractors, self-propelled implements of husbandry and construction equipment and all self-propelled vehicles not subject to registration under this Chapter are exempt from the provisions of this section. Provided that pickup trucks equipped with an outside rearview mirror approved by the Commissioner shall be exempt from the inside rearview mirror provision of this section. Any inside mirror installed in any motor vehicle by its manufacturer shall be deemed to comply with the provisions of this subsection.

(b) It shall be unlawful for any person to operate upon the highways of this State any vehicle manufactured, assembled or first sold on or after January 1, 1966 and registered in this State unless such vehicle is equipped with at least one outside mirror mounted on the driver's side of the vehicle. Mirrors herein required shall be of a type approved by the Commissioner.
 
A car has to have the drivers side, and the inside rear view mirror to pass state inspection. The rule is different for trucks, it can have both outside mirrors, but no inside rear view. At least that was the rule last time I went for inspection class, about a year ago.
 
So it seems that if you run your rig without doors, then all you need to be legal is a dirver's sideview mirror?
 
^^^ I believe that to be true. My Ram passed inspection last year with a broken passenger side rear view mirror. They never said a thing. They failed me a few years ago for tint being too dark too, so they are not a super relaxed inspection place.
 
The NC statutes are right there. "Inpectors" can try and remember the rules however they like and they remember differently at each shop, but they can not argue with the law itself. I deal with this dumbassery with motorcycle inspections fairly often where almost no one knows the real rules, just what they think should be there.
 
I bought a Harley mirror and rigged it to go in door pin hole when riding doorless , works very well for 7$ ( one mirror,passenger got broke in box so I got them for next to.nothing )
 
yep. when i had my 79 bronco doors of i just took an extra mirror i had and screwed it into the dash side.
 
Clay,pick you up a set of cheap relocation brackets and just put the drivers side on and permanetly mount that mirror on.Leave the pass. door mirror on the door .I've been like this since 2001 and no problems.Reason not to telocate the pass. mirror is you can't see it with the door back on.
 
Most of the "relocation brackets" I have seen either get hit by the door, or put the mirror where you can't see it when the doors are on. Somebody recommended the Harley long stem mirrors to me. I finally remembered to order a pair earlier this week. Assuming they show by Friday, I'll let you know what I think of them this weekend.
 
I shortened up my door strap with a little sewing and fixed the hittin problem.Kind of a no-brainer to me.
 
Just for the record, the Harley long stem mirrors are perfect. I bought the rectangular ones. They vibrate a little, but nothing terrible. And you've got good visibility to both mirrors from the driver's seat.
 
I just passed inspection yesterday (5-16-14) in Huntersville NC with no doors or mirrors on my 04 unlimited and have done so for the last 8 years. I put the half doors on for looks, not that they do anything.
 

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I ended up going with a set of mirrors I found on-line, they sit perfectly still at 60mph and are easily removable for when I am on the trail. They mount to the two torx bolts right above top door pin hole

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