Interior Rearview Mirror Assembly

WARNING: This page is about a different car, the 2016 Volkswagen Beetle, 2015 Volkswagen Beetle, 2014 Volkswagen Beetle, and 2013 Volkswagen Beetle. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.

The automatically dimming interior rearview mirror dims progressively when the driver is blinded from the rear.

It consists of a mirror element and an electrical element with two photo sensors.

The electronic element registers light incidence from the front and rear through the photo sensors.

If the incident light from the rear is greater than that from the front, a current flows through the electronic element to a conductive coating.

The applied current changes the color of the electrolytes. The electrolyte becomes darker, the greater the current is. The incident light will be reflected to a lesser degree.

The dimming function switches off when reverse gear is engaged. The interior rearview mirror can be used, for example, to back out of a dark garage.