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Ther 51-54 Mirrors mount "through" the stainless trim into the door. But the physical attachment is to the door itself, with the trim being sandwiched between the contoured mirror base and the door.

The '56 Patrician is Left Hand drive and currently has a round mirror on the left and a square mirror on the right.

Even though i will be driving it in Australia, it would be nice to have a matching set of mirrors.

I'd still like to know what anyone has been satisfied with as an aftermarket mirror, quality but reasonably priced, to mount on the door (but not on the belt molding) both L.H. and R.H. side, for anything from 1951-1956. I cannot justify $1000 for a repro belt molding mirror, and anyhow somebody had already put a mirror on the drivers-side door on my car, so there are holes in the door already.

The 1955-1956 never had a belt molding-mounted mirror while 1951-1954 never had one that mounted to the door’s sheetmetal..

Thank you, Packard Don. Not to belabor the point (though I think I am going to now), but I understand that 1951-54 had belt-molding-mounted mirrors, and 1955-56 had door-mounted mirrors. Seems to me, since the bodies are essentially the same, the 1955-56 style should work on a 1951-54 body. And, indeed, someone long ago before me had mounted a square mirror on the LH (drivers-side) door of my 1953 Cavalier. It would be nice to replace that with something a bit more period correct, as well as a matching item for the R.H. door. However, even if I could justify the expense of the repro 1951-54 mirrors, installing belt-molding-mounted mirrors at this time would also require repairing and repainting the drivers-side door (at a minimum), because of the existing mounting holes for the mirror that was fitted some time in the distant past.

Much more preferable and practical to me would simply be to procure some nice door-mounted mirrors which have a 1950's feel to them, as probably many Packard dealers and/or independent shops would have done at the time. If there are any out there that someone has had some good experience with which can still be purchased recently, such information would be welcome.

I see what some folks are calling "Yankee Mirrors" on Ebay, and wonder if those might work well, and if anyone has any recent experience with those on offer. Am I correct that those were available in the 1950's?

As you can see from the photo, both of mine are located on the doors. But in saying that, the schematics do not show any side mirrors???

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51-56 Packards never left the factory with side mirrors. They were always a dealer add-on.

If you look at the Factory photos, even the most expensive cars (Patricians, Carribeans, etc.) won't have side mirrors.

I've seen lots of bodies with no evidence of ever having mirrors installed.

In most states, you are only required to have to safety equipment the car was manufactured with.

Driving in both Calif and Illinois, I've never had an issue with my lack of side mirrors. Also, I am tall, so even when I tried "clamp-on" mirrors, the viewing angles were never especially good. The one on the passenger door was particularly useless.

I just learned to look over my shoulder when changing lanes.

Although I seem to recall a production order posted on this site that directed the PA mirrors to be installed at the factory on a V8 Packard, you are correct that they were NOT a regular production option (RPO).

Factory-installed driver's outside rearview mirrors did not become commonplace in the industry until the 1960s. Availability of passenger side remained spotty until the mid 1970s.

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This is true but also not quite all of the story. You can indeed get a ticket for not having a driver side mirror (or seat belts) in a vintage car that did not come with them originally but it would then be up to you to argue it in traffic court. We once got a ticket for a clear license plate cover which is also illegal in California and I got a ticket on my 1940 Packard for having the wrong bulbs in my fog lights.