The inside rearview mirror uses 2 photocell sensors. One sensor is the headlight sensor, located on the face side of the mirror. The headlight sensor is used to determine light conditions present at the mirror face. The other sensor is the ambient light sensor, located on the rear of the mirror or windshield side. The ambient light sensor is used to determine the exterior light conditions. With a low exterior light condition detected, and a high light condition from behind of the car, at the headlight sensor, the inside rearview mirror will automatically darken the face of the mirror. In the daytime, the mirror is in a normal state because of the high exterior light condition that is indicated by the ambient light sensor. With the gear selector lever in the REVERSE position, backup lamp supply voltage is supplied as an input to the inside rearview mirror. The mirror monitors this input to disable the automatic day-night feature. This allows the driver to see objects in the mirror clearly when backing up, even during the night.