Fixing a side view mirror

[jpaulson]

In all the commotion of the storms on sunday trying to get the cars in the garage I broke my side view mirror on my tahoe. It got pushed the wrong way and popped off inside where the spring and toothed washer are. Anybody have any tips on fixing this or if its even fixable? It appears fixable to me but I can't find a good way to compress the spring and put the toothed washer back on. Thanks.

[Shack]

It is very hard to say if it is fixable or not, with out seeing it. What happens is most times the small little plastic tabs or pins break off and when the mirror assembly is put back together, it is loose and shakes while driving.

All I can say is try to work the spring back on and slip that washer in.

If you want, stop by a local body shop or dealer and see if one of the isle guys can give you an idea if it is fixable.

Good luck!

[Jeremy airjer W]

Typically they are made to "break" off easily so that no major damage occurs to the vehicle. I have tried repairing these in the past and have found that the repairs do not hold up and the best solution is to replace with a new one or a good used one.

[jpaulson]

It is not the glass that broke but the whole mirror assembly. Should have made that clear. When the glass is removed on the inside of the mirror there is the stem with the spring and the washer are.

[Shack]

Ya, we got ya dude! That is what Airjer and I where talking about.

I would side on the possibility it is toast. Could you get some images of the mirror and put them up in this thread?

That would help greatly.

Thanks

[jpaulson]

I will see what I can do tonight. I have a rough one on my phone that I could text but I will get some better ones on the camera and put them up. Thanks guys.

[jpaulson]

I just went out a bought a new one. Dealer wanted $440 for a matching replacement. WOW! Bought an aftermarket one for way less. Thanks for all the help.

[jwhjr]

Dealer wanted $440 for a matching replacement. WOW! Bought an aftermarket one for way less. Thanks for all the help.

I ended up doing this on our Suburban when I needed to replace the power driver side mirror a few years back. It was less than $100 for the aftermarket replacement and it's still working great.

[Scott K]

I know from working at a dealer, sometimes it is smart to shop around! But to add to that, there are just some parts I would only get from the dealer!

[Jeremy airjer W]

I don't know what "brand" you purchased but so far I have been pretty impressed with keystones mirrors and headlamp assemblies.

[Valv]

I buy them at CertiFit in Vadnais Heights and never had a problem with any. I was at a parts store and somebody bought a headlight assembly, was in same box they use at Certifit and cost twice as much. Too bad now they don't have Dodge towing mirrors, I need to replace mine, I did same "booboo" as jpaulson

[Shack]

Quote:

buy them at CertiFit in Vadnais Heights

Hey Valve, thanks for the tip.

Been like 15 years since I last ordered/got somthing form them. I got a veh. in my shop I have to do some repairs on tonight and it has a broken side mirror and tail light lenz. Just up sold some repairs

Going to run down in a couple minutes. They do not come up this far, but worth the drive.

Sad part about it, I bought some similar parts for my self at the dealer for an undiscolsed much larger price a couple months back

[jpaulson]

The mirror brand I got was something along the lines of coolvue I believe. Under $100 from a local place. Only thing that sucks is the cover doesn't match and my old one doesnt fit too well on the new mirror. If it bugs me enough I will put some serious tape on it and see how it holds.

[Farley]

I bought a coolvue passenger mirror from JCwhitney for my F150. First one they sent me was the wrong one, sent it back and got the right one. went on easy, but I already had my door taken apart in anticipation. i think it was $65.00 but if you have heated or blinkers in your mirrors they'll be more.

[Shack]

CertiFit, with a heated mirror, was half that price. New, in a box and worked great.

Thanks again Valv!

I will go no where's else!