A question about mirrors (1 Viewer)

[rosalan]

My mirror is becoming loose, so that when driving into a strong wind it moves backwards a little.
There are several panels that make up the body of the mirror casing made of black plastic. Can these be removed without destroying the mirror so that I could perhaps tighten the hinge nut inside?
I made a tentative attempt with a broad flat chisel which began to open a gap but was already beginning to do damage to the plastic

.I think the answer may be to remove the glass but has anyone done this?

 

[JFD]

Would you like the good news, or the bad first?

The good news is that all the plastic covering for the mirror CAN be removed, but it does require a lot of dismantling - some is clipped on, some is screwed on and, yes, you need to remove the mirrors first. If you decide to do this, I would suggest removing the mirror completely, and doing it in the comfort of your garage or shed!

The bad news is that, having denuded your mirror of it’s casing, you will find that there is no adjustment nut/mechanism! When the hinge wears so badly as to impair your use of the mirror, the only cure is a replacement!

You could try judicious application of a club hammer to the shaft/joint, but that makes only a temporary difference, and seems to lose the ‘detent’ when the mirror hinges out to for driving.

Do remember to keep the old mirror for spares - glasses, motors, bits of shell, and, in the case of the nearside one, the aerial PCB, just like the ones in my garage!!

 

[nicholsong]

They do not make them user friendly or user repairable.

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[rosalan]

Would you like the good news, or the bad first?
The bad news is that, having denuded your mirror of it’s casing, you will find that there is no adjustment nut/mechanism! When the hinge wears so badly as to impair your use of the mirror, the only cure is a replacement!

Thank you very much for your information. I am guessing that you have had a similar problem. There is a Youtube video on how to strip the glass etc with a warning that the glass can break, although i once clipped the mirror on a skip in France and the glass fell out although still attached by cables. I lacked the foresight to study the internal workings at that time.
I think this mirror came from Wingmirrorman but cannot remember. I will approach them again for a new mirror as and when mine gets worse. I may jam a wedge in the hinge while I think about it. Alan

 

[Ivory55]

What about a bungee strap hooked on it to hold it back, then when on site can be used to hold hab door open. Everything on a van is we 40, gaffa tape or bungee hooked. Haha

 

[Peter & Elaine]

They do not make them user friendly or user repairable.

As a Yorkshire lad would say
They’re sh!t
not worth the plastic and monkey metal they are made from

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[Sean FSY]

Unfortunately there's no easy fix. The retaining ring in the base of the mirror will be either excessively worn so it doesn't lock into the central position, or even worse the ring will have snapped(like mine did) the plastic does come off but there's no serviceable parts you can get to. I just replaced the entire long arm mirror assembly. Heated electric with indicator just like yours. It was £156 from Eurocar parts. The way I looked at it was if driving and it slips then you catch something with the MH it will cost more than the £156 mirror. So no brainer for me, replace it.