Broken Mirror FIX

[m3f_salty]

Anyone know a good way to fix a mirror. My passenger side one got damaged yesterday. The two lower contact points broke of when it took a hit. the Mirror itself is fine, just the two lower mounting points are sheared off in the housing. The top one is still good.

[m3f_Blutarsky]

the bolts for these come from inside the door, right? can't you just pull the cover off that's on the door and remove and replace the bolts?

[m3f_salty]

the bolts for these come from inside the door, right? can't you just pull the cover off that's on the door and remove and replace the bolts?

Grant, the bolts that you undo inside the door attach a mounting plate to the door. the Mirror housing pops into this and will detach if it takes a hit (thus protecting the mirror from really getting wrecked) On my mirror, the two lower pop out pins have sheared right off. I am toying with the idea of either a couple of high power rare earth magnets for the lower, or just putting a couple of rivets and some metal along the bottom of the mirror out of site. This fix would be my last option. A new one and paint is not in the budget.

[m3f_Blutarsky]

good info. for some reason i thought only the 95's had the metal pop-pins, as mine would always come off even if barely touched. i like the magnets idea. or liquid nails lol

[m3f_ArBrnSnpr]

On my first M3 (back when people commonly stole E36 M3 mirrors) I removed one of the snap in pins, drilled a hole, and ran a bolt through the mirror to the base. I know it looses it break away feature but I never really like it anyway since when it does break away the wires are still connected so it just drops down and mars your paint...

[m3f_salty]

good info. for some reason i thought only the 95's had the metal pop-pins, as mine would always come off even if barely touched. i like the magnets idea. or liquid nails lol

Maybe a vacuum pump constantly sucking it on <G>If I use magnets an internet search leads me to think a Samarian magnet would work well . Any Magnet experts?

[m3f_salty]

On my first M3 (back when people commonly stole E36 M3 mirrors) I removed one of the snap in pins, drilled a hole, and ran a bolt through the mirror to the base. I know it looses it break away feature but I never really like it anyway since when it does break away the wires are still connected so it just drops down and mars your paint...

I guess those fools don't know much about your sig pic. I used to get a ton of Roundels stolen in the 80's when I had a Bavaria.

[m3f_bigfeller]

I happen to have a cosmos passenger side mirror (when my driver's side got knocked off, I bought a new pair from a place in LA) that I would be willing to trade for someting interesting, but it's a coupe mirror. They're different, n'est-ce pas?

[m3f_salty]

I have some 1959 Simca Aronde parts you might be interested in!!



Thanks for the offer, but yes they are different. I think mine is quite fixable. I think I will forget the magnets, fill the void in the mirror with Epoxy putty and drill it to accept the pop out pins. (I hope you can buy these at the dealer)



Bob.

[m3f_Shock(/\)ave]

I think mine is quite fixable. I think I will forget the magnets, fill the void in the mirror with Epoxy putty and drill it to accept the pop out pins.

That sounds like a good plan Bob, though I'm wondering if you should just use a flexible adhesive on either end of the sheared off bolts to hold the mirror in place?

[m3f_salty]

That sounds like a good plan Bob, though I'm wondering if you should just use a flexible adhesive on either end of the sheared off bolts to hold the mirror in place?

Paul, One of the 3 pins has gone missing, so Hopefully BMW sells this item without a Mirror attached.

[m3f_tbsleeper]

i have the same problem with mine except the top prong doesnt pop in securly enough so it always pops out if someone touches it. I never thought of magnets but i like that idea. Let me know if the dealer sells those pins

[m3f_Shock(/\)ave]

Paul, One of the 3 pins has gone missing, so Hopefully BMW sells this item without a Mirror attached.

That's nothing a flexible gap filling adhesive couldn't take care of.

[m3f_salty]

Well the Mirror is fixed. I think it is stronger than new now. I could not source the pop out pins through BMW, so I went back to the scene of the crime and looked all over the ground till I found the old one. My two lower pins had cracked right through the plastic. So I used two adhesives to make the repair. First I used Loctite Super Glue to position the pins the same way they were before they snapped off. This is an impressive product. A crazy glue made primarily for plastic. It has a primer pen that you rub on both parts, then you apply a very small amount to one half and push together. A good bond takes 30 seconds to hold.

Then I cleaned out the cavity with acetone on a Q Tip and filled it as tight as possible with Devcon "magic Bond" Epoxy putty. This has about the consistency of Plastiscene. When you knead this putty you mix the epoxy and hardener and it cures rock hard in 1 hour. Those pins aren't going anywhere. The Putty cost $18 and the Glue $6. A lot cheaper than a new or used mirror and (Shudder) paint.

[m3f_Shock(/\)ave]

Sounds like a proper fix Bob.



















I'll be sure to yank on it like crazy the next time we meet up to test your handiwork.