Your car’s side view mirror is paramount to your safety. These mirrors ensure that you are aware and see everything around you. Like any external part, these mirrors are partial to damage. When one of them gets cracked or broken or damaged then you would need to replace them. Taking the car to a local garage for this may become an expensive venture. What you can do is do it yourself. In the following passages, I will discuss what you need and how you can do your car’s side mirror glass replacement.
What You Need
Before you start working you need to know a few things. So what do you need for the replacement? Well, you would need safety glasses and gloves. This is because you may be handling broken glass. Along with the glasses you would also need to use gloves for safety. Additionally, you would need painters masking tape and obviously the replacement mirror. When getting the replacement mirror make sure that you have the right fit. It would be a waste otherwise. There are two different types of mirrors. One is a stick on and the other is a snap on. You should read your owner’s manual and learn about the manufacturer’s specifications. This is vital to ensure you get the right replacement mirror.
Step 1
The first step of the replacement is finding the right replacement. There are different types of mirrors for the side mirror slot. Making sure whether you have a Snap-On or stick-on is of the utmost importance. Find the manufacturer’ specs and see what you need. Knowing this will also help you in knowing if you have to remove the backing plate of the side view mirror or not.
Step 2
The second part of the process is removing your old mirror. You need to make sure you did right. First, see if the mirror is heated. If it is then you need to detach the wiring before removing the backing plate. If the glass is broken, then you must wear gloves when working. You should also be wearing gloves if you are to remove glass that has been glued in. So if your side mirror glass is a Snap-On then you would need to remove the backing plate. After that, you should move onto removing whatever piece of glass is attached to it.
If your car side mirror is a stick-on then you would need to remove all the glass from the backing plate. Or at least remove as much as you can. This is because you would need to clear the way for the new mirror. The new mirror would need to be attached to the backing plate using double-sided tape or epoxy. If there is too much residual glass, then the new mirror won’t fit properly.
Step 3
All that is left now is to attach the new mirror. If your mirror is a stick-on then you should follow the adhesive instruction right down to the tee. Otherwise, you may need to redo the entire thing. That would be a waste of time and money. Now you need to reattach any wires that you may have detached and then snap on the entire unit in place. Then, you are done.
Parting Advice
So there you go, the three steps to remove and replace your car’s side mirror glass. Make sure you learn and follow all the procedures and you know what you are doing. If you are uncomfortable or isn’t confident in your abilities, then I suggest you consult an expert to do this for you.
