At Last a Cheap Easy Fix For Broken BMW Z3 Door Mirrors

[Jack Ratt]

@Faheem, I bought a pair of "used" mirrors off a forum member when I first joined the forum. I think I paid £150 for the pair which was the going rate at the time. The internals were not like the standard BMW alloy metal ones but made from a type of plastic. I never paid much attention to who made them but once I'd fitted them you couldn't tell them from the originals

 

[Faheem]

Removed both mirrors due to some corrosion that has started to resurface after a year (did initially sand it down to bare metal) see picture below

Removing the passenger side mirror was easy.

On the drivers side I ran into problems, broke a door panel clip - thought to myself I've got loads of spares so it's not a big deal.

Then when I was prying the mirror glass from the mirror this happened:

Not overly pleased with that. Can the glass be removed from the backing with ease?

Alternatively how much is a second hand mirror glass with the backing plate? @spurs fan in a coupe @Synclare relying on you guys

 

[hard top]

Ooops....

 

[David]

@Faheem - Remove the broken glass from the backing (be very careful - they're stuck down well) and make sure you keep the backing plate!! The cheap eBay glass works well once glued to the original backing plate, but they are awful if you attempt to use the backing plate that comes with them.

 

[Faheem]

@David thanks bud. I'm unsure whether to buy convex, flat or the other billion options they have. I'm very happy with the standard oe glass, assuming that's flat?? I'll have to replace both now as one mirror will be a different shade to the other- if I don't.

 

[David]

@David I'll have to replace both now as one mirror will be a different shade to the other- if I don't.

I replaced just one, with no issue regarding tint of the mirror. I went with convex for a wider field of view but, like you said, I think the OEM mirrors are flat, and give a more natural reflection. The convex on my Z4 now make me feel like I'm seeing double.

...or was that the rum?!

 

[Faheem]

I got a pair of convex mirrors for my project zed and I didn't like how it distorts the view (even though it is only slighyly). Went with flat this time, a pair for 8 quid, at that price there's undoubtedly going to be something wrong with them.

 

[Faheem]

As for the mirror itself, I contacted them in regards to the finish of the product and they were really nice about it, gave me a £40 refund - so the mirror cost me £53 in the end which isn't so bad.

 

[Faheem]

I never posted a picture of the mirror complete. Here's what it looks like:

Best thing is, it swivels: