Cover on Ducato left wing mirror needs replacing. I see the cover alone is available for sale on line. This implies it can be installed by bolting or clipping or whatever I guess. Can someone kindly confirm this is right? the rest of the unit is fine and working
General wing mirror
- Thread starter msk
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General wing mirror
Hi. More helpful if you confirm the year and if standard van or not.
lycopersicum
Member
I was in your situation, bought a cover, and followed a YouTube video which instructed me to basically pop the mirror out.
When I did that it just broke in half and I had to buy the whole unit. Not sure what I did wrong.
When I did that it just broke in half and I had to buy the whole unit. Not sure what I did wrong.
I'm no help anymore.
More knowing on here, but you may get more from a motorhome site?
More knowing on here, but you may get more from a motorhome site?
Yes it can - I have done that after busting just the mirror cover on branches sticking out at the side of the road. I got a very cheap pair of covers off ebay - it isn't a very good fit so I had to use a bit of black gaffa tape to cover a gap and hold it on. No good being a perfectionist here. I could have far spent more money and time on getting it looking perfect, and then busted it again given so few councils seem to be doing their job in cutting off the tree branches sticking out into the road.
Like many things on vehicles these days, the glass is held in by plastic clips, the only way to get it out is by force and hope it doesn't break. I use a thin strip of steel bent at right angle at the end so I can just get it right behind the mirror glass and pull it out. The force is spread over a couple of centimetres to reduce risk of cracking the glass. I had to use so much force I thought it would break, but even though its thin glass its tougher than it looks because the silvering and plastic frame makes it strong. Using this method rather than a screwdriver or something putting all the force in one spot like a chisel going into a brick, I haven't broken one yet, but there is always a first time and there were times I thought it would break. Once the glass is out you can see the screws holding the cover in.
PS: I stick the strip of metal in at the side, not the top or bottom of the glass (as that is further away from the clip holding it in which is in the centre of the glass)
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vangerwin
New member
I dont know if you already replaced the cover. I recently replaced both mirrors. It is a nightmare to remove the mirror glass and putting it back. I had to replace the blinker light. Removing the glass went fine, putting it back not so much. Resulting in breaking the glass. Bought a new one (€75), but my cover was also cracked so had to do that anyway.
theoneandonly
Prominent member
Just in case you need to do it again the indicator assembley (x290 mid or long arm) doesnt require the mirror to be removed. The 2 holding screws can be acessed by moving the mirror by motor then last bit by hand.
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One of my mirror covers was cracked by an impact with an oncoming vehicle when my van was only a few weeks old. Instead of replacing the original cover, I ran an automotive PU adhesive/sealant around the damaged area and fitted silver MirrorGuard covers over it and the other mirror. I haven't suffered any other damage since and the effect of the Mirror Guards, being silver rather than black has a dramatic effect on the behaviour of oncoming drivers. Whereas before I found they would often barrel through on narrow roads even when I had stopped, they now pull over and give way quite consistently.
My assumption is that the original black mirror covers didn't register with many drivers, and they related the available with of the road simply to the van body itself, whereas with the MirrorGuards I am convinced that they think that van is even wider than is actually the case.
I'd highly recommend them, both as a method of repair and prevention of further damage. They are constructed similarly to motorcyclists helmets, with a robust outer shell and a foam lining, so the likelihood of further damage is greatly reduced.
I used the PU sealant between the Mirror Guards and the original mirror covers on both mirrors, since it also has the benefit of preventing them being pulled off by a thief, something which again is probably unlikely unless you are very unfortunate, but I have heard of it happening more than once.
My assumption is that the original black mirror covers didn't register with many drivers, and they related the available with of the road simply to the van body itself, whereas with the MirrorGuards I am convinced that they think that van is even wider than is actually the case.
I'd highly recommend them, both as a method of repair and prevention of further damage. They are constructed similarly to motorcyclists helmets, with a robust outer shell and a foam lining, so the likelihood of further damage is greatly reduced.
I used the PU sealant between the Mirror Guards and the original mirror covers on both mirrors, since it also has the benefit of preventing them being pulled off by a thief, something which again is probably unlikely unless you are very unfortunate, but I have heard of it happening more than once.
