It looks like I need to replace a heated passenger mirror (I think it's heated) on a 2006 Mini Cooper. Sadly, I can't figure out what the right part is, or how to install it. Anyone know the answer off the top of their head? If you tell me how to do it, I'll post pictures . . .
Update: Perhaps I should explain why I, who am not known for my mechanical skill, am attempting this.
Well, there's been an ongoing adventure with the State of Pennsylvania, which finally consented to follow their own damn laws after I called the press department and asked for an explanation of their policy, which seemed to be in clear contravention of the existing law. During this saga, which was finally rectified in late November, two things happened:
1) My temporary tags expired
2) My mother ran into my car and cracked the right passenger mirror
The car is now parked in my sister's garage, from which it cannot be legally removed except to take it to inspection. When I did so last Saturday, I was informed that the mirror is cracked, and therefore I could not pass inspection. When I requested new temporary tags so that I might take the car to have it fixed, I was informed that it is District of Columbia policy never, ever to give out temporary tags. The nearest Mini dealership, I explained, is a long, illegal drive from my house. The DC answer is that I should pay several hundred dollars to get it towed. After all, if I hadn't . . . well, they're sure that this must somehow have been a malevolent or lazy mistake on my part, so go to hell. The woman at the desk claims that the computers are set up to lock if you attempt to issue a second set of temporary tags.
I would very much like not to pay several hundred dollars to tow my car to Sterling, Virginia. Moreover, Sterling, Virginia's Mini dealership can't fix my car until sometime in the New Year, because apparently, being the only dealership in the area keeps them pretty busy.
This leaves me with two choices: spend hundreds of dollars and leave my car parked for at least another month, or fix it myself.
Fun, huh? This is what my whole month has been like, friends. It's just one damn thing after another, and funnily enough, almost all of it the product of some useless bureaucratic innovation designed to convenience the designer at the expense of a "customer" they don't care about.
Copyright © 2009 by The Atlantic Monthly Group. All rights reserved.
The service department of your local Mini dealership?
Not much of an adventure, I realize. But a childhood memory of my father cracking a toilet in half while attempting to tighten a loose bolt taught me never to try to fix something myself if I have to ask either what is the right part or how do I install the part.
Should have mentioned: the local Mini dealership can't get me in until after the new year, and also, is a $300 tow from my house, since I can't register the car until the mirror is fixed.
Bru is wrong - fixing the mirror will be no harder than putting together a lego spaceship, albeit a bit dirtier.
every car owner should own a shop manual for their car. no exceptions. ok, except rich people and sorority girls.
step 1 is ordering a manual. step 2 is ordering a mirror. both steps may be possible using ebay. step 3 is following the directions, which were written for people far less intelligent than you.
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/raframecatalog.php?carcode=1432680&parttype=1304&a=FRc1432680k883228
that might be it
also, avoid track auto at all costs. auto zone is your friend.
Meghan,
I'm sure you can risk the drive to the Mini dealership. Unless you don't have plates?
jmo, do you know why that site is in german?
Just old temporary tags that are clearly marked as belonging to September. I have not been able to register the car for four months thanks to the State of PA's moronic snafu. which, I might add, they charged ME $25 to fix.
If you mean literally that the mirror itself is cracked, rather than the housing, I suggest obtaining a thin plastic mirror of the correct shape (look in the yellow pages under "mirrors") and cementing it onto the surface of the old cracked mirror. (Plastic mirrors are light and easy to shape.) Not a long-term solution, but all you need to do is pass inspection once so you can drive to the dealer.
Can't you just take it to a local mechanic, if you don't want to do it yourself? You shouldn't need to go to the dealer just to get a mirror fixed.
Jamiet,
It's RockAuto, LLC - Madison, Wisconsin. If you look on side-bar you can choose Enlight, German, or Spanish. I'm not sure why your browser chose German...
Jamiet,
It's RockAuto, LLC - Madison, Wisconsin. If you look on side-bar you can choose Enlight, German, or Spanish. I'm not sure why your browser chose German...
There are autorepairers who will come to you, are particularly good for relatively simple jobs and sometimes are cheaper than regular repair shops(less overhead)
Megan,
If this helps, and this is why the site is in German, Mini is owned by BMW - ah parts sharing. Perhaps you can go to the nearest BMW dealer, I imagine far more ubiquitous in DC than Mini specializers, and have it done there. Also, depending on the year, the commonality of junked Mini's, how desperately you need that mirror to be heated, and your proximity to a decent and trusted detail garage, a good idea may be to call out to junk shops for the appropriate mirror, or any that might suffice (I don't believe the Mini's had much design or structural deviation within the years it's been manufactured). This can be infinitely cheaper than ordering a new part, especially considering the fact that it's a foreign car. Even when I had an '83 Cadillac Coupe DeVille some years back, I did this to avoid having to pay major fees for deadstock detail items from GM - including a passenger mirror.
Good luck.
This site sells a slip over mirror that looks easy to install:
http://www.auto-glass.com/carmirror/bmw/index.htm
Why don't you just borrow a friends license plate for a few hours while you drive to the dealership? What are the odds that you get pulled over?
arlancas,
If they are the paper tags and there is some obvious indicator that they are expired - you could also just scan them into photoshop and print out a new one.
I don't believe a passenger side mirror is necessary under the PA regs. I cracked mine on my old toyota and didn't replace it; when they failed me I just took it off, duct-taped the hole shut, and they let it pass inspection.
As for replacing the mirror when you order a new one, the whole assembly probably bolts to the interior of the door, and you'd just have to pry a plastic cover off to get to the nuts.
/probably talking out of my you-know-what
Inspections? I take my car for emissions testing, but I didn't know any locality that still did actual inspections. Is this a feature of the wonderful DC culture only, or do other states/cities still require this?
Go to northamericanmotoring.com and ask for help. You will find able and enthusiastic Mini owners and mechanics near where you live.
Yancey,
In MA, when you take it in for your admissions inspection, while they have the sensor up your tail pipe, they make you beep the horn and flash your lights etc. I assume they also check mirrors and such.
Meghan, as a fellow Mini owner, I know that each car comes with a 4-year roadside assistance program that includes free towing for accidents and breakdowns. Not sure if a broken mirror that prevents a car from passing inspection qualifies as a breakdown for free towing purposes, but given your predicament, it is certainly worth a phone call. Also, they may be willing to tow your car to the Mini dealership in Towson or the one in Annapolis (assuming that one of those dealerships has an opening before January). The roadside assitance phone number should be in the folio that contains the owner's manual.
As for Jamiet's comment that I am "wrong," all I can say is that my father's reaction to the toilet bowl cracking left a rather large emotional scar.
I don't quite understand why you can't just risk the illegal drive to get it fixed. Do they automatically tow you if they pull you over or something? Coming from someone who in college drove for months at a time (well, a year or more) without legit tags and got a few tickets to boot, it hardly seems like that much of an adventure.
1] Find a do-it yourself auto supply place (Pep Boys?? Dunno, I don't live in the States...)
2] Buy a replacement stick-on mirror. AFAIK, these come in a choice of shapes, so maybe trace the existing mirror. If it doesn't come with adhesive, buy some double-sided tape as well.
3] Apply, deal with the functionaries, make an appointment with the service department at your leisure
4] Remember service and repair issues when you buy your next car :-)
Most mirrors can't be replaced without removing the door panel. I would agree with suggestions for a temporary replacement until you can get it repaired properly. A mechanic should be able to point you in the right direction of a passable temporary mirror. Good luck.
The car is now parked in my sister's garage, from which it cannot be legally removed except to take it to inspection...The nearest Mini dealership, I explained, is a long, illegal drive from my house.
You bought a Mini instead of a real car in order to be Green, right? Well, now you're even Greener, so stop whining.
Make your Mom make the illegal drive and fix it. What's she doing running around breaking people's mirrors on their cars anyway?
This is the only way she'll learn.
Aristides is right. Even if you get pulled over, the ticket will be less than $300, and most cops will accept "I'm on my way to the dealer to get inspected" and let you with a warning anyway.
Gotdamn effete cosmotarians with your heated mirrors and your...
As others have asked, why not just drive to the Mini dealer since you're driving to the inspection?
If you're really worried, have the Mini dealer fax you, on their letterhead, a short note that you have an appointment at XXXX time on YYYY date to repair the mirror for the purpose of passing the vehicle inspection. Take that along with the failure slip/paper (you did get one, right?) with you on the drive to the dealer.
Even if you should get pulled over, most cops are looking to (A) find out why you don't have unexpired tags and (B) make sure you're not just driving around willy-nilly. With a legitimate reason such as yours, more than likely they'll just let you go or give a warning. Ooh!
You should be able to buy a single-day trip permit for about $10. If the right side mirror was an option, you should be able to just take it off to pass inspection. Only left side mirrors are required, unless that law has been changed. But notice the extensive food-chain attached to cars and driving.
Bob, apparently, you have never driven a Mini or else you would not have made such a comment. The fuel economy is simply a side benefit. Minis are incredibly fun to drive, have a ton of power for their size, are very reliable and reasonably priced, and come with great warranties (I didn't even have to pay to replace my wiper blades for my Mini's first three years). And if you live in an urban setting and don't yet have kids, a Mini has the added benefit of being much easier to park.
Maybe try one of those mobile windshield places?
I hate inspection laws. I just spent $300 to have my window tint changed from 28% to 35% because I moved to a new state.
Use double-sided tape and any cheapo mirror you can find. It should help you pass inspection.
Megan,
http://www.realoem.com/
It's an online parts database for all BMW parts, with diagrams (and prices for many parts). You'll have to go to your car and figure out its vehicle number and manufacture date (though for a mirror, I can't imagine that you really have to be terribly precise about it). Once you've selected your car, choose Vehicle Trim -> Doors / Outside Mirrors.
Option 3: Drive it anyway. At least around here the penalty for driving on expired tags is a 75 dollar ticket, not jail time. And its reasonably unlikely that you would even get caught; I've driven on expired tags for a year without being caught.
I am the last person to give a rat's ass about Green living - the whole thing seems to me just a secularized form of Puritan extremism. That aside, before gas prices went down again, it was just common sense to get a car with good fuel efficiency, and the Mini is actually more efficient than the sacred Prius. There is, in fact nothing particularly "Green" about either car (running on gas as they do) unless we're talking about the paint job. Hell, even I got the port heads adjusted on my '98 Lincoln Mark VIII and a couple of other modifications and that car, what many an ecovangelist might derisively call a "boat", now gets about the same mileage as the vaunted Prius. Being a pistonhead, I simply cannot abide sacrificing the pleasure of a fine automobile for novel western cultural abstractions, but saving money .... that's a horseless carriage of a different color.
Alternately, if you give the folks at Bavarian Autosport a call, they're usually really helpful, and their standard shipping is pretty quick.
Get a Mac!
(That's always the answer to all PC repair questions, so I thought it might work here too.)
LOL - why would you say something that is so obviously ridiculous? Going from 17 city 26 highway to 48 city 45 highway defies the laws of physics.
1. Order the part
2. Have a local mechanic put it on for you.
This is a real easy job and can be done in less than 20 minutes. It will let you pass inspection. If the car is really new then go to the dealership for a matching part. Otherwise try auto zone.
get some cardboard from your local arts and craft store (office closet) and some silver paint, cut to form, paint (before you stick in the recipticle), glue to broken mirror. Happy Holidays.
Fixing this problem on a BMW can be difficult. If you have to take off the trim panel it will be difficult. If the mirror can be plugged in without taking of the trim panel it will easy. A local body shop can do this in either case for less money than a dealer.
"LOL - why would you say something that is so obviously ridiculous? Going from 17 city 26 highway to 48 city 45 highway defies the laws of physics."
jmo - ah, the wonders of a quick google search. I would say something so ridiculous because:
a) My knowledge of the MPG of the Prius and the Mark VII is based on real world experience and not manufacturer provided statistics and,
b) I know a great deal about car mechanics and such a thing is actually quite possible but takes a lot of time and effort, which most people don't have the patience or energy to expend - yes ... even and ESPECIALLY the Ford Motor Company circa 2008.
Also, please take note that the engine, a Ford 32-valve V8 was a very special one that was put to limited use, and in later years only in the heaviest of SUV's, where its excellent displacement and economy couldn't best be taken advantage of even with the best of mod's.
If only the mirror glass itself is cracked, then the stick-on option should be more than enough to get you past this useless bit of bureacracy.
If the entire assembly is broken, you can certainly change it yourself; but given how the Mini's mirrors are installed on the door, removing the door panel is a certainty. Doors are pretty easy once you've disassembled a couple, but they can slightly obscure to a rookie, and then there's the issue of the latch plate or lock assembly coming loose and causing you some grief during reassembly.
Here's an idea, though: Buy the part yourself, but then look around for a shop that does automotive glass repair, glass tinting, custom interiors, that sort of thing. Any of them will know how to get inside of a door, after that it will usually be a matter of four screws and a couple snap-lock electrical connectors. Generally (especially if it's a local shop) they won't be picky about work, provided they have the ability and tools to do it.
Cool Cal,
So you're telling a engine mod can make a 4.6L 3765lbs V-8 w/ a 4-speed slushbox more efficient than a 110bhp 2932 lb 4 cyl with a CVT... and regenerative braking?
Dude - what you are saying is so obviously ridiculous I don't know what would posses you to say it.
"It looks like I need to replace a heated passenger mirror (I think it's heated) on a 2006 Mini Cooper."
You waited on line all night at the Apple store for a new iPhone, you've raved about your Amazon Kindle, and now I read you own a Mini Cooper. Taken together, it's almost a caricature of hipster consumerism.
Cool Cal,
Sorry, actually the Prius has a 76bhp 1.5L 4-cyl.
But the question remains - how does a 4.6L V-8 in a 3765lb car get better gas milage than a 2973lb car with a 1.5L 4-cyl?
What law of thermodynamics have you found a way to violate?
I promise, I won't be a hipster snob about other peoples' products, if you won't be an anti-hipster snob about mine . . .
Especially since I shop at both Wal-Mart and QVC.
Fair enough, Megan. For what it's worth, I avoid Wal-Mart like the plague, since our local one -- on the one or two occasions we have been there -- has been a dirty, crowded, stress-filled place. I'm sure other Wal-Marts aren't like that though.
AAA-Plus offers 100 miles of towing for free.
I think it takes a few days--a week? to take effect.
Inspections? I take my car for emissions testing, but I didn't know any locality that still did actual inspections.
Texas requires them. Of course, seeing some of the junkers on the road, if they are effective is another matter......
New York State also requires actual inspections every year.
Since the licensed inspectors are inevitably mechanics, they are motivated to find problems and give a bit of a boost to their industry.
This is a sad story - not only because it must be very frustrating for you, but because some mechanically minded prince is bound to come to the rescue, and then with one thing following another you'll end up too busy taking care of the lil' chilluns to blog!
For the sake of your readers, have a regular mechanic do it for cash on the barrelhead.
Others have said this in various ways, but let me make it as plain as possible:
You do not -- NOT -- have to take your car to a dealership for most repairs & maintenance. For anything but the most complex work, your average corner garage will do as well, and likely charge you less.
Nor must you order the part yourself, although if you know the exact part needed, you might -- MIGHT -- be able to buy it slightly cheaper.
I admire your willingness to tackle the job yourself, but honestly, unless you enjoy wielding the wrench, you should:
(1) Drive the (short) distance to your favorite, nearby, reputable car repair place. Surely you can drive a mile or so without being pulled over. For something as simple as a mirror replacement, even a mildly disreputable one will do.
(2) Tell them what you want fixed. They'll look up the part number, and give you an estimate. If the price seems reasonable, leave the car with them. They will order the part(s) required. Depending on how long it takes for the part to arrive, they should have your care ready for pickup within a day or three.
I get the impression that this is your first car, and that you're unfamiliar with the ordinary customs of car ownsership. It's almost like you're saying: "Hey everyone! I got a new cell phone. But now it shuts down five seconds after I dial a number. What do I do?"
We roll our eyes and answer: "Plug it in, and let it recharge for an hour."
In that spirit: Most garages also do inspection work. When inspection time rolls around, the standard routine is:
(a) Drop off the car.
(b) They inspect.
(c) If anything's wrong, they call you back.
(d) You ask: How $much & how long to fix it? They say something reasonable. You say: Do it!
(e) You pick up the car, with minor repairs and inspection completed.
Join AAA. Cost you $75 for the upgraded package and they will tow you anywhere within 100 miles for free.
You will have the added benefit of their coverage for a full year.
Alternatively, drive it to the dealership, don't weave and stay within the speed limit. They won't stop you.
Wow, Megan, you are an amazingly law abiding person. It's almost unAmerican to follow the law instead of common sense. Previous posters have provided the answers: 1)duct tape and/or 2)neighborhood garage. Could I add that you should expand your circle of friends to include someone mechanically minded?
As for driving the unregistered car to the dealership, yes the fine might be small, but the much more important question is whether your insurance coverage would be valid.
Moving to Maryland this year, it's the first time I've lived anywhere that had a vehicle inspection other than for emissions. And Maryland's regulations were evidently written by the auto repair industry. I'd be OK with a basic safety inspection (costing say $25, not a gouging $90)-- tires, brakes, wipers, lights, seat belts. But no, Maryland insists the car be in mint condition: no dents or scratches allowed. It cost us $800+ to title and register my partner's car (we had to replace the windshield among other things-- there was a very tiny chip in it not even visible from the driver's POV). Several of my coworkers (transferred here as well) have decided to remain citizens in exile of Florida. Why in the hell do people put up with this BS? I'm surprised there hasn't been a ballot initiative repealing these laws.
Please post a video of you peeling your 6'5" self out of the Mini.
I love living in a state without mandatory inspections. Go west, young woman!
That's the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to you, foreigner.
1. Is the Mini one of those cars that are especially good fits for really tall people?
2. I can't figure out why DC is infamous for lots of people breaking the law and selling crack and so forth. It is almost as if tyrannizing the innocent doesn't translate into keeping the less scrupulous really really law-abiding.
3. Since you're willing to stand for these kinds of laws in practice, why don't you just scream while the inspector inspects your car, and holler that he was touching you in A Bad Place? Since your local laws have no evident connection to right & wrong anyway.
4. I keep hearing stories like this from people in the Great Super-Urban Mid-Atlantic States, and I have come to wonder if some kind of implicit request for graft is what's really going on here.
5. I wonder if excellent service-oriented government like this has helped bring about a state of affairs where it's hard for you to buy a satisfying car made in the United States? Would giving GM $50 billion fix this?
6. Since you have the mechanical skill of a newt, could you just remove your right mirror altogether, and plug any holes with Bondo[TM]? Then have the dealer put it back on. Or does DC require that your car have a right side rear view mirror?
> Since you're willing to stand for these kinds of
> laws in practice, why don't you just scream while
> the inspector inspects your car, and holler that
> he was touching you in A Bad Place? Since your
> local laws have no evident connection to right &
> wrong anyway.
I don't /really/ think that you should stage a fake sexual harassment event. But I /do/ think that you and your fellow-citizens are suffering from an epidemic which might be summed up with a 'Broken Windows Theory of law,' i.e., a legal system that is so obviously broken in the small things will not much discourage those malefactors who wish to produce and benefit from medium-sized and bigger problems.
I /am/ aware that you are a more-or-less-libertarian /in theory/; it's just a question of what, if anything, you will do /in practice/ to help stop government from breaking your neighborhood's windows.
I suggest you wait a little while if that's what it takes until you can apply creativity. Just where are some of your local government's actual sore spots, anyway? Maybe you should threaten to teach more of your co-citizens to read? :-)
I'm guessing that 62 people have already told you this, but here goes: Gird up your loins like a libertarian and drive the damn car without legal tags! Since you've made yourself semi-conspicuous by bitching about this in public, and because you own a conspicuous car, maybe you should leave DC at about five in the morning. Not many cops in DC are going to see you. In Virginia, they won't give a damn about a DC car with expired tags. By the way, you complain a lot about not having money, and yet you drive a car that charges about $5,000 for "style."
PS I wouldn't be so hard on you, except that I heart heart heart David Gergen.