Itinerant Air-Cooled

Both of my side mirrors are showing their age. The passenger side broke off at the pivot point. The part(s) connecting it to the arm are still rattling around inside.

Would it be possible to put it back together? Or should I just replace it?

As you can see the seal is crumbling away:

If it's at all possible I'd like to pop the glass out, replace it with new, and put in a new seal. Where would I find the seal? I recall seeing this done at some point, but recall where I saw it.

Also, not sure, but should there be a washer or something else to keep the mirror from drooping down as it unscrews itself?

My passenger side mirror isn't currently pointed anywhere useful, unfortunately. they just flop over at the first strong breeze.

I can however answer that last question. There used to be a plastic washer here. You can make your own out of a lid from a coffee can or peanuts/etc though. Mostly that's just to keep it from digging into the paint on your door.

I can never see over my dog sitting in the passenger seat to see out of that mirror anyway, so I haven't done anything about it. I will eventually though because it's ugly as sin (PO painted it black over the chrome, and it's pealing )

Not sure that I have ever seen replacement seals for these mirrors unfortunately.

I've been told the gasket from a garden hose works as a washer.


neal

ruckman101 wrote:I've been told the gasket from a garden hose works as a washer.


neal

I said that. I hereby rescind it. The stupid hose washer is too mushy and the mirror creeps.

Whoever said that washer is just to prevent scratching the paint? It prevents evil water incursion and seems to serve as a vibration damper.
Colin

I got my mirror washers at the Depot....

Part number 211857543

I bought the stainless mirrors from OE VDub. So far so good.

Randy in Maine wrote:I got my mirror washers at the Depot....

Part number 211857543

I bought the stainless mirrors from OE VDub. So far so good.

What kind of washer is that? Bus Depot has such an in depth description.

I found a thread on Samba where they put mirrors back together using some tubing to act as the seal. That's my leading choice at the moment.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewto ... irror+seal

Something to consider... these mirrors are absolutely wonderful and reasonably priced.
http://www.wolfsburgwest.com/cart/Detai ... 1857513fww

Perhaps much more cost-effective than trying to restore your old ones.

As for the washer, I found translucent-white nylon washers in the plumbing department at my local Ace Hardware that work perfectly.

A little blue Locktite on the threads of the passenger-side mirror keeps it from unscrewing itself in the wind.

I have those in my wish list, which keeps growing.
I just may do that.

Thought I'd like stainless mirrors, so asked WW if the whole thing is SS, and they responded:

The mirror head is 304 stainless, and the arm is diecast/chomre plated (as original).
Regards,
Ron

grandfatherjim wrote:Thought I'd like stainless mirrors, so asked WW if the whole thing is SS, and they responded:

The mirror head is 304 stainless, and the arm is diecast/chomre plated (as original).
Regards,
Ron

Thanks for that bit of info.
All I need to do now is place the order.

I thought I remember somebody saying the plastic spacer disk that comes on the top/bottom of stacks of blank CD or DVD media works well as a washer for side mirrors. Might need a little trimming/resizing.

I could be wrong on this so don't kill me.

Oregon72 wrote:I thought I remember somebody saying the plastic spacer disk that comes on the top/bottom of stacks of blank CD or DVD media works well as a washer for side mirrors. Might need a little trimming/resizing.

I could be wrong on this so don't kill me.

After I read that I hunted some down in my cd/DVD spindles and all the washers I have are foam. That just seems like it'd be begging for rust. I swear they were a harder plastic not long ago.

Oregon72 wrote:I thought I remember somebody saying the plastic spacer disk that comes on the top/bottom of stacks of blank CD or DVD media works well as a washer for side mirrors. Might need a little trimming/resizing.

I could be wrong on this so don't kill me.

That was me. Worked great, no leaks or vibration.

I will say this, though. The "OEM Hagus" mirrors sold by Bus Depot are absolute CRAP! Disintegrated beading, and horrible pock-mark staining behind the mirror glass. I'm ashamed to have them hanging on my bus. If I get a chance, I will post a couple pictures to illustrate...

My next set will be the Wolfsburg West stainless.

A couple of years ago I got a set from CIP1. The nut on BOTH mirrors was threaded at an angle, meaning, as you rotated it, it wobbled. So if I were to try to mount them on the bus I couldn't cinch up the nut, and it would certainly have seriously gouged the paint if I tried.
They wouldn't take them back, as I had waited too long (over the winter I think). "30 days, sorry." " But they are DEFECTIVE". "Sorry."
So, I wouldn't get them there. To be fair, I have had other items from there that were defective and when they discovered the entire lot was bad, I was credited.
Caveat emptor.

Ordered new ones from Wolfsburg West a couple days ago, should be able to put them on this coming week. I'll hang on to the old ones incase I do decide to refurb them.

Strongly considered ordering this:
https://shop.westcoastmetric.com/viewPr ... ID=211-000
Anyone had experience with this particular piece?