Exploding passenger side mirror

Maintenance/Repairs
41

Thank you, db4690! :slight_smile: I appreciate your support and others in this forum for expecting to be treated with respect and not dismissed, especially from the dealership where said vehicle was purchased, coupled with the fact that someone in their service depā€™t told me that it was covered under my extended warranty and to come in and get it fixed! When I brought the vehicle in, the service rep assigned to me was arrogant, uninformed (couldnā€™t even give me any details about what the extended warranty did & did not cover), and was just plain idiotic for what he said about both mirrors needing to have exploded & flying out of their casing simultaneously in order to be legit. As someone else inferred earlier in this forum, he should have just manned up and admitted his lack of knowledge about said issue.

They have already lost my business and I will never go back there nor to any other Lexus dealership. I had prior issues with them regarding the quality of their customer service, but I thought I would try & give them the benefit of the doubt with this particular issue. I was encouraged by the conversation that I had with the person over the phone and TRUSTED what he told me. That was my first mistake and the last one that I will ever make with them again. You live and learnā€¦ :slight_smile:

42

The Same Mountainbike: I am a scientist & genetic engineer and I am always interested and fascinated in trying to understand how things work & why things do what they do, especially when they fail. 90% of what we do as biologists fails; we get used to failure, trust me. Hence, I have a very natural curiosity about what is causing these sorts of explosions. In my case, I donā€™t know what happened first - i.e., did the mirror crack and the release of the liquid/gel trigger some sort of electrical short/explosion that caused the whole mirror to come flying out of the casing OR did the explosion happen first, which then caused the mirror to crack? I can say, that in the San Fran bay, temperature fluctuations are infrequent. The day this happened, it was a classical SF morning, ~57 degrees, which is the norm (high 50ā€™s to low 60ā€™s) year round.

43

Iā€™m assuming your side mirrors are electrically heated to keep them clear in freezing weather? Iā€™m wondering if the heating system malfunctioned and got stuck on, causing a large pressure build up in the liquid, and eventual explosion.

44

Ljohnson, itā€™s good to know thereā€™s another naturally enquiring mind on the forum. At my age it seems like the only thing that delights me is making sense out of something that isnā€™t obvious. Often even when I apply everything I know, something still makes no sense. Itā€™s hard over the internet because I canā€™t get my hands on the parts (and a SEM) to analyze and/or to run tests and experiments.

Most of science is failing. It is what causes us to know we still need to know more. Itā€™s what shows us how little we know. Itā€™s what drives us.

Thanks for posting.

45

@ oblivion - Itā€™s a great question whether the heating system may have malfunctioned and Iā€™ve wondered that myself. Iā€™m not sure what would have activated it to turn on in the first place, though, as the vehicle hasnā€™t been in freezing whether since Thanksgiving.

46

can we find a production/mechanical/engineering drawing for this mirror?

47

This happened to me tonight. Defrost on full for the first time since I bought the truck. Boom!! Glass on road and backplate on side of road. Not a soul in sight and nothing to possibly hit. Not an ounce of damage anywhere. The heated mirror just exploded. Loud as hell. Freaked me out. Glad to see Iā€™m not the only one but Iā€™m thinking I may just buy the part because my dealer might think Iā€™m a loon.

1 Like
48

Geez had to go back to see what I said four years ago to get the OP upset. Havenā€™t changed my mind a bit. Shattering windows, mirrors, blow outs, loud noises, and other unexpected situations must all be handled without panic and driving off the road. Keep your cool and maintain control. Take a cue from how pilots react in an emergency situation with engines flamed out, etc. They donā€™t go nuts but try everything to maintain control.

1 Like
49

Hi ljohnson,

I was one of those people searching on the internet today, to see if anyone else had experienced this exploding passenger side mirror. This past weekend, I experienced it, and I could not find any evidence I hit something in the road, or something hit me.

I have a 2020 Jaguar we just bought about 3-months ago. I was traveling down the highway this past weekend and after making a left turn I heard this same type of explosion as you did!

My husband took it into my Jaguar dealership today and they indicated I must have hit something, or something hit me. I do not believe this is what happened but what else can I do, it is a professional word, against mind; for now, I need to get it repaired for safety.

But I am afraid this is an issue I believe should be investigated further; it really sounds like a defected parts issue. I was lucky I was not hurt or hurt someone else, but it was a very horrifying and nerve-racking experience. I really donā€™t want this to happen to me again or anyone else!

Nevertheless, the car dealers and the repair shops apparently donā€™t seem to see this as a big deal or an issue to be looked into. I have found from the research, on the web today, there are many others who have had this happen as well, which has helped me to realize Iā€™m not going crazy! However, this is the only website where I could post this issue.

I am hoping if enough folks keep letting others know this is happening, evenly it will gather enough data to where this issue can be recognized as a problem and something can be done to make it safer for us all! One can hope!!!

1 Like
50

One more case here. Happened 5/26/2020 My situation occurred exactly as the others have described. ā€œExplosionā€ is the only adjective that correctly describes what I heard. The mirror housing is intact and suffered no damage. Hereā€™s the twist in my case. I now have a 24 inch crease in the door of my month-old 1992 Acura NSX. The crease runs from near the front door gap to the middle of the door. The only other factor that I can think of is that it was raining and I was changing climate control, dealing with defroster and air conditioningā€¦ I will see my body repair guy shortly. Will be interested to see if he has experienced this in his many years of fixing vehicles. Wish there were some good explanation. ljohnson, you are not crazy!

1 Like
51

Yours is the first case that has the same element that I had of fooling with the climate control at the time it happened. Iā€™m almost convinced there is a ink between climate control and exploding mirror and it is an electric issue causing the explosion.

52

electric mirrors? even if they are I think thatā€™s a stretch. I feel like thatā€™s more likely to be a coincidence

1 Like
53

Which means you HIT something or something hit you. How can a 1992 NSX be a month old? Do you mean youā€™ve owned it for a month?

I do not understand how people can make a fuss over a glass part that hangs off the car in a vulnerable spot but costs less than a hundred dollars to a few hundred to replace. Replace it and move on.

2 Likes
54

I have a 2018 Lexus Nx 300h, that we bought 2 years ago and had been bringing to the dealership for maintenance. Recently on August 31st, 2020 my right handside mirror exploded with wires hanging out and mirror popped out- luckily I was a block away from my house running about 5mph, or my mirror would have flown in the freeway and may have coz an accident.
Brought to the dealership but they said that I might have hit something since there was this thread like dent- (which could have happen due to the mirror popping out of its case.)
Still does not make sense to have a side mirror exploding. Its like if your car gets even the tiniest dent your mirror might explode.
The dealership claims this is not covered by my warranty due to what they claim something flew or hit the side mirror. I keep on telling them - I was the driver nothing hit the vehicle.
Hopefully this manufacturer take this seriously before any accident happen.

1 Like
55

We are glad to see some posting about this incident and to support Ljohnson that this is really happening. Our Lexus 2018 NX300 H is another incident. I hope that the dealership will take this seriously that might cause an accident to some drivers. The sound of explosion is very loud like a .45 caliber gun shot. and the driver will be out of focus due to the explosion.

1 Like
56

To those who have had this happen to them ā€“ it is very real. It doesnā€™t look like I ever posted a follow-up to what happened.

  1. As I summarized in various posts above, I posted my story to Lexusā€™ Facebook page, including how my car dealership responded (or lack thereof). They promptly replied asking me to contact them via their less public company website, which I did.

I then received this response from Lexus:

Response Via Email (Sean) 05/09/2014 09:57 AM
Dear L Johnson:

Thank you for contacting Lexus Customer Satisfaction. We are dedicated to providing superior service. In circumstances that require our attention, we will assist in the resolution process.

I have forwarded your information to a Follow-up SpecialistĀ’s who will complete a full review and contact you within three to five business days by phone to discuss your concerns. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you.

If you require further assistance, please respond to this e-mail, or contact Lexus Customer Satisfaction at 1-800-255-3987, Monday through Friday, 5:00 am to 6:00 pm, or Saturday, 7:00 am to 4:00 pm, Pacific Time.

Sincerely,

Sean Pete

Lexus Customer Satisfaction|

  1. I also reached out to all of my local investigative news reporters at ABC, CBS and NBC that help investigate and resolve customer issues by bringing public awareness to serious issues. While some got back to me, they ultimately never followed up with a story.

  2. I also filed a formal online complaint with the US DOT NHTSA. For those experiencing this problem, it is critical that you lodge this formal complaint for tracking purposes so that they can be reviewed and analyzed for potential defects trends. Here is the email notification I received upon filing.

Thank you for filing your safety-related complaint via our Web site or our Vehicle Safety Hotline. The ODI Number listed below will be a direct link to your complaint as soon as it is ready to view. Please allow at least two business days for approval and processing before trying to view your complaint online. You will then be able to view it and search any associated documents.

Your Confirmation number (ODI Number) is: 10587595

Your complaint information will be entered into the NHTSA vehicle owner complaint database. NHTSA technical staff review this information to identify potential safety problems. While you may or may not be contacted by a NHTSA investigator to clarify the information submitted, all reports are reviewed and analyzed for potential defects trends. Also, the NHTSA complaint database provides valuable information to other consumers and to manufacturers.

If you have any questions regarding this complaint, please contact ODI:

  • By phone: 1-888-327-4236 Monday-Friday, 8:00AM to 8:00PM Eastern
    TTY: 1-888-424-9153
    Have your ODI Number available.
    (Spanish-speaking operators available)

  • By e-mail: http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/contact.cfm
    Indicate your ODI Number in the contact form.

Thank you,

Office of Defects Investigation (ODI)
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT)

  1. In my case, they said they didnā€™t know whether the mirror cracked first and the auto-dimming fluid produced an electrical short that caused the explosion and the mirror to come flying out of the casing, or if the explosion happened first, resulting in the cracked mirror. The mirror was still attached via some of the electrical wires.

The fluid also ruins the paint so you have to get that buffed out and repainted. So the damage extended beyond the mirror, which resulted in the cost of the full repair to be significantly higher.

  1. As I was going through this, I was also told that dealerships generally make more money from their service/repair sector rather than from the sale of vehicles. In situations like mine, I was told that dealerships will make you pay for the repairs, and that they may also have the ability to submit their own claim for reimbursement, thereby effectively getting paid twice. The only way someone can uncover whether this happens is through the litigation discovery process.

  2. Your best recourse is to make the serious safety issue PUBLIC. Post to social media ā€“ both the car manufacturerā€™s and your own personal social media sites, AND tag the car manufacturer as well as the US DOT NHTSA and ODI (see point 3 above).

Please contact your local investigative news teams.

  1. Saving the best for last and finality ā€“ it is only because I posted to Lexusā€™ Facebook page that I ultimately was taken serious and they repaired the damage at their full expense!!

After 3-5 days, a Follow-up SpecialistĀ’ from Lexus contacted me. I took my car to another dealership in the bay area (I refused to go back to where I purchased the vehicle based on how they treated me), and they provided me a loaner vehicle to drive. Lexus then sent a team of people to that dealership and they thoroughly examined the mirror. They took my claim serious but also went into their investigation thinking they would prove I hit something and that I would be held responsible.

Well, their investigation proved that I did not hit something and no one shot my mirror.

They ended up repairing the mirror as well as repairing the paint on all of the damaged panels from the caustic fluid.

  1. For those who still doubt this is a very real thing, please do not.

For those to whom this very unfortunate thing has happened ā€” please fight and make them do the right thing.

And please report to the US DOT NHTSA. Nothing will be done to help people and bring this issue to light if they donā€™t receive the complaints and can track trends.

57

There is no conspiracy

This is not isolated to a few brands

Nobody did anything wrong

Life happens

Fix it and move on

1 Like
58

@db4690 ā€” Who is saying this is a conspiracy?

And if this is not isolated to a few brands, that supports our claims that clearly something is amiss & can go wrong.

A more accurate incidence rate can only be determined if people are encouraged to speak up AND file a complaint with the US DOT NHTSA. Then and only then can this defect be appropriately addressed and ownersā€™ repairs covered in full.

59

Iā€™ll say it again . . .

Life happens

fix the mirror and move on with your life already

itā€™s the same as if if some debris on the freeway results in a broken windshield . . . which has happened to me, and probably lots of others on this forum . . . what are you going to do? fix it and move on? Or try to find somebody to blame? In my case, I couldnā€™t find anybody to blame, so I fixed it and moved on with my life. Pretty simple

60

@Jeff_Madden, @Lucy_Williams, @Jt-109, @Percival-1:

Thank you for all of your posts and sharing your experiences.

I just posted a summary of all of the steps I pursued PLUS the good news that Lexus ultimately stepped up and repaired the damage at their expense.

For those who experience this, it is quite alarming and scares the heck out of you when it explodes.

I encourage you to hold Lexus accountable and keep up the good fight, and I wish you a speedy resolution. Please feel free to share my story with Lexus as well as my outcome.