# Kia Optima Side View Mirror Housing Popped Off **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** optima, kia, repair\ **Created:** [October 19, 2014, 10:11am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/kia-optima-side-view-mirror-housing-popped-off/87723 "2014-10-19T10:11:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![stryker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cdc98d/32.png) [@stryker](https://community.cartalk.com/u/stryker)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 10:11am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/kia-optima-side-view-mirror-housing-popped-off/87723/1 "2014-10-19T10:11:05Z")
My Kia Optima side view mirror popped off when it hit a trash can and I was wondering if there was any way to reattach it? I was thinking of using some really strong epoxy, but I don’t know where I would apply it since the mirror rotates when it comes in contact with other objects and if I used epoxy I might lose that functionality. I attached an image, if someone could look at this and give some suggestions and maybe tell me if epoxy would work and where to apply it, that would be great. ---
**Author:** ![BustedKnuckles](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bustedknuckles/32/25_2.png) [@BustedKnuckles](https://community.cartalk.com/u/BustedKnuckles)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 3:04pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/kia-optima-side-view-mirror-housing-popped-off/87723/2 "2014-10-19T15:04:01Z")
If you glue it down, it will not rotate anymore. It looks like the pivot is fractured and pieces are missing. Your best bet is to replace the whole unit and I suggest going to a salvage yard to find one. ---
**Author:** ![knfenimore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9fc348/32.png) [@knfenimore](https://community.cartalk.com/u/knfenimore)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 3:49pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/kia-optima-side-view-mirror-housing-popped-off/87723/3 "2014-10-19T15:49:43Z")
You can buy them online cheap. I bought one for my camry with power adjust. Some require both power and heating element. I had to paint mine, but it looks as if yours is black and that’s the way they come. Search around for the best price, but here is a link to show you a sample and price. [http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/shop\_parts/mirror/kia.html](http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/shop_parts/mirror/kia.html) ---
**Author:** ![missileman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/missileman/32/1366_2.png) [@missileman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/missileman)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 5:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/kia-optima-side-view-mirror-housing-popped-off/87723/4 "2014-10-19T17:11:53Z")
I agree with a salvage yard purchase or an online purchase. If you have really deep pockets…you can purchase one at a dealership or use the money to purchase a small gold mine. ---
**Author:** ![db4690](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/db4690/32/2583_2.png) [@db4690](https://community.cartalk.com/u/db4690)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 9:39pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/kia-optima-side-view-mirror-housing-popped-off/87723/5 "2014-10-19T21:39:21Z")
I would advise caution on a new cheap chinese mirror I did that once, and it was a big mistake. The thing worked, but it fit really poorly. It always moved around a little bit, at freeway speeds, whereas the original part didn’t. And because of the sloppy build quality, it actually caused a whistling sound at freeway speeds Might want to get a used genuine Kia mirror on ebay. Or the junkyard, as the others mentioned ---
**Author:** ![insightful](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/insightful/32/2732_2.png) [@insightful](https://community.cartalk.com/u/insightful)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 4:09am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/kia-optima-side-view-mirror-housing-popped-off/87723/6 "2014-10-20T04:09:06Z")
This is probably wrong, but I’m seeing three lugs on the mirror that mate with three slots on the mount if you insert it and rotate clockwise. ---
**Author:** ![George\_San\_Jose1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@George\_San\_Jose1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/George_San_Jose1)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 4:18am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/kia-optima-side-view-mirror-housing-popped-off/87723/7 "2014-10-20T04:18:31Z")
It looks like two of the three prongs got broken off by the force. One time I rented a car and the mirror stuck out more than my normal car, so I backed up and the mirror grabbed hold of the edge of a building and splayed way forward. I thought “oh no!”, that I had broken the mirror, this was going to be expensive, but when I checked I discovered on that make/model the mirror had a spring in it, for that exact purpose apparently. Thanks to proactive thinking by the car engineers, despite my bone-head move, all it did was spring out, then when I pulled forward it springed back in, and the mirror remained good as new.