Was driving my 80-year-old mother to the dcotor in her 2002 Buick.I noticed the glass part of the passenger-side mirror was gone! I asked and she pleaded ignorance.
Later she said she might have hit a pole at the edge of the street in an old industrial area she zips through to make a right-hand-turn into the grocery.
Just the glass part is gone. Is this something I can replace myself with junk yard parts? How would I remove the glass from the junk yard part?
In the alternative, how much would it cost to replace? Would they have to replace the whole mirror unit? When I push the controls for the mirror, I can see the parts moving and responding.
Call your local glass shop. They can cut and install a new mirror (just the glass). No need to replace the entire assembly. Last time I broke one it cost about $15.
You can get a replacement insert from Buick. You will need to pry out the old one. There are two metal rods on the back that friction fit into the new one. You will need to transfer them. Without them, the power movement feature won’t work. You also need to insert the mirror so that the rods seat properly to the inner plate.
From the experience I had, I would recommend the local glass shop. I had the glass fall out of the mirror on the passenger side of my car when I closed the door. I went to the Oldsmobile dealer where I purchased the car and ordered a new glass insert. When I peeled off the paper on the back of the mirror which exposed the adhesive, the mirror wouldn’t stick–the adhesive was too old. I took the car to a body shop at another dealer (Chrysler-Plymouth). The body shop manager at this dealership had me leave the car–he said that the technician from the glass shop was coming to do some other work and he would have the technician repair my mirror.
When I went back to get the car, he asked me what I had paid the dealer for the replacement glass. When I told him he said, “That was way too much. This job is on us. Next time, go to a glass shop”.