Crazy Side Mirrors

[jklncep]

i was driving on the highway and noticed my side mirrors flying around everywhere....is there a way i can tighten them so they wont be going all over the place so i can see the cars in the lanes beside and behind me

[branshew]

It would help if you put a little more detail into your description of the problem. Is it the mirror glass or the entire housing that is moving?

[gbhrps]

Back in the mid 80's my wife had a Toyota Cressida, the forerunner to the ES, that developed the same shimmering mirror problem. On that car I found that there was a loose screw in the mirror housing that required tightening. I suspect that your mirror has the same problem.

As I recall there was an actual hole in the bottom of the mirror housing, right up close to the door skin, that can only be seen if you are on your knees looking up at the mirror bottom. The problem back then was that the screw hole was so close to the door skin, that it was impossible to get a Phillips screw driver into the hole to tighten the screw, because the curve out of the door skin would not permit the screw driver to get into the hole. One solution would have been to have removed the mirror from the car to be able to use the screw driver, but that requires removing the interior door panel first.

What I did was to take a short Phillips screw driver bit (from one of those screw driver kits that gives you 20-30 different bits and one handle) and fit it into a very small box end wrench that fit the bit exactly, and used that to tighten the screw. You could also use a right hand screw driver (I think they are called) which is really a screw driver without a handle that has a 90 degree bend about an inch from the bit. If your mirror has the hole, your in luck. If not, you'll most likely have to pull the mirror from the car, and take the mirror apart to tighten the screw or screws. Good Luck!

[jklncep]

yea its the whole housing and there is two srews located on the bottom of the housing ill give it a try thanks

[lazycreeks]

This is my fix - '92 ES300

The driver’s side mirror swings back and forth and will not remain in the detent where it used to firmly rest. Inside the mirror housing, a “U” shaped clip that kept a spring compressed enough to hold the mirror in place worked its way out of place. The plastic cover is too small to allow compressing the spring and reattaching the “U” clip. I finally discovered a very inexpensive fix. I bought a square piece of rubber about 5” x 5” from a crafts & hobbies store. This flexible piece of rubber is about 1/8” thick. With common scissors, I cut a square about 1.5” x 1.5”. Swinging the mirror fully toward the front of the car, I placed the rubber square in the vertical gap between the body of the mirror and the base that attaches to the car door. Then pulling the mirror backward towards its proper position drew the rubber square fully into the gap, holding the mirror firmly in place. No tools, and it holds like it did when it was new. You can still adjust the mirror forward and back, and I can’t even see the reddish rubber square. What a laugher, especially since I have agonized for so long about fixing this problem without spending a small fortune. Just make sure the thickness of the rubber is just slightly thicker than the gap between your mirror housing and the part that attaches to your door.

Probably simple garden hose washer would work too. Whatever works for the driver’s side mirror will certainly work on the passenger’s side mirror too.

Hope this helps