I had the same exact problem. My understanding is that the green liquid has to do with the auto-dimming feature. I was "lucky" enough to be able to get the orange stain off of my white paint, but it cost my clearcoat dearly. Hopefully a good buff job will fix the shine.

 

Heated mirrors use a fluid to transfer heat to the glass. I'd bet that is what leaked out.

 

Right, it has to be the fluid for the heat transfer. But it is nasty to burn off the clear coat. Something not adding up here.

 

I believe it has to be like anti-freeze so as not to freeze. I don't think the CC was burned off but the stuff probably stained the paint. I'd try soaking a rag in Isopropyl alcohol and wetting the area for a few minutes and see if that pulls any of the stain out.

 

Auto dimming mirrors do use special liquid. It acts similarly to liquid crystals in LCD (liquid crystal display) monitors: when current applied, liquid forms “structure” that reflects light differently, acting as full mirror vs. “partial” mirror for night conditions. This liquid is quite nasty, I heard. It reacts with plastic and paint discoloring them.

 

my wife's RX330 passenger mirror also leaks, however the fluid is not green, but a copper color and does stain the paint. i have recently rubbed the stains off with simple rubbing compound used for removing oxidation on vehicles. works great.

 

ya i tooo had thar problem of copper colour leaked ..and it was expensive repair to get a new mirror so for no i have pasted just a plain mirror for like $15 ..but i lost the dimmer and heated too..well the heated still works but kinda low..oh well
i have heard this happen sometimes due to aging and/or it just happens

 

Are you sure? Because all the ones I've seen have used an element behind the glass. The fluid I believe, as someone has already posted, is for the auto dimming feature.

As for the stains, you might need some sort of abrasive wax or buffing compound, but this will remove some of the clear coat. I would think any decent body shop might be able to advise you, or do the work for you (and they will have industrial products vs. the over the counter stuff from the store).

 

I broke mine also=( But in my case fluid is still in mirror. My mirror now half full with this fluid=( How i can drain it?

 

The same thing has happened to my paint as a result of the side mirror breaking. The body shop made several recommendations, none of which have worked. The green liquid splattered the entire right side of the car and it looks terrible. I'm going to try the rubbing compound for oxidation listed below. Hopefully that will work. I will be furious if I have to repaint it!

 

I have to agree with one of the previous posters who suggested that the liquid that leaked out is, in fact, something similar to an antifreeze and acts as a heating agent to heat the mirror glass piece. In fact, I had replaced the mirror element only on one of the RX350s I had had. If you look at the picture, you'd see the liquid oozing along the perimeter of the mirror piece. The wires attached to the mirror piece heat the element on the mirror and the liquid. I hope this helps.



Also, to replace the mirror element is very simple. I can post some instructions with a few pictures that I took when doing this. Takes literally like 10-15 minutes...

 

is there any place to get a replacement mirror cheap with heat & dim feature ?

 

Nope. Oem is the only way to go.

 

possibly, I used ebay last time and it cost much less than dealer... You can source a used mirror at Keystone used parts. I believe, they sell to public.

 

I used Nu Finish car wax (has petroleum in it) and that helped. Also used polishing compound from Turtle Wax in the green labeled plastic can. It's a polishing paste or mild abrasive that will get the coloring off w/o penetrating the clear-coat. The fluid on my wife's car was copper-brown orange like maple syrup mixed with carrot juice, not green. Her paint was the pearl white 2004 RX 330.

I bought a used mirror from a junkyard dealer listing on ebay for $150. Luckily I found a white one from 2004 with 11-wire connector. Make sure you match the wires up before buying. This means take the panel off the inside of the door and unplug the mirror. Some have combinations of memory, heat, or auto-dimming, so make sure yours matches connectors. If you can't match connectors, you'll have to re-wire your connector manually.

Worst case scenario is finding the exact connector match but in the wrong color. And in that case, a local paint shop should paint it for you cheaper than buying a new mirror from Lexus. Frankly, anything is cheaper than a new mirror from Lexus dealer.