lem321

The right hand rear view mirror on my 2000 SC400 has a couple of defective spots on the glass. So I wanted to replace the glass portion only. Never done this before. Any tips on doing this? FYI, it is the later model with a heating/ defrosting element built in. Thanks guys.

- V -

iTrader: (1)

the heating element is glued on to the glass so your replacement should come with it.
Grab a flat piece of metal (i used a flat and thin chisel). Make sure its sturdy enough that you cant bend it by hand.
Wrap it in something soft so you dont chip the paint on the mirror housing, a paper towel or rag will do the trick.
Adjust your mirror all the way up so you can place the metal under the glass.
Start pushing the metal down which will push the glass out towards you. Since you arent worried about keeping the glass in tact you dont have to be gentle with it. With enough force the bottom will pop out, when it does pull the glass down and it will come out.
Youll need to unplug the heating element before you can can completely remove the glass.
Plug the wire from the new glass into it and attach the replacement glass by tucking in the top part under the clips then pressing down at the bottom.
Youll need to readjust your mirror to all the way down position so that you dont grind the gears when pushing down on the glass. Youll feel a click when the glass snaps into place.
Wipe away the crap ton of fingerprints you left on the glass and youre done.

lem321

vteruni,

Hey thanks for that information on the mirror removal. Just to be clear, I should adjust the mirror upward so that I can slip the metal chisel below the mirror and then leverage the chisel downward...the mirror should then pop out. This makes sense as the pictures I've seen shows some plastic snaps on the bottom of the back of the mirror.

Thanks again!!

- V -

iTrader: (1)

yup that is correct. The replacement unit should come with the heating element and the rubber/plastic seal thats around the glass. I had to do this on my driver side in my 95SC3 and i posted some photos in a thread somewhere when i was doing them but i cant remember which thread it was.

lem321

vteruni,
Thanks again for your help. Much appreciated!

RXRodger

iTrader: (2)

Be aware these glass w/ heating element are model dependent. I am not sure when the change was made, but the plug is different on early vs late models. When I did it I could have spliced wires because I used the glass out of a spare mirror assembly I had, but I was in a hurry so I just left it disconnected. So, make sure if you order new you order for your model, if you buy used be prepared for this.

By the way, there is a youtube video showing how to do this. I think if you do a search you have to search for a Soarer mirror glass change, but it is the same for the SC. It really helps understand when you see it done.

t2d2

iTrader: (8)

I would guess the change came in '96 with the addition of auto-dimming mirrors.

RXRodger

iTrader: (2)

Makes sense, seems like there were additional wires so that must be it.