Replacing Driver's Side Mirror - Camry 1997 - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

Lamvin · 03-08-2011, 05:13 PM

Hi,

Yesterday, I had an unfortunate accident where an apparent shopper hit my driver's side mirror, with what I presume his/her shopping card, and totally fractioning [sic] the mirror's frame--although the power handle and electronic mechanics are intact and operational (I can still rotate the mirror with the power button). Since I have a high deductible car insurance and can't afford shelling $300 to the deal or mechanic shop, I decided not to report and see if I can fix it myself.

I'm not a car guy other than doing the simple maintenance stuff, i.e. changing oil, etc., so bear with me. I found cheap replacements on Amazon (power but non-heated)

here

and

here

, both costing roughly around $20. I'm not sure whether they are a workable product but the reviews seem to indicate, they work with the US-built Camry 1997's. I speculate that non-heated mirrors has 5 screws but I haven't taken the driver's cover to see which is it, but that's not what I am focusing right now.

That being said, I was wondering, since these mirrors are not the matching color to my Camry's beige exterior, can I find the appropriate paint (possibly the spray can) to get it matched with the rest of my car? If so, where can I get the paint?

Thank you.

Chris Crash · 03-08-2011, 05:31 PM

You can try finding a matching one at a junkyard or on craigslist or something.

but yes you can find matching paint. Autozone, advance, walmart etc all sell "Perfect Match" paint, and it usually matches pretty well. I think you can order touch up paint from the dealership as well.

vincentfox · 03-08-2011, 06:00 PM

Toyota uses certain color codes, look on the door panel label you'll find a number there that tells you what it is. I have a 1997 Camry LE, and mine decodes to "cashmere beige metallic". I found little bottles of touchup paint at local auto parts stores you just have to match the color code number. I was only filling in little dings though, didn't look to see if they had whole cans of spray paint.

For my bumper, I just went to the local Toyota mega-junkyard and just bought one with same color code matched up fine.

For the mirror I bought the plain black mirror and installed it unpainted. Think for a minute how some cars used to come with black mirrors, it really doesn't look that out of place. I did the same for driver-side door handle when I had to replace that.

OK I'm just cheap! A few little trim items being black doesn't look nearly so noticable as say an entire hood of the wrong color. Plus finding my car in the parking lot is a little easier. Look for the one with the black driver mirror.

Unfortunately Gen4 Camry is still popular enough you will not typically find them in Pick&Pull low-end junkyards. I did find a 1997 ONCE in a Pick&Pull and got the dome light assembly I needed, otherwise though it was pretty well gutted by the time I got to it and had been there less than a week. There's something sad about seeing the twin of your car skeletonized. Anyhow, for more common parts have always had to go to the more pricey junkyards.

Chris Crash · 03-08-2011, 06:05 PM

My CE camry had black mirrors, so replacing that was as simple as popping a new one on. You could just get two black ones, or paint your passenger one black, it looks different!

Lamvin · 03-08-2011, 06:36 PM

Thank you guys.

Are you talking about Dupli-Color Perfect Match? The specification says C/TR: 4M9/FB40 which I presume, C (color) code is 4M9 and TR (trim? color) is FB40. I don't suppose the side mirrors are considered trim, are they? Apparently, 4M9 corresponds to "cashmere beige metallic" color.

Do I need the "primer" and "clear coat" as well or just the color does the job since I'm not doing any sanding? How about degreaser?

Chris Crash · 03-09-2011, 01:25 AM

4M9 is the color you need. To make it look perfect, you absolutely should sand, prime, paint, and clearcoat it. But to make it look ok from a distance, just clean it and paint it.

Lamvin · 03-09-2011, 09:28 AM

If I decide to sand, what kind of sand would I be needing? And if I do sand it, would that make the priming necessary?

Chris Crash · 03-09-2011, 11:36 AM

Honestly it probably is shipped primered, so I would just give it a quick wet sand with 1000 or 2000 grit and then apply paint. Then wet sand again, and clear-coat.

Lamvin · 03-09-2011, 03:19 PM

Very well, but I don't understand why I need another wet sand after applying the paint color just to do the clear coat! I though I was supposed to do the wet sanding, buff it if needed, wipe it, then spray with paint, wait for 30 minutes, do another coat of paint, wait 30 minutes, finally apply the clear coat.

Chris Crash · 03-09-2011, 06:20 PM

It's just to make sure it's absolutely clean with no little nibs or anything. I'm sure it'll still look great doing it your way!

Lamvin · 03-09-2011, 07:58 PM

Thank you sir.

Now, all I have to do is to wait for the mirror to be shipped... hopefully by early next week. I am going to use sand with 2000 grit; don't want to be too aggressive about it.

P.S. Do I get ticketed for driving without side mirror?

pmesfun · 03-09-2011, 08:04 PM

Driver side mirror is needed. You won't get a ticket without a ps mirror thought. My godfather's 93 accord came with only a driver side mirror from the factory(base model).

dave1811 · 03-09-2011, 08:45 PM

I replaced the mirror on my 99 (passenger side) when my son hit the side of the garage backing out the car. It is a piece of cake replacing it, like a 5-10 minute job. The hardest part will be matching the paint. Mine is black right now on a gold color. It doesn't look to bad, I haven't painted it yet. (Waiting for him to break the driver side next-an 18 year old driver!)

Lamvin · 03-15-2011, 03:13 PM

So the saga continues. I received the side mirror two days after placing my order; it was shipped quickly but, then again, I had paid $11 for the S&H nonetheless did not expect to receive the item so promptly. It cost me a total of $31 for the side mirror w/ S&H. Headed out to find the matching paint spray. I tried Napa Auto Part but they ran me around as there was an error in their inventories, withstanding that I had checked the availability of item online and via phone.

Finally, I said I would try somewhere else and went to Auto Zone. They had the Dupli-Color Perfect Match, clear coat and sandpaper grit 1,500 as I thought 2,000 was a bit too flimsy and didn't anticipate it would do any actual sanding.

I wanted to test the mirror before painting it fearing it might be defected and they won't accept the return if I had it painted. I used the following video to remove the broken side mirror as the instruction seems very straight forward. Unfortunately, after fiddling with the wire to see if I can unplug it, I realized that it has been buried inside the door panel. Great!!! There was no way I could reach inside and pull it out either.

You Tube

Off to another video to see how to remove the Camry Gen4 door panel.

You Tube

I made several errors here. First, I didn't realize a miniature panel inside the door handle should not be taken out in its entirety, but rather simply gets opened on a hing giving access to a screw behind it--I snapped it and took it out which resulted in a broken mini-door panel (1:30 on the video)--no biggie.

Second, the door handle trim has a latch at the back of it pointing to the front of the car. I assumed that it is secured into the catchers from top and bottom, but apparently, in addition to those, there is a latch that must be pulled backward so the trim frame comes out. I once again snapped it and broke the latch. Oops! Got a super glue and reattached the piece that had come off of the door handle trim (2:26 on the video).

When you are done removing all the screws and get ready to tug the door panel out, make sure you pull it out towards yourself and a bit upward, but do not pull it straight upward because there are several plastic connectors that would have to get disconnected with this tug. Also, I noticed that the manufacturer had used some sort of silicon adhesive to the door panel and the plastic sheet covering the electrical wiring to the door frame itself.

At last, now I had access to the side mirror wire connector. Tested it and worked perfectly. On to the painting. Cleaned up the mirror with rubbing alcohol to remove any grease, dried it, then covered the mirror, wire, and the bottom part. The mirror was difficult to paint because it is not a flat surface but rather a curvature piece and does not stand straight on its own. I had to devise an uneven resting surface so I can waltz around it and have access to every spot on the side mirror. I used the structure in this video provided by Dupli-Color manufacturer to paint the mirror.

You Tube

I tested the paint on a piece of newspaper which looked darker than my car's but the paper usually extenuates the color somehow. Did a bit of sanding with grit 1,500 and removed any imperfections which was not really necessary. I wiped it clean with a damped microfiber towel.

Next, I began spraying, and things were going swimmingly until I reached the curvature at the bottom. Since it was hard to reach, I flipped the nozzle horizontally on the spray can and went a few rounds making sure I got all the spot, not realizing I was holding the can less than 4" to the surface. Soon, I realize the excess paint was being dripped to the bottom. ARGH!

I had a paint thinner but was afraid I would be getting the primer gutted; besides, it was very wet at the moment. So I bite my tongue and let it dry for 1 hour. Came back and did a wet sandpaper for while on that very spot where excess paint had been accumulated. Got it all smoothed out and sprayed again--this time with caution. Let it dried and applied clear coat.

Installed the mirror, but when I tested it by splashing water on the mirror with windows closed, I realize a few drops were finding their way into the car. The flat plate at the bottom of the mirror hadn't been seated properly onto the body. Corrected it and started reinstalling the door panel. Again, I missed the part where I had to hang the door panel on the top first then snap the plastic connectors in (5:28 on the video). The door has to seat on a metallic rim on top, then you snap the connectors from top to bottom. Make sure you take the tab bracket illustrated on 4:50 in the video before reinstalling the door panel and take the pin out and put it back in once the door panel is in place.

It wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be but a few loopy mistakes frustrated me. The color is a slightly darker but very unnoticeable. Over time, if it is exposed to more sun, I assume it would be completely matched.

Chris Crash · 03-15-2011, 06:26 PM

Glad you got it! But there definitely should be a connector only an inch or so below where it feeds through the door...

I've never had to take the door panel off to change mirrors. But as long as it works!