Beware, I found this fix ages ago and it was probably just before 200K miles. The plastic was so brittle that it did break. It broke before I actually got it tight enough to stop the wobble. The reason...is the design of the tension screw. On it's end it has an 1/8" section that is unthreaded. This section acts as a bullet that impacts the bottom (top) of the bore to cause friction and tension so as to quite the wobble. In reality it's bullet shape causes it to act as an impact hammer of sorts and the end result is breaking the plastic housing. The avoidance fix for this is to remove the screw and mirror from the housing. Spread some JB Weld (or another quality epoxy) in a strategic manner so as to reinforce the brittle housing. When you are satisfied with your epoxy work and are ready to put it back together then use a light (pipe tape) friction material on the threads of the screw to inhibit any excess vibration without having to tighten the screw to the point of compromising the housing. Trust me...proceed with caution. Once you break this if you are not good with rigging a fix the mirror is very expensive.

 

my mirror broke in the same manner. I used velcro tape to affix the loose mirror back into the housing. So far it has held (about a year) with minimal wobble.

 

Any suggestions on how to fix a wobbly rear view mirror over the dash? I popped off the light diffuser above the mirror, but couldn't see any screw holes.

 

Fixed!

Thanks guys. I thought I was going to have a big job, deconstructing the door panel..etc.., but following your advice I was able to fix both of my mirrors in about 45 seconds with just a careful tweak of a phillips screwdriver. Thanks for sharing and saving the day for me!

 

If the philips backing piece is broken then RTV Black Silicone works wonderfully. I did this about five years ago right after I bought my van and it hasn't moved since. Still have full function of electronic adjustment as well!

 

How do I remove the mirror itself so I can get to the broken piece and apply some epoxy to it?

 

what rubber??? HA
mine doesn't even look like a phillips head anymore.

 

unscrew the phillips screw and it should pop out from the bottom ...

 

The plastic that the screw goes into split in half and broke off the mirror. I used orange RTV to glue it all together. I hope it works.

I was going to post a picture but the app can't do that. :/

 

Thanks for the tips guys:thumbsup:

Ours is wobbly too. GOing to try to try this out soon-hopefully it's not brittle enough and won't crack.

 

Quick note on wobble if tightening the screw doesn't work:

Having replaced the driver's side mirror twice with used from pick n pull yards & repairing two other mirror assemblies, I've found that the design itself is flawed & prone to breakage.

The phillips screw secures the motor assembly to which the mirror is mounted, to the housing. If you remove the screw & gently pull outward & up, the motor & mirror will come out fairly easily. Turn the assembly around so that you're looking at the backside & can see the motor housing itself. On the top corners, there are 2 square holes that mate up with 2 hooks inside the main mirror housing. If the plastic around either hole is cracked or missing, you'll have a serious wobble even if you crank the lock screw down as much as you can. If you don't want to use silicone RTV or another type of caulk/sealant to glue the mirror in place (I tend to tilt the mirror down during night driving to keep from being blinded by drivers behind me), there's another solution.

If the plastic around the holes is there but cracked you can just use ABS plastic pipe solvent cement to weld the cracks back together. It's the yellow stuff you get in the plumbing section of the hardware store - Home Depot, Lowe's, Rona, etc. Just brush it on & let it set & cure - usually takes an hour or so to fully cure, then you're good to go. Re-mount the motor assembly into the main housing & lock down with the screw.

If the plastic is gone, it gets a bit more involved. Usually only one side snaps off, so you can use that as a guide to help rebuild the broken side. Again, you'll need the ABS cement, but this time you'll also need some ABS plastic as well. A piece of ABS pipe will work, or if you're close to a plastics shop, they often have off-cuts of various plastics available dirt cheap. I've found it easiest to cement on the replacement plastic as a chunk, then drill the hole through & shape it a bit using the other side as a guide. Again, let it cure at least 1 hour though I prefer letting it cure overnight before doing any shaping, cutting or drilling. Then re-mount. You can also so this if you want to reinforce the plastic, which is a good idea considering the plastic around the holes is only 1/16" thick or so & that area takes all the stresses from road vibrations.

One last note: it is possible to do the plastic repairs with the mirror still mounted to the van, though it is significantly easier if it's off & you're able to do the repairs at a work bench or table. Removing the mirror involves popping the cover from the mirror & removing the 2 mounting bolts. Them you also need to remove the upper door panel & disconnect the wire from the harness. The connector is located behind the forward access hole about 8" down roughly in-line with the mirror. Look for a small plastic barb poking through the metal to find it (the barb is part of one side of the connector & holds it in place out of the way of the window mechanism.)

Hopefully this helps those who have wobble issues not solved by tightening the lock screw.

Cheers

 

I put too much RTV on the bottom of the broken plastic. It indexes into the mirror frame. Keep the bottom quarter inch clean.

 

RTV was too flexible. The screw didn't hold, I peeled it off and used super glue.

 

The screw is its 3'rd hold down point. If you tighten it and it solves your issue , it will come back because there are only 2 points on the mirror that are holding it instead of the 3 that were designed. I Would like to see a picture of these RTV and GLUE DOWN fixes !? They seem a little on the way to permanent for my taste, but that's just me. If it works for you that's cool but if you want to fix it somewhat the way it was designed to work , take a look at my fix. It may just work out better for you I DON'T KNOW !?