Wing Mirror Defrosting

[alan2450]

Hi all,

With the recent frosty weather (well it is here) I have noticed that the drivers side mirror does not defrost   The rear window and passenger side are fine. The electric adjustments work fine etc, i thought that maybe the glass had been replaced in the past with a non-defrosting type (if there is such a thing) but the mirror has the little logo on the top left.  Anyone have any ideas what might be wrong, how do I get the glass out (without breaking it) to check the connections?  Thanks in advance.

[TheBoy]

Likely the element has failed...

[davlad22]

Took an electric Mk4 astra mirror off recently and the glass was held, iirc by 2 (or three?) ball joint type arrangements on the rear of the glass - one to control side-side one to control up-down (not sure if it had a centre ball joint?).

Anyway, if you haven't sussed it yet it *should* just pop off. It may be easier to take off the rear painted cover first to view access, but these are notoriously fragile so go steady or it'll never fit right again! The supply should be a connector that pulls off the rear of the glass.

If the glass is shot anyway (it's a once piece arrangement), I wouldn't worry too much about breaking it, just put some gloves on and perhaps some glasses to be safe. The electric servo motors will probably get out of sync when fiddling but will straighten up again easy enough.