67 Coupe Interior Mirror

[Justin N.]

Dear Members,

I need to replace the glass element for my rear-view mirror. Can I remove the grey, rubber band from around the perimeter? Does this hold the glass in place? I see two rivets, one on either side of the Guide Glare-Proof stamping on the bottom. Are these are part of the mirror too? Thank you much!

Justin #41362

[Jack H.]

Do NOT....

try to remove the rubber surrounding the mirror glass! A certain portion of the rubber is bonded to the mirror housing (top sides and perhaps small corner sections at the bottom). This is so the rubber can 'flex' when you switch between Day and Night settings. Alter the rubber to housing bond and you'll rue the day!

The rivets bond the day/nite swivel actuator to the housing in a fixed position so a partially rotating 'finger' presses against the rear of the glass/rubber to push it out at the bottom and 'tilt' the mirror. The day/nite feature works because the rear of the glass is silvered WITHOUT being covered with a protective paint like a conventional mirror. When the glass is tilted, you get multiple refractions that cause the reflected image to dim.

Change the 'tilt' and the mirror stops doing what it was designed to and/or won't hold/stay in position. So, unless your rivets are so badly rusted (not atypical for a convertible), leave rivets and rubber alone or send the mirror out to a professional restoration service.

If you've got a 'typically' worn mirror, do this. Take a small ball pin hammer and CRACK the existing glass being CAREFUL not let flying glass shards get in your eyes! Now, remove the broken pieces of glass from the rubber holder (the glass was simply glued to the rubber with an adhesive similar to 3M weatherstrip cement--you'll see how it was applied).

Once the glass is out, go clean the rubber behind and around the mirror and buff the SS rear housing if that's appropriate. Once you've cleaned everything rinse the rubber in water THOROUGHLY and allow it to dry. You want to get rid of any/all contaminants....

Apply a fresh bead of cement (you can also use RTV--silicone rubber bathtub caulk) and 'pop' the replacement mirror glass into the rubber. The reason these mirrors deterioriate over time is typically associated with how folks clean them.

If you use a cleaning agent that's not PH neutral (most glass cleaners contain ammonia which is a PH base vs. acid agent) and the cleaner gets behind the glass, it will begin to react chemically with the raw silver resulting in 'bands' of discoloration. That's why you want to rinse the cleaned up rubber surround thoroughly before you install the replacement glass. When done, avoid acidic or basic glass cleaners and all will last for a long time....

[Justin N.]

Re:Makes sense....

.. now that you have explained it. I won't mess with the rubber seal. I think I'll send it out to be rebuilt. I don't want to break the glass as you suggested, I'll end up breaking more than the element. Once again, thank you much for the support!

Justin #41362