The right side rear view mirror on my sons 95 850 is cloudy and has hard water spot etching on the mirror surface to the point where at night it is now pretty much useless.

Cna anyone recommend a cleaner/polish to fix this issue, or will I have to replace the mirror glass?

If I have to replace the glass, where can I get it, and how hard is it to replace, especially since the mirror isheated?

Many thanks,

Glenn

 

Hello Glenn,

In order to avoid scratching the mirror, I would use a mild polish, such as plastic polish (Tamiya's Plastic Polishing Compound is the best one I found, but I am not sure if they are available outside of Japan). I've tried (and still using) Mothers' Plastic Polish, in a red bottle. This one seems to work good.

To find a replacement:

1. Junkyard
2. Dealer
3. Neighbor or large mall's parking lot (just kidding)

Haynes does not have a procedure, and I've tried to half-force it but decided not to, as a moderate force didn't do the job and I had a bad feeling of cracking it. I would wait until M. Tech shows up.

Good night,


JPN

 

Hi Glenn and JPN,

Here is a link for a company that sells glass polishing compounds:

http://www.gtglass.com/scratchRemoval.htm

I have never used this product or dealt with this company. I'm
sure there are other companies that offer similar products. This
link will give you an idea as to what is involved to polish your
mirror and the relative cost.
I have a feeling that for something this small it would be easier
and no more expensive to just replace the mirror as JPN mentioned.
JPN or tech can probably tell you how to replace the glass.

Best regards, John

P.S. Yeah, a "Midnight Auto Supply" branch might not go
over too well in your area LOL.

 

Hi All,

I think you could first try Mother's plastic polish or equivalent, and if that doesn't work, you could try the product John has found.

>JPN or tech can probably tell you how to replace the glass.
FORCE IT! (just kidding) Wait till M. Tech/someone who has removed it shows up, I haven't done it yet. I saw somewhere that the glass should come off as you pull it from certain angle, but it did not say which angle. And there is the heater connector to deal with.

Have you tried something, such as alcohol, vinegar, milk, etc... You never know, sometimes the least expected material does the magic. May be a bottle of Wild Turkey?

Cheers,


JPN

 

All,

Thanks for the suggestions. Yes I would rather try cleaning it first before replacing it. The mirror and heater work fine, it is just cloudy and water spotted. I'll try the vinegar, plastic polish, etc first. No Wild Turkey, but I can alwys try a little Jack Daniels!

As for Midnight auto.....yeah, I would probably get shot, and around here that would be the LEAST of my concerns!!

Glenn

 

If it is just stained you might also try acetone or maybe toilet bowl
cleaner or bathroom tile cleaner designed for hard water deposits.
(Just keep it away from metal and painted surfaces).
(EDIT- I'm assuming that the mirror actually is glass and not a coated
plastic. Obviously if it is plastic you do not want to use acetone or
other caustic substances.If plastic you could try something like
600-1200 grit sandpaper and then plastic polish as mentioned
below).
If it really is etched, then you need an appropriate polishing compound.
I've polished plastic using a product called Novus plastic polish.
This comes in 3 grades I believe, and is available at most plastic
supply houses, some industrial supply houses, possibly hobby
shops, and maybe some hardware chains. I don't know if it's
abrasive enough to handle glass. You could try it.

Anyway good luck, let us know what works, John

 

One last thought just came to me. Years ago we needed to polish
some plastic parts for optical clarity. I contacted a friend that worked
at one of those vision chains similar to Lenscrafters. They did the lens
grinding for plastic lenses right there in their store. He showed me
the large machine that does the polishing/grinding of the lenses from
plastic blanks. They use abrasive pads shaped like 4 leaf clovers
along with some polishing compounds, both of which come in
various "grits" from coarse to very fine.
We ended up using the Novus polish because it was inexpensive
and easily obtained.
Sorry to make you read all this before you get to the punch line,
but when I asked him how they did the glass lenses he told me
they could not do glass. Glass lenses had to be ordered from
a local optical lab.
If you want to go to the trouble, you might try contacting
a technician at a local eyeglass lab and ask them for their
advice. They are the experts in glass polishing. They
might be able to tell you how to clean your mirror. If
you find the right person you might also be able to buy
a small amount of their polishing materials if it is necessary
and if it can be used without special equipment. At the
least it would be a learning experience.

Best of luck, John

 

Well, I tried bathroom cleaner, plastic polish, and even some really fine rubbing/polishing compound. The mirror is a little bit better and no longer cloudy, but it still has the hard water spots on it.

Just thought I would update everyone as to the progress so far.

Glenn

 

Hi Glenn,

At this point, I can only think of the following:

1. Continue with plastic/fine polishing compound a bit longer.
2. Scotch Brite
3. Metal Polish

I'm afraid that 2 & 3 may scratch the surface, so I am not sure what else you can do at the moment.

Hmmm.... The water spot must be of minerals, such as calcium, etc... Anyone else has better idea?


JPN

 

If it's minerals like calcium, then Easy Off 'BAM' will probably take it off. I wouldn't get it anywhere but the mirror surface, for this is really caustic stuff. I would use gloves for sure. You can get it now at the grocery store. If it doesn't work out, it is great at cleaning soap scum off of tubs and showers. - AB

 

I'm not sure of this, but I think I remember that vinegar will take off mineral spots and calcium deposits. This is like one of those trivial pursuit questions where you're not sure that's the answer or not. At least I doubt if vinegar will hurt anything. I know I remember cleaning something with vinegar, but not sure what it was. I hate when my memory does this to me.

 

This is the old standby that I thought was well known and easy way I use to clean my Mazda mirror. Just use a splash of white distilled vinegar in water, and wipe off with newspaper. This is the most effective, inexpensive and eco-friendly way to clean your mirrors. When you're finished with the newspaper, you can put it in your compost pile.