Fixing mirror to windscreen??

[Cheggers]

So, having scored a bit of an eBay bargain in the shape of a rear-view mirror for the 944 I now face the task of getting the bugger to stick to the windscreen. There seems to be all manner of pads, glues, snot & gum on the market...anyone had any good or bad experience or any recommendations??

 

Thanks.

[Timewaster]

Just buy the cheap mirror fixing pads in a little pack from Helfords or some similar boutique.

Clean both the back of the mirror and the glass with some sort of evaporting solvent. Brake cleaner is good, or clean thinners, petrol or even the Mrs nail varnish remover.

Next get the screen absolutely dry - run the heater on the screen for ages, or even get a hairdryer on it. Warm the mirror too.

 

By this point, your woman (if applicable) is probably not best pleased, this is not relevant to the job.

 

The pad will probably have a white cover on the side that goes to the mirror and a green cover for the screen side.

Once the pad is on the mirror and you have peeled the green bit off, warm it again with the heater or hair dryer.

 

Hold it on to the screen for as long as you can hold your arm in that position. Leave it 24hrs before you are tempted to adjust the mirror.

 

Dun job!

[Negative Creep]

Pads are completely useless. You can get this glue with a mesh pad in Halfords that worked fine on the one occasion I had to do it

[pogweasel]

ARALDITE.

[Lankytim]

Scientific tests conducted by NASA have concluded that this task is completely impossible for the amateur. Best to get a windscreen fitting firm to do it for you!

[autofive]

i used superglue in the past, but it doesnt last forever

[Timewaster]

Pads are completely useless. You can get this glue with a mesh pad in Halfords that worked fine on the one occasion I had to do it

 

Its all in the application - see my long winded post ^^^^

 

The mesh / glue combo is also useless if you use it on a damp day or dont follow the instructions to the letter.

It costs 5 times more too.

[Anglevan]

Surprisingly easy to do, the trick I learnt in the past was>>

 

This time of year your gonna struggle like hell cause as soon as you put your hands near the screen it will condense.

 

So first run the car get it nice and warm inside, when your back put a fan heater in to keep the heat in. Use the pads that you can buy but cut a hole in the middle of the pad At least size of a penny if mount is big enough, in the hole put some sikaflex in or similiar strong bond. Sikaflex works a treat but appreciate that its bloody expensive for a small application (and use black so you dont see it from the outside.

 

Stick mirror in desired spot, the double sided pads will hold long enough for the glue to fix and hold.

 

Done it loads of times and never had a problem . Heats the key though..

[ashmicro]

Tigerbond. Or, I replaced the rearview in my Audi Coupe with one from a R6 Rover metro. All you have to stick on is a little clip, let it cure, and then slide on the mirror. Tontops idea is better, though.

[retrogeezer]

Just stop and ask an autoglass (*or other windscreen service fitter) nicely for one of their sticky pads. They are heavy duty and better than the off the shelf ones (in my experience)

[Minimad5]

The sticky pads used to hold registration plates are good, used them on a few occasions.

 

Failing that - use an autoshite sticker to hold it on

[Mad Cyril]

Pop rivets.

[retro80sboy]

Epoxy Putty

[Richard]

The proper pad, applied properly, will do the job perfectly. I found the Halfords ones to be useless but admittedly they might have changed them since 1998. If anybody offers a pack of two or more that's a good clue that they aren't up to much.

[garethj]

Araldite Rapid.

 

Get the screen clean and dry as above, mix the araldite up and splodge a bit in place. Smear it around a bit while you look for some gaffer tape that you'll need to hold the mirror to the screen. Hold it on by hand for the first minute or so, then your arms will be aching like hell. That's the time to stick on 2 bits of gaffer tape, and leave it for 24 hours.

[wuvvum]

I've tried various pads in the past and found them to be a bit rubbish - many of them stick quite adequately but they are by definition soft, and I've found this tends to result in the mirror wobbling around noticeably on rough roads.

 

I've actually found the Loctite glue'n'mesh kit to be quite good - I've used it on three different cars and never had an issue with the mirror falling back off. It's not cheap though.

 

At the moment for any heavy-duty sticking I need to do I'm using the two-part epoxy glue from the pound shop. It seems to work just as well as Araldite - the passenger side wing mirror on the Innocenti has been held on by the stuff for the last 18 months and has been absolutely fine.

[CortinaDave]

Pads are pish. Araldite FTW.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

Autoglass will give you a proper mirror sticking pad for free - my local depot fits them FOC but I bung them a fiver.

[Jonnyvalenta]

Pads are absolutely fine. The mirror always fell off the screen on my Sunbeams.Every one was the same.It weighed quite a bit too.The soloution was to use a much lighter mirror from a mk3/4 Escort or Fiesta from the scrappys.Worked a treat in conjunction with the Pad. I used Landrover Pads that held the much bigger,heavier mirror on the screens of the Discos.No more problems.

[Jonnyvalenta]

I've just remembered,the same thing happened to my 205 about a year ago,so off I went looking for a Ford mirror! History repeating itself...

[euphonic]

You can buy special pads, from many motor factors, for this very purpose.Never had a problem myself, if you clean the area and warm the glass, with car heater or hair drier, i use the wife's as i am bald

[dollywobbler]

Autoglass will give you a proper mirror sticking pad for free - my local depot fits them FOC but I bung them a fiver.

 

This is the best way to proceed, especially if the mirror is a heavy one (like the monumental thing in the CX). Much less stress and usually less than the cost of buying some stuff yourself. A few quid "for the drinks fund" is usually all you need.

[barefoot]

Have you tried using sperm?

[garethj]

Have you tried using sperm?

That's a wank idea

[Cheggers]

Short update time...on a personal recommendation, I ended up using this stuff:

 

 

£3.99 from the local parts shop. Comes as a "primer" and adhesive. It was stuck to the screen like shit to blanket after 10 minutes, and a week later still seems as solid as a rock. God alone knows what's in it, but I'm glad I was wearing gloves