My '01 Cl-S when in reverse should point down im told. instead it starts moving left and keeps going until it cant go anymore but yet still goes and makes an aweful clicking noise. And when i shift into Drive it should go back but it just stops and stays in that awkward position. how can i fix this?? Can i?

 

Money and about a half-hour of your time will fix that without further ado. I do not know if the mirror can be opened up or not and I'm not all that familiar with the movement mechinism, but from having seen the insides of a few articulated mirrors I can tell you what's in there - and more importantly I can give you a more or less step by step on how to fix your problem. Inside the mirror there is a motor and some gears that are probably made of plastic. The gears are worn and the teeth are sliding over one another (that's the clicking sound you hear). The parts are probably not available to fix it and so a complete replacement is what you're going to find is your best bet.

The good news for you is that I had a bad mirror (2 actually) on the CL I bought last month and bought and changed them a couple of weeks ago.

Step 1: Go to E-Bay and find a mirror. On any given day there will be over a dozen of them for sale. Get one that is the same color as your car. It took me all of 3 days for one in my color to become available. Don't pay over about $80 for the one you buy.

When it arrives you'll want to install it. To do this you will need a couple of screwdrivers and either a small adjustable wrench or I believe it was a 10mm socket.

Step 2: Remove the door panel. There is one retaining screw hidden behind a small round cap directly behind the door handle. Pop the cap open with a small flat blade screwdriver and then remove the small screw that is behind it. There is a second screw holding the panel in place lower on the door. Just to the rear of the door's storage pocket you will see a small (apx. 1/4") hole in the panel and using a long/small tip phillips screwdriver you can remove the screw that is hidden inside that hole.

Step 3: Remove the door panel. Starting at the bottom rear of the panel pull the panel away from the metal door. There are push-clips along the front, bottom, and back of the panel that push straight into holes in the door. They are removed by pulling them straight out. A firm pull is needed and if you are careful you can use a somewhat large flat-blade screwdriver to pry one or two of them apart. The more that come out the easier they come out. When you've popped them all lift the panel up and pull back on it and the panel, which has an obverlapping lip on its top that is the last thing holding it in place, will pop off. However there are still wires attached to both it and the door so be very careful with it. Disconnect the wire that leads to the window control.

Step 4: Now at the top of the door there will be a triangular plastic plate still on the door that covers the mirror mount. Carefully use a screwdriver to pry the cover off. Below it there will be two sets of wires and connectors that emerge from the area behind the plastic cover.. Disconnect the wires.

Step 5: There are two nuts holding the mirror on the door. Remove them and then remove the old mirror.

Step 6: Replace the old mirror with the new one. Put the two nuts back on and tighten them down (use blue locktite on them). Reconnect the two wires from the mirror to their corresponding plugs emerging from the door. Replace the plastic over over the mirror mounts by pressing it back into place.

Next put the door panel back on. Be careful here. First pull the door lock all the way up and make sure it is oriented straight. Reattach the wires for the window control. Replace the door panel moving down and forward to move it into place. The lip on the inside/top of the panel has to lap over the metal edge of the top of the window cavity and the front/top edge of the panel has to fit correctly at the mirror mount point while at the same time making sure that the door lock aligns with its hole in the panel. It sounds like juggling with chain-saws but its actually not too hard to do. Once the door panel has popped back into place look between the panel and the door to assure yourself the plastic retainers align with the holes. Push the door panel down and using the side of your closed fist hit the panel to pop the retainers into their holes.

Last: Turn on the ignition and see if it all works. Check your mirror, check your electric lock, and check your window operation. There shouldn't be any problems. Start to finish the job shouldn't take you more than about 30 minutes.

 

Thanks, ill be watching Ebay for a new mirror. im glad its such an easy fix.