Advice on replacing the exterior mirrors

Tigerman

Tigerman

TJ Enthusiast
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Aug 31, 2018
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Location
North Hills, CA
Hello,

The mirror brackets on my TJ are in bad shape. The paint has peeled off and I, not being very good with paints, don't want to really fix that. Looked up some replacement mirrors on Amazon and Ebay and the reviews are pretty mixed. Some say they are OK, other's curse the heck out of them. Anyone replaced the mirrors or perhaps disassembled and replaced just the brackets? if such a thing possible.

What you think of these?
Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078Z21R1B/?tag=wranglerorg-20

Ebay
http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-5...0001&campid=5337789113&icep_item=191804253707

Mopar ones are like $130 a side :(
 
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you really can't go wrong with spray painted them, simple and cheaper. Just prep the mirrors really good, tape off the area and spray paint them. That's what I did with mine.
 
I just ordered the ebay ones. Mine are floppy and never stay put.

Hell i spend more on a tank of gas. "Might" even be cheaper than paint. Definitely less time. And time=money.

My thought process i can buy 5 pairs for the cost of one set of mopar. If you can find them. And if they fail i can still drive my jeep.
 
Mine did the same thing and the right one would not stay in adjustment, original Jeep mirrors. I bought Mopar replacements and they are great, very tight, no drifting. On the new ones the mirror is adjusted within the housing, on the old ones moving the whole housing was how you aimed them. It just so happens I have an extra set, still in the box, never used (ordered by accident, I didn't catch that they came in pairs, doh!)
If interested, we can discuss prices.
 
lxxtsy said:
you really can't go wrong with spray painted them, simple and cheaper. Just prep the mirrors really good, tape off the area and spray paint them. That's what I did with mine.
Click to expand...

The paint that peels off on my mirrors is a really thick layer, and the metal underneath seems to be pretty grainy. How many layers of paint did you have to put on them to make them smooth again? Do you by any chance have a picture of your restored ones?

Thanks
 
Boinked said:
I just ordered the ebay ones. Mine are floppy and never stay put.

Hell i spend more on a tank of gas. "Might" even be cheaper than paint. Definitely less time. And time=money.

My thought process i can buy 5 pairs for the cost of one set of mopar. If you can find them. And if they fail i can still drive my jeep.
Click to expand...

That's what I was afraid of... the floppiness. I remember my replacement mirrors on my Honda CBR and they would never stay put, unlike the OEM ones, so I ended up putting the original ones back on.
 
I put on a few coats. Do you have a picture of the mirrors? As long as you get the big chunks off and sand it down, primer and paint will cover up the imperfections. The more time you spend on prep the better the outcome.

20180910_115957.jpg
20180910_115928.jpg
 
Tigerman said:
That's what I was afraid of... the floppiness. I remember my replacement mirrors on my Honda CBR and they would never stay put, unlike the OEM ones, so I ended up putting the original ones back on.
Click to expand...
My OEM are floopy. I have not received the aftermarket ones. But the reviews looked good enough to try
 
Boinked said:
My OEM are floopy. I have not received the aftermarket ones. But the reviews looked good enough to try
Click to expand...

My bad, I misunderstood! I see the logic in that scenario. It makes sense for you to get the cheaper ebay ones if the OEM ones are floppy. The ones I have on right now are rock solid. I put the jeep through its paces over the weekend over a very rough terrain and they stayed put.
 
lxxtsy said:
I put on a few coats. Do you have a picture of the mirrors? As long as you get the big chunks off and sand it down, primer and paint will cover up the imperfections. The more time you spend on prep the better the outcome.

View attachment 54893 View attachment 54894
Click to expand...

I will take a few pictures when I get home and post it here. Yours look good :)! Maybe I will try painting and if that fails i can always get the ebay ones right?
 
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JEEPCJTJ said:
For some reason I've always liked the looks of the mirrors on the early TJs but the mirrors from 2003 to 2006 are designed to be stronger and the last much longer.

Here's a set for $40.38, I have no idea what the Mopar price for them would be.

http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-5...0001&campid=5337789113&icep_item=272939080541
Click to expand...

I never considered a different style actually, like the ones you linked, but why not! that is an option. I am going to check out some pictures of the 03-06 TJs to see what the look is vs mine :)

Actually they look pretty good and definitely stronger. I will do that!! Thank you :))))
 
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So while I was at it,

I also ordered the Crown door handles, crown fender flare kit and those mirrors (opted for the smooth rather than textured ones).
Thank you guys for all the help. Someone please take away the credit card and lock me up without internet access.

P.S. It was a pain removing the old milk jugs from the front bumper. Am I going to have to deal with the same thing with the fender flares? Any advice?
 
Tigerman said:
P.S. It was a pain removing the old milk jugs from the front bumper. Am I going to have to deal with the same thing with the fender flares? Any advice?
Click to expand...

LOL, the jugs will seem like a walk in the park. If I recall correctly, some of the bolts for the flairs have nuts on the back side of the sheet metal and they can be a bear to remove.

Tigerman said:
Any advice?
Click to expand...

patience and an adult beverage or three
 
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I just want to complain about the mirror purchase I made on ebay... sorry but it bugs the heck out of me.

So, I went ahead and made the purchase of those newer style mirrors right?! on ebay... 5 minutes later I get an email from autoshack.com (totally different from the ebay name) saying

"Dear Customer,
You can now shop online at our web store using the following credentials:"

Logged in and there was my order of the mirrors, along with all of my information on their website servers, address, phone number, email address, got automatically subscribed to all the newsletters and bluh bluh. I understand that they need the shipping info to send the stuff to me, but they don't need to create an account without my knowledge and retain all my information indefinitely, technically asking me to do business with them directly. What the heck?
 
68084718AA

Mirror, LEFT

This is what I bought, $111 each plus shipping. The description is bad since they came in sets. I have one unopened set, they look like the left photo above and are really solid. I will get a photo of them installed and post. I’d be willing to sell for what I paid plus post office shipping, whatever that comes to.
 
Steve Rodgers said:
68084718AA

Mirror, LEFT

This is what I bought, $111 each plus shipping. The description is bad since they came in sets. I have one unopened set, they look like the left photo above and are really solid. I will get a photo of them installed and post. I’d be willing to sell for what I paid plus post office shipping, whatever that comes to.
Click to expand...

Steve,

I appreciate the offer, but I already went ahead and bought the newer style aftermarket ones.
 
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