c230 mirror --- damage or not? How to fix??

The mirror housing is designed to swing in toward the car when a force hits
it coming from the front toward the back of the car (opposite of what you
described). I don't know that it is supposed to swing the other way though,
so you might have broken something. Swing the mirror in the correct
direction and take a look at the innards. Did it just break a spring? You
could go to a junkyard and pick up the parts you need off a wrecked car. If
you search some of the Mercedes websites with message boards, you should
find complete directions on how to take of the cover/shell to access the
innards and unscrew them from the body of the car for full replacement. I
think it is about $500 if you want the dealer to replace the parts and
install them.
 >> Stay informed about: c230 mirror --- damage or not? How to fix?? 

If the mirror is still in the correct place, then I wouldn't worry about it
at all.. Give it a wiggle... make sure it is still tight on the car.

It is hard to break those mirror off the car... bolted in. As for the give,
newer cars allows the mirror to be moved both way to a certain extent.
 >> Stay informed about: c230 mirror --- damage or not? How to fix?? 

The mirror housing does swivel both directions, though more space to
flip rearward than forward.

I don't understand what you mean by "hanging there, in the correct
position". Its correct position is attaching to the door firmly, so
what is hanging? Can you move the whole housing freely without much
force? Then either the hinge or the spring holders are broken. The
hinge has its own part number but MB only sells the entire assembly
(i.e. the whole mirror minus the glass and the shell) which is something
like three hundred dollars.

Ours (96 C280) was broken on the driver side. Luckily I was able to
attach it back snugly. It is not as firm as before and hitting anything
may break it again but it stays there (for the last 1-2 years).

The shell has three tabs (near the door side). Bent the mirror forward
so you can see them. Once they are disengaged, the shell can slide out.
The hinge has double frame (so it can flip both directions). See if
any part is broken. The spring goes thru the middle. You need a strong
hook to deattch/attach the spring. I used the brake shoes tool.

If the mirror does need replacement, a used one is not easy to find.
However, color isn't important since the shell can reuse your existing
one. If you have plenty time, a left side mirror shares about half the
parts (e.g. the hinge) though I do mean "plenty" of time to work on.

Good luck


mp RemoveThis @murklagoon.com wrote:
> A close relative has a beautiful 1999 c230 with <> 30,000 miles on it.
>
> However, while getting backed out of the garage there was an error in
> judging distance and the passenger side mirror hit the garage door
> ..knocking the mirror backwards of course.
>
> The mirror is hanging there, in the correct position while the vehicle
> is sitting or being driven at lower city speeds, and the electronic
> controls that work the mirror's adjustments work just fine. The
> mirror itself, as much as I can see, does not appear damaged.
>
> I cannot tell from looking at this whether the mirror is somehow just
> dismounted from the vehicle and can be somehow reattached; or whether
> the mirror must be replaced.
>
> I mean, is the mirror designed to take this sort of hit by breaking
> loose to later be reattached, or is it broken beyond repair.
>
> This relative is very sad they 'broke the car'.
>
> So educate me, please .. what should I do now? What should I expect.
>
> Any advice will be appreciated ......
>
 >> Stay informed about: c230 mirror --- damage or not? How to fix??