Changing a door mirror

[soxer123]

Some evil cretin snapped off my manually adjusted door mirror from my 1990 BX.

I am not one of these guys who tinkers with his Citroen, but I think I can manage changing the door mirror.

I would appreciate input, as I've prixed off the draft excluder from inside hoping the fitting screws would be here, but they aren't..

Do I have to take the door trim off ? Wheels off etc, etc, etc.

I can't imagine thi sbeing a big job, but my time is short and I am not a brilliant mechanic, so any tips on a speedy change would be appreciated.

Keith

[Oscar]

Hello mate

Sorry to hear that, it's very annoying.

It happened to me. I can't remember the exact order of repair, but it doesn't take long and isn't complicated. best way is to get down to a scrappy and take one off - that way you'll learn how it goes back on and get your mirror too.

[docchevron]

It's easy mate.
Remove door handle (inside the car!)
Remove door card
Just above and below the adjuster arm for the mirror there's two small holes in the door. If you look through the holes, you'll see two cross head srews.
Undo, and remove mirror.
To qoute Haynes, the book of myths, legends and other well known fairy tales, refitting is a reversal of removal!

Cheers
Chris G

[M]

Passenger side or drivers side?
I have a brand spanker passenger side c/w trim , handle and screws which you can have for the cost of postage (probably about a fiver).
Sadly you do have to remove the door trim (interior) to get at the securing screws.

[soxer123]

Well, at least it sounds straightforward - will give it a go. Thank you.

For those interested, I was given this car by my doctor who must've felt sorry for my poor state. It has only had two previous owners from new in 1990, both doctors and had done 45k miles when I had it.

It had also been converted to LPG, which makes running it easy on the pocket, except for when the suspension went hard and I had to have recon spheres fitted £ 230 (was that a good price) ?

I've only done 10 k miles in it myself, but I realise at 55k I should have the cam belt changed. Any idea how much this might cost me (I won't be using a main dealer).

Apart from letting me down recently, a problem with the LPG system, the car has started through 2 winters and flew through the last MOT.

So, I am looking forward to many more miles motoring from this BX.

Keith

[soxer123]

Eek, I kust paid almost 4 times that with postage for one off E bay, it was passenger side too. At least now I am a member here, I know where to come to ask for directions on such matters. Thank you for the kind offer.

[M]

For those interested, I was given this car by my doctor who must've felt sorry for my poor state.

when the suspension went hard and I had to have recon spheres fitted £ 230 (was that a good price)

At least he want feeling sorry for your prostate (boom boom)

£230 - is a little bit expensive, though if it was a main dealer and they changed the LHM too then thats about right - spheres are quite easy to change if you decide to ever tackle them yourself and cost £20 a corner and about £23 for the middle (Accumilator) sphere, budget another £20 for LHM and petrol (to clean the LHM filters with).

[soxer123]

That's easy for you to say...

French cars scare me. I haven't tinkered under the bonnet of a car since the late 70's, when I remember troublesome Fords that didn't like cold or damp weather and so, you'd have to put the spark plugs in a moderate oven for 10 minutes before starting.

Keith

[Oscar]

Soxer

Welcome to the forum.

If you want to save on cost, and have the time, the best thing to do is buy a decent set of spanners, overalls, and a Haynes manual, and get your hands dirty. Garages are less and less interested in working on electro-mechanical cars of the BX's age, and will start quoting silly prices in order to put you off.

I'm not a mechanic, and wasn't vaguely interested in what went on under the bonnet, until the heater matrix in our ZX burst just before Christmas 2004. The garage were asking silly money and wouldn't do it until Feb 05. I got stuck in and did it myself.

I got the bug, and since then I've bought a write-off BX back to life and it's our main and only car.

I've used the Haynes, a bit of input from my local Cit specialist, and lots of freely-given, generous and high-quality help from this forum.

So if you've got the time and the inclination, I'd suggest getting stuck in.

By the way, I changed the cam belt on the BX myself too. Cost about £30 in parts, but took a few hours.

[M]

French cars scare me.

They used to scare me a bit Keith! Im a total mechanical numpty (ask Jon or Mr. B about my prowess with a spanner, and indeed my bricklaying skills too....) But - they are no more frightening than any other car - dont let the assumed complexity of the Hydropneumatics put you off, once you get to know them a little they are straightforward to keep running - I did 12000 miles in 9 months in my last BX (miles were 167000) with nothing more than a sticky brake calliper needing attention.
Everything else was routine servicing and weekly checks that seem to have fallen by the wayside with modern eurobox cars.
TBH apart from fuel and road tax my last BX was almost 12 months free motoring as I sold it for more than I paid for it (Well, they ARE a style icon!).

There is a wealth of knowledge and help abound on here and we often band together to help out, so dont throw it away for the want of a days fettling.

Welcome aboard Keith - weird obsession BTW - you need to speak to our Mr. Newbold.....

[soxer123]

Which weird obsession were you on about ? Citroen BX (not an obsession) or sandals and socks (which could also be the style icon to which you refer.

www.sandalandsoxer.co.uk/home.htm for a little non Ciitroen levity.

Mr Dr. went from the BX to an old Saab 900 convertible, which seems to have the same sort of status. He's done 170k miles in that.

If there are any sandal and soxing Citroen BX'ers here, you could be famous if you submit a photo to the site.

[Oscar]

Oh, and to echo Marty's argument about free driving - I worked out yesterday that in two years of ownership, we've paid £0.26 per mile, including depreciation (none), fuel, parts, tax and insurance. That's pretty cheap going.

If you've got experience on 1970's models, the BX shouldn't frighten you.

[tom]

With a car that is cheap and the know how you'll find here, there is little excuse not to take up the spanners. The hydraulics are fairly straightforward although the bleed nipples on the rear calipers can break when you try to change the fluid. Cambelts though are not a job for the novice BXer. access is tight and it is important to get it right. Ask an independent Citroen specialist for a quote. The rest you can do yourself.

[soxer123]

Well. I've taken your advice and have put in a bid on E Bay for a Haynes manual for the BX.

I hope a mechanical dodo like me can learn something from it. I won't be starting with a cam belt or sphere change I can promise you.

KP

[Oscar]

I've got one you can have for the cost of the postage.