97-01 TOYOTA CAMRY MIRROR LH (DRIVER SIDE), Power, Non-Heated, For USA Built Cars (1997 97 1998 98 1999 99 2000 00 2001 01) TY26EL 87940AA010C0

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

Great mirror!!, October 20, 2009

I thought this product would be a problem in some way because it was so inexpensive but it worked as well as the orignial mirror with no problems at all. Between my husband and I, we make adjustments to this mirror 2 to 3 times a day when we take turns driving. We have had it on the car for about 2 weeks now and we still have not experienced any problems. A couple of wrecking yards wanted $100 for an unpainted mirror. Needless to say, I was very pleased with my purchase–my paint job on the mirror is a different story however.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

Cheap and Operational, March 15, 2011

I bought this item as it was the cheapest I could find for my Toyota Camry 1997, U.S. built, driver side. Although the S&H was high, $11, it was delivered three days after I placed the order.

I wanted to test the mirror prior to painting it fearing it might be defected and they won’t accept the return if I had it painted. I used the following video to remove the broken side mirror as the instruction seems very straight forward. Unfortunately, after fiddling with the wire to see if I can unplug it, I realized that it has been buried inside the door panel. Great!!! There was no way I could reach inside and pull it out either.

[...]

Off to another video to see how to remove the Camry Gen4 door panel.

[...]

I made several errors here. First, I didn’t realize a miniature panel inside the door handle should not be taken out in its entirety, but rather simply gets opened on a hing giving access to a screw behind it–I snapped it and took it out which resulted in a broken mini-door panel (1:30 on the video)–no biggie.

Second, the door handle trim has a latch at the back of it pointing to the front of the car. I assumed that it is secured into the catchers from top and bottom, but apparently, in addition to those, there is a latch that must be pulled backward so the trim frame comes out. I once again snapped it and broke the latch. Oops! Got a super glue and reattached the piece that had come off of the door handle trim (2:26 on the video).

When you are done removing all the screws and get ready to tug the door panel out, make sure you pull it out towards yourself and a bit upward, but do not pull it straight upward because there are several plastic connectors that would have to get disconnected with this tug. Also, I noticed that the manufacturer had used some sort of silicon adhesive to the door panel and the plastic sheet covering the electrical wiring to the door frame itself. At last, now I had access to the side mirror wire connector. Tested it and worked perfectly.

On to the painting. I got my Dupli-Color Perfect Match (the color code is on the side fixture of driver’s door, i.e. C/TR: 4M9/FB40 as C is for color of the color and TR is the color of trim, clear coat, and sandpaper grit 1,500 from Auto Zone. Cleaned up the mirror with rubbing alcohol to remove any grease, dried it, then covered the mirror, wire, and the bottom part. The mirror is already primed (black color) so there is no need for that. The mirror was difficult to paint because it is not a flat surface but rather a curvature piece and does not stand straight on its own. I had to devise an uneven resting surface so I can waltz around it and have access to every spot on the side mirror. I used the structure in this video provided by Dupli-Color manufacturer to paint the mirror.

[...]

I tested the paint on a piece of newspaper which looked darker than my car’s but the paper usually extenuates the color somehow. Did a bit of sanding with grit 1,500 and removed any imperfections which was not really necessary. I wiped it clean with a damped microfiber towel.

Next, I began spraying, and things were going swimmingly until I reached the curvature at the bottom. Since it was hard to reach, I flipped the nozzle horizontally on the spray can and went a few rounds making sure I got all the spot, not realizing I was holding the can less than 4″ to the surface. Soon, I realize the excess paint was being dripped to the bottom. ARGH!

I had a paint thinner but was afraid I would be getting the primer gutted; besides, it was very wet at the moment. So I bite my tongue and let it dry for 1 hour. Came back and did a wet sandpaper for while on that very spot where excess paint had been accumulated. Got it all smoothed out and sprayed again–this time with caution. Let it dried and applied clear coat.

Installed the mirror, but when I tested it by splashing water on the mirror with windows closed, I realize a few drops were finding their way into the car. The flat plate at the bottom of the mirror hadn’t been seated properly onto the body. Corrected it and started reinstalling the door panel. Again, I missed the part where I had to hang the door panel on the top first then snap the plastic connectors in (5:28 on the video). The door has to seat on a metallic rim on top, then you snap the connectors from top to bottom. Make sure you take the tab bracket illustrated on 4:50 in the video before reinstalling the door panel and take the pin out and put it back in once the door panel is in place.

It wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be but a few loopy mistakes frustrated me. The color is a slightly darker but very unnoticeable. Over time, if it is exposed to more sun, I assume it would be completely matched.