Geek2.0
New Member
I got fed up with my electric mirrors not working, in particular the down would never work on either mirror. I was too cheap to go buy a switch from the wreckers, so i ripped out my old switch and repaired it. Here is what i did:
Equipment:
Flat head screwdriver (fine)
Fine nose pliers (the smaller the better)
tissues and cotton buds (the ones on the stick)
a couple of tooth pics
some cleaning alcohol, the higher the concentration the better, I used 99% Isopropyl alcohol. You can get this from electronic shops or sometimes at chemists
What happens is over time water gets into the switch causing corrosion (that green stuff), this stops the current and causes the switch not to work, as long as this corrosion isn't to bad it can be cleaned off with the Isopropyl.
Step 1: Get the switch out of the car
Pretty simple, pull the cover off the drivers door handle, mine is warped and came off very easy
You should now see the wiring like below
You will need to unplug the harness, and then push the switch assembly out from behind, now you can take the assembly to a work bench.
Step 2: Dissemble
For this step it is best to have a clear work space, as small springs and thingmabobs are likely to fly everywhere :L
The switch assembly consists of the front plate, which acts as a sheath and covers up the mechanisms, and the components themselves mounted on a PCB board. To seperate the two use a small flat head screew driver, and insert it between the two on the small side then pry them apart. when they separate bits may fly out, dont panic they all slot back in easily, you should now see this:
Step 3: corrosion removal
This is how bad it was to start with:
Now you need to use the tissues and cotton buds combined with the Isopropyl to rub away the corrosion, my switch had a considerable amount around on of the circular mechanisms, i ended up using a tooth pick to scrape away as much as possible:
The good thing about a high concentration of alcohol is it evaporates very quickly, so you can literally soak all corrosion in Isopropyl.
Now you can remove corrosion from the joystick side using the same technique.
Step 4: assemble
just reverse what you did before, one of the contacts on the left/right mirror switch came out on mine, the tiny springs made it a real pain to get back in, but it is possible, just mind it doesn't spring out and get you in the eye
Step 5: test
Once the unit is all back together, give it a couple of minutes to dry (the alcohol should evaporate almost instantly, but better safe than sorry), then install it back into the car, and give it a shot.
This was on a VP Berlina, i assume the same technique works on VN/VP/VR/VS.
Hopefully this will help out a few people, if you have any questions just ask
Equipment:
Flat head screwdriver (fine)
Fine nose pliers (the smaller the better)
tissues and cotton buds (the ones on the stick)
a couple of tooth pics
some cleaning alcohol, the higher the concentration the better, I used 99% Isopropyl alcohol. You can get this from electronic shops or sometimes at chemists
What happens is over time water gets into the switch causing corrosion (that green stuff), this stops the current and causes the switch not to work, as long as this corrosion isn't to bad it can be cleaned off with the Isopropyl.
Step 1: Get the switch out of the car
Pretty simple, pull the cover off the drivers door handle, mine is warped and came off very easy
You should now see the wiring like below
You will need to unplug the harness, and then push the switch assembly out from behind, now you can take the assembly to a work bench.
Step 2: Dissemble
For this step it is best to have a clear work space, as small springs and thingmabobs are likely to fly everywhere :L
The switch assembly consists of the front plate, which acts as a sheath and covers up the mechanisms, and the components themselves mounted on a PCB board. To seperate the two use a small flat head screew driver, and insert it between the two on the small side then pry them apart. when they separate bits may fly out, dont panic they all slot back in easily, you should now see this:
Step 3: corrosion removal
This is how bad it was to start with:
Now you need to use the tissues and cotton buds combined with the Isopropyl to rub away the corrosion, my switch had a considerable amount around on of the circular mechanisms, i ended up using a tooth pick to scrape away as much as possible:
The good thing about a high concentration of alcohol is it evaporates very quickly, so you can literally soak all corrosion in Isopropyl.
Now you can remove corrosion from the joystick side using the same technique.
Step 4: assemble
just reverse what you did before, one of the contacts on the left/right mirror switch came out on mine, the tiny springs made it a real pain to get back in, but it is possible, just mind it doesn't spring out and get you in the eye
Step 5: test
Once the unit is all back together, give it a couple of minutes to dry (the alcohol should evaporate almost instantly, but better safe than sorry), then install it back into the car, and give it a shot.
This was on a VP Berlina, i assume the same technique works on VN/VP/VR/VS.
Hopefully this will help out a few people, if you have any questions just ask