HUD Glass Has Fallen?
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 2,049
Likes: 0
From: Texas
HUD Glass Has Fallen?
Hope everyone is doing well 
Had a quick question regarding the heads-up display glass. Driving home a couple weeks ago I noticed the image had disappeared so I checked out the unit when I got home. It appears that the shelf that holds the 'glass' up has cracked and collapsed so now the image is shooting straight into the dash. The image still appears clear so I think the overall unit is working, but the border is the issue?
Am I able to replace just one part to fix this issue or is there a trick to fixing this issue? I didn't find much searching, mainly parts for sale. Any advice is appreciated. Without seeing my car, two dealerships have quoted me $1,040 and $900, which makes me want to do it myself if possible. Any method that doesn't involving taking the entire dash off?
As always, thank you for the information.
Had a quick question regarding the heads-up display glass. Driving home a couple weeks ago I noticed the image had disappeared so I checked out the unit when I got home. It appears that the shelf that holds the 'glass' up has cracked and collapsed so now the image is shooting straight into the dash. The image still appears clear so I think the overall unit is working, but the border is the issue?
Am I able to replace just one part to fix this issue or is there a trick to fixing this issue? I didn't find much searching, mainly parts for sale. Any advice is appreciated. Without seeing my car, two dealerships have quoted me $1,040 and $900, which makes me want to do it myself if possible. Any method that doesn't involving taking the entire dash off?
As always, thank you for the information.
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 20,352
Likes: 568
From: Ventura County, Calif
The consensus opinion is that it isn't worth fixing. It's a pretty common failure BTW so you're not alone. Many have dealt with it. Again the consensus is it's easier and actually cost effective to replace the whole HUD unit. Our vendors like partstaxi.com sell the replacement HUD for about $350 or so. If you want to tackle the change yourself there are instructions available here on the Forum. Let us know if you want them and can't find them. If you don't want to do it yourself, since you're in Texas, we have a Forum member in League City, Tx who will do it for you for about $175 I think. He is Andrew6. He can even do custom HUD colors for you if you want.
Here's one of his posts for contact and other info:
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-c...e-gone-up.html
Here's one of his posts for contact and other info:
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-c...e-gone-up.html
Pro
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 568
Likes: 4
From: Cambridge
Keep searching, there's lots of info out there. By removing the cluster and cutting the air vent duct you can remove the HUD. I know, I did it. With regards repair you'll only know when you get it apart. I had to get very creative to repair mine which is now as good as new.
Didn't see the point spending 300 bucks needlessly on a new one. You'll see why they break when you get it out. They have the build quality of very cheap imported children's toys.
Didn't see the point spending 300 bucks needlessly on a new one. You'll see why they break when you get it out. They have the build quality of very cheap imported children's toys.
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 20,352
Likes: 568
From: Ventura County, Calif
Okay, maybe I should have included this before. Here's a video of a repair to give you an idea.
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/1581526306-post10.html
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/1581526306-post10.html
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 2,049
Likes: 0
From: Texas
Thank you for the quick replies. I watched the "duct" video, but not sure I'd want to go that route; cutting a part that is. I'll keep researching the idea. I'll shoot Andrew a message too and see what he says, but a 6+ hour drive and some toll roads may be less cost effective than I'd like.
Hope everyone's getting their fill of football.
Hope everyone's getting their fill of football.
Pro
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 568
Likes: 4
From: Cambridge
Fair enough, I had a dilemma over it for some time. I came to the conclusion that you run a real risk of damaging stuff removing the whole dash. Also, you will never get it in as solidly as it first was.
Cutting the duct is the way to do it. It goes back together as good as new.
This is one of the few jobs that is really satisfying and costs zero pence. Just a bit of time and patience.
Cutting the duct is the way to do it. It goes back together as good as new.
This is one of the few jobs that is really satisfying and costs zero pence. Just a bit of time and patience.
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 1,634
Likes: 190
From: Austin TX
Thank you for the quick replies. I watched the "duct" video, but not sure I'd want to go that route; cutting a part that is. I'll keep researching the idea. I'll shoot Andrew a message too and see what he says, but a 6+ hour drive and some toll roads may be less cost effective than I'd like.
Hope everyone's getting their fill of football.
Hope everyone's getting their fill of football.
Yup, football is in full swing here. Hook 'Em!!
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Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 2,049
Likes: 0
From: Texas
This may be a pointless question as I've never looked inside a HUD unit before but...
On my unit it appears that the mirror is sitting up properly when I look down through the windshield. As mentioned before, the image still displays properly/clearly. Is there a way I can easily lift the top glass piece by only removing maybe the trim piece? The glass I'm speaking to is the piece of material that is parrallel to the dash surface, whereas some of the videos I've watched all comment on the mirror inside the unit having fallen.
Just wanted to clarify in case my initial post was misleading.
On my unit it appears that the mirror is sitting up properly when I look down through the windshield. As mentioned before, the image still displays properly/clearly. Is there a way I can easily lift the top glass piece by only removing maybe the trim piece? The glass I'm speaking to is the piece of material that is parrallel to the dash surface, whereas some of the videos I've watched all comment on the mirror inside the unit having fallen.
Just wanted to clarify in case my initial post was misleading.
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 2,049
Likes: 0
From: Texas
So I decided to mess with it a bit again today when I went to snag a pizza up the street. I've actually found a temporary fix that hopefully will maintain until the unit goes out completely.
Since the image was now shooting substantially lower and at an odd angle, I actually forced the piece of plastic/"glass" into a straighter position (probably breaking it more) and then held down the up arrow for a good 20 seconds until that thing was shooting tremendously higher. It's not 100% straight as the left side (from driver's perspective) is a bit higher, but that may be my OCD kicking in. Thought I'd throw this temporary fix on here in case it gets searched for a similar issue. The "shelf" area I was talking about before is fairly loose and flimsy so you can adjust the angle of the glass slightly with some pressure in the right area. Since it has already collapsed, I'm guessing it will stay somewhat in place, however, at start up with my idle it did drop a tiny bit with the vibration (could be the mirror getting hit?). I tried to suction the plastic piece and pull it up, thinking I could Velcro the sides for a temporary fix, but it wasn’t having it.
Thanks again for all of the tips and pricing from Andrew6. I saved the videos/links to my favorites for down the line.
What a cheap product
Since the image was now shooting substantially lower and at an odd angle, I actually forced the piece of plastic/"glass" into a straighter position (probably breaking it more) and then held down the up arrow for a good 20 seconds until that thing was shooting tremendously higher. It's not 100% straight as the left side (from driver's perspective) is a bit higher, but that may be my OCD kicking in. Thought I'd throw this temporary fix on here in case it gets searched for a similar issue. The "shelf" area I was talking about before is fairly loose and flimsy so you can adjust the angle of the glass slightly with some pressure in the right area. Since it has already collapsed, I'm guessing it will stay somewhat in place, however, at start up with my idle it did drop a tiny bit with the vibration (could be the mirror getting hit?). I tried to suction the plastic piece and pull it up, thinking I could Velcro the sides for a temporary fix, but it wasn’t having it.
Thanks again for all of the tips and pricing from Andrew6. I saved the videos/links to my favorites for down the line.
What a cheap product
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 1,634
Likes: 190
From: Austin TX
So I decided to mess with it a bit again today when I went to snag a pizza up the street. I've actually found a temporary fix that hopefully will maintain until the unit goes out completely.
Since the image was now shooting substantially lower and at an odd angle, I actually forced the piece of plastic/"glass" into a straighter position (probably breaking it more) and then held down the up arrow for a good 20 seconds until that thing was shooting tremendously higher. It's not 100% straight as the left side (from driver's perspective) is a bit higher, but that may be my OCD kicking in. Thought I'd throw this temporary fix on here in case it gets searched for a similar issue. The "shelf" area I was talking about before is fairly loose and flimsy so you can adjust the angle of the glass slightly with some pressure in the right area. Since it has already collapsed, I'm guessing it will stay somewhat in place, however, at start up with my idle it did drop a tiny bit with the vibration (could be the mirror getting hit?). I tried to suction the plastic piece and pull it up, thinking I could Velcro the sides for a temporary fix, but it wasn’t having it.
Thanks again for all of the tips and pricing from Andrew6. I saved the videos/links to my favorites for down the line.
What a cheap product
Since the image was now shooting substantially lower and at an odd angle, I actually forced the piece of plastic/"glass" into a straighter position (probably breaking it more) and then held down the up arrow for a good 20 seconds until that thing was shooting tremendously higher. It's not 100% straight as the left side (from driver's perspective) is a bit higher, but that may be my OCD kicking in. Thought I'd throw this temporary fix on here in case it gets searched for a similar issue. The "shelf" area I was talking about before is fairly loose and flimsy so you can adjust the angle of the glass slightly with some pressure in the right area. Since it has already collapsed, I'm guessing it will stay somewhat in place, however, at start up with my idle it did drop a tiny bit with the vibration (could be the mirror getting hit?). I tried to suction the plastic piece and pull it up, thinking I could Velcro the sides for a temporary fix, but it wasn’t having it.
Thanks again for all of the tips and pricing from Andrew6. I saved the videos/links to my favorites for down the line.
What a cheap product
Glad you got it fixed. Hopfully it works out for you in the long run. Funny how such a small piece of equipment makes such a big difference in driving the vehicle. And yes, it is crazy. If you saw what the inside of mine looked like, your jaw would drop. The swing arms that the mirror is on is rusted and the screw holes were eaten away. Ugh, thanks GM
Former Vendor
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 12,288
Likes: 23
From: League City Texas
Houston Events Coordinator
St. Jude Donor '11-'12, '14
I believe in the Beer Fairy
you'll generally see sun/weather damage on the dash part of the HUD projector and this is usually evident that its old and improperly taken care of and you'll need to fix/replace it. I generally say replace as by the time you've went in and fixed the "pivot" you'll notice how corroded etc... the rest of the HUD is. As for pricing, when it comes to the Vette this is probably one of the cheapest upgrades you can do when you think of all of the other modifications are out there.