DIY - Rear View Mirror, Reading Lamp, A-Pillar Interior Trim Removal
01-03-2015, 05:35 AM
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DIY - Rear View Mirror, Reading Lamp, A-Pillar Interior Trim Removal
In my attempt to do something simple, I wound up removing my rear view mirror, reading lamps, and a-pillar interior trim tonight. Though relatively simple, it would have been nice to have had some sort of guide. (And if there is already a DIY post for this, forgive me. I didn't have time to look because everything I did kind of just happened without me planning to do this.) So, if for some reason you decide you need to remove any of these pieces, here is a step by step guide you can refer to.
Rear View Mirror Removal
1) Turn the entire rear view mirror housing/base one quarter turn to the right or left. I do not think it matters which way you turn it. This will release the rear view mirror from the clip that holds it securely in place and it will easily come down and out of its mount.
2) Disconnect the electrical connection at the base of the rear view mirror. The rear view mirror will be completely detached at this point.
A-Pillar Interior Trim Removal
1) Remove the rear view mirror first. See above.
2) At this point, I recommend removing your targa top or lowering your convertible top.
3) Move the sun visors out of the way. There is no need to remove them, just move them away from where you are working.
4) Using your hands or a trim piece removal tool, pull down on the front edge of the trim piece on either the drivers side or passenger side. Doing so will release the clips that hold the trim into place. Don't get crazy here. There are two torque screws that you will need to unscrew before you are able to remove the entire trim piece.
5) As you move from the outer edge of the trim piece toward the middle of the piece, the sun visor latch will actually release a small door that is built into the latch piece. It will fall open, revealing the torque screw that holds it in place. Remove the torque screw.
6) Perform steps 4 and 5 on both sides of the a-pillar trim piece.
7) Once you have removed the two torque screws, all that is holding the trim piece on now are the clips. Continue to work your way toward the middle of the trim piece until you pull all of the clips out.
8) The final step for removal is to disconnect the electrical connector for the two reading lamps. Follow the wires from both reading lamps to the central connection point and disconnect the connector there. The a-pillar trim piece will be completely free at this point.
Reading Lamp Removal
1) Remove the rear view mirror. See above.
2) Remove the a-pillar interior trim piece. See above.
3) Remove the lenses from the reading lamp housings. The tabs that hold the lenses in place can be easily seen when looking at the back side of the a-pillar trim piece. You now have access to the reading lamp housing, bulb, and circuit components.
4) When reconnecting the lenses and the housings, I found that the clips on the lenses were most easily secured when attaching the ones located at the thinner part of the lense first.
Final note: The reading lamp lenses are secured to the a-pillar trim solely by the lenses. If you remove the lenses without removing the a-pillar trim piece, it is highly unlikely that you will be able to properly reattach the lenses to the lamp housings. Don't ask me how I know.
Rear View Mirror Removal
1) Turn the entire rear view mirror housing/base one quarter turn to the right or left. I do not think it matters which way you turn it. This will release the rear view mirror from the clip that holds it securely in place and it will easily come down and out of its mount.
2) Disconnect the electrical connection at the base of the rear view mirror. The rear view mirror will be completely detached at this point.
A-Pillar Interior Trim Removal
1) Remove the rear view mirror first. See above.
2) At this point, I recommend removing your targa top or lowering your convertible top.
3) Move the sun visors out of the way. There is no need to remove them, just move them away from where you are working.
4) Using your hands or a trim piece removal tool, pull down on the front edge of the trim piece on either the drivers side or passenger side. Doing so will release the clips that hold the trim into place. Don't get crazy here. There are two torque screws that you will need to unscrew before you are able to remove the entire trim piece.
5) As you move from the outer edge of the trim piece toward the middle of the piece, the sun visor latch will actually release a small door that is built into the latch piece. It will fall open, revealing the torque screw that holds it in place. Remove the torque screw.
6) Perform steps 4 and 5 on both sides of the a-pillar trim piece.
7) Once you have removed the two torque screws, all that is holding the trim piece on now are the clips. Continue to work your way toward the middle of the trim piece until you pull all of the clips out.
8) The final step for removal is to disconnect the electrical connector for the two reading lamps. Follow the wires from both reading lamps to the central connection point and disconnect the connector there. The a-pillar trim piece will be completely free at this point.
Reading Lamp Removal
1) Remove the rear view mirror. See above.
2) Remove the a-pillar interior trim piece. See above.
3) Remove the lenses from the reading lamp housings. The tabs that hold the lenses in place can be easily seen when looking at the back side of the a-pillar trim piece. You now have access to the reading lamp housing, bulb, and circuit components.
4) When reconnecting the lenses and the housings, I found that the clips on the lenses were most easily secured when attaching the ones located at the thinner part of the lense first.
Final note: The reading lamp lenses are secured to the a-pillar trim solely by the lenses. If you remove the lenses without removing the a-pillar trim piece, it is highly unlikely that you will be able to properly reattach the lenses to the lamp housings. Don't ask me how I know.
Last edited by jagamajajaran; 01-03-2015 at 02:22 PM.
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01-03-2015, 12:12 PM
#2
Instructor
Not that I'm planning to do this, but I'm curious as to what year and model you have. I ask because I have a 15 Z51, 3lt with Nav and PDR, and I know the PDR camera and GPS antenna are in the the mirror. That might make a difference in the mirror procedure.
01-03-2015, 02:13 PM
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Mine is a 2014 3LT with NAV, no PDR. Thanks for the input. Anyone with PDR may want to be careful to pay attention to any differences in the procedure.
01-03-2015, 02:22 PM
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Pics added.
11-03-2015, 08:40 PM
#5
Burning Brakes
In my attempt to do something simple, I wound up removing my rear view mirror, reading lamps, and a-pillar interior trim tonight. Though relatively simple, it would have been nice to have had some sort of guide. (And if there is already a DIY post for this, forgive me. I didn't have time to look because everything I did kind of just happened without me planning to do this.) So, if for some reason you decide you need to remove any of these pieces, here is a step by step guide you can refer to.
Rear View Mirror Removal
1) Turn the entire rear view mirror housing/base one quarter turn to the right or left. I do not think it matters which way you turn it. This will release the rear view mirror from the clip that holds it securely in place and it will easily come down and out of its mount.
2) Disconnect the electrical connection at the base of the rear view mirror. The rear view mirror will be completely detached at this point.
A-Pillar Interior Trim Removal
1) Remove the rear view mirror first. See above.
2) At this point, I recommend removing your targa top or lowering your convertible top.
3) Move the sun visors out of the way. There is no need to remove them, just move them away from where you are working.
4) Using your hands or a trim piece removal tool, pull down on the front edge of the trim piece on either the drivers side or passenger side. Doing so will release the clips that hold the trim into place. Don't get crazy here. There are two torque screws that you will need to unscrew before you are able to remove the entire trim piece.
5) As you move from the outer edge of the trim piece toward the middle of the piece, the sun visor latch will actually release a small door that is built into the latch piece. It will fall open, revealing the torque screw that holds it in place. Remove the torque screw.
6) Perform steps 4 and 5 on both sides of the a-pillar trim piece.
7) Once you have removed the two torque screws, all that is holding the trim piece on now are the clips. Continue to work your way toward the middle of the trim piece until you pull all of the clips out.
8) The final step for removal is to disconnect the electrical connector for the two reading lamps. Follow the wires from both reading lamps to the central connection point and disconnect the connector there. The a-pillar trim piece will be completely free at this point.
Reading Lamp Removal
1) Remove the rear view mirror. See above.
2) Remove the a-pillar interior trim piece. See above.
3) Remove the lenses from the reading lamp housings. The tabs that hold the lenses in place can be easily seen when looking at the back side of the a-pillar trim piece. You now have access to the reading lamp housing, bulb, and circuit components.
4) When reconnecting the lenses and the housings, I found that the clips on the lenses were most easily secured when attaching the ones located at the thinner part of the lense first.
Final note: The reading lamp lenses are secured to the a-pillar trim solely by the lenses. If you remove the lenses without removing the a-pillar trim piece, it is highly unlikely that you will be able to properly reattach the lenses to the lamp housings. Don't ask me how I know.
Rear View Mirror Removal
1) Turn the entire rear view mirror housing/base one quarter turn to the right or left. I do not think it matters which way you turn it. This will release the rear view mirror from the clip that holds it securely in place and it will easily come down and out of its mount.
2) Disconnect the electrical connection at the base of the rear view mirror. The rear view mirror will be completely detached at this point.
A-Pillar Interior Trim Removal
1) Remove the rear view mirror first. See above.
2) At this point, I recommend removing your targa top or lowering your convertible top.
3) Move the sun visors out of the way. There is no need to remove them, just move them away from where you are working.
4) Using your hands or a trim piece removal tool, pull down on the front edge of the trim piece on either the drivers side or passenger side. Doing so will release the clips that hold the trim into place. Don't get crazy here. There are two torque screws that you will need to unscrew before you are able to remove the entire trim piece.
5) As you move from the outer edge of the trim piece toward the middle of the piece, the sun visor latch will actually release a small door that is built into the latch piece. It will fall open, revealing the torque screw that holds it in place. Remove the torque screw.
6) Perform steps 4 and 5 on both sides of the a-pillar trim piece.
7) Once you have removed the two torque screws, all that is holding the trim piece on now are the clips. Continue to work your way toward the middle of the trim piece until you pull all of the clips out.
8) The final step for removal is to disconnect the electrical connector for the two reading lamps. Follow the wires from both reading lamps to the central connection point and disconnect the connector there. The a-pillar trim piece will be completely free at this point.
Reading Lamp Removal
1) Remove the rear view mirror. See above.
2) Remove the a-pillar interior trim piece. See above.
3) Remove the lenses from the reading lamp housings. The tabs that hold the lenses in place can be easily seen when looking at the back side of the a-pillar trim piece. You now have access to the reading lamp housing, bulb, and circuit components.
4) When reconnecting the lenses and the housings, I found that the clips on the lenses were most easily secured when attaching the ones located at the thinner part of the lense first.
Final note: The reading lamp lenses are secured to the a-pillar trim solely by the lenses. If you remove the lenses without removing the a-pillar trim piece, it is highly unlikely that you will be able to properly reattach the lenses to the lamp housings. Don't ask me how I know.
Thanks for your help. Pics would be great.
Dillard
11-03-2015, 09:40 PM
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11-03-2015, 09:47 PM
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The pdr camera is in that big plastic housing in front of the mirror assembly. It's really hard to remove. 
Thanks Jag, I'm not sure why I'd ever need to remove all of that other than to bury wire I guess, but it's nice someone figured it out for us!
Thanks Jag, I'm not sure why I'd ever need to remove all of that other than to bury wire I guess, but it's nice someone figured it out for us!
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11-03-2015, 11:02 PM
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That cover comes off. If you start on the mirror side and work a trim tool under it, you can see where the clips are in that picture. Put your trim tool right at where one of the clips are and pop the cover down. Pop the three off on that side then you can get the other two.
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11-04-2015, 02:11 AM
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Thanks for the DIY info. 
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11-04-2015, 11:23 AM
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I should have waited a day or so....just finished installing a dash cam in front of the mirror. What a pain to work in such a cramped, tight space!
It would have been much easier to have removed the mirror, and looking at the actual mount v. the exploded parts diagram (which indicated it was held up by a torq screw), the mirror appeared to unscrew from it mount. Tried to unscrew with moderate force, but it would not budge. Did not want to visit the dealer for a new mirror and whatever else I broke in the process. THANKS for the the input about the removal. Thinking we need to put you on some sort of retainer/consulting arrangement!
One thing to add or clarify. The bracket that holds the end of the Visor. The cover plate has a tiny latch at the top center - closest to the visor. It also has tiny plastic hinge pins on the lower end (near the courtesy light). Best to use a very thin straight probe to release the latch - don't try to pry from the bottom. This way, you won't do any damage to the cover plate....which is very visible when it's all put back together.
It would have been much easier to have removed the mirror, and looking at the actual mount v. the exploded parts diagram (which indicated it was held up by a torq screw), the mirror appeared to unscrew from it mount. Tried to unscrew with moderate force, but it would not budge. Did not want to visit the dealer for a new mirror and whatever else I broke in the process. THANKS for the the input about the removal. Thinking we need to put you on some sort of retainer/consulting arrangement!
One thing to add or clarify. The bracket that holds the end of the Visor. The cover plate has a tiny latch at the top center - closest to the visor. It also has tiny plastic hinge pins on the lower end (near the courtesy light). Best to use a very thin straight probe to release the latch - don't try to pry from the bottom. This way, you won't do any damage to the cover plate....which is very visible when it's all put back together.
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07-02-2017, 09:47 PM
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OK. I read this twice, just to be sure. Nice directions. Really. But WHY DID YOU DO THIS?????