johnsue Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 Hi We have just returned to Gloucester from a trip to Plymouth. Both ways down the M5 the offside (drivers ) side wing mirror repeatedly folded in travelling at speed of 65- 70 mph. I had to open the window & push the mirror back out when wishing to overtake. Obviously this is unsafe. When we got back to Gloucester we called in at the local Fiat garage/ dealer ( our Swift Bolero is registered 2008 ) therefore the Fiat warranty is only 2 yrs, they are going to get in touch with Swift, if they then agree it will come under a 3 yr warranty on the cab side of things. Has anybody else had this type of problem? We have booked it in with the Fiat dealer for them to investigate the actual problem. ( there isn't a problem with the nearside mirror ) *-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
euroserv Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 Hello, Do you mean that it folds electrically, or that it just folds back against the flow of air? Chances are that if it is the latter, then someone has hit it and damaged the 'stop' that holds it in place; unlikely to be covered by warranty. Never heard of this happening without being hit. This being the case, make sure you know whether it is covered by warranty before anyone changes it and you just get a bill. They are expensive. Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dshague Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 you could check on here http://www.swift-talk.co.uk/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 john&sue - 2011-02-28 6:27 PM Hi We have just returned to Gloucester from a trip to Plymouth. Both ways down the M5 the offside (drivers ) side wing mirror repeatedly folded in travelling at speed of 65- 70 mph. I had to open the window & push the mirror back out when wishing to overtake. Obviously this is unsafe. When we got back to Gloucester we called in at the local Fiat garage/ dealer ( our Swift Bolero is registered 2008 ) therefore the Fiat warranty is only 2 yrs, they are going to get in touch with Swift, if they then agree it will come under a 3 yr warranty on the cab side of things. Has anybody else had this type of problem? We have booked it in with the Fiat dealer for them to investigate the actual problem. ( there isn't a problem with the nearside mirror ) *-) Never heard of this happening but it will not be covered by warranty. The Fiat third year mechanical warranty for motorhomes only covers engine, gearbox, driveline and electronic control units. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter James Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 rupert123 - 2011-02-28 10:43 PM john&sue - 2011-02-28 6:27 PM Hi We have just returned to Gloucester from a trip to Plymouth. Both ways down the M5 the offside (drivers ) side wing mirror repeatedly folded in travelling at speed of 65- 70 mph. I had to open the window & push the mirror back out when wishing to overtake. Obviously this is unsafe. When we got back to Gloucester we called in at the local Fiat garage/ dealer ( our Swift Bolero is registered 2008 ) therefore the Fiat warranty is only 2 yrs, they are going to get in touch with Swift, if they then agree it will come under a 3 yr warranty on the cab side of things. Has anybody else had this type of problem? We have booked it in with the Fiat dealer for them to investigate the actual problem. ( there isn't a problem with the nearside mirror ) *-) Never heard of this happening but it will not be covered by warranty. The Fiat third year mechanical warranty for motorhomes only covers engine, gearbox, driveline and electronic control units. He said the swift 3 yr cab warranty not the Fiat Warranty. Excuse me for asking but how can anybody be so stupid as not to see whats written in front of them *-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Peter James - 2011-02-28 11:12 PM rupert123 - 2011-02-28 10:43 PM john&sue - 2011-02-28 6:27 PM Hi We have just returned to Gloucester from a trip to Plymouth. Both ways down the M5 the offside (drivers ) side wing mirror repeatedly folded in travelling at speed of 65- 70 mph. I had to open the window & push the mirror back out when wishing to overtake. Obviously this is unsafe. When we got back to Gloucester we called in at the local Fiat garage/ dealer ( our Swift Bolero is registered 2008 ) therefore the Fiat warranty is only 2 yrs, they are going to get in touch with Swift, if they then agree it will come under a 3 yr warranty on the cab side of things. Has anybody else had this type of problem? We have booked it in with the Fiat dealer for them to investigate the actual problem. ( there isn't a problem with the nearside mirror ) *-) Never heard of this happening but it will not be covered by warranty. The Fiat third year mechanical warranty for motorhomes only covers engine, gearbox, driveline and electronic control units. He said the swift 3 yr cab warranty not the Fiat Warranty. Excuse me for asking but how can anybody be so stupid as not to see whats written in front of them *-) Dyslexia ? 8-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter James Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Sorry not trying to make fun of Dyslexia, more of a tit for tat for another post http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=22723&posts=29#M251082 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe63xnotuse Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 john&sue.. I assume that there's no adjustment at the pivots then..? (..having sold our X250,I can't picture the mirror in detail..) If there isn't and you do risk ending up facing a hefty bill(..to replace a mirror which isn't actually broken,as such),is there no way you could look at increasing the resistance at the hinge points somehow? maybe by wrapping something like black cord tight around the pivots?.. Bit of a bodge I know..but just a thought ;-) If you do end up replacing it though,try and get the old one back(..and if YOU are paying,definately get it back!)and keep it for spares. (..as chances are,that's what the workshop will end up using it for anyway...probably whilst charging the next customer for a new one :-S ) Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Looking at an old one of mine it looks like the friction bushes can be tightened up if they aren't damaged. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnsue Posted March 1, 2011 Author Share Posted March 1, 2011 euroserv - 2011-02-28 7:03 PM Hello, Do you mean that it folds electrically, or that it just folds back against the flow of air? Chances are that if it is the latter, then someone has hit it and damaged the 'stop' that holds it in place; unlikely to be covered by warranty. Never heard of this happening without being hit. This being the case, make sure you know whether it is covered by warranty before anyone changes it and you just get a bill. They are expensive. Nick Hi Yes it is the air flow which causes the ' folding in' the electric adjustments are ok on both wing mirrors & we haven't had a bang & there is no visible damage of being hit. At home the van is parked on the drive & when on site we normally fold them in. Thanks Dshaque for the Swift web site we have now registered, will also ask the question on their forum. Thanks Chris & roland rat for your thoughts re the pivots & brushes, hopefully Wessex, the Fiat dealer, on investigating tomorrow will check this out & fingers crossed that Swift will honour the 3rd year warranty if the mirror has to be replaced. Will keep you posted. :-> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Peter James - 2011-02-28 11:12 PM rupert123 - 2011-02-28 10:43 PM john&sue - 2011-02-28 6:27 PM Hi We have just returned to Gloucester from a trip to Plymouth. Both ways down the M5 the offside (drivers ) side wing mirror repeatedly folded in travelling at speed of 65- 70 mph. I had to open the window & push the mirror back out when wishing to overtake. Obviously this is unsafe. When we got back to Gloucester we called in at the local Fiat garage/ dealer ( our Swift Bolero is registered 2008 ) therefore the Fiat warranty is only 2 yrs, they are going to get in touch with Swift, if they then agree it will come under a 3 yr warranty on the cab side of things. Has anybody else had this type of problem? We have booked it in with the Fiat dealer for them to investigate the actual problem. ( there isn't a problem with the nearside mirror ) *-) Never heard of this happening but it will not be covered by warranty. The Fiat third year mechanical warranty for motorhomes only covers engine, gearbox, driveline and electronic control units. He said the swift 3 yr cab warranty not the Fiat Warranty. Excuse me for asking but how can anybody be so stupid as not to see whats written in front of them *-) Pretty obvious really, their is no such thing as a Swift cab warranty, however I was wrong. Have now re-read my own Swift warranty, I assumed, wrongly, that the Fiat bit would be covered under the Fiat warranty but in the third year not all is. The Swift warranty clearly states ' All original components of motorhome', so must asume this means the Fiat bits as well. So unless mirror damaged in an accident it should indeed be covered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Peter James - 2011-03-01 8:33 AM Sorry not trying to make fun of Dyslexia, more of a tit for tat for another post http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=22723&posts=29#M251082 How to say this without going all preachy? There are a number of strings recently that have started with perfectly reasonably questions, from perfectly reasonable people, that have subsequently been totally sabotaged by this kind of egocentric selfishness. The ensuing exchanges between Tweedledum and Tweedledee completely destroy any chance for the OP to get answers to their question, while shedding no useful light on anything else either. It is grossly inconsiderate.A bit of banter, and the odd OT excursion, are all part of forum life, and I can't say overly bother me, though I know they do some. However, these particular posts have been opinionated, poorly researched, badly informed, and completely destructive in effect. I now understand far better why some schools just exclude disruptive kids! :-) Can we have a truce please, and just a bit of attention to the subject in hand, as set by the OP? If not, this forum is going to degenerate into worthless slanging matches at every opportunity, whereon we shall all lose. You know who you are! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melvin Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Well said, probably like a lot of people I have been avoiding inputting to the forum for fear of being indimidated or worse. In 2008 I highlighted zero rate VAT for disabled motorhomes only to be abused by one nasty member. So less of the rudness,if you disagree be polite, not abusive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John J Thompson Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 I have electric mirrors on my Hymer. I took it to a garage for repairs/MOT. The garage door was narrow so the fitters were in the habit of pushing the wing mirrors in to get them through the garage doors and putting them back for the customer after they came out of the workshop. This practise was OK for ordinary mirrors but the force damaged the mechanism in the mirror. I didn't find out until much later that my mirror was damaged. When I was back at the garage picking it up after another repair, I noticed what the fitters were doing. I now don't go to that garage. Has the OP had his van mirror damaged in the same way? John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 john&sue - 2011-03-01 10:39 AM .......... Yes it is the air flow which causes the ' folding in' the electric adjustments are ok on both wing mirrors & we haven't had a bang & there is no visible damage of being hit. ............. I had a similar problem on the earlier version of the Ducato, after the mirror was bashed. No warranty, so had to replace the mirror. What I had, was electric, heated, mirrors.What I discovered, after I'd bought the expensive identical replacement, was that everything could be dismantled, so the head could be removed from the arms, and the arms from the door mounting. Fiat only sold the unit complete, but I saved myself having to take off the door lining to get at the electrical connection for the mirror, by removing the mirror glass, and then taking it all to bits, ditto the new mirror, and then rebuilding the damaged one using such new bits as were required.I gained the impression that, as the damage was to a casting inside the mirror head, it would have been possible to have bought just the cheaper (unheated, unpowered), standard arm length, mirror, and used just the head casting from that. I'm not sure about the door mounting plate, which may have different angled seatings for the various length arms, so that the head stays in view through the quarter light.If this is still generally true for the new design, and it is only a spring, or similar, that has failed at the door end of the arm, you may find you can just buy the most basic, short arm, version of the mirror, take both mirrors to pieces, and re-build yours with with the spring cannibalised from the new one, at quite a saving in cost. If you can get a mirror from a scrap yard cheaply, you may get all the necessary bits at even lower cost. I hear that the new mirrors are somewhat breathtakingly expensive! Good luck with Swift! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
euroserv Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Hello folks, I will dismantle an old one tomorrow and see what can be done. Watch this space. Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Nick, Where do you source your replacement mirrors from, no doubt they will be cheaper to trade people like you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basil Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Hi sorry to poke my nose in when you asked Nick, but for information I have used the following in the past. The first is normally the cheapest for complete mirrors but the second does new covers and part mirrors. http://www.allpartssouthwest.com/index.html http://www.wingmirrorman.co.uk/ Bas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Momma Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 rupert123 - 2011-02-28 10:43 PM john&sue - 2011-02-28 6:27 PM Hi We have just returned to Gloucester from a trip to Plymouth. Both ways down the M5 the offside (drivers ) side wing mirror repeatedly folded in travelling at speed of 65- 70 mph. I had to open the window & push the mirror back out when wishing to overtake. Obviously this is unsafe. When we got back to Gloucester we called in at the local Fiat garage/ dealer ( our Swift Bolero is registered 2008 ) therefore the Fiat warranty is only 2 yrs, they are going to get in touch with Swift, if they then agree it will come under a 3 yr warranty on the cab side of things. Has anybody else had this type of problem? We have booked it in with the Fiat dealer for them to investigate the actual problem. ( there isn't a problem with the nearside mirror ) *-) Never heard of this happening but it will not be covered by warranty. The Fiat third year mechanical warranty for motorhomes only covers engine, gearbox, driveline and electronic control units. It certainly is covered. Exact same thing happened to me. Both wing mirrors folding in on themselves when driving (not even at speed). Took it to Bristol Street Motors in Swindon, FIAT approved dealer (Not the dealer where I bought it as they were too far away) who told me that there was a fault and they obtained replacements within 24 hours and then did the necessary, not had a problem with them since :D My Motorhome is an Autorail Comanche. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 You can tighten up the friction bearings at top and bottom of the swivel mount. You will have to remove the plastic covers though, which is fairly easy. I had to do the opposite on my van as they were too tight and would not swing back easily if they got a clout from another vehicle. I also oiled them at the same time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Momma Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 peter - 2011-03-01 10:35 PM You can tighten up the friction bearings at top and bottom of the swivel mount. You will have to remove the plastic covers though, which is fairly easy. I had to do the opposite on my van as they were too tight and would not swing back easily if they got a clout from another vehicle. I also oiled them at the same time. Bristol Street Motors attempted to do this at the outset, obviously hoping that it would be something that simple but unfortunately not. This was a definate fault with the mirrors. What annoyed me is that when FIAT were advised they knew of the fault but did nothing about it, where have we heard that before ? Anyway, they replaced the mirrors and all is now okay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
euroserv Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 OK. Of the two suggestions listed above, wingmirrorman does not have X250 mirrors, but Allparts southwest do. Euro car parts sell them now but only in the short arm versions but at a higher price than Allparts. This means that you should be able to get the mirrors you need from most good motor factors all over the country at much better prices than Fiat. We buy OE items from Fiat because we are normally charging for them anyway; so the guaranteed quality and fit is worth it for us. Our mirrors are all electric and heated and are currently about £260 plus Vat, the other suppliers will beat this by at least £100. Interestingly the Fiat parts system lists 4 different part numbers in succession for one of the mirrors that we use; some of the earlier part numbers are still 'orderable' at lower prices than the later versions so it's always worth asking if the old part number is still available even when you are told that it is superceded. The number on the sticker inside the mirror that I am currently examining does not exist! Hmmm. I have started to dismantle a damaged mirror and have run out of time. I am by no means saying that repairs are impossible on x250 mirrors, but it will be very difficult and probably end in damaged covers anyway. These are definitely not designed for DIY repairs! I do not believe that you can successfully 'adjust' the tension in the arm. I do not know yet of anybody selling the longer arm versions of the mirrors, but will keep looking for you. Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Thanks for that Nick. When my damaged nearside one was replaced I asked for the old one back so that if ever I needed any bits off it I could use them or help a friend out. Mine also had the radio aerial electronics in it as well. I'll put mine in the vice and see how it can be tensioned, up or down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 OK Nick, after completely dismantling my old nearside x250 mirror my advice to anyone thinking they can replace various aspects of it apart from the actual reflective mirrors and the side indicators, forget it. Bite the bullet and buy a new one. The Swivel is locked by the bottom one which is locked in place with a spring washer and if the washer breaks then the tension is released. Fortunately if it is this washer that is causing the loss of rigidity I think it can be replaced by unclipping the plastic blanking cap on the bottom swivel, removing the broken one and refitting a new one. The only reservation I have is the wiring some of which runs up the centre of the pivot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
euroserv Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Mmmm, That is pretty much what I thought too. Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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