If you regularly park anything bigger than a city car on narrow UK roads, replacing wing mirrors can feel like a repetitive task. This problem is getting more prevalent and expensive as cars get bigger and more tech-filled. 

So how much is it going to cost to replace it? This depends on a few factors such as age and brand of car, as well as your location within the UK. 

How much does it cost to replace a wing mirror? 

The average price for replacing one wing mirror is £155 in the UK. If your car is a little older, and parts are easy to get, it could be as low as £85. High-end vehicles such as Range Rovers, Mercedes and BMW mirrors can set you back over £350 per side. 

Average wing mirror costs: 

• Ford Wing Mirror Cost: £100 - £170 
• Honda Wing Mirror Cost: £100 - £160 
• BMW Wing Mirror Cost: £140 - £200 
• Mercedes Wing Mirror Cost: £160 - £190 
• Toyota Wing Mirror Cost: £120 - £160 
• Hyundai Wing Mirror Cost: £100 - £150 

How much does it cost to replace an electric wing mirror? 

On average replacing a broken electric wing mirror in the UK costs £255. If your car comes equipped with blind spot detection lights or sensors for lane keeping, the cost could be up to £350, depending if the sensor itself is broken. 

Old-fashioned mirrors without electronic adjustment and heaters can be replaced much more cheaply than modern complex ones. The motors and heating elements can be expensive not only to fit but some cars require their software updating after replacement.  

Typical electric wing mirror costs: 

• Ford Electric Wing Mirror Cost: £120 - £220 
• Honda Electric Wing Mirror Cost: £125 - £230 
• BMW Electric Wing Mirror Cost: £160 - £270 
• Mercedes Electric Wing Mirror Cost: £180 - £270 
• Toyota Electric Wing Mirror Cost: £160 - £195 
• Hyundai Electric Wing Mirror Cost: £130 - £210 

How long does it take to replace your wing mirror? 

Typical times for a garage to change a wing mirror range from 1-3 days. Generally waiting for the part to be delivered will take longer than the actual job, unless the mirror is especially complex or the fixing points have been damaged.  

As wing mirrors are a common part to be damaged, the supply of replacement internals, motors and outer covers is fairly good for most cars. In some cases such as with Ford and Vauxhall, you can buy replacement, colour-coded mirror covers on their website.  

Is it illegal to drive without a wing mirror? 

UK law regarding rear-view mirrors states that a motor vehicle must have two functioning and properly adjusted mirrors. Although this does include the interior rear-view mirror, meaning it is legal to drive with only one wing mirror. 

If your vehicle doesn’t have a rearview mirror, such as in vans, driving with only one wing mirror is illegal.  

However, whilst you can drive with one mirror, if the damaged mirror leaves a sharp or exposed edge, such as underneath the mirror cover, this could be considered Dangerous and Defective, and such would be illegal under section 40a of the Road Traffic Act. 

Will a car fail an MOT if the wing mirror is broken? 

A missing driver's side (off-side) mirror is a Major MOT fault and will fail. MOTs check the roadworthiness of a car under specific rules, if your passenger side (near side) wing mirror is missing or damaged your car may receive an advisory, assuming it has two other mirrors as stated above.  

As mentioned above, if the passenger mirror could present a hazard due to a sharp edge or unsecured components, the MOT tester may still consider this unsafe. 

Can I replace a wing mirror myself? 

With labour costs at garages approaching £70 per hour, small repairs can soon get expensive. It may well be possible to change your wing mirror at home, provided you have the right tools and knowledge. 

Obtaining the replacement parts should be relatively straightforward, if you have a reasonably well-stocked toolkit, it could be done in around 1 hour.  

Tools you might need include: 

1. Torx screwdrivers/bits - many European cars don’t use traditional allen-head or Phillips bolts 
2. Trim tools - you may need to pry apart plastic trim without scratching or breaking it, plastic coated pry bars are made for this 
3. Diagnostics/programming software - some cars require new electronic components such as mirror adjusters, heaters and lane warning lights to be “re-coded” to the car's ECU 

Can I just replace the wing mirror glass? 

If just the wing mirror glass is broken it is usually possible to just replace that, without needing to take the whole mirror apart or buy an expensive replacement.  

Wing mirrors are made of various components, but the actual mirror is usually attached using plastic tabs/clips or adhesive. If the only part of your mirror that’s broken is this glass, you can usually buy replacement parts fairly cheaply online.  

Things to consider when replacing wing mirror glass: 

Be very careful of sharp edges - only attempt with sufficient PPE 

Don't be too forceful with the old glass, they are sometimes unclipped by way of a turning motion, and sometimes just glued, using the incorrect technique to remove the old glass could damage the adjustment mechanism 

Take it to an expert 

You shouldn’t perform repair work on your vehicle unless you know exactly what you’re doing. 

Choose from 1000s of Bumper’s trusted partners to fix your vehicle and split your bill into interest-free monthly payments.