Driver's Side Sun Visor

[Sethna2]

Do you know where I can purchase a sun visor (driver's side) for my 2018 Clarity Touring PHEV? I called the local dealer and they want $375 plus installation. That's absurd, especially considering I purchased the extended warranty (which does not cover the visor per the dealer--"normal wear and tear").

Any help is greatly appreciated!

 

[BrianRC]

I'm curious what happened to your sun visor after only four years. Why did it fail? Do you move it around a lot? $400 plus is ridiculous for replacement. Alternatives would include a local auto recycler or eBay. Try Googling on Chrome "honda clarity sun visor". You'll get a lot of hits.

 

[MrFixit]

If it's any consolation, you can purchase a genuine OEM sun visor online for $195.
This is still outrageous, but not as bad as the dealer. Here is an example:
https://www.hondapartsnow.com/genuine/honda~0~83280-trt-a52za.html

Keep an eye on eBay for a used one. They sell for around $100 there...
Here is an example (this happens to be passenger side):

https://www.ebay.com/itm/225130654740?hash=item346ad52c14

 

[Landshark]

Per the Honda Care VSC, sun visors are excluded (except for the sun visor support and vanity mirror). Also of note, a mechanical breakdown must be due solely to a defect in materials or workmanship.

 

[JCA]

My Clarity hasn't had this issue yet, but if it's like what happened to my 2007 Civic visor (the clamshell split apart so it wouldn't stay up), it's a common Honda visor problem. I repaired it as shown in these videos:




I would argue this is a defect that should be covered for sure while the car is under warranty, but apparently Honda disagrees. In my case the car was well out of warranty; I think it started having issues after 5-6 years and I finally repaired 2-3 years later, and the fix has held for at least 6-7 years now. Not the prettiest, but not that noticeable either.

 

[su_A_ve]

So just started to happen but in my case, to the passenger side, which gets less use. I understand that Honda Care doesn't cover the visors, but what is the "sun visor support" that it is covered.

Dealer said Honda may cover the driver's side as it can be considered a driving hazard.

 

[MrFixit]

Dealer said Honda may cover the driver's side as it can be considered a driving hazard.

My daughter has a 2007 Civic (apparently renowned for this as discussed in both videos linked in the previous post).

When this first happened to her, we installed a fairly large 'paper clamp' over the separated area.
one of these:


You can remove the silver handle once it is in place. You want a pretty heavy one (maybe 2 or 3 inches).

You may consider this a band-aid solution while perusing something more permanent. For my daughter, it continues to work fine (after many years). It is pretty unobtrusive too without the silver handle.

 

[Roy2001]

I'm curious what happened to your sun visor after only four years. Why did it fail? Do you move it around a lot? $400 plus is ridiculous for replacement. Alternatives would include a local auto recycler or eBay. Try Googling on Chrome "honda clarity sun visor". You'll get a lot of hits.

It must be common, my 09 Accord had the same issue.

 

[NorCalPete]

I dropped by my local dealership today to buy Honda coolant (because my engine coolant level in the reservoir is a bit low). While there I asked about the availability of the driver's side visor which has been unavailable for months. The counter-person confirmed that the part is still unavailable, but then called someone at Honda corporate and learned that visors should be available by January 1st. Next, I asked the service manager if the visor replacement would be covered by the HondaCare extended warranty, and he replied "yes, definitely." Hopefully, both of those pieces of info will still be true come January 1st.

 

[TC1782]

I dropped by my local dealership today to buy Honda coolant (because my engine coolant level in the reservoir is a bit low). While there I asked about the availability of the driver's side visor which has been unavailable for months. The counter-person confirmed that the part is still unavailable, but then called someone at Honda corporate and learned that visors should be available by January 1st. Next, I asked the service manager if the visor replacement would be covered by the HondaCare extended warranty, and he replied "yes, definitely." Hopefully, both of those pieces of info will still be true come January 1st.

Curious if this is the first time you noticed this, or if it has been going down over time. My clarity has been consuming coolant for awhile now, im curious if anyone else has a similar issue.

 

[NorCalPete]

This is the first time I've noticed that the level was a little low.

 

[NorCalPete]

As happened with my first Clarity, the driver's side sun visor on my second Clarity was starting to droop. My prior repair attempt (on the first Clarity) didn't turn out very well -- I snagged and tore the cloth cover while drilling, so I decided to try a different approach this time. First, I pulled the cloth liner away from the mirror, and then moved it out of the way.

This also created enough slack to allow me to slide a temporary spacer (a large nut) onto the opposite side of the visor to keep the cloth away from the drill bit. I gradually stepped-up the drill bit size to allow better control, and to make smaller plastic chips which were easier to remove from both sides of the visor.

It turns out that a 1/2" threaded post is the perfect size to tighten the visor's internal spring clamp. Getting the female side of the post pushed through the covered side of the visor was tricky. I used the eraser-end of a pencil to created space and to help guide the post into the hole on the backside.

This repair turned out much better compared to my prior attempt. The visor is tight again, and you can't see either end of the threaded post hidden inside the cloth cover.

 

[insightman]

As happened with my first Clarity, the driver's side sun visor on my second Clarity was starting to droop. My prior repair attempt (on the first Clarity) didn't turn out very well -- I snagged and tore the cloth cover while drilling, so I decided to try a different approach this time. First, I pulled the cloth liner away from the mirror, and then moved it out of the way.

This also created enough slack to allow me to slide a temporary spacer (a large nut) onto the opposite side of the visor to keep the cloth away from the drill bit. I gradually stepped-up the drill bit size to allow better control, and to make smaller plastic chips which were easier to remove from both sides of the visor.

It turns out that a 1/2" threaded post is the perfect size to tighten the visor's internal spring clamp. Getting the female side of the post pushed through the covered side of the visor was tricky. I used the eraser-end of a pencil to created space and to help guide the post into the hole on the backside.

This repair turned out much better compared to my prior attempt. The visor is tight again, and you can't see either end of the threaded post hidden inside the cloth cover.

Practice (and skill) makes perfect! You learned a lot the first time and we appreciate seeing the well-described procedure. How much do you charge now that you've got it down to a science?

 

[MrFixit]

@NorCalPete - I could not read your post (on the computer) because the photos were huge, preventing things from wrapping properly. I took the liberty to re-size some of them in the hopes that the format would come out better. Below is that result:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As happened with my first Clarity, the driver's side sun visor on my second Clarity was starting to droop. My prior repair attempt (on the first Clarity) didn't turn out very well -- I snagged and tore the cloth cover while drilling, so I decided to try a different approach this time. First, I pulled the cloth liner away from the mirror, and then moved it out of the way.

This also created enough slack to allow me to slide a temporary spacer (a large nut) onto the opposite side of the visor to keep the cloth away from the drill bit. I gradually stepped-up the drill bit size to allow better control, and to make smaller plastic chips which were easier to remove from both sides of the visor.

It turns out that a 1/2" threaded post is the perfect size to tighten the visor's internal spring clamp. Getting the female side of the post pushed through the covered side of the visor was tricky. I used the eraser-end of a pencil to created space and to help guide the post into the hole on the backside.


This repair turned out much better compared to my prior attempt. The visor is tight again, and you can't see either end of the threaded post hidden inside the cloth cover.