VW Taos Heated Mirror Failure: Repair Solutions Inside

I had a similar issue with my 2019 VW Tiguan last winter during particularly cold weather conditions. The temperature control for the heated mirrors stopped working completely, which made winter driving quite challenging. Having some experience with car electronics, I first checked the fuse box, but everything appeared normal. The diagnostic scan showed similar error codes to what you're describing. After taking it to the workshop, they found the root cause was a damaged wire connection to the mirror heating element. Apparently, the constant mirror adjustments had caused wear on the cable over time. The repair involved replacing the connection assembly and testing the temperature control system. Total repair time was about 2 hours and cost 95€. Before suggesting specific solutions for your Taos, it would help to know: Have you noticed any other electrical issues with the mirrors (like adjustment problems)? Does the issue affect both side mirrors or just one? Did the problem start suddenly or develop gradually? Have you recently had any work done on the doors or mirrors? These details would help determine if you're dealing with a similar connection issue or if its something else in the mirror assembly.

Thanks for the detailed response. My mileage is currently at 45521km and I last serviced the vehicle 2 months ago. Both rearview mirrors stopped working simultaneously which makes me think its likely not a wiring issue. I havent noticed any other electrical problems with the mirrors, the adjustment motors work perfectly fine. This issue started quite suddenly during a particularly cold spell last week. No recent work has been done on the doors or mirrors. The car mirror heating problem is especially concerning since vehicle safety is compromised when driving in winter conditions. Based on your experience, it sounds like my issue might be different since both sides failed at once rather than a gradual wire wear problem. I might need to look into whether theres a control module issue affecting both heater elements simultaneously.

Based on those symptoms, especially both mirrors failing simultaneously, this does point to a different issue than what I experienced with my Tiguan. The fact that the mirror adjustments work perfectly suggests the wiring to the mirrors themselves is intact. Given the cold weather timing and dual failure, I suspect either a relay or control module problem rather than the heater elements themselves. When my connection issue occurred, it developed gradually and only affected one side initially. After dealing with my own mirror heating repairs, I learned these systems often share a common control point. Worth checking if the relay for the mirror heating circuit has failed, its a much simpler fix than replacing heater elements and typically costs around 45€ for the part. The timing with the cold spell is interesting, sometimes extreme temperature changes can expose existing weak points in electrical systems. Since your mileage is relatively low and servicing is recent, I would focus troubleshooting on the control side rather than individual mirror components. For optimal winter driving safety, getting this addressed soon would be wise. Until you can get it properly diagnosed, manually clearing ice and snow before driving will be essential for safe visibility.

Thanks for the insights regarding the control module possibility. I just scheduled an appointment with my VW service center for next week. Your suggestion about checking the relay first makes a lot of sense, especially since both heater elements failed at exactly the same time. The cold weather situation is definitely concerning from a safety perspective. For now, Im keeping an ice scraper handy and allowing extra time before my morning commute to manually clear the rearview mirrors. Its not ideal, but at least its a workable temporary solution until the temperature control system gets fixed. The service center quoted me 120€ for diagnostic time, mentioning they would check both the relay and control module before moving on to testing individual heater elements. Given your experience with mirror heating issues, this seems like a reasonable approach. Hopefully it turns out to be just the relay, that would certainly be the simpler and more cost-effective fix. Ill update once I know what the actual problem turned out to be, since this information might help others with similar mirror heating problems in cold conditions.