tim8oland

Hey Guys...I know a grip of you on here have cleared your headlights, and it's going to be my project this weekend. I plan on removing the headlights and baking them in the oven. However, in the DIY section...it doesn't really have pictures of how to actually remove the headlights off of the car. And after looking at my car last night...it just seems like there are more screws involved than what is posted in the DIY thread. Someone help me out and post some pictures of exactly what screws need to come off, and step by step instructions for removing the headlights off of the car.

Also, when I bake them in the oven...do i just place the headlight on a damp towel?? I think I read that in another post. SORRY for the dumb request...I'm a newbie and I just don't wanna F this up...

THANKS ALL!

-Timbo

yusef

lol behind the light there are 2 screws that you have to take off. this is the way i take those out, i just turned the wheel away from me, took off the wheel well plastic, well bent it back a lil bit so i could stick my hand in the fender and reach those 2 screws. i probably made no sense but its really easy.

tim8oland

OK, so there are 4 Screws TOTAL holding the headlights to the car?? I just want to make sure. Last night, I took off about 15 screws just to take off my grille. I think I only needed to take off about half that many. LOL

-Timbo

YupImJOee

there is a step by step if you search. I think it may also be in the DIY section. You can always just stab them out if you dont wanna bake them, but i tried that and it didnt work. I'll maybe baking them too.

tim8oland

I'm in no RUSH. Baking seems the most legitimate way because if you stab them...you're risking your headlight lense. you can really mess them up doing it that way. i don't trust that method...but hey, it's worked for some of the members on here. I just prefer baking them.

-Timbo

YupImJOee

true true. the only thing holding me back from baking is the resealing and condensation that might happen

tim8oland

yeah man, i had that problem with my first GS. i think i'm more meticulous than most other people though. if i did the job myself, i think i would make sure that the lens has no leaks or holes for condensation. worst case...buy a new set. hahaa

-Timbo

YupImJOee

i have a question, I've heard on other forums when resealing headlights to reuse the glue thats already there and that you dont have to add anything. is that true? or what sealant would you use?

tim8oland

i've heard the same thing. people say to re-bake the headlights and stick them back together. i've also heard of adding ADDITIONAL silicone. which is the best method for this, and possibly...what steps?? do you re-bake and then add ADDITIONAL silicone...or do you add the silicone to the original glue, and rebake all together...spread your knowledge yall.

-Timbo

yusef

i heard after you clear them, when your resealing to put a little glue on the thing before sealing it up, just to make sure it closed.

mkiiisupra

Thats what I do every time. Ive done 2 sets of fogs and 2 sets of headlights. Only got condensation 1 time and fixed it right away. When you put it back together, obviously you need to put the housing back in the oven so the glue can soften back up and remold, but before I put it back in I like to run a small line of silicone all the way around. Try not to add alot, the OEM glue will be doing most of the resealing, thats why you have to make sure its pretty warm. I was pretty nervous with how hot it was getting already but after, Im pretty sure I could have got it a bit hotter. Then just place it in for about 5 min or so (if you have it at 300 or so, the housing should get hot enough where you cant quite hold it but wont melt, I used oven mitts when handling it) and just press REALLY hard around the whole light. Another good idea is to invest in some clamps. I used about 7/8 on each light all around the edges. Its hard to find good points to mount the clips just because of the weird curves on the light. ALSO, dont forget its easiest to put the silver clips that come on the headlight back on right after it comes out of the oven and pressed back together. And if you're really concerned, you can run a line of silicone outside along line where the housing and lens come together. You'll probably want to but a clear or black silicone for cosmetic purposes.

Its kind of a quick process too unless you want to be daring and get the factory glue super soft so you might have to try it a few times. The 1 time I got condensation in I didnt know till 2 days later when I washed my car, so I had to take it off and redo it. Not to mention I found shards of light bulbs EVERYWHERE stuck to the glue and inside the housing that ended up putting tiny scratches in my lense....

This is also a good time to clean the inside chrome and lens with what ever you prefer and polish them up

OH and ps. a damp towel could work but I just flipped a cooking pan upside down and set the light on it like a tray

tim8oland

Thanks mkiiisupra!!! You gave us the BOMB-*** Write-Up! It's always best to hear results from someone who's actually been hands on with the job. This helps out a bunch. Gracias!!!

-Timbo

bguild

1) jack up car
2) remove upper wheel well cover (use trim panel remover to pop out two or three of the little black plastic rivet type things. they look like they are use-once attachments.. I haven't double checked on that yet). Also, if might be a good idea to remove two of the philips head screws attaching the metal fender well piece which will allow you to completely bend back the upper wheel well cover.
3) Once you have plastic wheel well cover peeled back, bend it in back of your tire so it sort of stays there
4) With flashlight or worklight, look inside. You will see two 10mm nuts you have to remove. Use a long extention to get in there.
5) Remove the upper 10mm nut on the top of the headlight mount
6) Remove the side 10mm bolt on the inside front of the headlight mount. Total 2 10mm nuts, 2 10mm bolts removed (total 4) required for headlight removal
7) make sure parking lamp, low beam and high beam connectors are unplugged.
8) start wiggling the entire lamp by shaking and boogying. Make sure to play Chubby Checker in the background as you look foolish. I noticed it took some effort to get my headlamp out, even when everything was unbolted. My only advice to you is don't get confused by the side bolt attachment. It looks like there is a piece of plastic on the inside holding the housing down. That is NOT the case. The procedure for removal of these headlamps is to start on the parking lamp side, and release, and then release the inside side, and sort of yank out at a slight angle.
9) once headlight is removed, remove the top plastic part (3 philips head black screws.
10) remove the low and high beam seals (3 philips head screws each) - these are plastic/rubber seals around the beam areas.
11) Remove the headlamp bulbs if not already
12) Remove the 6 metal housing clips
13) Remove 1 philips head screw on edge of housing nearest parking lamp between the two mounting bolts.
14) Bake headlamps (I did 285 deg, 10 minutes)
15) Pry apart using either flat blade, some scraper type device, or trim panel remover. If you baked it long enough, when you pull them apart (wear oven mits!!) they should start to come apart rather easily, and finish the rest by pulling both sides apart from each other... the glue will slowly release. If you didn't bake it long enough, it's gonna take some serious effort, and some good mits. Don't get discouraged, it can be hard to do, especially if it's your first time (like it was for me tonight).
16) Clean headlamp, fix headlamp, break out orange parking lamp plastic, retrofit your HIDs, or whatever you had planned before you got involved in this whole thing.
17) Heat, reglue, reassemble, etc.

Did I miss anything?

bguild

Guys - once you get the housing apart, is there any way to take off the metal bracket that mounts the projector housing and high beam reflector. I need to take off that entire metal bracket, and modify it for a new set of bixenon projectors.

Funny that I can't even tell where the metal piece is mounted. I see ... maybe ... one area where it's bolted down, but I think the bolt is under a piece of plastic that you have to cut off. Moving the adjusters to their most outward positions doesn't help. I see where both the projector housing (individually) and the high beam reflector (individually) is attached - two black small philips head screws on either side inside the housing... but those screws are almost impossible to reach unless I can find some way to release the entire metal bracket.

SOMEONE must have done this before... so...

Any ideas?

tim8oland

thanks for the detailed write up. i gotta DL chubby checker! LOL
so yeah...i'm wondering the same thing...it looked easy in the DIY to take apart the chrome housing...i could be wrong. but yeah, peeps let us know because i want to possibly do a retro-fitment on the headlights.