pnyboy27

First off, here's a before and after shot:
before: and yes, mine had lots of condensation in it


after:


I'm not sure if this is where I should post this, but since the results of when I searched delining were here, I thought that I might post this here. So doing this is very time consuming, let me say. If you plan on this being your weekend project, expect to spend ALL weekend doing it, if not, more. It is very easy, but just time consuming. So you better be sure you won't be using your car soon otherwise you'll just be running without a headlight(s). I also have combined several things here so that you won't have to be jumping around the forum to find out how to remove the headlight, and how to take it apart. The things you will need are:
10mm socket (to remove the headlight)
Extension (so that it is easier to reach those nuts)
Screw Driver (to remove the inner fender)
400/800/1500/2000 Grit Sandpaper
A Dremel tool will help immensely
Black Silicone Adhesive Sealant
Clear Plastic Cleaner & Polish (I used PlastX because I could not find the Novus, plus I had this laying around)
Automotive tape (to protect the paint when removing the headlight)
An arm and hand ready to sand for a long time..
And LOTS of spare time

Okay, first thing's first
1. Remove the headlight from the car - if you lift up the car, and turn the wheel, it may be easier to reach the nuts. You then remove the screw/nut thats holding the inner fender, and pull that back to the tire. Once moved back, you can see the 2 nuts holding the headlight in place. Remove those with your 10mm socket. After you remove those nuts, there is another 10mm nut under the hood, on top of the headlight. Then there are 3 harnesses you need to remove behind the headlight; remove those then gently pull out the headlight as you do not want to scratch your paint. You can protect it by putting a bit of tape under it so that it won't scratch it if you accidentally pull a bit too hard.

pnyboy27

2. Once the headlight is removed, now we can take apart the headlight - you can do this by putting your headlight in the oven at 300 degrees for about 3-4mins. When you remove the headlight, remember, it will be hot, so use gloves. Once pulled out, remove the lens from the base quickly, because while it is hot, it will be easier to pull apart. From here, you can also clean your housing, or paint it if desired.

pnyboy27

3. Now comes the fun and tedious part...SANDING!!! - First clean out your headlight of any dust. If you only want the projector area delined, mark where the projector meets the corner lights. I used a black marker so that it will be easier to see while sanding. Once we got that done, then we sand it down with 400 grit sandpaper, and water. Wetsanding will give it a more polished look. When sanding, be sure to use a block so that there are no curves from your fingers/hand. Once you have delined the lens, switch to 800 grit, then 1500, and finally, 2000 for the final touches until it is smooth. Make sure it is smooth because otherwise when your lights are on, or in the right/wrong light, it will show your imperfections. We want this to look clean, and like it was done from the factory.

pnyboy27

4. Yet another tedious job...POLISHING!!! - You would be lucky if you had a buffer, as when I did this, I didn't have one, so I had to do mine by hand. It can be done by hand, but it will just take a bit longer and a bit more elbow grease. So once you're done sanding down the headlights so that it is delined to your liking, take your polishing compound and apply it to the lens using either an applicator pad, or a terry cloth. From here, you can polish the lens to your perfection.

chanh55

Wow good work.

pnyboy27

5. Once you are satisfied polishing your headlight, we can now put it back together - using the black silicone adhesive sealant, run a bead of silicone around the housing, and lens, then put them together. But be quick doing this, as this stuff will dry fairly quick. Then you put all the clamps back in place, and run another small bead around it to make sure you have no open seal. And now it is complete! Actually, you still have to put it back onto the car, but I won't write the directions for that as it should be easy to put back. Just reverse the order! NOW you are complete! Congratulations on delining your headlight! Now enjoy your "new" headlights, and post up a picture(s) of what yours looks like!








Sorry my car's a bit dirty, I'll take some better pictures once I get both headlights done.

emoshun

iTrader: (11)

Looks like a lot of work, props to elbow grease!

SnShne1jz

Very good write up with pics!! although i am more of a fan of just delined projectors.

Oh yea get some HIDs to show that off!

pnyboy27

thanks! and yea..HIDs are definately in the future

Jewcano

iTrader: (4)

Hmm, wouldn't have done the whole headlight *sans the turning area myself, but to each their own.

Also with the oven, 300 Deg is a tad dangerous and could damage the headlight housing. A safer temp is 200 for about 10 mins.

Baoser

200 degrees @ 15 minutes is safer, but great writeup =)

gotta find a weekend to paint/deline my headlights

SCwidaGTE

has anyone done this to the turn signal area also? what about the high beams? the work is flawless and congrats on such an amazing job, but i think it looks a lil out of place with the high beams stock. has anyone ever delined the high beams or is it not possible? what about the turn signal area? again... amazing job. can you get some really far away shots so we can see the entire car in the pic?

DY3VERSITY

iTrader: (7)

Looks awesome! Well done!

andrewwake

iTrader: (1)

The lines on the side marker help with the flow of the hood but i would like to see it completely de-lined as well. I think it is better to keep the side markers lined though to spread the light in more directions just in case you were to unfortunately not pay attention while merging so the other car could honk and tell if you were merging. Just MHO

pnyboy27

ive seen the whole thing done..i didnt really like it..thats the main reason i chose only to deline the projector area..and about the high beams..i dont know about those..ive never tried or heard anything about those..and thanks for the compliments! ill be taking more pix so u can see from far away too soon