gen 2 housing restore

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normohl

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I have a 98 and want to refinish the chrome on the inside of the housing but i cannot manage to open it.

I do not want to dremel it , the lights longer than my torso and would be a pain to reseal. i have been using a 650/1000w heat gun but have not managed to even get the sealant tacky again, i am guessing that it needs to be cut open, correct?
 
normohl said:
I have a 98 and want to refinish the chrome on the inside of the housing but i cannot manage to open it.

I do not want to dremel it , the lights longer than my torso and would be a pain to reseal. i have been using a 650/1000w heat gun but have not managed to even get the sealant tacky again, i am guessing that it needs to be cut open, correct?
Click to expand...

I'm surprised the search nazi's haven't been here yet, but that said...

I 'think' that I read the thread about taking the (headlight) housings apart? Some folks used heat guns and that worked, others cut them open. Cutting them seemed to be both easier and more expediant, on account of the fact that you have to glue it back together anyway. So it's not like you save anything by heating it up.

I think that some folks also put their's into an oven.....:eek:
 
Ok so I've got a gen II that has moisture. So can I just pop it in the over for a few mins at 200* - 400* and hope the clue lets loose then go in clean the mirror polish the inside and use find some epoxy that will seal and hold it together again? Thats my plan so far.
 
You're far better off with a heat gun and 2 medium flat screwdrivers and a lot of patience. I managed to separate a gen2 housing and it wasn't too bad. The rear neon housing is another story
 
Just go to tasca.com and buy new ones and be done with it. Then you know it's done right and no cutting and going into ovens, microwaves and toasters lol. tasca.com will be the cheapest place you'll find them. Gen 1 housings are $166 each + $14 shipping for one. Request for a price and they'll get back with you usually within one day. Have your VIN# ready because they'll most likely ask for it. They like to make sure you're getting the right part quote and part#
 
yeah terry good luck finding new in the box gen 2 hid housings, the halogen retro's maybe but not the hid housings.
 
kustomizingkid said:
We are talking Gen 2 here buddy :D
Click to expand...

That's why I said to request for a price. I know what the Gen 1 housings cost but like Jamie said, they most likely don't have them but I wasn't sure about Gen 2's. I know they don't have the HID Gen 1 housings NIB. It won't hurt to ask but when I look online, I don't see them listed.
 
jamie97lsc said:
your best bet is to find a nice set of used ones like i did, its easier and cheaper!
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There are no gen II's in the stl area that isnt picked clean or they ask for a mint for any parts off the car ($40 for the spare tire jack wrench, $30 for the inside side mirror cover, $30 for a seriously ratty spare tire cover, seriously?!?! WTF) plus I've 'donated' enough time and money to get this car cleaned up and working right, I cant spend any more money on this car.
 
most of the chrome on the bottom is gone due to water, you can see through them looking where the chrome used to be, but if i could get them open 2 pieces of metal tape inside each one and they would look good enough.

i don't part marks like its my job jamie, there are not many marks around here.
 
i don't part marks like its my job jamie, there are not many marks around here.

hey wtf i am no different than you guys when i need parts, i have to buy my stuff too, the headlights on my 97 i bought off this site from another member, $100 a piece plus shipping, look for someone on here parting one out. everytime i need something i gotta buy it just like the rest of you. i dont part them out like its my job lol, i havent parted a mark VIII out in over 4 months, they are getting just as hard to find here too. i cant take parts that i have for myself, i have a partner, and half of the stuff is his too, i gotta pay for parts too!
 
phreakness said:
There are no gen II's in the stl area that isnt picked clean or they ask for a mint for any parts off the car ($40 for the spare tire jack wrench, $30 for the inside side mirror cover, $30 for a seriously ratty spare tire cover, seriously?!?! WTF) plus I've 'donated' enough time and money to get this car cleaned up and working right, I cant spend any more money on this car.
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There is but ONE Gen1 out at lake Speedway. That was two weeks ago, it`s a 93. I`ve never seen a Gen2 out there yet. I don`t go that often .
 
okay i finished one of the lights yesterday

i would have to say it looks 100 percent better than the unfinished light, i did not even know what the inside of a gen 2 housing looked like. i used that metal tape (air duct stuff) to refinish the messed up chrome, its not as shiny as chrome obviously, but unless your jamie you wont know the difference.

it took about an hour to seperate the front plastic from the back and then i stripped the old sealer strip off, taped off all the bad spots sealed with silicone and its as good "almost new".

now all i have to do is, get a drivers side mirror, floormats, a new steering wheel, idle pulley, front end rebuild, get it repainted and it will be done.

i just like to dog on you jamie, look at the bst section look at every gen 2 for a good price in the last 2 years and you bought it, honestly, how are we going to get these cars if you are just snatching them all up?
 
normohl said:
okay i finished one of the lights yesterday

i would have to say it looks 100 percent better than the unfinished light, i did not even know what the inside of a gen 2 housing looked like. i used that metal tape (air duct stuff) to refinish the messed up chrome, its not as shiny as chrome obviously, but unless your jamie you wont know the difference.

it took about an hour to seperate the front plastic from the back and then i stripped the old sealer strip off, taped off all the bad spots sealed with silicone and its as good "almost new".

now all i have to do is, get a drivers side mirror, floormats, a new steering wheel, idle pulley, front end rebuild, get it repainted and it will be done.

i just like to dog on you jamie, look at the bst section look at every gen 2 for a good price in the last 2 years and you bought it, honestly, how are we going to get these cars if you are just snatching them all up?
Click to expand...

Did you use the heat gun/screwdriver method?
 
yes i used the heatgun and 2 screwdriver method


the side that i did not do yet, for reference. (yes i am aware i need to wash my car, but washing does not change the fact it needs repainted)
picture006cz.jpg

picture005dt.jpg

picture004ul.jpg

the plastic on the outside still needs some more buffing but its almost clear, i litterally had to sand about a 1/8 inch of weathered plastic before i got to the hard clear surface what you see here.
picture003an.jpg

here you cxan see the wrinkle in the tape its less noticeable in person way less noticeable than the bad paint.
picture002fd.jpg

here you can see the wrinkle better on the left side
picture001jx.jpg
 
Last edited:
Nice job. :)

Did you sand down the interior, or just re-chrome it? I don't have water in the housing, but the interior is hazed over something awful.
 
if you are referring to interior as the inside of the lens then no i just wiped it down. if you mean the chrome on the bottom surface of the housing is hazed over then it will need refinished because when you open it up the chrome will just wipe away.
 
Headlight refinish,
I didnt have to go into my headlamps, just had to finish up the outsides, I think it turned out aces', it looks like your using sandpaper by hand to sand down the lenses? you can see all of the scratches its leaving and when I did mine, i used the 3m kit.. I gotta say for the 30.00 it was well worth every dime..

cleaned driver.jpg


cleaned passenger.jpg


cleaned nose.jpg


frontheadlamps.jpg


frontleft.jpg


frontright.jpg
 
I did the outside with the 3M kit. It cleaned it up 100%, but I needed it 200%. The rest of the problem is on the inside of the housing.

Guess it's time to buy a heat gun. I have the screwdrivers....:D
 
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