Polycarbon Lamp Covers

To all 348 owners:

Heh, unless you have been living under a rock your 348 driver's lamps are now unobtainium as NOS replacements. At Daniel's prodding, I just did mine with polycarbonite material from Griot's Garage. Whew, now I can rest at ease.

So, to help you other guys, I made a template for the lamp which is a JPEG attachment. It should print out on a 8.5x14 piece of paper. Cut it out and cut out a piece of polycarbon with it. Lastly, trim it as you wish. The template is a bit oversized. This allows you to either cut it close or allow it to fold over the lamp edges. The top outside corner is the reference point. Warning: the template is not precise, only approximate. Cut it out generously then trim it close according to your tastes.

Thanks for the push, Daniel.
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Good post!

For easy reference, here's the cheap but thick and effective film to protect those lenses: http://www.xpel.com/products/universalhl.asp

 

If all else fails..... you can always install a 355 front bumper....... !!

 

That's what I have!

Mike in Kuwait

 

that is probably cheaper than a broken fog lamp at this point

 

Instead of risking expensive parts, I think I'll stop driving my car and keep it in the garage.................................not!
Thanks, Vince!

 

Great link, thanks for that - looks like an easy solution.

 

Agree, looks like a great solution although, the product is $13 and they want $65 to ship to the UK, surely it's not that heavy. There is no UK distributor listed either. Still cheaper than a new lamp tho!!

 

I want this also. I should be able to ship some to you for much less. Let me know and we can order enough for both of us and I can ship some to you via postal.


Rodney

 

I ordered a set of that universal fit Xpel product and got it last week. That stuff is really thick! I think I'll need to cut it with a scroll saw or something. NO way scissors or a razor knife will get through it. I'm a little worried about the curvature of the glass making the cover want to come off. We will see, maybe I'll try to install it tonight. Do you use a hair dryer or something to get it to be more flexible to conform to the shape of the glass lens?
BT

 

How difficult/expensive would it be to make a set of plexiglass covers like that on the Challenge race cars?

I feel it will kill two purposes - protect the fog lamp and also cut the air resistance a smidge

 

Nice work Vince, cheers mate.

 

How are your lamps doing Pap?? Do you have armadillos in Mt. Isa????

 

They are good mate, but I have to be careful of Wombats crossing the road. I dont want to smash them!

 

In the UK Xpel products are supplied by Paintshield, http://www.xpeleu.com/index.php

regs
R

 

Is this a wombat..
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Just about!!

 

Hoping to hear if you had success with these. I do not want to order this until I hear if you had success using these.

Rodney
1990 348 TS

 

You got that muffler on yet??!! ;o) Scott

 

Not yet but hopefully the weather will warm up soon and I'll get going on it. End of March and still so cold. I'm still trying to figure out how to get the baffles out of the OEM converters. Looks almost impossible to do without damaging the look of the converter. I'll start a post on that.


Rodney

 

Okay, so here is the basic Xpel universal fit fog light lense cover tutorial....
First, go order the universal fit product NoDoubt referenced above. It is like $13 plus $5 for shipping.
Then clean the glass on your fog lights. Clean them again. And one more time...
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Now, make sure you don't read the instructions for the next step. Cut out a piece of construction paper (computer paper for those without kids). Write the letter 'A' on one side, and 'B' on the other side. This way you will have a template for each lense, being mirror images. There is just enough material to get to pieces out of the universal kit if you angle the template just right. Trace the outline with a pen, and cut out the pieces. I was surprised to find that I could cut through this very thick plastic using some regular scissors.
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Verify the shape by holding the plastic pieces up to the fog lights to make sure they cover all of the lense. Now when you wet the surface of the glass with some alcohol / water solution the plastic will float a little to get in the correct position. You will notice in this step that each piece you cut out is actually two pieces, with the adhesive side facing out. You can separate the two pieces by using a knife or your fingernail. Position the plastic in the center first and use the sqweegee supplied with the xpel kit. A hair dryer set to high heat on low fan speed will get enough heat into the plastic to make it pliable. It will conform to the shape of the lense this way. Keep working all the air and alcohol / water out from under the Xpel product working from the center towards the edges. About 5 minutes per piece seemed to get the product looking good and flat to the glass. Then drive and forget about the fog lights for now!
BT
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Now you will have a spare set of covers for future use or to give to someone else that has a 348. Remember, reading instructions is not manly, and sometimes works to your advantage!

BT

 

Nice write up!