360 headlight rebuild

I had no idea how to go about this and couldn't really find an adequate write up so I thought I'd start one. As most of you know the headlights have to be baked. The trick is to get it hot enough to soften the glue, but not hot enough to damage the plastic. Before heating the lights I disassembled them completely. I highly recommend not removing the headlight level adjuster as the plastic is extremely brittle. Mine came out in a hundred pieces. I used a thin serrated steak knife to cut the adhesive in between the lense and headlight body before heating it.

I positioned the headlight on a pan in a way that it would have something flat to sit on and I kept it centrally located in the oven so that it wouldn't be by the coil. I decided to take it easy on the heat to ease my paranoia for the first one which made splitting them more difficult. I then realized that martinis ease my paranoia much better and proceeded to make a few. The formula for the second, which worked much better, was heating it for 25 minutes at 190. I turned the heat off when it reached temperature and turned it back on a few times in between just to maintain the heat.

After removing it from the oven I got a few flatheads of varying sizes to gently pry them open. Start small and work your way up. I started on one side of the light and worked my way around it gradually using bigger screwdrivers. Eventually I was able to use 2 screwdrivers at once, and then my hands. (This will slightly damage the outside edge of the lense, but will be covered when reinstalled) If it seems difficult, put it back in the oven for another 5 minutes. Once they are apart, cut away the adhesive.


Note: When I got them apart there was a grey/black surface coating that tore off with the adhesive leaving a gloss black surface underneath. (I'm assuming that this is the paint although it seems silly to paint black over black.) My car was parked outside for a long time which damaged many things. I think that this could be one of them. Theoretically speaking, using a higher heat and softening the adhesive more should have prevented that.

I'll keep this thread updated with the rebuild process. Does anybody know the company that made these lights or if there is any way to get new level adjusters? I'd rather not have to make some, but if worse comes to worse I'll see what I can do. Tonight my girlfriend comes over for dinner. Hopefully it doesn't taste like headlight Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

The plastic nut on the back of the headlight that holds the level of the lights came out in a hundred pieces. The only way to get new ones is to buy new headlights which being poor and destitute is not an option for me. I was able to mill something that will work and be much more durable. Honestly it wouldn't have been very difficult to make with hand tools. I used 1 inch aluminum round stock which is roughly the size needed for the outer diameter. The inside circle diameter I made .8 inches. Each of the nubs are 120 degrees apart. I drilled and tapped a center hole and cut the groove in the part with a bandsaw. I'll seal it with silicone to make it "air tight" again once I'm ready for the final assembly.

I removed the plastic from the screw that adjusts the level to salvage it. Hopefully I'll be able to route it back to the factory adjustment screw in the frunk, if not, not a big deal.

I am kinda scared of dealing with the paint and am going to give them to someone that does that professionally. I've tried numerous approaches to strip the paint and am getting nowhere. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

That is some great information to know, thank you!

 

Housings were sanded down and professionally painted. Lenses are now clear. Waiting until the housings are done and then the rebuild will begin. I have some ideas for recreating the headlight level adjuster I'm looking forward to trying out. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Haha thanks man!

 

I only plan on clear coating the lenses. I used turtle wax headlight restorer to get the hazing off, not difficult, just a pain to get to. I probably have 10 hours into the project at this point, but I work very slowly. Working on the car is more of something I enjoy having a couple drinks and doing versus a chore. I'm picking up the headlights from the painter's today. I hope they look good. They better for how much he charged me.