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Retrofitted headlight question

hockeybawler

hockeybawler

New member
I bought a pair of retrofitted headlights but they kinda suck since they leak, the adjustment screws barely work, and the plastic knobs on the back and secure the headlight really suck. Can I take my stock headlights apart and basically put the back of my stock headlight on the lens and internals of the new retrofitted headlights? Any issues with that?
 


If your current headlights on the car are oem, the backing may not line up 100%...it would be close but may not be perfect. All depends on the headlight brand.
 
Not sure how the differences are in GP lights, but I was able to account for the minor differences in Bonne housings and lenses by filling the gaps with clear silicone. When on the car you couldn't even see it.
 
The lights are on a 04 grand prix and the retrofitted ones were made by someone. I believe they are replacement headlights from ebay but I could be wrong on that. What pictures would you guys need to be able to tell?

The lenses on my OEM lights are discolored so maybe if I bake them I can clean off the inside of the lens and only switch the internals of the headlights? I don't know much about headlights so sorry for the questions
 


Don't touch the inside of the lens.. You'll just end up scratching them it's very delicate. Depending on how the retro was done there's a good chance that the back of the housing was cut and modified if that's the case then just swapping the backs would work. I suggest you remove the retro headlights and take pictures of them and maybe we can recommend something or just reretro your own pair.

If it was me I'll spend the $80 and grab a new replace set and work on those. Opening up the oem permaseal is a pain in the balls.

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What specifically would you like pictures of on the retros? I am just trying to make these not leak and want to fix one of the broken plastic posts that slide into the L bracket that holds the headlights onto the car.
 
Picture of the front of the housing, then a picture of the back so we can see if it was hacked up or not


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You can swap the lenses, housings etc. The tollerances between OE and aftermarket should be minimal.

Now, your typing is confusing.......

hockeybawler said:
I bought a pair of retrofitted headlights but they kinda suck since they leak, the adjustment screws barely work, and the plastic knobs on the back and secure the headlight really suck. Can I take my stock headlights apart and basically put the back of my stock headlight on the lens and internals of the new retrofitted headlights? Any issues with that?
Click to expand...
hockeybawler said:
The lenses on my OEM lights are discolored so maybe if I bake them I can clean off the inside of the lens and only switch the internals of the headlights? I don't know much about headlights so sorry for the questions
Click to expand...
You can't just swap the housing, as it has the retrofit work done to it. You can swap the lenses, but your old ones are yellow, so that doesn't make sense.

From what you have typed, your best bet is to re-seal the lenses and repair the adjustment screw and plastic knobs.
 


I'm looking off my phone so I'll revisit it later when I can see larger pictures but from the looks of it looks like he simply enlarged the reflector hole to fit in guessing matchbox projectors in it and that the actually back housing (black plastic) wasn't modified it anyways. In that case yup you can swap your original back housing to it and use the reflector and lense from the modified pair.


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The plastic securing studs on aftermarket lights need a little trimming behind the T so the sliding bracket catches better.
Do you have metal or plastic securing brackets. Need metal if you don't. You have to push pretty good and tap with the handle of a hammer(gently) to catch both studs.

Do those Matchbox projectors even light up the road?
I say you need to reseal them if they leak that bad. By baking and butyl, then silicone.
For all that work I would get a new set and put a projector in with some more punch

Besides the excess silicone glob I don't see anything wrong with them....of course besides the mystery leak.
Rub the silicone in with your finger and smooth it. Silicone needs an absolutely clean surface.....clean with degreaser then wipe with isopropyl
Permatex Black RTV sealant is probably a better choice.
 
Yeah, the matchbox projectors are meant to be an auxiliary light. I agree with Spazzz. Try making your own set with a proper sized projector like the MH1.
 
nos4blood70 said:
Yeah, the matchbox projectors are meant to be an auxiliary light. I agree with Spazzz. Try making your own set with a proper sized projector like the MH1.
Click to expand...

This... Our housing are way to big to just use a matchbox those aren't meant to be a main light just a aux. D2S or mini H1 are easy enough and produce way more light. Or if your adventuress fxr or rx330-350 etc


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Yeah I got these on what I thought was a pretty good deal they have been one issue after the next. So if I were to take these apart and get new projectors, what all would I have to do to fit like mini H1's in there? Just cut the shroud a little more and glue them in place from behind the shroud so the glue wont show? Sorry, since I haven't opened up the lights to see how everything is put together, I really don't know much about how they work.
 
Actually, which would be the best projector since they are all similar in price? The FXR is $10 cheaper but you saying I need to be adventurous to make them work makes me not want them haha. What is the difference in making each projector work?
 
Main difference is size. Takes a lot to get the fxr to fit right. The Morimoto h1 and d2s perform just as well and are much easier to fit. I wouldn't recommend fxr for your first retro.


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