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Headlamp Removal and Refitting |
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Griffsmith rote this article and was kindly sent to me from David Hothersall to share. I Just couldn't leave the headlamps in the condition they were in any longer. The patchy silicon sealer was detaching itself from the body leaving gaps between the pod cover and the body. So the time had come, Removing, Refitting and Re-sealing was required. | |
First get the car of the ground and the front wheels off. It doesn't need to be that high because you don't need to get under the car but enough to be comfortable. Remove the Inspection cover inside of the wheel arch ( see pic above) , four screws and copious amounts of sealer attached mine.This reveals the back of the headlamp unit and the electrical connections for the bulbs. Also here is a metal strap that which supports the rear of the lamp pod. Undo the nut that connects the strap to the lamp pod and the countersunk screw that connects the strap to the wheel arch, the nut is not retained so you'll need to hold the nut. Once loose the strap can be dropped out the way. Disconnect the bulb connectors and push the wires to one side. Whilst holding the rear of the pod via the inspection hole "carefully" carefully slide a knife around between the lamp and body to cut the sealant. IF anything air on the side of the perspex cover so as not to damage the paintwork. Holding the knife at the right angle I managed not to leave a mark on either. But how tricky this is depends on how well it is attached to start with. The lamp pod is removed from the body by lowering the rear and rotating the pod. The lamp angle adjuster studs are quite tight to the inner arch but with a little fiddling the lamps rotated far enough for the lamp pod to be extracted through the body nose aperture. Clean up the inner surface of the body and the outer rim of the lamp pod to remove the sealant. The Perspex cover can split from the pod by removing the four retaining screws and prising it apart as a double sided sticky foam seal is also used. This gives access to clean the inside of the pod and the removal of the lamp unit if required. New covers can be obtained from a TVR supplier in clear or Smoked version you feel you need to replace them. | | Re-assemble the lamp pod making sure you don't leave any specks of dirt/dust or finger prints on the inside. Remember hopefully this wont be coming out or apart again for quite some time so double check everything. Whilst you are checking stuff check all the wiring in the nose beneath where the pod sits as you wont be seeing it again for a while. Trial fit the pod a few times to get a feel on how to get it through the aperture, remembering when you do it for real there will be silkaflex on the lamp pod so you don't want to be spreading that all over the body. Fitting the lamp pod for real will be slightly easier as the silkaflex will stick the lamp pod in place while you attach the strap to secure it. The trial fitting also allowed me to place some packing under the very front edge of the lamp to ensure it fitted flush to the body. As you can see in the picture i tried to make a masking tape handle to help, but it really wasn't much use and I found i really didn't need it anyway.... | | Now comes the time for actual fitting. Check everything again just one more time. Many people suggest masking the lamp pod and body to prevent any excess sealant getting anywhere you don't want it. Personnaly i decided it would be harder to get a nice edge with the masking tape than it would be to clean up after. Use Silkaflex and not silicon sealant as this wont last as long, give as good a finis, or be as easy to use ( Silkaflex actually sticks the lamp pod in place and holds it there without any additional support ). I don't think silicon would be able to support the weight of the pods. There are a number of different types of Silkaflex on the market for specific requirements. I used Silkaflex 291 which is a general usage type. Just do a bit of reading to see which is the best you can get. Cut the nozzle to allow the application of about a 10mmm bead of Silkaflex around the outer rim of the pod ( a larger bead may be required if when trial fitting you see larger gaps ). Being careful not to get any on the body get the lamp back inside the body as you have done may time now...Firmly push the lamp pod onto the inside of the body to ensure the Silkaflex is in contact all the way around and the lamp is in the ideal position. STOP HERE...step back and check it looks ok as it wont move from here so get it right now. Once your happy refit the strap carefully as not to move the pod position. I found tightening the strap too tight would move the pod. Just tighten enough to support the pod for now. Clean any excess Silkaflex , the finishing bead will be applied tomorrow so leave none visible from the front at this stage. Leave over night to cure checking a few times to make sure nothing has moved but do not be tempted to touch unless absolutely necessary. | | | Finishing the lamps with the final bead was easier and less stressful than I expected. I had a spare nozzle for the Silkaflex, useful as because you need much less than you think to finish it. A 3-4mm bead was fine on mine. I decided to use two tools in stages to get rid of any excess sealant. I firts used a plastic plant naming stick, this had a 7-10mm radius end. It was made of soft plastic so wont damage the paint work. In places where it appeared not to be enough sealant I added a little more and ran the tool around again. For final finishing I used a teaspoon with a smaller radius tip. Dip this in soap and water to stop the Sealant sticking to it. Finishing needs to be done in one smooth action, if you need to stop or go over any bit again start over at that the first stage of finishing. run the spoon around keeping it at the same angle to the body all the way around. Once you've got what you think is a good enough finish leave well alone and do not be tempted to touch it. Do not clean any excess of at this stage. You'll be tempted, I was , just don't as it will clean of later. Do both lamps the same and Leave over night. | |
Cleaning the lamp face and paint work proved easier than i hoped. I used the edge of the plastic plant marker to clean the larger lumps ( careful the sealant still wont be fully hard ). Then use a dry cloth ( I just used an old towel ), to get the last of the residue of and get the shine back again. Just be careful of the sealant may still be slightly soft and you can still leave marks in it. JOB DONE!!! Well apart from re-attaching the access hatch in the wheel arch. It maybe worth checking the headlight angles first. This can be done roughly yourself by casting the light onto a wall a foot or so away from the car, or you will have to adjust at next MOT. But seal the hatch well with Silkaflex or silicon...stand back and admire your work. Griffsmith |
