Facelift fog light refurb??

[chrissyb]

just removed mine last night to do this same thing! Is it easy to remove the black plastic holder from the fog lights? is it just a case of undoing all the screws?

also what was the stuff you used to re-seal them together??

cheers,
Chris

 

[fatmikey]

Its just a case of removing the screws. It needs levering out of the holder after that which can be a little fiddly. I used some sealer I got frm work. It was just a sealer and not an adhesive sealer and it seems to have stuck really well

 

[chrissyb]

cheers!!

 

[fatmikey]

Sorry I checked today and it was in fact an adhesive sealer I used. It was just some stuff laying around at work. Im sure ive seen adhesive sealer in screw fix and places like that for a few quid though. So its not to expensive

 

[corsaire77]

I've bought a pair of used fog lamps to experiment on. First, I cracked the plastic bracket. Then I cracked the transparent plastic when trying to split them - they were corroded, but apparently not sufficiently to be split despite bathing in WD40. I think I'll end up buying a new set from the stealers and watch the warranty.

Now I know it's official: my manual skills are limited to opening champagne and unfastening bras.

By the way, I've noticed that most old sets were made by AL Automotive Lighting (assembled in Mexico), and the new replacements are made by Bosch.

Another idea.

There are OEM fog light covers that fill the holes, originally meant for facelift E86 without fogs.

51 11 7 158 835
51 11 7 158 836
http://www.bmwstore.pl/pl/katalog/diagram/51_5929-obudowa-zderzaka-przedniego/vLZ31262#part03

Photo: http://realoem.com/bmw/showphoto.do?id=51117158835
Excellent material for fitting proper DRLs.

Perhaps I'll buy a set and screw Philips DRLs onto them. The total cost (2 covers, a small Philips DRL set) will be about the cost of one fishtank from the stealers.

EDIT:

bought the blank covers

bought OSRAM DRLs - the Light@Day model, which does not rely on chavvy spots of light but on the light guide technology.

Had the covers cut to measure and the DRLs wired by a local indy.

The final effect:

More:
http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=42079&start=15

 

[Bing]

Now I know it's official: my manual skills are limited to opening champagne and unfastening bras.

Skills to be proud of - if you can do the latter with one hand then you can do both at the same time - smooth :wink:

 

[deka]

Now I know it's official: my manual skills are limited to opening champagne and unfastening bras.

Skills to be proud of - if you can do the latter with one hand then you can do both at the same time - smooth :wink:

Class

 

[fatmikey]

when you tried removing the fronts from the backing did you heat the sealer up? thats the only way i managed to do it, it took me a long time and alot of patience though lol

looks good actually! they are much brighter than the refurbed fog lights I did.

 

[corsaire77]

And here's the rust on the old ones:

I tried to heat the seal and bathe it in WD40 - they sort of half split where the corrosion had penetrated the housing. Maybe the future wife's hairdryer was not enough. Now I have my old set to experiment on with nothing to lose. Perchance I will subject it to an oven treatment.

Once they are refurbished, one can fit Cree led http://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&p=545669 or SMD replacement bulbs http://allegro.pl/h11-102-smd-bialy-xenon-dzienne-przeciwmgielne-i2619926844.html

I used to drive around town with my old fishtanks on, but the police kindly instructed me that they are an active, reflective source of light certified as fog lamps (there is a norm number embossed on the plastic), whereas certified DRLs are a more passive, signal source (they don't project any beam etc).

As someone has rightly put it here, it's the European Commission meddling.

 

[Disca]

I used to drive around town with my old fishtanks on, but the police kindly instructed me that they are an active, reflective source of light certified as fog lamps (there is a norm number embossed on the plastic), whereas certified DRLs are a more passive, signal source (they don't project any beam etc).

I do that at present

Do very much like the look of these though, they don't look tacky like a couple of aftermarket ones, due to the covers I guess! May look into it at some point!

 

[Jourdan0136]

Great write up. I tackled this on the weekend and was really impressed by the BOSNY chrome effect paint linked below. If anyone is planning this DIY then I would thoroughly recommend it - probably the best shine you can get from a rattle can.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Chrome-Paint-Aerosol-quality-9001-2000/dp/B00B00Y24O

 

[kayjay0_7]

Very interesting read ,picked up a facelift bumper this week
Think this will be a little project for the summer

 

[jamiecarpenter]

Tried doing this mod and can not for the life of me break the seals all the way round. I've put them in the oven I've stood them in boiling water and all I have managed to do is mangle the rim of the lens and break a couple of clips. Any suggestions?

 

[Geezah]

I've just bought a brand new set OEM from Eurocarparts £124 the pair all inc, I have the old pair free for collection if anyone wants a project. They are in working order and have never been drilled.

 

[jamiecarpenter]

I've managed to now remove the lens from the backing plate. The lenses are now slightly damaged due to prizing them off, think they may have changed the sealant on the later lamps. Now I've started taking the rust and paint off with a wire brush drill head, and I'm not having much luck there either. Cant seem to budge the paint in places and it just blackens any other suggestions on how to strip them? Starting to think I may need to get them blasted!