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Car Forum / Ford / Ford Mustang / September 2006THE Headlight Lens Replacement How-To (1987-1993)
> oneadvent wrote: Thanks for the tips, Josh! I just finished the job. Since I couldn't find good clear procedures for replacing lenses anywhere on the net or this newsgroup, I wanted to make this post as comprehesive as possible, so let me add a few things. 1) "the headlights have 6 connection points" Yes, they do. Tip here: Don't start a project early in the morning before you have a chance to clear the crusties from your eyes. There are three long headlight-adjustment bolts AND three mounting-bolts WITH 7/16 nuts -- two of the nuts are on the "grill side" and one is on the "fender side" of the headlight. 2) "they are very hard to get to. you will need to take off the radiator clips to get to the ones in the middle." I didn't remove any radiator clips. I simply disconnnected the headlight bulb from the headlight housing. Removing the bulb and wire gave me enough room to get at the three bolts/nuts. 3) "the only way to get the big one off is to loosen it almost all the way off." I assume you're talking about the top, "grill-side" nut. I found is wasn't possible to remove this nut _completely_ until you removed the other two nuts (and loosen the third) and you can push the headlight lense forward a little. There isn't enough room between the end of the bolt and the airbag sensor that's mounted to the radiator support to spin this nut all the way off. (Note: Obviously, pre-air bag cars wouldn't have this obstruction.) Once you get these three nuts off, the headlight lense just slides out. HANDY TIP: I found a very small flat-bladed screwdriver works extremely well manipulating the black rubber seals (that are clipped to the outside of the lenses) while sliding the lenses out and back into position. Now that the headlight lense is out, remove the black rubber seals. There are two "slider clips" on each end of the lense. Use a flat screw driver to slide them off and the black seal itself will then fall off. This is where the other three "long headlight-adjustment bolts" come into play. There's a little clip on the end of each that must be popped off in order to remove the plastic headlight lenses _housing_. Again, a flat screwdriver is your friend to perform this task. Be careful not to damage or bend up these clips! Now that the plastic headlight-lense housing has been removed from the headlight lense itself, simply reverse the steps to reinstall your new headlight lense. Remember to use your little flat-bladed screw driver to manipulate the black rubber seal surrounding the headlighlights. While using this screwdriver, work very slowly & CAREFULLY to not damage the seals. Also, when you get the headlight lense/housing ALMOST back in place, spin the top "grill-side" nut onto the bolt while you still have room. Tighten the bolts and plug the headlights back in and you're done, ALMOST. You see... after you have replaced your old worn, yellowed headlight lenses you quickly find that your once decent looking blickers now look HORRIBLE! So the last step is: Ordering new blicker lenses. 4) "its about 2 hours of headache." Once I opened my eyes and found the three mounting bolts/nuts, it took me about an hour to finish the job... and 15 minutes to order new blickers lenses. Overall, I found it a pretty easy job. Patrick --------------- > > I received new headlight lenses for my 1993 Cobra. Looking at the new > > lenses I can see three (3) attachment points, and looking at the > > existing lenses there are long bolts that fit into these attachment > > points. However, I don't see any sort of nut or clip on these bolts. > > So how do you get the lenses off/out? > i consider myself am expert in this subject, as i just changed mine out > with about a week of headaches. > the headlights have 6 connection points, however only 3 are used. they > are very hard to get to. you will need to take off the radiator clips > to get to the ones in the middle. first take off the big one. if you > start with the driver side there will be one on the right of the light. > there are two on the left. there are two total for the other two > lights. the only way to get the big one off is to loosen it almost all > the way off. > > be prepared with a 7/16 wrench and socket(you will need both) and it > helps to have a deep well, but you don't have to. its about 2 hours of > headache. > > remember the key is to take off the radiator clips. > > good luck, > > josh. > > oneadvent wrote: One more tip: You may want to use gloves while handling your new lenses. I heard/read that the oil/sweat from your skin can cause your headlight lenses to prematurely yellow. Anyone want to verify? Patrick > Thanks for the tips, Josh! > [quoted text clipped - 100 lines] > > > > josh. >> > oneadvent wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > Patrick I don't know about that, but I do know that you don't want to touch the bulbs! Congratulations, Patrick, I knew you could manage it. And I'm sorry that you bought ONLY the headlight covers. Yes, when you replace those, you also want to replace the other two at the same time... There aren't many things you can do to these aging Foxes that have such an immediate and satisfying result. That rates up there with the best money and two hours I ever spent on TFrog. P.S.: I wasn't going to point you to this "how to" article in RAMFM's past, but here it is, now. The thread was called "how in the h*&&", and someone calling himself 2.3Sleeper gave this advice about swapping out the headlights: "Get a Chilton's manual. It will show ya. Ok, I just checked and it doesn't. So here is how ya do it. Open can of beer (your choice) Open the hood(this step is always important). Set can of beer on a flat surface under the engine. You must notice that you have a front skirt, and inside of this you have a "Headlamp mounting panel", also called the "Cover reinforcement". If you look between this mounting panel and the structure, you will see that each headlight has 3 bolts/nuts holding it in. If I remember correctly, the inside has 1 bolt/nut combo. The outside edge has 2. Same for right and left hand sides of vehicle. Also, they have 3 guide prongs. After confirming this info, drink heartily from beer. Begin walking to your toolbox, stop turn around and get beer to take with you to the toolbox. Guess as to the size of wrench you need and walk back tyo vehicle. Attempt to remove nuts and realize you have wrong size wrench. Think to yuourself as you are walking back to your toolbox, "Hey, I needed my beer anyways". Arrive at toolbox, drain last of beer, get right sized wrench, and go get another beer. Return to vehicle, while drinking beer along the way. Remove all 6 nuts, drink beer. Remove headlamp assembly, drink beer. Go inside to grab new beer, close fridge and being walking out. Return to fridge, grab several beers to minimize distance traveled. Return to vehicle and begin installation exactly the opposite of removal, drinking at regualr intervals while working. Just my two wheat penny's. Don Manning" dwight > > One more tip: > > You may want to use gloves while handling your new lenses. I > > heard/read that the oil/sweat from your skin can cause your headlight > > lenses to prematurely yellow. Anyone want to verify? > I don't know about that, but I do know that you don't want to touch the > bulbs! > Congratulations, Patrick, I knew you could manage it. And I'm sorry that you > bought ONLY the headlight covers. Yes, when you replace those, you also want > to replace the other two at the same time... The outside marker lights/blinkers look okay to me. Did you change yours/all three? > There aren't many things you can do to these aging Foxes that have such an > immediate and satisfying result. That rates up there with the best money and > two hours I ever spent on TFrog. I must agree. > P.S.: I wasn't going to point you to this "how to" article in RAMFM's past, > but here it is, now. The thread was called "how in the h*&&", and someone > calling himself 2.3Sleeper gave this advice about swapping out the > headlights: > "Get a Chilton's manual. It will show ya. > Ok, I just checked and it doesn't. So here is how ya do it. [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > to vehicle and begin installation exactly the opposite of removal, drinking > at regualr intervals while working. > Just my two wheat penny's. > Don Manning" That's a classic! Thanks for sharing! Patrick >> Congratulations, Patrick, I knew you could manage it. And I'm sorry that >> you [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > The outside marker lights/blinkers look okay to me. Did you change > yours/all three? The complete sets on both sides. Still have a sort-of before and after on the website. Click "Tfrog" at www.tfrog93.com. >> There aren't many things you can do to these aging Foxes that have such >> an [quoted text clipped - 49 lines] > > Patrick Yeah, in hindsight, I wish I were a beer drinker. I can remember skinned knuckles and a couple of trips to the hardware store for better tools. :() Sorry I missed this thread - I might've been able to save you a few minutes of angst, Patrick. ;) At any rate, you are right on the money - the only exception to what you wrote was that I had to remove the inner parking lamp/blinker first in order to remove the headlight with the rubber shroud intact. The clearance was pretty tight, and the headlight just wouldn't come out without severely distorting the shroud, and I didn't want to take the chance of destroying it. The only other thing I might add is that once you have the grey/black shell off the old lens (and before putting it on the new lens), you might want to clean up the adjustment screws with a few squirts of WD40. Over the years they will get caked with dirt and sometimes become hard to turn, which is a bit PITA when you're trying to adjust them. Squirting some WD40 on them, then turning them a dozen or so turns in, then back out (and vice-versa) helped loosen up mine a lot. I inevitably had to adjust the new ones once they were re-installed, so it was well worth the time to clean them up. Just make sure to clean up any excess WD40 from the shell before you snap it back onto the new lens. FWIW, I agree 100% with you guys - it's one of those great bang-for-the- buck things to be able to see clearly at night. With the hi-power bulbs, visibility is better than new. BTW, here's where I got the info for the GE Nighthawk bulbs - look towards the bottom: http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/blue/good/good.html Joe Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC >>> Congratulations, Patrick, I knew you could manage it. And I'm sorry >>> that you [quoted text clipped - 67 lines] > >:() > Sorry I missed this thread - I might've been able to save you a few > minutes of angst, Patrick. ;) > At any rate, you are right on the money - the only exception to what you > wrote was that I had to remove the inner parking lamp/blinker first in > order to remove the headlight with the rubber shroud intact. The > clearance was pretty tight, and the headlight just wouldn't come out > without severely distorting the shroud, and I didn't want to take the > chance of destroying it. > The only other thing I might add is that once you have the grey/black > shell off the old lens (and before putting it on the new lens), you [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > any excess WD40 from the shell before you snap it back onto the new > lens. Good info, Joe! Thanks for adding to the thread. > FWIW, I agree 100% with you guys - it's one of those great bang-for-the- > buck things to be able to see clearly at night. With the hi-power > bulbs, visibility is better than new. BTW, here's where I got the info > for the GE Nighthawk bulbs - look towards the bottom: > http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/blue/good/good.html Yep, that's the guy who recommended my current bulbs. I'll have to check these new ones out... rural Florida highways can be hazardous at night with all the critters running around. Patrick ---- > Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies > Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC [quoted text clipped - 70 lines] > > > >:() >> FWIW, I agree 100% with you guys - it's one of those great bang-for-the- >> buck things to be able to see clearly at night. With the hi-power [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > Patrick > ---- Get you some real HIDs, about $250 on eBay  SignatureI used to have abs. Now, I've just got ab. One big ol' Ab. - BigSkiff www.titanspot.com Pyongyang sounds more like the sound effect an ACME catapult makes as it goes off at precisely the wrong moment for Wile E. Coyote. - Cadbury Moose >>> FWIW, I agree 100% with you guys - it's one of those great >>> bang-for-the- buck things to be able to see clearly at night. With [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > Get you some real HIDs, about $250 on eBay At $35/pair at WallyWorld, the GE Nighthawks are just fine. And how long until the stock wiring on a '93 burns up with those HIDs? >>>> FWIW, I agree 100% with you guys - it's one of those great >>>> bang-for-the- buck things to be able to see clearly at night. With [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > At $35/pair at WallyWorld, the GE Nighthawks are just fine. And how > long until the stock wiring on a '93 burns up with those HIDs? Never. The HIDs I installed in my truck are a lot brighter than regular bulbs, yes, including SilverStars etc. and they use only 35 watts. Somehow I expected at least you to know the difference between real and fake HIDs. $35 for a pair of halogen bulbs?? I guess that's fine if all you want is good enough. After owning a vehicle that came with HID lighting this was a the best mod I've made. Here are the comparison pictures showing my truck next to my stepdad's truck. I have true HIDs in the low beam, Silver Stars in the high beam, and regular halogen in the fogs, then next to my mom's RX330 that has projector bi-xenon HIDs and regular halogen fogs. http://www.titanspot.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?t=2025 Here is a link to the first kit I found in an eBay search, which just so happens to be for a Mustang. I would look for possible better prices and I would recommend getting a kit that does not have a separate igniter module like the one pictured. My kit was $204 shipped and has an aluminum finned housing for the ballast with a built in igniter assy. I also recommend not going any higher than 5000 degrees on color, they may look cool from the front but the higher the number the more blue they become and you start losing brightness. The stock systems that come on Infinitis, Nissans, and such are 4300 and the brightest, the Mercedes I *think* are 4700 or 5000 which is whiter and not quite as bright but up to 5000 you will not lose much in the way of usable light. Know that Daniel Sterne will tell you how horrible these things are and you're a bad bad person for using them, but then you're a bad person for driving a Ford anyway. I've never been hassled and never had an oncoming car flash me but they are set correctly and they made a very big difference in seeing at night even on a new vehicle that does not have the lighting problems that a Fox Mustang has. http://tinyurl.com/j9mw9 SignatureI used to have abs. Now, I've just got ab. One big ol' Ab. - BigSkiff www.titanspot.com Pyongyang sounds more like the sound effect an ACME catapult makes as it goes off at precisely the wrong moment for Wile E. Coyote. - Cadbury Moose WindsorFox <windsorfox@NOSPAM.cox.net> wrote in news:2qYLg.11037 $xk3.6429@dukeread07: >>>>> FWIW, I agree 100% with you guys - it's one of those great >>>>> bang-for-the- buck things to be able to see clearly at night. With [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > watts. Somehow I expected at least you to know the difference between > real and fake HIDs. Where'd you see the reference to fake HIDs? The GE Nighthawks are halogens. SilverStars are garbage. > $35 for a pair of halogen bulbs?? I guess that's > fine if all you want is good enough. Yup. I just wanted a notch above stock, which is what I got for a fair price. > After owning a vehicle that came > with HID lighting this was a the best mod I've made. It's a choice. To me, $35 is worth it, $250 isn't. Hell, if you really want to light up the road without a cost concern, get some aircraft landing lights. > Here are the comparison pictures showing my truck next to my > stepdad's truck. I have true HIDs in the low beam, Silver Stars in the > high beam, and regular halogen in the fogs, then next to my mom's RX330 > that has projector bi-xenon HIDs and regular halogen fogs. > > http://www.titanspot.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?t=2025 Those pix don't show anything regarding usable lighting - they just show colors. Ricer bling. You should've taken from the inside looking out down the road from each vehicle. > Here is a link to the first kit I found in an eBay search, which > just so happens to be for a Mustang. I would look for possible better [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > http://tinyurl.com/j9mw9 >> After owning a vehicle that came >> with HID lighting this was a the best mod I've made. > > It's a choice. To me, $35 is worth it, $250 isn't. Hell, if you really > want to light up the road without a cost concern, get some aircraft > landing lights. And you're worried about 35 watt HIDs melting the wires? Besides that would be illegal, mine don't blind on coming drivers >> Here are the comparison pictures showing my truck next to my >> stepdad's truck. I have true HIDs in the low beam, Silver Stars in the [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > Those pix don't show anything regarding usable lighting - they just show > colors. Ricer bling. Well, yes they do. The show the yard across the street lit up better where my truck points and the whiter not brown light compared to halogen, which is why you paid $35 for new bulbs; but you call HIDs rice bling. Ok fine if you call Infiniti, Lexus, Cadillac and Mercedes rice bling fine. It's still incorrect, but that's your opinion. > You should've taken from the inside looking out down the road from > each vehicle. Good idea, I'll do that this weekend. SignatureI used to have abs. Now, I've just got ab. One big ol' Ab. - BigSkiff www.titanspot.com Pyongyang sounds more like the sound effect an ACME catapult makes as it goes off at precisely the wrong moment for Wile E. Coyote. - Cadbury Moose >>> After owning a vehicle that came >>> with HID lighting this was a the best mod I've made. [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > And you're worried about 35 watt HIDs melting the wires? Besides > that would be illegal, mine don't blind on coming drivers WF, where do you get this stuff? Ya gotta start reading more closely. I was concerned about the _HIDs_ melting wires, not halogens. In all honesty, I didn't know that they don't pull any more juice than standard bulbs. Thanks for the info. >>> Here are the comparison pictures showing my truck next to my >>> stepdad's truck. I have true HIDs in the low beam, Silver Stars in [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > Well, yes they do. The show the yard across the street lit up > better I just saw a color difference. Didn't see any noticible difference in actual visibility. > where my truck points and the whiter not brown light compared to > halogen, which is why you paid $35 for new bulbs; but you call HIDs [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > Good idea, I'll do that this weekend. Question: If you install HIDs on a vehicle that normally doesn't have them, does that affect the warranty with regards to the headlight circuit? e bling fine. It's still incorrect, but that's your opinion. >>> You should've taken from the inside looking out down the road from >>> each vehicle. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > them, does that affect the warranty with regards to the headlight > circuit? You don't pay attention to what I say and correlate with what I am replying to. Most halogens that try to imitate HID lighting do so in part by using a higher wattage in order to be brighter, some as high as 100/120 watts. HID systems use 35 watts. A standard OEM halogen bulb uses 55/70 watts. Why would that have an affect any wiring in the vehicle?? They also put out a lot less heat so they don't melt plastic stuff inside the lamp like an over wattage bulb does. If you don't want or think you need them, don't buy them even though they are a lot brighter. SignatureI used to have abs. Now, I've just got ab. One big ol' Ab. - BigSkiff www.titanspot.com Pyongyang sounds more like the sound effect an ACME catapult makes as it goes off at precisely the wrong moment for Wile E. Coyote. - Cadbury Moose > e bling fine. It's still incorrect, but that's your opinion. >>> [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > want or think you need them, don't buy them even though they are a lot > brighter. You still didn't answer the question... >> e bling fine. It's still incorrect, but that's your opinion. >>>> [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > You still didn't answer the question... Yes I did even though it's not worth answering. Why would there be any affect to the warranty or the wiring? How does putting silver stars affect the warranty? SignatureI used to have abs. Now, I've just got ab. One big ol' Ab. - BigSkiff www.titanspot.com Pyongyang sounds more like the sound effect an ACME catapult makes as it goes off at precisely the wrong moment for Wile E. Coyote. - Cadbury Moose "WindsorFox[SS]" <windsorfox@NOSPAM.cox.net> wrote in news:1wEMg.11144 $xk3.11044@dukeread07: >>> e bling fine. It's still incorrect, but that's your opinion. >>>>> [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > any affect to the warranty or the wiring? How does putting silver stars > affect the warranty? WF, seems like you've gotten extra dense these days. a) No, you did not answer the question. b) Silverstars are NOT HID. They are fake look-like HID garbage. Don't bother replying, as there won't be anything worth reading. > WF, seems like you've gotten extra dense these days. > a) No, you did not answer the question. > b) Silverstars are NOT HID. They are fake look-like HID garbage. > > Don't bother replying, as there won't be anything worth reading. Last time, HOW will a 35 watt HID kit have ANY affect on head light wiring, switches or systems when they are 20 watts LESS that standard halogen bulbs? Why or how would that have any effect on a warranty?? IOW It will not affect any warranty like over wattage bulbs would. You are an a.s. You go out of your way to specifically try to make it look like I don't know what I am talking about, but in reality I have forgotten more about head lights than you could ever hope to know. The very idea that you of all people would attempt to explain to me the difference between HIDs and Silver Stars, as I have HID low beams and Sliver Star high beams. All of your ranting and bullshit above is nothing more than a pile of crap to cover up the simple fact that you haven't a clue about the subject. If you did you would never have even asked how true HIDs would affect wiring. And if Silver Stars are crap then so are Night Hawks, they are the same damn thing except for a very very slight blue tint on the Sylvania. They are in no way an HID look alike. Oh and 5.6 Endurance > 5.7 Hemi SignatureI used to have abs. Now, I've just got ab. One big ol' Ab. - BigSkiff www.titanspot.com Pyongyang sounds more like the sound effect an ACME catapult makes as it goes off at precisely the wrong moment for Wile E. Coyote. - Cadbury Moose Aircraft landing lights? I installed some as high beams 40 years on a 1965 Sport Fury after a friend had some on a 1964 GTO. Everything fit perfectly except the wiring because the landing lights had screw terminals. They were 13v and the ampmeter would really dip when they went on. That was back in the days of empty interstates and they would pick up a highway sign well over a mile away. Too bad today's cars don't have the circular headlights. > >> After owning a vehicle that came > >> with HID lighting this was a the best mod I've made. [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > > Good idea, I'll do that this weekend. |
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