Headlight filled up with water

[aussieallroad01]

Well not completely but pretty badly overnight. Of course thie happened only 2 or 3 weeks after I resurfaced the headlights. Assuming there must be a gap somewhere in the butyl sealant that I aggravated while sanding.

Quick question to save me time on the weekend - do you need to pull / loosen the bumper to get the headlight off? I had a quick poke and it seems like it wont come off without pulling the bumper after pulling out the 3 torx screws

[ShelbyM3]

There’s another attachment point on the most medial side of the headlight. Legend has it you can pop that out with a flat head and keep the bumper on. YouTube it.


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[Grainreaper]

I pulled my headlights the other day (to reseal oddly enough) and didn't pull the bumper, I've done that a few times when working on various things

[m_haiser]

I had the same thing happen the other day, turns our I didn't put the cap back on the back 100% correctly after changing bulbs

[aussieallroad01]

Got the headlight out thanks to the tip to youtube the process. Turns out I was hanging up on the clip on the radiator side that I didnt see.

Still a bit baffled by why there was so much water in the headlight as there wasn't anywhere obvious for it to enter from

After opening it up and drying it out I did notice that most of the insulation on the narrow gauge wiring inside the headlight was starting to crack. Not a good combination with a bunch of water floating around!

[V1nny]

Here is the best fix for the cracked insulation:
Gardner Bender 07315001126 LTB-400 Liquid Electrical Tape.
As or water, least likely route for water to get in is your butyl lenses seal. Most likely: gasket on the back cover, 4 breather holes on the back. Headlights are not designed completely sealed. They have several breather holes. These supposed to have small pieces of curved rubber hose attached to them to prevent water ingress.

[Grainreaper]

When my headlight was a fishbowl after every rain, or carwash I tried swapping seals from another set of lights, blocking off temporarily the vents, was still getting water in the lamp, I dried it out while at work and applied a thin bead of RTV along the butyl seal and wiped it smooth with a glove donut didn't look like trash, reinstalled the clips and installed headlight back in with vents unblocked and original seals back in place, I've not had any water in the light at all even in torrential downpoursxand in car washes.

[aussieallroad01]

Thanks V1nny - i like the sound of the liquid electrical tape. I was thinking of a silicone dip or something along those lines.

I've done a skim of silicone over the butyl for now, see what happens. If it fills again I'll look to add hoses onto the lights as there weren't any on.

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BTW is it possible to get new gaskets for the headlight?

[V1nny]

I was not able to find anyone selling new gaskets for the back covers. One cheap trick is to remove them, and flip upside down.

[Grainreaper]

I couldn't find new gaskets either! Frustrating that you can find so many parts for these cars but those gaskets aren't out there anywhere that once found