Dirt stuck in taillight? ideas?

[Insidious Surmiser]

I have an 89+ tail light (right side) that has quite a bit of dirt stuck inside of it. I've tried everything to get it out, but it just gets stuck even worse. Is there a way to completely take them apart? Using a heat gun or something? Seems like a good way to damage the assembly, but I'm no expert. :1zhelp:

 

[Maple191]

Once you have the tail light off the car and the oem seal is off. Youll see 6 or 7 small brass/gold coloured circles. They are actually screws that dont have a head on them. If you have a dremal use it to cut a slit into the heads and use a slotted screwdriver to the take them out. Then you have to heat the tail light till its nice and warm BUT NOT HOT. So either i stove will do at its lowest setting. Or a heat gun around the lense edges DO NOT let the heat gun stay in one spot too long (I found out the hard way and had to replace the tail light I just got) and pry it off very carefully.

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

Basically what he is saying is, do this:

Those are my tail lights as of right now and it's a real PITA job. Getting all the original glue out takes hours, I started rushing and broke one of the lenses inside so I bought another tail light and started over.

It will be worth it in the end because I couldn't stand the crap sitting in there.

Edit: Instead of using an oven (because you wife/girlfriend/mother will kill you if you try) I filled a sink with HOT water and submerged the tail lights, it softened the glue and with a bit of effort the two halves separated.

 

[mirage83]

Hot water would definitely be the safer route to go. Tried the oven with one of mine which was really gummed up inside with gunk, ended up tossing it as I let it get too warm. Called it a "Learning Experience", cussed a fair amount and decided that there had to be less risky ways to do it.

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

Not sure how I'm going to melt it all back together. I don't think it will seal properly if I use hot water again.
I'll try using a heat gun and see how that goes.

 

[Insidious Surmiser]

hm. Thanks guys, great info. I think I'll be investing in a heat gun. May practice on a spare lens or something. So are the little brass studs screwed into the red lens? Just looking at it from the outside that appears to be the case.

I imagine I could try to find a glue for re-installation, and use a tiny bit of clear silicone to make sure it's water-tight. Could test the glue on an extra 88 lens I have (not in perfect shape)

 

[mjsn1]

Instead of using heat or water to remove dust or glue or whatever, i would just dip the whole thing in carburetor cleaner or Parts Immersion Solvent, leave it for a couple of hours, then rinse it with water. every speck of dirt will be gone. if you dont believe me try it on any metal or plastic part you dont want.

I used ACDelco carburetor cleaner because thats what i had at the time.

 

[Insidious Surmiser]

hm. that would be a LOT of cleaner, although a preferable method if it worked. the problem I've had is that the dirt is trapped under the outer layer of plastic. it's hard for water to even get in there ,':-|

I am leaning towards this idea though. If it'll break up the dirt enough it might be feasible.

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

Plastic + solvent... I wouldn't risk it.

 

[hvyman]

Could also look at headlight sealer to seal them back together.

And ya I wouldn't use a solvent either.

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

hm. that would be a LOT of cleaner, although a preferable method if it worked. the problem I've had is that the dirt is trapped under the outer layer of plastic. it's hard for water to even get in there ,':-|

I am leaning towards this idea though. If it'll break up the dirt enough it might be feasible.

I also tried rinsing it out, shaking it violently and letting it soak in soapy water overnight but like you said, the dirt doesn't break down enough to rinse out.

Could also look at headlight sealer to seal them back together.

And ya I wouldn't use a solvent either.

I used the Nissan stuff. It was expensive but seems like the right stuff to use.
One roll will do both tail lights.

 

[hvyman]

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/accessories.html

Not so expensive stuff.

 

[Silver MK3]

Could also look at headlight sealer to seal them back together.

And ya I wouldn't use a solvent either.

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/accessories.html

Not so expensive stuff.

I was going to recommend that exact stuff.

 

[Supra mn]

I also tried rinsing it out, shaking it violently and letting it soak in soapy water overnight but like you said, the dirt doesn't break down enough to rinse out.

I just filled them with hot water and shook them like hell. Some pieces of dirt I had to move the taillight around like one of the cheap puzzle games, but I didn't want to go through the hassle/risk of heating them up and resealing them. It took quite a while, and I didn't get every microscopic piece of algae/dirt out of there, but it's to the point where you wouldn't ever be able to notice unless you took them apart. Depending on how gunked up your taillights are, this may or may not work.

 

[emericaskater285]

I made a writeup a long while back. see if it helps you.

http://www.supraforums.com/forum/sh...t-teardown-and-rebuild-In-progress&highlight=

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

I made a writeup a long while back. see if it helps you.

http://www.supraforums.com/forum/sh...t-teardown-and-rebuild-In-progress&highlight=

This thread is what lead me to refinish my lights. No clue how you got ALL the glue out, you've got more patience then I.

 

[emericaskater285]

This thread is what lead me to refinish my lights. No clue how you got ALL the glue out, you've got more patience then I.

It was a long while ago, but I am pretty sure it got softened by the hot water, then the rest just came off nice and easy. I remember it wasn't an overly hard project. it was one of those projects that are just fun to do on the side. only took a couple evenings if i remember right.

 

[emericaskater285]

lol okay, reading through that old thread I remember where I scrapped the glue out from. Yes, it was time consuming, and a bitch to do, but wasn't really hard at all, and if you don't have anything else going on its a pretty fun project actually.

 

[Insidious Surmiser]

nice ^ I was doing some reading and it seems like a crap shoot whether it's ok to soak plastic in parts cleaner. so I think that's probably a bad idea.

damn, nice writeup, I woulda never thought to paint the inside like that. I see why yours actually match the center piece, haha