Broken headlight adjusters on Angel Eye cluster

[Gregmeister]

Hey Guys

Maybe someone's had this issue as it's apparently quite common. One of my headlight clusters (LHS) is suffering from the droopy eye...the little plastic adjuster bits are busted inside, resulting in the lenses being somewhat loose in the casing and the lights shine more downwards than usual. (difficult to tell, until you jiggle the back of the light where the connectors are, then you can tell) I have found quite a bit of info on the fix, like: http://blog.bavauto.com/bmw-e39/bmw-e39-5-series-floppy-headlights-replace-adjusters but am having trouble finding someone to buy the adjusters from. There are a few places abroad selling, and I e-mailed a couple, with no luck. The other option is to buy a new light from dealer (R6300)...I think perhaps not...err...a second hand one from Bruce's BMW (R3999)...ahemm...*cough*, getting Bruce's BMW to repair it for R1000...mmm....or maybe someone here knows of a place where I can get my hands on these little bits...they even have aluminum ones...UK company http://www.ca-at.co.uk/single_prod-cHJvZF9pZD04OA==.html emailed them...no response...

Any ideas?

 

[Roundal]

No man! That car is just a bundle of trouble. I think you should sell it to me like you did the last!

 

[P1000]

easy:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BMW-E39-Headl...arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item3cb1dc0117

The hardest part will be taking the lens off the casing, as the glue does not melt on most LCI models... Someone on the forum cut it off with a dremel and then glued it back with sikaflex.

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Oh, and please call Diesel electric (they are the hella agents), and let us know how much they charge for a headlamp.

 

[Gregmeister]

No man! That car is just a bundle of trouble. I think you should sell it to me like you did the last!

:clap:

 

[Gregmeister]

easy:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BMW-E39-Headl...arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item3cb1dc0117

The hardest part will be taking the lens off the casing, as the glue does not melt on most LCI models... Someone on the forum cut it off with a dremel and then glued it back with sikaflex.

---

Oh, and please call Diesel electric (they are the hella agents), and let us know how much they charge for a headlamp.

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Thanks P1000! You mean Diesel Electric may be able to source the whole unit? That would be interesting...i got some Angel Eye lamps from them before...will find out...

 

[P1000]

If you order the whole unit, just make sure you order the white ones, not the ones with the orange indicators. (Your car has the white ones.)

 

[Gregmeister]

Right you are, P1000! Will contact them tomorrow...

 

[Gregmeister]

Right, for those interested. I tried Diesel Electric (x2) and Motolek (x2), both of whom are supposed to be Hella distributors, and came up empty handed. Just seems they could not be bothered to try. So I contacted Hella Automotive SA themselves and they were very accommodating. turns out, because Hella is a German company, their parts do not fall under the "5 year" deal a lot of the local manufacturers have with dealers here, so their products are available as aftermarket parts immediately. Anyway, not relevant here, but more interestingly is that they can supply me a headlamp from Germany, through Midas Head office for less than HALF the price that the stealer is quoting...comes in at R2850 ex vat each vs. R6300 ex vat from BM (clear lens)...ahhemm

 

[Hellas]

imp: Nice. So you will be swopping out the entire units? Still worth a shot to DIY the adjusters and sell the spare units?

 

[Gregmeister]

All depends on the budget...will wait till next year to see what funds make themselves available. I'd like to get a new unit to be honest as the headlight in question is older than the other one, as the other one was swapped out under guarantee for leaking (according to motorplan records), so it looks decidedly newer than the one that's giving me grief...

 

[P1000]

I did the wetsanding/polishing trick on mine, and they look brand new, so you might want to give it a try. Thanks for the info BTW.

 

[msm]

This might help if you go the DIY route:

E39 DIY Adjustors

 

[Gregmeister]

@P1000 Thanks, yea, I have already given it a bit of a polish, which has helped alot, but still "looks" a bit older than the other one.
Anyone tried this new McGuire's headlight polishing kit? Saw it on youtube...not even sure where to get it...but I suppose it's the same as just using a buffing wheel.
I have found McGuire's Cleaner Wax to be amazing anti-swirl polish with enough abrasion to act as a polishing paste. Honestly, this stuff is incredible. does not leave scratches and really works to remove scratches/ orange peal. I even got the scratches off my wife's prescription glasses once (plastic lenses)..I used to use Formula 40's stuff...

@msm Nice DIY Job there! i might just go the eBay adjuster route with the install. I managed to "magafter" them so they don't shine too low, so for now it's no a trainsmash. Thanks for the info!

 

[Hellas]

I've used the Meguiars Scratch-X with GREAT results. If you want to do a real decent job though, tackle the lens with some 3000grit sand paper first.

All depending on the severity of the chips, you might have to start with some coarser sand paper first. :thumbsup:

 

[P1000]

I started with 360 paper, then 600 then 800 then 1200 then 2000 and then did a fear deal of (machine) polishing 1st with P11 polishing compound, followed with menzerna final finish to get them shiny again. Now they look like new ones...

 

[Gregmeister]

Cool thanks guys...this is motivating me to tackle it with more vigor!