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Headlight Hardware Rebuild


Slavs

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When I got my first 02 68 1600 back in 82 the headlight adjustment hardware was already rusted and frozen. And, the car was a mere 14 years old. Well, now my 67 is 53 years old, and the headlights have been frozen pointing to the side and every direction except straight ahead. Finally, after all these years I have decided to address this issue.

 

I'm sure this has been covered here, but this is my experience with this rebuild. It's a fairly easy operation, except for the rusted parts. The most important piece is the small rectangular threaded bolt like piece. The factory used plastic which works great when the threads are clean, but otherwise gets stripped. And, the headlights can no longer be adjusted. Ireland Engineering sells metal replacements which work great. I removed the headlight buckets from the car. This is a much easier route. Disassembly is more difficult than assembly. I decided to clean the buckets with steel wool and repaint which was really tedious and time consuming. it took me 3 hrs. just to complete one side. So, I repaired one light one day and the other on the following  day.  Make sure to clean all the threads with a wire brush and steel wool with a little engine oil.

 

I can now easily adjust the headlights. It's time to move on and do the same on my 69.

 

 

 

 

Lights 9-9.jpg

Hardware 2.jpg

Lights 5-5.jpg

Lights 2-2.jpg

Lights 1.jpg

Edited by Slavs
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Wow that is great.  I need to do this, too.  I sort of figured it was just this kind of job - scrubbing, de-rusting.  

 

I would want to try to use the original stuff on my car, too.  

 

I think the reflectors on mine are shot.  Did you do anything with those?  I think I’ve seen some info on that on FAQ over the years.

 

Scott

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02ing since '87

'72 tii Euro  //  '21 330i x //  '14 BMW X5  //  '12 VW Jetta GLI

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1 hour ago, saaron said:

I think the reflectors on mine are shot.  Did you do anything with those?  I think I’ve seen some info on that on FAQ over the years.

By reflectors do you mean the small rectangular reflectors at the rear and on the sides ? Early 02s up to about mid 69 were not equipped with reflectors.

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10 minutes ago, Slavs said:

By reflectors do you mean the small rectangular reflectors at the rear and on the sides ? Early 02s up to about mid 69 were not equipped with reflectors.


Or... Scott, are you talking about the headlight reflectors — since you have a Euro-spec car, which might have European lights (not sealed beams)?
 

Best regards,

 

Steve

 

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1976 2002 Polaris, 2742541 (original owner)

1973 2002tii Inka, 2762757 (not-the-original owner)

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Your 1600 is the exact color and year my brother bought in 1970, Probably why I own my 68 now, Unfortunately he sold it a couple years later, I wish I new what his License # was to see if it could be same car, I'm originally from your area

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4 hours ago, rcf925 said:

Your 1600 is the exact color and year my brother bought in 1970, Probably why I own my 68 now, Unfortunately he sold it a couple years later, I wish I new what his License # was to see if it could be same car, I'm originally from your area

What I know about the history of my 67 1600;

A gentleman purchased a new and very early 1966 1600 (vin # starting with 160....) in Bristol from a dealership here in Burbank, CA, back in 66 or 67. It wasn't a BMW dealership. He drove the car all over the state and country until the rust got very severe. During the mid to late 90s he purchased a solid 1967 1600 rolling shell, also in Bristol, from 2002AD, which transferred the 66 dash and badges from his 66 to the 67 shell. He also had it converted to a 12v, installed a 2 liter, 5 speed overdrive and rebuilt the 4.11 diff, adding limited slip. The rolling shell supposedly came from the Bay Area. It was mostly solid, although the rockers needed to be replaced. I acquired the car from him in 2008.

Edited by Slavs
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1 hour ago, Slavs said:

What I know about the history of my 67 1600;bank, CA

A gentleman purchased a new and very early 1966 1600 (vin # starting with 160....) in Bristol from a dealership here in Burbank, CA, back in 66 or 67. It wasn't a BMW dealership. He drove the car all over the state and country until the rust got very severe. During the mid to late 90s he purchased a solid 1967 1600 rolling shell, also in Bristol, from 2002AD, which transferred the 66 dash and badges from his 66 to the 67 shell. He also had it converted to a 12v, installed a 2 liter, 5 speed overdrive and rebuilt the 4.11 diff, adding limited slip. The rolling shell supposedly came from the Bay Area. It was mostly solid, although the rockers needed to be replaced. I acquired the car from him in 2008.

 

When my brother sold his Bristol around 1972 it was a perfect specimen until he got sand blasted in a sand storm out in Palm Springs area, Then someone rear ended him, He got so bummed out he sold it

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43 minutes ago, rcf925 said:

A gentleman purchased a new and very early 1966 1600 (vin # starting with 160....)

I believe the '66 1600-2's VINs were all in the 150XXXX range. 160XXXX VINs were the first rest-of-the-world 2002s...

 

BTW, Scott, you were very lucky to get the nuts on the four studs that hold the headlight assembly to the body unscrewed without breaking 'em.   Goes with CA cars; here in the Midwest at least two would have broken, perhaps all four.

 

Nice refurbish...and you were smart to take one out at a time.  Lefts and rights are not identical, and are very difficult to tell apart--until you reinstall 'em on the wrong side and your headlights are cross-eyed.

 

mike

'69 Nevada sunroof-Wolfgang-bought new
'73 Sahara sunroof-Ludwig-since '78
'91 Brillantrot 318is sunroof-Georg Friederich 
Fiat Topolini (Benito & Luigi), Renault 4CVs (Anatole, Lucky Pierre, Brigette) & Kermit, the Bugeye Sprite

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1 hour ago, mike said:

I believe the '66 1600-2's VINs were all in the 150XXXX range. 160XXXX VINs were the first rest-of-the-world 2002s...

Thanks for correcting me,Mike. The Vin# of the 66 was 1507952. I still have a record of it somewhere. The vin # on my 67 is 1520561.

Edited by Slavs
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On 4/4/2020 at 10:29 AM, Conserv said:

Or... Scott, are you talking about the headlight reflectors — since you have a Euro-spec car, which might have European lights (not sealed beams)?

 

Yes, that's it, Steve.  I forgot the US cars have the sealed beams, so you don't have to worry about that part.  Headlights are one of those things - they need a lot of work.  Reflectors, and really I need those relays, too.  But I never drive it at night, so it is hard to get motivated to spend the money and take the time to take it all apart. 

 

Really my car needs work on the nose in general, so when we hit the point of doing that, I could do the lights as a part of that.  

 

Sorry to wander, there.

 

Scott

 

 

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02ing since '87

'72 tii Euro  //  '21 330i x //  '14 BMW X5  //  '12 VW Jetta GLI

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5 hours ago, saaron said:

 

Yes, that's it, Steve.  I forgot the US cars have the sealed beams, so you don't have to worry about that part.  Headlights are one of those things - they need a lot of work.  Reflectors, and really I need those relays, too.  But I never drive it at night, so it is hard to get motivated to spend the money and take the time to take it all apart. 

 

Really my car needs work on the nose in general, so when we hit the point of doing that, I could do the lights as a part of that.  

 

Sorry to wander, there.

 

Scott

 

 


Got it, Scott!

 

There are a few shops —at least one in the U.K. and at least one in the U.S. — that can professionally restore headlight reflectors. It’s something like slivering over copper. But it’s very expensive, say $400-$500 a pair, so it’s generally limited to very high end (e.g., Marchal Amplilux) or very rare (e.g., 1930 Rolls Silver Ghost) lights. For most purposes, you can purchase excellent used replacements for far less than the professional restoration cost.


I know that lots of old car owners use white or silver paint to “restore” taillight reflectors. My gut — or perhaps my head — tells me that that is inadequate for a headlight reflector, which is more critical than a taillight. But I’m certain a few forum members here have restored reflectors for Euro headlights!

 

Best regards,

 

Steve

 

 

Edited by Conserv

1976 2002 Polaris, 2742541 (original owner)

1973 2002tii Inka, 2762757 (not-the-original owner)

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Slavs,

Nice job!  Thanks for the post.  A thankless task to refurbish an important yet little-seen part.

 

Scott,

Painting is a good choice.  If you want them powder coated (photos) check out KillerKoatings in Covington.  Superb company, products, and service.  Mine were only $10 to $25 each as I recall.

 

Larry

 

PS:  Believe me, my DeWalt tools are NOT that clean anymore.  

 

IMG_4221.thumb.jpg.26e329aeaeb6ae06803e4ea121989093.jpgIMG_4289.thumb.jpg.822261a06d559c4c8aa40d6f88fc5d43.jpgIMG_4298.thumb.jpeg.b4707407dd72d842c3d5a66f9aadcf8b.jpeg

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There’s also the re-plating option. The headlight buckets were originally plated. If you can just throw a couple grungy old headlight buckets into an existing “load” of re-plating, the cost will be nothing. (In 10 years of retail re-plating, I’ve never had a re-plater say, “If you add any more to this load, I’m going to have to charge you for two loads!”) The “work”, for the owner, only entails disassembling the buckets and chemically stripping 50 years of overspray! The results are generally amazing.


The first two photos are “Before”. The last three photos are “After”.

 

Regards,

 

Steve

 

83FD85AA-2D91-4C7E-BE57-DA620F57A403.jpeg

5C7597DD-A79C-4413-A9ED-1BED529B6702.jpeg

A829021F-D51E-4482-9AB9-4BCED0E645CC.jpeg

46C9C35A-33A9-4392-AB7D-1C6695E29AFD.jpeg

2A6D41B9-5371-4A69-AA84-FF794B4F7636.jpeg

Edited by Conserv
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1976 2002 Polaris, 2742541 (original owner)

1973 2002tii Inka, 2762757 (not-the-original owner)

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