How do you take the headlight housing apart so that you can get in the inside of the housing or is it possible

 

I;ve read of two different methods on the forum.
The most complicated, but more like factory, you put the assembly into an oven at a specified tempature (sorry, can't recall exact #), and the seal will become pliable. Then you can carefully pry the two halves apart.
The other, a member used a dremel tool and carefully cut apart the two halves.
In either case, you do what your project requires and then reseal the halves back together. Don't remember what they used to do this part.
Hope that helps....

 

The sealant will not separate with heat, they need to be cut apart.

 

 

thanks i thought that was the only way to get inside looks like ill have to bring out the power tools for this one polish it not only on the outside but inside for an ultimate shine

 

sure did buddy

 

If my memory serves me well I recall a thread where the writer had separated the two halves by cutting the sealant with a thin knife.
This did not involve cutting the plastic at all. This would appear to be a very time consuming method but would give you two unblemished parts.

 

sandpaper and clearcoat work way better than the headlight restoration kit

 

So, were you having problems with the plastic lens fogging Inside and Outside?

I'm having a totally whacky problem with my headlights since I bought the car 4 years ago. At night, the low-beams are like using flashlights with weak batteries, just awful visibility. After several attempts by the dealer to adjust them, they now put out two, crescent-shaped beams of weak light that hit the ground about 10 feet in front of the car. Dealer says it's as good as it's going to get and it's terrible.

The highbeams are much better, filling the road with a fairly nice light.

I've swapped-out bulbs going with nearly the brightest bulb available at a Pep Boys or O'Reilly's and checked and double-checked the orientation of the bulb base when installed. I've reconditioned the outside of the lenses, as well, to no avail.

Anyone having this problem?

 

When anyone says they have this problem it is caused by the bulbs not being seated in the socket. But you have said you have checked this alignment issue.
The lights on these cars are very good I think. If I was you I would have one last look at the bulb orientation in its seat. Park the car in front of a wall at night and release the clip that holds the bulb, move the bulb around and see if it snaps into a better position for the light pattern. It is a very small amount of movement once it is in the socket, basically it is in or it's not.
Unless the actual unit that that bulb fits in is misaligned I cannot see why you have this trouble. There are two units in each headlight, one high and one low.
Failing this you could adjust the whole unit up wards using the white adjustment screw, but this really should not be needed unless the previous owner has moved it already. If it is raised too high you may just light up the night sky with the high beams.

 

If you are you Sylvania H7 bulbs they have a notch on the plate of the bulb that must fit into the bottom of the headlight socket in order to be seated properly. I know this is the case for Sylvania bulbs but I'm not sure of other manufacturers. There are also some adjustment bolts in the bottom of the headlight housing where it attaches to the body but since your highbeams are correctly pointed that shouldn't be the problem. Good luck.

 

Thanks, both of you. Sylvania H7's and they do have a dent in the base to align them. It makes no sense, 180, because the high beams seems fine. The white adjusters were adjusted so far by one mechanic that the dealer had to thread the adjstment rod back together inside the assembly as it had come completely undone.

But I will try your suggestion of rotating the bulb with the lights on and see what happens, thanks again.

 

I had this same issue, in one projector the tab is turned up, and the other bulb's tab is turned down. Release the bail and rotate the bulb(s)180 degrees.

 

I did not say rotate, I said move it around a little. The flat on the low beams is at the bottom and the flat on the high beams is at the top.
I put one of my bulbs in, held it in place and snapped the clip on that holds it. When I turned the lights on the beam was pointing sideways, so without loosening the clip I just jiggled the bulb by grasping the connector and it popped into position.

 

I agree with what you said, it is either simply off to one side as you described, or the tab is upside down.

 

I would not be happy about this, and if the bulb is oriented correctly, and everything is adjusted correctly, the problem is they did not reassemble everything correctly, who here is surprised?

 

It's been a real annoyance and, like a recent trans repair, was exacerbated by the fact that the car is now old enough to be a real challenge to newly-trained mechanics. Then, they end up experimenting and making things worse.