Hi there,

I have a nice set of the big Cibie H4 Euro headlights that I want to put into my '81 240. These are the older style ones for the pre-'86 cars. On one of the lenses there's a small 1/2 inch diameter bullseye chip and in the center of the chip there's a small (~1/8 inch dia.) hole that goes all the way through. On the outside of the lens the glass is smooth except for the 1/8" diameter hole so the missing glass is all on the inside of the lens.

I'm looking for ways of repairing filling the chip with a clear resin of some sort but it would have to be something that can stand a wide variation in temperature since it can be very cold here in the winter and it will likely get pretty warm inside the headlight when the high beams are on.

I thought maybe a windshield chip repair kit might work but I'm afraid the resin they use might not be suitable to the application because of the large variations in temperature it would be subjected to plus those kits are designed to work with safety glass and use suction cups so won't work on chips where there's a hole all of the way through the glass.

Does any one know of a resin or glass repair kit you can buy that's specially made for fixing glass headlight lenses or a website where they tell you how to do that sort of repair ? I've done a bunch of Google searches but haven't come up with too much so far.

Thanks,

Roj

I've tried the silicone fix Nate suggests and it worked OK. The lens is no longer perfect, what with the chip and the glob of silicone, but I couldn't see any real difference in light pattern.

I also covered the lens with a sheet of that thick plastic which is very clear and has a strong adhesive on one side. It's made and marketed as a headlight protector/repair item. You cut it to fit the lens and carefully apply it so there are no air bubbles. I have salvaged more than one cracked H4 lamp with this stuff. Properly applied, it's so clear you can't tell it's there, and it protects the lens against damage from small stones, etc. I now use it on all the E-code lights in the cars, right from their first installation.
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Bob (son's 81-244GL B21F, dtr's 83-244DL B23F, 'my' 94-944 B230FD; plus grocery-getter Dodge minivan, hobbycar MGB, and numerous old motorcycles)

Hmm, that's a tough one. Figuring that the area of the hole will never really shine right anyways, I'd probably fill it with a wee dab of silicone. Once it dries, you could shave off any excess. That would seal it and be very resistant to temperatures. It wouldn't be perfect, but a lot cheaper than a new lens....its what I would do anyways. good luck,

Nate Gundy
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'86 240DL sedan, 260K miles, M46, K cam, 25/23mm sways, 260 front and wagon rear springs; http://valvespringcompressor.weblogs.us/

Actually, I found a company that sells little bottles of a resin specially formulated for repairing glass headlamb lenses. All I have to do is tape a plastic backing strip over the hole on the outside of the lens and use a long syringe to fill the bullseye chip with some resin and let it cure for an hour or so.

Once I have the lights installed I'll protect them with a set of wire mesh guards that I have. The set of guards I have are one of only two sets IN THE WORLD made to fit those headlights. I had both sets made a long time ago when I had a set of H1 Euro lights on my first 240. Both sets were custom made by a company that makes black powder coated headlight screens. They clip onto the top of the bezels and are a friction fit on the bottom of the bezel so you can unclip them at the bottom and flip them up when you want to clean the headlights off or get the ice out of the screens. I wish I still had the other set but I sold them a long long time ago to help pay for the set that I have.

I'll let you know how this resin stuff works.

Roj