W124 Headlight Vacuum - Snapped Pipe

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brucemillar

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Next Door to Alice - 25 'kin years now
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C55 AMG Wagon - W124 300te 4matic Wagon - BMW 4.8is X5 E53 - SWB Pajero 3.5 V6 24v
Folks

Old sausage fingers strikes again. Whilst removing the headlights from my 124, to clean the glass. I managed to break the vacuum line connector flush with the headlight. This was actually my wife's fault as I knew she was going to complain about me cleaning the headlight glass in the dishwasher and that got me all flustered.

So now I have a N/S headlight that has no vacuum line.

My thought is to push a WD40 type straw into the headlight and seal with some silicone (I will have to use small drill to open up the hole) then fit the vacuum line over the straw.

This in my mind provides a perfect solution that will be unseen only those that know, mainly me and everybody who reads this post and their mates, if they have any.

Can anybody envisage any problems with my engineering brilliance here?

Oh, for those with an interest in matrimonial harmony. Mrs Millar spotted my master plan to clean the headlight glass in the dishwasher when I offered to empty the dishwasher. My offer was met with "what bit of the car are you planning on jamming there now?" She is still smarting from finding the rocker cover in the bath (on it's own. I didn't get in with it).
 
I'd use something like araldite rather than silicone
 
You got a replacement headlamp for 99p??
 
If you look inside the headlamp you will find that the other side of the broken connector has a rubber hose on it which runs to the actual vacuum unit.
Rather than ruining your WD40 can by cutting up the straw only to find it won't seal on the headlamp, drill through the broken remains of the connector and hook up the vacuum line direct to the rubber hose. No Araldite required either.
 
You got a replacement headlamp for 99p??

No. I 'won' a pair for 99p.

Feeling somewhat sheepish when collecting them, I asked what other parts he had.
He produced a couple of boxes of useful bits.
I only had £25 on me and when I told him so ... his face 'lit up'.:dk:
 
I'd use something like araldite rather than silicone

Yes, definitely. I have also used JB Weld to fix a seat belt buckle and various bits on my 300CE.

Make sure the area's degreased and roughed up for a good key and you can achieve almozst permanent repairs.

RayH
 
Bruce am i right in thinking the block it fits to is a part on its own .Have you a picture .I have in my garage a broken head light . Part from it is your free if its the part that i am thinking about.
 
Bruce i found the part out .Its held in with 2 screws .But to replace it will mean removing all wires inside and contacts .But main thing is the glass,this will need removing .If you have done this before you will know about the tabs on the light case .After 27 years these are brittle with old age .Remove them very carefully .I broke one off removing my headlight glass.So i needed a new head light .Might be worth thinking about to start with.Best way is to use a clamp on the glass to take pressure off the plastic clips .And on fitting the glass back on i put some silicon grease on the seal. And dont try to clean the deflector .If dirt is in there use a very fine brush to remove it. Realy not worth the time and work. Drill it out replace with a nice bit of copper tube or pipe .Araldit it in job a good one .But head light will have to come out to get inside to do it .
 
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^ and if you warm the tabs they become less brittle...and use a gentle wedge to lift them rather than a screwdriver.








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Bruce i found the part out .Its held in with 2 screws .But to replace it will mean removing all wires inside and contacts .But main thing is the glass,this will need removing .If you have done this before you will know about the tabs on the light case .After 27 years these are brittle with old age .Remove them very carefully .I broke one off removing my headlight glass.So i needed a new head light .Might be worth thinking about to start with.Best way is to use a clamp on the glass to take pressure off the plastic clips .And on fitting the glass back on i put some silicon grease on the seal. And dont try to clean the deflector .If dirt is in there use a very fine brush to remove it. Realy not worth the time and work. Drill it out replace with a nice bit of copper tube or pipe .Araldit it in job a good one .But head light will have to come out to get inside to do it .

A very kind offer. Thank you.

Having just removed the glass for cleaning and re-assembled the entire lot, I have no desire to take it all to bits again.

I am going to attempt my straw bodge as this requires minimal disturbance or opportunity for me to break any more bits off.

I could just drive around in daylight and nobody would ever be any the wiser.
 
Druk you have done it then yes .Same here. My problem was, i had a crack in my headlight glass lens .So purchased a new lens .Well it came with a nice new seal...I started on the job ,put all but one clip back on ,then the last one snap.So i put an order in to Rob at ThreePointed Parts for another head light .I think it was £35 post free .It came but was damaged in the post .So on sellers request he said to keep it and make one up out of the two .This i did and thats why i have a few parts spare.
 
A very kind offer. Thank you.

Having just removed the glass for cleaning and re-assembled the entire lot, I have no desire to take it all to bits again.

I am going to attempt my straw bodge as this requires minimal disturbance or opportunity for me to break any more bits off.

I could just drive around in daylight and nobody would ever be any the wiser.
Yes thats the way i would go also. ..With the back off you will be able to do a good repair .Get a nice piece of pipe .Better than wd40 spray pipe. Looking at this one, its like those joints we have in the vacuum lines .Or washer jet pipe joints ..Just an idea..
 
Well I have fixed it.

I managed to pull the broken bit off the headlight pipe, out of the rubber vacuum pipe. I then carefully drilled out the headlight to the same size as the pipe but without drilling all the way through the headlight. This allowed me to araldite then push fit the broken stub back into the headlight with a tight seal.

I managed all of this without breaking any other bits off the car or cementing my fingers onto the headlight.

I now avoid superglue at all costs having previously managed to glue bits of my body onto other bits of my body. Dangerous stuff it is.
 
I now avoid superglue at all costs having previously managed to glue bits of my body onto other bits of my body. Dangerous stuff it is.
Wasn't that the original design; sticking wounds back together in the field? - I think a variation still approved for veterinary use.
 
Not that one Bruce .The trunk lid it self .The moulding fits behind the warning triangle sign To finish off the trunk lid .Or as your trunk lid got one .Yours is a better model than the one i have...so you could have one .
 

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