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Through lots of trial and error I actually found a quicker way to take care of this. Wait until any of the lights go out and, instead of tearing the car apart to swap the housing, just buy a new Corvette. My way might be a tad more expensive (I haven't crunched the numbers) but it's totally worth it. I also have helpful tips for when your Corvette needs oil changes and when it loses that "new car" smell. ;-)
Another option/trick from Athens, Greece I learned. Had crazing on my 2007 C6 Z06 Headlights. At the time (about 5 years ago), the OEM replacement headlights were like $1,200 EACH (I won't bother telling you what EU "Duty" costs + shipping ... a lot !!!). And while this option is certainly a vast improvement on candles of illumination, the total job is quite expensive (parts & labor). So I took mine to a local body shop that said they could "Fix" the ones I had without removal of the assembly or the lens. Keep in mind the Sun is extremely damaging to plastic and Greece has "Sunshine" that literally destroys plastic yard furniture in a single season ... same for "Plastic Headlights" ... this is to say, they get lots of practice. I was doubtful but thought it worth a try. So for 4 straight hours, I watched him literally grind on my headlights ... slowly and patiently scarfing away layer after layer, grit by dimensioning grit until he finally hit base material; he admitted he didn't anticipate just how much time he was going to have to spend on them. You see, even the plastic Lens have an overcoat of "Clear Coat" and on C6's it is like 3 times thicker than a normal vehicle's. When he got to the base material, and prior to reverse order '"polishing", you could still see thru the glaze the deep crazing (that was driving me "cray cray" ;) ). He then took some cheesecloth and wiped them slowly with solvent that penetrated the cracks ... and chemically fused them back together !!! He then began polishing to a bright luster and finished off with coats of "Clear Coat". I was amazed ... they looked like brand new once again. 5 years on and a couple of Countries later (harsh Sunlight environments all), they are still in good shape. Just so you guys know about this option ... not to take away from having LED lights ... something I've dealt with on all my Fighter Jets and Cargo Aircraft well before they were commercially available for "Cars" ... trust me, the folks at "Hella Lighting" in Germany taught me much on that topic (just so you know this is entry isn't from some shade tree mechanic). Good hunting and "Check 6".
I purchased my victory red 2008 C6 with a 3LT package in the beginning of April this year.. there were several upgrades done to the car...The Previous owners had already changed the front and rear tail lights with the exact lights. I truly believe these updated/ungraded lights are awesome.. If you didn't know the difference, you would think they were stock, it truly makes the car....
Installed my morimoto headlights today. One thing I didn't realize - because of the way the high beams are implemented (motor snaps up a visor-like shield over the bulb/lens), you lose the momentary high-beam you would use for passing. When you pull the turn signal stem back toward you, all you get is the little clicks of the visor moving....no flashing light. I passed on the taillights, as I liked the Eagle Eyes better.
Chevy cribbed the design of the headlights from the Ferrari 360 Modena for the C6, but the more pointed nose of the C6 made them less attractive than the Ferrari units. At least they were aiming high and not trying to just coast along like it was 1978! :) Lyle
@@csvette Yeah, I guess so, and they were trying to get away from the pop-up lights. I've always avoided owning a C6 cause I just couldn't swallow the look but these headlights are a game changer!
The exterior design of the C6 aged magnificently... except the head and tail lights. It’s honestly insane how much changing these changes the mood of the car. These are a must have for any C6 build in my opinion.
Most difficult headlight removal procedure I've EVER seen! Super valuable video because of that. My biggest complaint with the otherwise beautiful C6 has always been those ugly, body color headlights. Yuck! Ew! Blech! These LED lights headlights look great! I'd also do the rears, if only for their superior performance. They also look great when lit, not crazy about their daytime, unlit look. 'Spose I could just have them on all the time...
Great video on how to remove the headlight assembly. Exactly the step-by-step process I was looking for. Now the price you quote to simply replace the original lenses ($1200) is highly inflated. I am having this done and if I do it myself, I will have around $450 in it. I am opting to send them out to be done for $600. I am sending them to a very reputable after market Corvette parts company to have it done. I did look at these headlight assemblies, but I want to keep my atomic orange headlights and I do not think the C7 style lights look good on the C6, especially those daytime running lights. Just my opinion though.
I think you made a mistake adding those rear lights, the brighter lights will really play havock for the driver behind. Maybe illegal is most places? I really love your show but those rear lights are not safe for most roads and night time. If someone flashes me with those bright ass lights, I'd be pissed. I've owned six vettes over the years. Keep up the good work with your show.
I'd get them just to piss people like you off. You realize that newer cars all have bright led tailights right? You ain't doing sht if someone flashes you
You being a singer, what would you know about music? LOL. And who cares about music when watching a video about replacing a headlight. You people crack me up.
Yes, those headlines look great. My question is, how do they really compare to NEW OEM ones, and how does the beam pattern compare. Bright is one thing , but you better have a good beam pattern, Hi &Lo ! Do you have to return the original cores ? If yes, that would put that price in a different perspective.
Yesh, even new OEMs are poor comparisons to these units. The light pattern is very clearly defined and very, very bright. There is a mechanical shade that shifts when you turn on the "brights" that simply enlarges the focus area upward. You are welcome to keep your old lights--these are new units that have nothing to do with the OEM tooling or cores. Lyle
Last year a deer ran I to the driver's side of my 2006. A new yellow headlight was $1300! The stock headlight needs to match the color of the car. I wonder if Chevrolet thought of this when they designed the C7. I wish that I had known about this then.
Alan, they absolutely had NO intention of repeating their mistake with the body color headlights--it was a nightmare for Visteon (the company who made them for the C6) because they had to invent an entirely new kind of paint that didn't out-gas and fog the inside of the lens. By going black on all headlights, they solved a ton of headaches. Lyle
@@csvette They sure look nice, but just stocking headlights in all colors would be a pain in the butt. I'm pretty sure that they had to get my headlight from a dealer's stock. I wish that I had know about this when my car was fixed. When I can afford them, I may buy these and store my originals in case a future owner wants to go original. They would look good in a yellow car. First, I have to get my gaps taken care of.
@@csvette I like my Solstice GXP. The headlights are bolted to the hood. :) My C6 is a horrendous pain to work on so far. Thanks to one of your other videos, I just discovered the awesome balancer wobble. (Whopping 46k miles on a 2011.) Thankfully this is the one time I actually bought an extended warranty.
How is the vertical pattern control? In my small SUV I sit higher than in most cars, yet it seems that the lights on every late model car I encounter shine in my eyes much more than the "poor" lights on older cars. I don't want to subject the other folks on the road to this.
Those lights look really nice! But man taking that bumper off looks like a PITA!! You gotta find someone who will work carefully on it and break any of those tabs on the fender or scratch the bumper/hood!
Great info videos by the way.....BUT on your run flat tire video i strongly do not agree. i like my expensive wheels and will protect them the best way i know how by using run flats. The regular tires will destroy your wheels before you get the car stopped at hyway speeds period. There side walls are narrow and to not keep the weight of the car off the rims.
Bill, I agree with your statement. In my experience, the majority of C5/C6 owners are more interested in improved ride and handling than in wheel preservation, but you are not incorrect in any way. Lyle
Thanks for the great advice regarding the replacement & pinning of the harmonic balancer. I prefer the original look of the taillights myself. There's a company called GTR that has even cooler looking headlights. What's your thoughts?
The GTR units are very cool, no question! I haven't had a set here yet, but they look similar in construction and performance to the Morimotos, just with C8 highlights as opposed to the C7 style of the other units. Either way, they are a huge improvement over the factory units! Lyle
So these are Morimoto quality, and cheaper than buying a new set of factory housings? Win-Win! The only thing that concerns me is taking the bumper off. In My Experience, (on other cars) they just never line back up correctly. And a question. Are these made of a more versatile material, so that they could actually be sanded down once they oxidize? Apparently you can't do that with the special type of plastic in the factory housings.
Replacing the bumper is actually pretty easy--guide clips are positioned in a way that makes getting the right fit pretty simple. We have had zero oxidation of these lenses in the 2+years we have had them on our own car, so I can't answer you honestly on that one. Lyle
@@csvette Good to know. I haven't attempted it yet, but you are located about an hour from me. I might just let you take care of it when the time comes.
I have a 2005 base oil pressure gauge stays on 80 all the time it does move back and forth when reving motor is it sending unit how hard to change if so
Two questions - I understand the headlights need to be aligned. Video did not address that. Second - I also understand it’s advisable to replace the bumper clips.
Correct...we didn't do the full step-by-step install process as we just wanted to highlight the difference the new lights make. We take the three alignment.mount studs out of the original headlight bases and put them into the new lights...that helps with leveling and up/down as a starting point. After that there are adjustment rods inside the new assemblies that do the finite adjustment work. Not difficult. I would have a couple of the bumper clips on-hand as they can be brittle and break apart just by handling them. They are still available from GM
Thanks Lyle. Can you please tell me what clips you suggest replacing? Thinking the “bumper cover retainer” and the “rocker molding retainer”? Number of each?
You are correct. The job can be done without removing the front bumper. As a professional shop, we choose to remove it to avoid damaging the paint AND to streamline the job overall. We actually save time on the install by doing what is technically "extra" work...but this applies to having the car on a lift. Doing it at home on the floor is different. :) Lyle
B Mann, it sure would be. As it is, removing the front bumper isn't difficult--it is just time-consuming. The effect of the Morimoto's on a C6's appearance is well worth it! Lyle
you don't have to take the front bumper off. If you remove the top fender and bumper bolt, you can pull both far enough apart to lift and rotate the headlights out. It's less risky to go ahead and pull the bumper cover, though, as you have to be super careful that you don't scratch anything if you don't.
I had the dealership install the headlights. Unfortunately they connected all the plugs so I do NOT have the sequential turn/Hazzard lights. What do I have to do to disconnect the t/h plug?
They are Morimoto XB 2.0 Headlights. I can ship them to you, or there may a distributor in Canada that could sell them to you without all the VAT hassle. Lyle :)
The C7-style LED headlights in this video are plug and play, but installation does involve removing the front bumper cover for access as seen in this video. Lyle
I am hopping you could help me out on an issue I have with my 2005 C6 vette. I had a hard nock noise on my left side suspension so I replaced the shock took care of that, then I had like a squeaky noise and replaced the stabilizer link but still had that sound could you please help me out, I don't know what else it could be.
No way to tell from your description, but my guess is your control arm bushings are dry and making noise. bounce the car while parked and have a friend look around to see if the sound can be pinpointed
@@ryanslandandtreesvc454 I am not talking Corvette owners. I am talking your everyday thieves that steal them and sell them on the secondary market. I do not know where you live but where I live they would be gone in hours. And I do not live in that bad of a city in Canada.
No, $1200 to put the car on a lift, remove the front bumper cover, remove the headlights, bake them to temp, remove the old lenses, apply sealant, install new lenses, replace front bumper cover and adjust headlight aim. Lyle :)
@@bobbbyumbaugh1997 The site looks great. My vendor charges me $600 not counting shipping for the same service, and I have had peeling issues with his lenses. I will use you guys in the future. HOWEVER, let's be fair: By the time we add up the $495 fee from you guys, shipping both ways insured ($80) and labor to R & R and aim the lights (includes removing the front bumper) $440---we aren't all that far off from my off-the-cuff price of $1200. Thanks for the contact info! Lyle
We love the carbon fiber idea--we explored that back in 2013, but after spending 3 hours on the phone with Visteon about their outgassing problems, we decided we weren't smart enough to solve that issue. I'm guessing your 3D printing was the answer?
We don't do that job anymore...the aftermarket lenses were failing within a year, and I just can't attach our name to that kind of (un)reliability. We were charging $850 for the pair, including removal and installation. The morimoto units are so much better that we are using them exclusively now. Lyle
Not a great job for the hobbyist, I agree. No problem for a body shop or mechanic shop--takes about 3-4 hours including settling the suspension to allow correct finite adjustment to headlight aim, but it is so worth it! :)
Yeah, good luck with that. The lenses at $150 have their UV coating peel off on 6 months. Also, most Corvette owners are not mechanically inclined enough to pull, repair and replace their headlights without breaking something. My price includes Labor, Lenses, shipping. I STILL promote the Morimoto units over re-lensing because they are superior in every way. It's cool that you have the know-how to do the job yourself. Maybe ask a question and clarify facts before calling someone a liar, tho...
