I know you’re not necessarily supposed to mess with/dismantle headlight assemblies, but I also know some people do retrofits with good results.
My only goal is to replace the clear lens, since there are absolutely no oem hid assemblies available for a reasonable price. I’ve done the headlight restoration a couple times, started with 400 grit and worked my way up to 8k & polished, seems like most of the uv damage is on the inside of the lens. Has anyone done this lens replacement before or even just a retrofit while removing the lens? This is on a set of oem projector hids. Thanks for any help

 

ebay sells replacement lenses, wish they were available when I did my retrofit in 2017 I think? My OEM HID lenses got yellow and faded in 2020. I ended up sanding them down and spraying 2k clear which lasted about a year or so. I didn't want to do that again so I opted to swap out the lenses for used/new ones. I found a lightly used set of OEM halogen headlights, cracked them open and did the swap. the only difference is the tabs, they don't line up BUT I didn't have an issue with it closing. I made sure to clamp it down tight and it's held up with the elements. I did however this time is add a UV clear film from XPEL on it. I had a local tint shop put it on. It's been 2yrs and they look new still. I wouldn't do without the UV film or it will happen again on the new ones you swap them with. My local shop only charged $100 for the headlights and foglights.

while you get them open, swap out the HID projectors with EVO X-R 2.0. they line up directly with the OEMs, same high beam connection also. It's worth a new set of HID bulbs also. I'd recommend Osram CBN bulbs.

https://lightwerkz.net/collections/h...oto-evox-r-2-0

https://lightwerkz.net/collections/d...40-cbi-nextgen

 

I was thinking of bypassing the ballast and going led. My brother did the same on his stock projectors and it turned out great.
But yes I completely agree, this wouldn’t be worth it without doing some kind of ppf or clearcoat.

 

Also- if you have some finished product photos on the new lenses, that would be great to see. No worries if not though.

 

What headlights do you have? Also are you needing the passenger or driver side? I had the same issue and I changed out both lights for new HID lights. I have my OEM and I believe that one has a clear lens that I will sell you at a reasonable price


2014 F150 FX4

 

My headlights are the oem projectors, exactly like the one in your picture.

 

Great info, I wasn’t aware of swapping the lenses out. I’ll have to dig into this route, instead of wasting my time with re finishing my current lenses.

 

it's not a bad job honestly. I've opened about 5 sets of headlights over the years now. just get the new projectors, get new butyl, perfect time to add a c-bar switchbacks like mine while they're open. A new set of bulbs will also be the finishing touch. well worth the time.

 

I do have a TYC CAPA certified replacement passenger HID headlight assembly installed and I have to say the projector output appears to be sharper and cleaner than my original Ford drivers headlight assembly, and was going to say they might be a viable option from Rockauto but now I see what you mean. The only HID options on there are Depo brand, non CAPA, non OEM looking assemblies and they're $250 or $300 each.

 

Looks like I found the right thread. My lenses are beyond restoration at this point but I love the FX4 HID headlights. I just replaced the bulbs last month with the Osram bulbs so those are good to go.

What is the reasoning for needing a new projector?

Also, I'm a first timer opening up a set of headlights. Can you direct me to a good youtube video or forum thread with as much instruction as possible? Any tips and tricks would be greatly appreciated.