Got busted tails? Don't toss them just yet. If the break(s) are on either just the black frame or just the center lens section, hang onto them. Its not actually that hard to separate the lenses from the frame. They are essentially worthless at wreckers so you can get them for nothing or close to it when you come across them, and then when you get 2 sets that have good opposite components, you can combine them and get a good tail light. I've been hanging onto broken tails in such condition for years and every now and then I take mine and combine all the good parts to get good sets of tails. Just keep in mind that you can not mix and match early and late style lenses and frames, they are actually quite different.
Quicky Tuturial
All you need to do this is a screw driver, a heat gun and a hot glue gun (and can be done without the hot glue gun).
Seperation
First off you unscew all the little screws on the back that attach the cream colored lense backing to the black frame, theres 8 in all I belive.
Then you get your heat gun going (I doubt a hair dryer will be hot enough), and heat up the back of the license plate light area, this area....
http://www.pbase.com/suprafiend/image/42952622
That is the only section where glue is used to hold the frame to the lense, and its basicly hot glue, it melts very easily with heat. Here is a pic of what they look like seperated. You can see where the glue is used very clearly...
http://www.pbase.com/suprafiend/image/42952621
The trick here is to heat up the back enough that the glue gets hot enough to pull apart, but you don't melt the back of the lense. Heat it a little, then pull on the frame. Use gloves or you'll burn your fingers. What I do to hold onto the lense backing without bending it is stick one finger inside the reverse light area, then put my thumb on a corner of it. Be sure to hold the frame evenly with the other hand when pulling or you'll break it. Pull with a little force. If the glue doesn't give all, its not hot enough. Heat again and repeat untill the two separate evenly.
Be aware that the opposite end of the frame (the turn signal area) wraps behind the lens with a little tab, thats how that end stays on. You can only pull them apart from the license plate area first. There actually is 2 small spots of glue on the turn signal end and its visible from the back. But it really doesn't do much and often isn't even touching both surfaces, just ignore it.
Re-Installation
The factory glue will actually rebond with itself if you just push another or the same frame back on, and it will be stuck together just as good as it was originally. However, if you worry about having a perfect air tight seal so you don't get condensation on the inside of the license plate lens, you should remove as much of the old glue with a putty knife (old butter knife, etc, nothing really sharp though) and then reglue. Once you've gotten the big chunks of the yellow glue out, fill the lense side with hot glue. DO NOT put the glue on the frame side, you will get it on the actual lense when you reinstall. Now technically any sort of glue would work here, epoxy, silicone, etc. But I would recomend hot glue as it will melt just like the oem stuff does with a heat gun so you can actually pull the frame off again in the future if you mange to brake one of the two again. The thing with hot glue is it cools and dries very quickly, so with some good speed lay your bead then push the frame on asap. If your too slow, you can heat it up with the heat gun a little before attaching the two. After that, all you got to do is screw in the screws and you've got a new tail light. Just don't over torque them, your screwing into plastic. Enjoy.
-Seamus
Quicky Tuturial
All you need to do this is a screw driver, a heat gun and a hot glue gun (and can be done without the hot glue gun).
Seperation
First off you unscew all the little screws on the back that attach the cream colored lense backing to the black frame, theres 8 in all I belive.
Then you get your heat gun going (I doubt a hair dryer will be hot enough), and heat up the back of the license plate light area, this area....
http://www.pbase.com/suprafiend/image/42952622
That is the only section where glue is used to hold the frame to the lense, and its basicly hot glue, it melts very easily with heat. Here is a pic of what they look like seperated. You can see where the glue is used very clearly...
http://www.pbase.com/suprafiend/image/42952621
The trick here is to heat up the back enough that the glue gets hot enough to pull apart, but you don't melt the back of the lense. Heat it a little, then pull on the frame. Use gloves or you'll burn your fingers. What I do to hold onto the lense backing without bending it is stick one finger inside the reverse light area, then put my thumb on a corner of it. Be sure to hold the frame evenly with the other hand when pulling or you'll break it. Pull with a little force. If the glue doesn't give all, its not hot enough. Heat again and repeat untill the two separate evenly.
Be aware that the opposite end of the frame (the turn signal area) wraps behind the lens with a little tab, thats how that end stays on. You can only pull them apart from the license plate area first. There actually is 2 small spots of glue on the turn signal end and its visible from the back. But it really doesn't do much and often isn't even touching both surfaces, just ignore it.
Re-Installation
The factory glue will actually rebond with itself if you just push another or the same frame back on, and it will be stuck together just as good as it was originally. However, if you worry about having a perfect air tight seal so you don't get condensation on the inside of the license plate lens, you should remove as much of the old glue with a putty knife (old butter knife, etc, nothing really sharp though) and then reglue. Once you've gotten the big chunks of the yellow glue out, fill the lense side with hot glue. DO NOT put the glue on the frame side, you will get it on the actual lense when you reinstall. Now technically any sort of glue would work here, epoxy, silicone, etc. But I would recomend hot glue as it will melt just like the oem stuff does with a heat gun so you can actually pull the frame off again in the future if you mange to brake one of the two again. The thing with hot glue is it cools and dries very quickly, so with some good speed lay your bead then push the frame on asap. If your too slow, you can heat it up with the heat gun a little before attaching the two. After that, all you got to do is screw in the screws and you've got a new tail light. Just don't over torque them, your screwing into plastic. Enjoy.
-Seamus
