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Is this the slow death of my headlight? Could I find the leak and seal it? What are all my options then?
Post 98 BTW.
1992 Ford Escort LX-E
-Tracer LTS spoiler
-GT Grille
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Joined: Sep 2002
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Hard-core CEG'er
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Well I am not real sure how you could find the leak, but I guess you could remove it from the car, remove the light, then fill the assy up with water. Make sure the outside is dry. Seal it off and see if the water slowly starts to trickle out. Just a thought, not that anyone has done that. Just made me think of when someone posted about washing the inside of there headlight assy.
Come to think of it, they mentioned how to get the condensation out too! On a warm day, remove the headlight bulb and let the assy air out. The warm air will "dry" in the interior of the assy. Once it is dry, replace the bulb. If you have a good seal, with no air leaks, problem solved.
Hope some of this late night rabbling helps you out some.
Phillip Jackson
`98 Mystique LS
262K+ and counting...
ATX rebuilt @ 151K
"This storm has broken me, my only friend!" RIP Dime
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Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 17,248
CEG road warrior
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CEG road warrior
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Originally posted by unisys12:
Well I am not real sure how you could find the leak, but I guess you could remove it from the car, remove the light, then fill the assy up with water. Make sure the outside is dry. Seal it off and see if the water slowly starts to trickle out. Just a thought, not that anyone has done that. Just made me think of when someone posted about washing the inside of there headlight assy.
Come to think of it, they mentioned how to get the condensation out too! On a warm day, remove the headlight bulb and let the assy air out. The warm air will "dry" in the interior of the assy. Once it is dry, replace the bulb. If you have a good seal, with no air leaks, problem solved.
Hope some of this late night rabbling helps you out some.
Condensation sucks. I get it bad after taking the light apart. 
Hector
2003 Rally Red Mitsubishi Evolution VIII
257HP/259TQ
2005 Lapis Blue Mazda 6s
RET: 00 Cabernet Red Ford Contour Zetec ATX SUPERCHARGED
160HP/141TQ
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Joined: Jan 2003
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New CEG\'er
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I tried cleaning my headlights following the instructions to fill them with water and it didnt clean anything. When i took a closer look, the finishing on the headlights had chipped away. Now there are black marks where the finish washed away with the water.
'99 Silver SVT
Quaife LSD
Centerforce DF
B&M Short Shifter
DMD
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Yeah, mine were wet for too long, and the water had ruined the reflective coating.
Anyway, the root of the problem was not a leak, but a clogged vent. The assembly has to be able to breath. I'm not sure where the vent is on the later headlights, but on the early cars, there was a white "button" on the upper outside corner of each assembly. Mine had been pushed in too far, effectively closing the hole. Pulling it out about an 8th of an inch kept it dry, once I had done the water/alcohol bath, but like I said, it was already too late when I figured it out.
Function before fashion.
'96 Contour SE
"Toss the Contour into a corner, and it's as easy to catch as a softball thrown by a preschooler." -Edmunds, 1998
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Smurfette
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I've been having moisture problems as well on my GL.
They wouldn't pass me for NH inspection because of it.
I originally thought it was because the bulb itself wasn't in there tight enough (because it wasn't). so I pulled out the bulb and attempted to blow the water out with my air compressor, and made sure the bulb was set in there tightly this time. It passed inspection, but a day later there was a ton of moisture again.
I believe my Haynes manual (pre-98) has a how-to on how to replace the seal inside the headlight.
I was considering attempting it, but not sure how difficult it'd be to get a new seal.
I did a search of car-part.com and found numerous headlights in my area for $50. This may be my alternative.
Kim
1995 Contour GL
Needs less "needs more"
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Well, I got bought my car from a staelership, and they did a gov't inspection too, but passed the condensation, saying it WASN'T a safety hazard. Should I go back?
1992 Ford Escort LX-E
-Tracer LTS spoiler
-GT Grille
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Veteran CEG\'er
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Pour some FOG-X in there, worked on my SHO....
99 Blk SE Sport
2.5 CD4E
Euro Focus SVT Wheels
5 % tint
Mesh Grilles w/indiglo ford
KKM intake filter
FMS 9mm wires
Superchip
Signal mirrors
Fog lamp mod
Dingless
A6 sidemarkers
Duals
SVT springs/struts
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I had that problem with my 98 Contour in one of the headlight assemblies. I pulled the bulb and removed the cover over the headlight level gauge. Then I used a hair dryer to blow air into the opening for the bulb, with the level gauge opening acting as an exhaust. It seem like it took several hours, but I finally got the interior dry. Compressed air could work fine, but I didn't have a source so that's why I used a hairdryer.
After reinstalling the bulb and level gauge cover I haven't had anymore water in the headlight going on 5 months.
Rick Steverson
98.5 Contour SE Sports
Amazon Green
Duratec ATX
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Originally posted by unisys12:
Come to think of it, they mentioned how to get the condensation out too! On a warm day, remove the headlight bulb and let the assy air out. The warm air will "dry" in the interior of the assy. Once it is dry, replace the bulb. If you have a good seal, with no air leaks, problem solved.
Hope some of this late night rabbling helps you out some.
I did and got water spots all over! 
1992 Ford Escort LX-E
-Tracer LTS spoiler
-GT Grille
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