Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Aesthetics Attention: Members who have A6 side markers...

hey i was wondering what you all did to hold the housing of the sidemarker in the hole of the fender... I want to modify the sidemarker enough so i won't have to drill on my car very much. I imagine i will have to get rid of the plastic clip that was meant to hold the sidemarker in.

what suggestions do you have or what did you do to hold your sidemarkers in...

thx
_evan

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98 E1 SVT
#2468 of #6535
No Cat
No Res
NEW Kumho Ecsta Treads
Mobil 1 lube
Mesh Grilles All Around
KKM Aluminum Pedals w/ Custom Aluminum Dead Pedal
Black Calipers w/ White SVT
SVT Carbon Fibre Sail Panels
Door Dingers removed
Xenon bulbs all around
BNM white faced hvac
35% tint all around
Valentine One
Pioneer 8200R
Alpine 6.5's in doors

"Wanna Race That Snazzy Contour?"
"If it can do it, It was designed to."

I am planning on getting some kind of 2-sided gasketing foam/tape. Haven't gone to the store to search yet, but plan to this week. I just bought a Dremmel Tool and smoothed down the sides, got rid of all the excess plastic including the clip. I am up for suggestions on what to buy also.

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My Picture Page svt1675@home.com
2000 SVT Contour - Silver #1675/2150
- KKM Intake & Miks Heatshield
- Bassani Cat Back System (En Route)
- SRP Racing - Billet Aluminum Pedals w/ SVT Engraved
- B&M Short Throw Shifter w/Voodoo Shiftknob
- Stereo (Far from original)
- Windows Tinted

Moderator - Team SVTPerformance
www.SVTPerformance.com

I just used 3m double sided tape, held on all winter and is sticking perfectly so far. The hole and the marker is a pretty tight fit, you will have to grind down the the post on the marker considerably to make it fit and even when you do its a tight one so the tape will hold it along with the fact that its held in there pretty tight. You will have to grind down the post and the bulb socket almost all the way through to get it to fit without enlarging the whole on the fender, people complain that it cant be done but it can you just need patience and remember to TEST FIT A WHOLE LOT, pull up a stool and grind, test, grind, test.

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Madic
'00 Black SVT #1545
madic99@hotmail.com

Use a Dremel tool to clean off all of the clip & to shave it down to a size that will slide into the hole without effort . You'll have to most likely grind down the area close to the base of the marker where the flat (rear) side of the marker meets the part that goes through the fender . The plastic gets pretty thin and opaque , you'll see it getting thinner at some spots than others . That's normal . It's better to work the sidemarker to make it fit than to remove the paint on your fender hole . You don't want rust , do ya ? The pictures in the How-To's show it pretty good once you open 'em to a bigger size .
Once you have it all ground down , the wires hooked up to your markers & the whole shootin' match ready to go , stick it to your fender with 3M double sided foam adhesive tape . I used Scotch (3M) heavy duty mounting tape . It's pretty thin foam and it's very strong . It really holds it tight with no signs of giving it up . Plus it's white , so it blends into the sidemarker . It comes in a red blister pack that hangs on a hook in the store . The stuff is rolled up in a clear plastic cover . I got mine at K-Mart .
I hope that helps you out !!

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Allen
Go Redwings !!!

2000 Contour SVT Black w/ Tan #2137 of 2150 / built 2-4-00
Mods : ~ Factory DRL mod ~ "Powered by Ford" seatbelt covers
~ OF's TH fix ~ Audi A-6 Side Repeaters ~ Highs in Lows Mod
~ #885 foggies ~ K&N filter ~ Mondeo ST200 Badging & Shiftknob
~ Pre-98 Sails ~ Nose Bra ~ Trunk cargo net ~
Very Soon : ~ More "Mondeo-izing" and a TON of RE-contenting ~
My old 95 'Tour
Our new SVT

Except the holes in my 99 se fenders was bigger then the holes in the 00 svt. At least that is what we observed.


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'99 SE Zetec ATX
Medium Steel Blue.
Tint, Mesh Grill, Badgeless, Sidemarkers,
pre '98 sail panels
Pollo_loco69@hotmail.com

I used a hack saw to cut the clips off the side markers...then used a belt sander to smooth it out. After that, very little had to be done to the existing hole. I used the outdoor 3M tape to hold it on...no problems with it sticking.

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Joey
2000 SVT Black
#1811 of 2150

MODERATOR
www.svtperformance.com


If you're in a war, instead of throwing a hand grenade at the enemy, throw one of those small pumpkins. Maybe it'll make everyone think how stupid war is, and while they are thinking, you can throw a real grenade at them.

DEFINITELY get white tape! I've seen them with black tape and unless your car is black, it looks tacky.

I did like the others have said, lots of grinding and test fitting. It is possible, but you do have to hack away at them for a while and be very careful because the plastic will get quite thin in spots.

I did the A6 mod about a month ago. Actually, my friend and I did both our cars. His took 3 hours, mine took 1h15m. Drilled his hole bigger, ground my lights down more. I was determined not to break my clearcoat.

What it took was grinding down the lamp housing until it because translucent (very thin). Also, had to grind down then bulb holder until the spade plugs were loose. No black plastic on the outside of the spade connector. Don't worry, because when the bulb is plugged in it holds.

For mounting, the back of the housing isn't flush. There is about a 1" square the sticks out maybe 1/16". So, the tape doesn't sit flush. However, when it rains, the tapes shrinks and sucks the marker closer to the fender. Looks perfect after the first rainfall and still tight. Oh, yeah, 3M double sides white tape only.

Tools that were extremely time-saving:
Heat gun to remove badges and the big foam under them.
Bug/Tag remover to clean up the sticky leftovers.
Dremel to grind down the lamps - only took about 25 minutes to grind down everything for our second car, with test fits. Take your time though because it'd be easy to break through.
Good wire crimper/stripper for all the misc 20GA speaker wire we used.
I used white 3M tape.
Exacto knife for trimming 3M tape.

[This message has been edited by APT CSVT (edited April 24, 2001).]

Ok i am going to do this mod tonight...thanks for all your guys help.

I do have two more questions....with all this grinding on the a6 sidemarker...how does the mounting harness stay on to the rear side of the side marker because i will be reducing the diameter of the sidemarker (where the harness meets it)...any thoughts.

How did all of you get behind where the side marker goes in...did you take out the Inner fender well.

and where is the easiest route to run the wires...

thanks
_evan

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98 E1 SVT
#2468 of #6535
No Cat
No Res
B&M Short Shifter
NEW Kumho Ecsta Treads
Mobil 1 lube
Mesh Grilles All Around
KKM Aluminum Pedals w/ Custom Aluminum Dead Pedal
Black Calipers w/ White SVT
SVT Carbon Fibre Sail Panels
Door Dingers removed
Xenon bulbs all around
BNM white faced hvac
35% tint all around
Valentine One
Pioneer 8200R
Alpine 6.5's in doors

"Wanna Race That Snazzy Contour?"
"If it can do it, It was designed to."

If you have the parts with you, just plug the black bulb hold into the housing. It clips into there. When you grind both down, it still works.



I didn't. From the engine bay, look by the hood hinges. There is a gromet on each side the goes down into the sidemarker fender area. I just ran my wires down there and fished it out of the sidemarker hole with some needle nose plyers. Some have used a coat hanger to help with this. Once you get the bare wires out of the hole, you can connect them to the lamp spades. I used spade connectors that just plugged right into the lamp and crimped onto the wires. If you don't have any, the auto parts store carries them. Get the right size of spade, though. I believe it is the largest width available. Once everything is plugged in: wires into spade plugs, bulb in place, tape on inside of housing, bulb assy into housing, then you put it in place from the outside. Once you attach the housing to the fender, you're done. Everything should be connected at this point.



I ran the wires along the side of the engine compartment from the headlamp assy to the gromet hole near the hood hinge.

More advice:
Test often. Test the grinding of the housing until it fits. Test your electrical work with either a volt meter or the bulb when appropriate.

Start at headlamp with the splicing. Plug the bulb into the socket before you run the wires down the fender tpo verify operation and brightness.

Good luck.