I have been trying to open my E60 headlight using the heat gun and screwdriver method but I have barely gotten two or three inches on one side loose after working on it for a couple of hours. This is very tedious and I'm wondering if anyone has tried baking the headlight in the oven to soften the glue, as suggested in YouTube videos. I'm afraid to do it cuz I don't want to melt the entire headlight in the oven and end up with a Cajun blackened expensive headlight! If anyone has done this successfully, please list the details of the time in the oven and the temperature it was set to . Thanks in advance

 

I definitely would not put it in the oven. What are you replacing the lens for?

 

I did use the oven method which we found on YouTube for my son's 03 Silverado to install halo's, we followed the temperature and time guidelines and it worked perfectly. Not sure if BMW is using the same type of butyl glue for epoxy that's the key. Good luck

 

BMW Hella lamps are the devil.

They use a glue called Permaseal, which is basically an epoxy.

If you open the lamp, you will need to remove the old adhesive and replace it with Butyl (the stuff that gets soft in the oven).

I would recommend either a set of replacement headlamps, or, restore the lense if that is your goal.

Good luck.

That being said, I had to bake mine at 240 for 20mins over 5 times and open using "expanding pliers" (amazon). I have opened permaseal lamps before and these are by far the worst.

 

One of the projector lens and halo ring fell off when I was trying to replace the DRL bulb. I guess they were brittle from the heat. I need to open the light to glue the loose pieces back in place. The lens is not too bad, I had sanded and clear coated it a while ago. I guess if I can't get the lens off in one piece, I may have to saw it off and replace both lenses.

 

You're right, the HELLA lamps are "hell" to open. After cutting some of the permaseaI glue out with an xacto knife, I tried heating about 6 to 8 inches of joint at a time with a heat gun, and managed to break loose only a couple of inches of seal. I stopped when both the lens and housing plastic started to soften and warp while I pried with screwdriver. I was thinking the baking might soften the permaseaI evenly, and make the joint easier to break loose. If I bake it, I am assuming it's better if I remove the HID ballast off the assembly first?

 

That's why I stated not to put it in the oven due to the chance of ruining internal components but if you remove them, well that's a horse of a different color. In most videos, I see them using a Dremel tool.

I just ran across this post detailing the heat gun method, https://5series.net/forums/diy-do-yo...laiton-151042/ .

 

No oven. heat gun and retrofit source headlight opener. I can open e60 headlights in 10-15 minutes now taking my time.

 

Excellent, hope i never have to open mine but if I do that's the method I'm using. Thanks