Headlight Bucket Replacement Procedure
 

I thought I would post this for anyone who may have rusted out headlight buckets, as I did on the driver side of my '84.

Since the car spent almost its entire life in Canada and then New Hampshire, I guess it was bound to have a few rust spots. The driver side headlight bucket had a gaping rust hole, which I first tried to patch but the filler started to crack almost immediately:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1648047238.jpg

I ordered a replacement from our host, thinking it would be a quick bolt off/bolt on job. It was not. After removing the bottom bolt inside the bucket, there are about 12 spot welds that need to be grinded out. I used a 1/2" belt sander (Ryobi cordless at Home Depot) with an 80 grit belt and hit the spot welds. This must be done very carefully, as the metal is thin and it is super easy to grind too far into the metal surrounding the bucket.

After grinding the welds, there a bolt that goes into the back off the bucket, which needs to be removed (I took the wheel off to gain access to this bolt). From there, it's just a matter of gently coaxing out the bucket. You may need to hit a few of the welds again if it's not coming out. Extreme care must be taken not to bend the surrounding metal. You just need to keep working at the welds with the grinder a little bit at a time until it's loose.

The new bucket did not go in easily, as there were some high spots around the weld areas. This time I used a Dremel to carefully grind down the high spots, continually test fitting the bucket. Eventually the bucket went in:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1648048128.jpg

The bucket needs to be positioned so that there is room between the lip and the fender to allow for the installation of the seal and the trim ring. I measured the gap on the passenger side with vernier calipers at various points and got the gap on the driver side to match as closely as possible. The bottom hole of the bucket did not match exactly to the bolt hole below, and so I needed to slightly trim the bucket hole by maybe 1-2 mm with a Dremel.

Then it's just a matter of re-bolting at the bottom and through the back. FYI - the bottom bolt was pretty rusty, but I got it out using copious amounts of PB Plaster. To get it back in, I cleaned up all of the threads with a die and some cutting oil.

I'm not planning to re-weld the bucket to the fender, as the fit is very tight (especially with the bottom bolt in place) and I'm worried about panel warpage. I think it will be strong enough "as is," but I'd welcome any comments on that front.

I test fitted the seal and trim ring, which went on fine (you may need to bend the bottom tab on the bucket up slightly to get the screw in).

Lastly, please note that the tabs for mounting of the headlight assembly not pre-drilled (at least on the genuine Porsche part). So looks like I'm going to need to measure, drill and then use a tap to create threads for the headlight assembly screws.

I would weld it, if you’re careful there’s little chance of distortion. If it isn’t retained securely you will get movement and then the opportunity for rust etc.

I would bet this area would benefit from some of the high tech 2 part panels adhesive. I wonder if a slow curing adhesive would allow for a wet install, then edge seal it. Should prevent moisture from getting into the joint, and bond it in. I have 2 that I need to do on my 930.

I'd remove the fender. Weld it in then apply seam sealer. This is how it was done in the factory.

Also while the fender is off have a look at the state of the front most part of the fender. If the headlight bucket is rusty, the chances are this part of the fender will need some attention too.

Thanks for all of the comments - much appreciated. Great idea re: the panel adhesive. I think 3M makes a good one. I’m going to apply that and then hit the back of the bucket with Wurth undercoat. Also, further to Bill’s comment, there was a moderate amount of surface rust towards the front of the fender. Knocked down the rust with a wire brush and applied POR15. I think that will suffice for the foreseeable future. Thanks again.