Wish I had known about that thread
BEFORE I took mine apart. Good thing I picked up an extra assembly at the boneyard for an ouchy $75, but if greatly reduced the mod fear factor...
A couple of notes:
1. Disassembly description by CHINO is accurate. Be careful not to aim the heat gun in the clear lens as it will spider web the plastic.
2.
DO NOT clean any of the "chrome" surfaces with anything other than distilled water. It will remove the shine immediately and make you [xx(]
2a. I also painted the same assembly as CHINO, but in a satin black. The turn signal reflector still chrome. In addition, I kept the reflector (although I pinstriped it with 1/8" black vinyl tape to subdue it) and put in a set of APC titanium bulbs.
3. Reassembly took more time for me. I heated and removed as much gasket goo as I could. Here's a tip: To get that sticky black crap off the lens, let it cool slightly then use duct tape. Press it over the goo and rip it off. You'll be amazed...
Continuing onward, after most of the original goo was removed from the backing channel, I layed in a heavy bead of 3M Window Weld (the stuff they use to seal windshields) and used a clamping system for 2 hours until dry.
Two notes:
3a. The Window Weld is not the exact product to use. First I tried black silicone but it was too watery - and a total MESS - to work with. The other problem with it is it isn't tacky enough to hold the lens and backing together. Perhaps someone out there knows the trade name of the OEM bonding agent and will post it here.
3b. When heating plastic, there's always the possibility of "tweaking" it. To assure a more positive seal than the 4 factory retaining clips can provide, I rigged up a clamping system consisting of a c-clamp, a pipe-clamp and one of those rubbery jar opening discs used in the kitchen. This thing was cut into quarters and used as grippers to give the clamps squeezing traction. The clamps are an important step in assuring a quality seal.
4. BTW, removing the headlamp assemblies requires removing the front bumper... if you want to save your sanity and chipped paint. And it's easy to do, too.
I've had mine done since spring and have no water leaks while driving in Midwestern rain storms.
Boy, does it looks great [?] Did anyone notice it at CTFIII? Unless you have an eye for detail, it looks somewhat like those headlamp stickers. My wife and I looked all over and no one else had done this mod
Hope this offers some encouragement.