What can I do to prevent moisture from getting into my headlights on my mustang (years 83-2004)?

There are several things that you can do to help prevent moisture from getting into your headlights on your mustang.  This has been a very common problem with the mustangs all the way back to 1983 and up to 2004.  I am sure that you have noticed the moisture inside of your headlight.

First if you already have moisture inside of your headlight there are two possible solutions to help remove this moisture.  One of the procedures is simple.  The other is a little more involved.

The First Procedure

1. You will want to park your car where it can sit for a couple of hours.  Note: You will want to do this on a warm sunny day with low humidity.
2. Now you will want to start by opening your mustang’s hood.
3. You will want to locate the two pins on top of the headlights.  They are little metal clips that just pull straight out, and there are two for each one of them.  (This is on the 1999-2004 models).
4. Once you have located the pins you will want to take a Slip Joint Pliers and grab a hold of the top of the pins.  You will then want to pull straight up being careful not to bend the pins.  Once you have removed both the pins on each side you are ready for the next step.
5. Next you are going to want to grab one of your headlights slowly and pull it out a little ways.  Once you get it pulled out enough to where you can remove the clip on the back of the headlight bulb do so.  Do not worry if the little clips are broke on your connector, this is common and the headlight does not move so they will be fine.  Now slide the headlight out slowly making sure not to scratch the bumper.  Once you can see the blinker connector remove that too.
6. Ok now you are going to want to remove your bulbs from your headlight assembly.  To do this turn the blinker bulb counter clock wise and slide it out setting it aside where it won’t be damaged.  To remove the headlight bulb you will need to twist the locking collar counter clock wise and slide it off, and then the bulb should pull out.  Note when removing headlights and blinkers take care to not touch the bulbs, doing so will leave oil on the bulb and possibly crack it.
7.  Once you have everything removed from your assembly, the one way of removing moisture is to set your headlight assembly out in sunlight on a sunny day, hoping that the moisture will evaporate.  If this does not work then there is another way.

Procedure two

1. This procedure will be used if the sunlight does not remove the moisture from your headlights.  Note damage may occur from doing this process, but if the directions are correctly followed then none should occur.  However if some damage does occur that is why we recommend doing the sunlight test first and this last, since you will likely be purchasing a new assembly if this does not work.
2. Make sure that you do not have any wires or bulbs inside of your headlight assembly.
3. Now you will want to take a pan that goes in your oven and set a piece of wet cardboard on top of it. 
4. You will then set your headlights on top of the cardboard.  Then slide them in the oven.  You do not need to preheat, just set the oven for 250 degrees F with the headlights already inside.  Let the headlights sit for three minutes.
5. Remove the headlights after three minutes.  If the moisture has evaporated then you are lucky and can proceed to this next step.  If not then you may want to try again.  If it does not go away then you may have to purchase a new set of headlights.  If you do purchase a new set, or you are using the set that you put in the oven the next steps will be the same.
6. If you did not purchase a new one then you will have hot headlights.  You will only want to do step 6 on old headlights that the moisture has been cooked out of.  With your hot headlights you may want to put a set of gloves on.  You will then want to squeeze the front and the back of the headlight assembly attempting to push the seal on the assembly tighter.  You will want to do this to both and let them cool.
7. Now this next step is where you will start if you have new headlights.  If you have old ones you will just want to continue on with these steps.
8. You will want to take your headlights and use a Caulking Gun and RTV silicone to seal them.  You will do this by running a bead with your Caulking Gun all the way around the seal of the headlights.  You may want to take your finger and smear it into the seam where the headlights go together allowing a better seal.  Make sure to get all of the cracks and seal all the way around your headlights or water will get back in.
9. Now you will want to let your headlights sit and dry for a couple of hours.
10. After your headlights are dry you are ready to reinstall.
11. You will want to start by putting the blinker and headlight bulbs back in.  Make sure that the sleeve on the headlight bulb is pushed all the way in and turns clockwise to lock the bulb in place.
12. Next you will want to slide the connectors onto your headlight bulb and blinker bulb.
13. You will then want to line up the alignment pins and slide your headlight assembly back in.  Make sure that it is all the way in.
14. Then take your Slip Joint Pliers and grab the pins.  Push them into the slots on the back of the headlights.  They should slide in pretty easy, if not you may not have your headlights in all of the way.
15. Once you get your pins all back in place you will want to adjust your headlights.  This will allow you to see better at night.

The Procedure for adjusting headlights

1. You will want to start your car and turn your headlights on.
2. You will want to be on a level surface and have a flat surface such as a garage door or fence in front of your headlights.
3. You will want to pull as close to this flat surface as you can.
4. You will then want to take some tape and place the tape on the center of where your headlights beams are shining.
5. After placing your tape you will want to back your vehicle up so that the front is 25 feet from the flat surface.
6. You will then need to adjust your headlights.  You want them to be 2-3 inches below your original mark from 25 feet away.
7. To adjust your headlights open your hood and look towards where your pins are on the back of your headlights.  Towards the center of the vehicle there is an allen screw that adjusts up and down tilt of your headlights.  Take a 6mm Allen Wrench and adjust the screw accordingly on both sides to get your headlights aimed in the correct position.

Now you have just helped the looks of your car without spending a whole lot of money.  Not only will your car look much better, but it will be much safer to drive at night with clear and properly aligned headlights.

This procedure can be done on any vehicle with moisture in their headlight assembly; the only difference is the removal and installation.  The alignment will use the same measurement, but the adjustment methods may be different.

Written by: Cody Mammenga an NDSCS Student

Tags: aligning headlights, better night vision, car headlights, cleaning headlights, clearing headlights, enhancing appearance, foggy headlights, ford, headlights, installing new bulbs, installing new headlights, moisture in headlights, mustang, removing moisture in headlights, replacing headlights, Tools

This entry was posted on Monday, October 26th, 2009 at 6:38 pm and is filed under Removing Moisture From Headlights. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.