Bwilliams Posted May 9, 2006 Share Posted May 9, 2006 Hi, I'm buying a factory oem HID Kit for my 91 ls400 and I want to get clear headlamps to go with it. I'm sick and tired of the factory ones. They do suck. Do the Celsiors hae clear lamps? Does anyone know where I can find these, I'd really appreciate it!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKperformance Posted May 10, 2006 Share Posted May 10, 2006 The only possibilities are to modify the housing by polishing the insides and adding projectors Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bwilliams Posted May 10, 2006 Author Share Posted May 10, 2006 How do I go about polishing them, what tools do I need and what chemicals?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1990LS400 Posted May 10, 2006 Share Posted May 10, 2006 Hi, I'm buying a factory oem HID Kit for my 91 ls400 and I want to get clear headlamps to go with it. I'm sick and tired of the factory ones. They do suck. Do the Celsiors hae clear lamps? Does anyone know where I can find these, I'd really appreciate it!! I've done quite a bit of research on LS400 headlights over the past 16+ years and have never found "oem" HID headlights for the generation one LS400. Do you mean "aftermarket" instead of OEM? The light pattern on the 90-97 LS400 is formed primarily by the headlight lens. Beginning with the 1998 model year, the beam pattern is formed by a complex reflector and headlight lens is clear. Almost all "Celsior" headlights you might find would blind oncoming drivers in the U.S. since most cars labeled "Toyota Celsior" were right hand drive. There were left hand drive "Toyota Celsiors" in mainland China in the early nineties but it was never clear to me if they were sold that way or jif they were rebadged LS400's. The Lexus brand was introduced in China a long time ago. The only other option I know is to obtain left hand drive LS400 H-4 headlight units from Europe. But even in the early 90's when my 90 LS was almost new, the price of a set of Euro spec LS400 headlights and the related parts was at least $2,000. It would likely be a lot more now since the U.S. dollar has completely "tanked" against the Euro. The price of Euro headlights might exceed the value of your car. Yes, the gen 1 headlights suck. No, they are not even that good. IMO, the best option for improving the lighting on a gen 1 LS is to clear the foglights (break out the amber reflector insert) and drive with them on. Or mount axiliary lights in the bumper and connect them to the low beams. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKperformance Posted May 10, 2006 Share Posted May 10, 2006 To polish the headlights which have been done to many OEM lights successfully . You need to remove both sides. Place them in an oven to open the seals ,it takes about 10 minutes to release. Get sand paper and smooth down the plastic ridges until smooth then keep following up with lighter and lighter grit. Start with 200 and end with 2000. Then use a compound and a polisher to finish the clear look. After that you could install set of hid's and projectors from a BMW and have amazing light with factory looks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bwilliams Posted May 10, 2006 Author Share Posted May 10, 2006 Great thanks a lot, Two things, What temp. Should I turn the oven to and what compound and polisher should I use?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wwest Posted May 10, 2006 Share Posted May 10, 2006 To polish the headlights which have been done to many OEM lights successfully . You need to remove both sides. Place them in an oven to open the seals ,it takes about 10 minutes to release. Get sand paper and smooth down the plastic ridges until smooth then keep following up with lighter and lighter grit. Start with 200 and end with 2000. Then use a compound and a polisher to finish the clear look. After that you could install set of hid's and projectors from a BMW and have amazing light with factory looks. Yes, by all means, what oven temperature and how long should one expect it to take for the sealant to be soft enough? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bwilliams Posted May 11, 2006 Author Share Posted May 11, 2006 Are there any other suggestions? I'm using 60 grit and it's taking forever!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKperformance Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 I guess since you are sanding already that you have them apart already. The best temps i like is 250-300 degrees as it is not hot and takes about 5 minutes before i start to pry slightly ,then retry ever few minutes after heating again. Make sure you remove all clips bulbs and small plastic pieces before inserting into the oven. Sorry it may take alittle to sand it down , Also make sure you use a flat sanding block to reduce optical distortion. A palm sander would speed up the process as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maniek_LS Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 Great thanks a lot, Two things, What temp. Should I turn the oven to and what compound and polisher should I use?? I used oven set to 160-170st C (don't know how many in F) when I opened lamps in camry . In the past I polished one lamp in my camry to install bi-xenon lens :D - it took lot of time and was not exactly transparent :-( Second lamp I send to service and pay about 20USD to polish - work was done excellent. In my country I found offer from car service to make clear lamps - it is very cheap. Try search ebay ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bwilliams Posted May 11, 2006 Author Share Posted May 11, 2006 ive put in 9 hours and I havent even finished one lens yet :cries: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKperformance Posted May 12, 2006 Share Posted May 12, 2006 OMG , i heard it takes time but not that long, the most is usually 2 hours a side. Have you gotten the ridges out or smoothed yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GRAND_LS 4 Posted May 12, 2006 Share Posted May 12, 2006 ive put in 9 hours and I havent even finished one lens yet :cries: I strongly suggest you sign up here and look up more info... You will find lots of info: http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/ Were you going to retrofit projectors? Or just clear the headlights and stick in some HID bulbs and move on? Reason I ask is because if your having problems sanding it down, retrofitting a projector is not going to be easy at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bwilliams Posted May 13, 2006 Author Share Posted May 13, 2006 I finaly finished one, however, im using 3m medium cut polish and I cannot get the lens to clear out, any suggestions??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKperformance Posted May 13, 2006 Share Posted May 13, 2006 What was the last grit you used on the lens? Are you using a medium cut with a high speed or orbital polisher? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ko90ls Posted May 15, 2006 Share Posted May 15, 2006 get one of those mouse sanders. but you'll have too wet sand the lenses until about 2000 grit then polish them with Mother's or something. the best place to look for REAL retrofit instructions and pics is clublexus.com. GS, ES, SC you name it. but an easier solution would be to install the hid's and aim your headlights down so the light isn't horrible. i read somewhere that this works too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKperformance Posted May 15, 2006 Share Posted May 15, 2006 Aiming the lights down would be of no real consequence as the light distribution on the earlier LS lenses are horrible to say the least. Adding HID's and not a projector to focus the beam is a little better for the driver but unbelievably annoying for every oncoming driver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bwilliams Posted May 15, 2006 Author Share Posted May 15, 2006 Maniek, What place did you go to to get your headlamps cleared?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maniek_LS Posted May 15, 2006 Share Posted May 15, 2006 Maniek, What place did you go to to get your headlamps cleared?? I'm from Poland Warsaw :-) One head lamp I cleared by myself second one cleared xenon service (took 10USD for clearing) I think you need to search for firm who make polishing of glass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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