Headlight covers

[polopharm]

I was looking at some other car forums, trying to find a way to make a nice looking/ aero headlight cover.
It seems that the consensus was to go with 3d printing.
This way it could be made as an exact fit. People were replacing lenses on cars that require full headlight replacement for cracked lenses.
Thus I assume some one could make a cover that would fit inside the cavity up to the headlight and provide a flush fit to the slope of the hood.
I have no idea how to take this further, does anyone out there have knowledge or experience ?
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/06/22/6141f965a8ba85e39ff57cbfcbc076f9.jpg
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/06/22/cd14e9e51aa6a7a7a82ea2c55c3cdf5a.jpg
I do realize those first ones are horrid, but it makes clear the concept.

[Dr. Johny Dodge]

- to fit what car ?

gt styleing probably already made what you want as they have them for most any car it seems - from mt turbo z to my 01 f150 to a 92 daytona
clear or smoked

[polopharm]

To fit the consulier gtp. Its not likely that an off the shelf aftermarket part is made for any part of this car !!

[Dr. Johny Dodge]

no I think you'ld be right on that

sorry I missed the gtp title in the little print on my stupid phone - used to a big tv screen and my PC

[168glhs1986]

When I was interested in doing the same I talked to a local plastics maker. They said bring the car over and they would fit some covers.

Didn't follow up on it and likely won't. If a setup is made by someone like yourself I'd be interested in purchasing a set thou.

Sorry that doesn't help but that's where I stand on headlight covers.

[polopharm]

What kind of plastics place ?
I was thinking of 2 covers per side (headlight, turn signal)
What was your plan ?

[player1up]

The covers themselves are fairly easy to make but attaching them so they look ok and not have to drill holes in the car is the problem that I have.

What I did was to make a sheet metal template that fits the hole then cut a piece that matches that template.
The reason for the metal template is to use it as a heat molding for the cover so it can follow the curvature of the car and doesn't look like a flat hunk of plexi

One other thing that I found is that my headlight openings are just a smidge different from side to side so making them for others is almost out of the question. Once I figure it out I'll do a write up...

[Pat]

I'm glad you guys are looking into covers. I think the GTP's would look great with headlight and turn signal covers. Can't wait to see how the project turns out.

[polopharm]

I have seen at least one attempt to make these. I think it was the last one for sale. On thst car they appeared to have flexed due to minimal mounting points. and no longer fit well,I was hoping to make the covers so that the didn't just cover the head light opening but fit inside the opening and extended back all the way to the headlight itself.

[player1up]

http://i1026.photobucket.com/albums/y327/player1up/20150708_200524%20Medium_zpsppfnoaee.jpg

[polopharm]

Perfect,that's exactly what I was thinking.
can you take a picture showing more of the front end ? I think you said they needed a tint or color to really change the appearance, but they look great.
I can't see the image too well on my phone- are the headlights installed?
Did the metal brackets fit both left and rights ?

[player1up]

Up for discussion. 1st draft of working mounts.

Lower brackets use the lower headlight bezel mounting holes. Easy to make, adjust, and hold the cover very tight at the bottom because it pulls the cover down against the opening. I used trim clips for the screws at the bottom because I wanted them to hold tight.

Upper brackets are a pain butt, I'll take them apart and snap a pic of what they look like behind the scenes.
They screw into the aluminum headlight back plate, angle down at the front and have a relief cut into them to clear the metal headlight surround.
I made the top ones from 1/2" angle stock, the flat stuff was too flimsy

*4 mounting points most likely wont work with thin plexy due to the heat they'll see in the sun here in fl.

Some reasoning:
4 mounting points are in the current locations for symmetry and to put them close enough to the edges to provide some support without leaving the center unsupported to sag in the sun. I suppose I could make a frame to support the cover all the way around and then bolt the frame down using the 4 screws..might still do that.


Some things still to address:
How to still use the headlight bezels without cutting into them OR how to cover the gaping space that's there when the bezel is removed*
*If I go body color on the covers I wont need to cover the gap because they'll only be off at night or in the rain...

Some things to note:
I said before that the slanted openings are different from side to side, well so are the actual headlight openings...
Water gets behind the covers in the rain and with the lights on it fogs up the covers.
The "roll" on the edges of the openings isn't consistent and the cover had to be beveled on the inside or it gets countersunk into the opening.

Marker light brackets are so simple I almost forgot to mention them. I'll get a pic of those as well

[player1up]

Perfect,that's exactly what I was thinking.
can you take a picture showing more of the front end ? I think you said they needed a tint or color to really change the appearance, but they look great.
I can't see the image too well on my phone- are the headlights installed?
Did the metal brackets fit both left and rights ?

The headlights are in there and , yes, without tinting they just don't change the look of the car enough for me.
I think I sent you the pic but I did tint one with some film that I had floating around. Tinted didn't look right on my white car and that's another reason why I'm thinking of doing them in body color...

Brackets do not fit both sides...each one is specific...that's 8 individual ( measure, start, check fit 12 times while making them ) builds.
The tops end up being the same rough dimensions but are backwards side to side and for the same bracket location...for example the passenger inner top bracket is a mirror image of the inner top bracket for the drivers side.

I'll get a pic of them tonight and post it up so you can see what I'm talking about.

[player1up]

I should have used the flash, but in looking at this pic, I think I have another bracket idea for the top...
In this pic you can see the body curve at the top corner that make using flat covers just about useless.
http://i1026.photobucket.com/albums/y327/player1up/front%20Medium_zpsfpzstyfy.jpg

One of the top brackets mounted to the cover
http://i1026.photobucket.com/albums/y327/player1up/top_bracket%20Medium_zpsv6vezk2t.jpg

This is the turn signal bracket and cover. Pretty simple and it doesn't block the reflector / light part of the main lense.
http://i1026.photobucket.com/albums/y327/player1up/Marker_lens_bracket%20Medium_zpsdozphanv.jpg

[Johnny]

Look forward to seeing how this progresses.

[polopharm]

I was just looking at the pictures of the slick 50 car. I would bet that it is light weight sheet aluminum screwed to the body.
It surprises me that the other race cars I have seen all appear to have the stock headlight opening.
I cannot understand why that is.

[player1up]

Turn signal brackets are perfect. The thick plexy is stiff enough and the covers are small enough to not distort and seem to be holding up well.

The upper brackets for the headlights in the above pics don't provide enough support for the covers at the corners. Even though I used some thick plexy they still want to distort at the corners after a few days in the sun.

The latest version of the upper bracket moves the mounting points outward and down a little and supports the entire upper span across it's arc.

I still need to finish shaping the covers to fit the openings a bit better and I'd like to figure out a way to keep the stock bezels...