Since all the work will need to be completed anyway, the appearance is the first to be addressed. My neighbors may not be appreciative of the progress as a junk car is being restored in my driveway, but that isn’t much of a concern. Working on a project car with a good appearance can be less overwhelming rather than working on a sad pile. Fixing the broken engine would normally be the first step in, so the plan is starting at the back end.
The tail lights are the first to be fixed. The car arrived with some plastic film in the place of the left brake light. Another set of used tails were sourced from a seller in Kansas City. These were better, but still a little rough. Between both sets there are enough good pieces to make a good set. Removing the tail lights showed a lot of dirt and an bad application of silicone sealer, all this had to be cleaned out before moving ahead.
Some sites on the net give details about “baking” the units in the oven to warm the sealer between the lens and the base. I went with a heat gun and used some plastic pry bars to separate them. Maybe I’m a little paranoid about (getting caught by my wife) using the kitchen oven to cook car parts.
After getting the front separated from the back, the shiney material on the reflectors has been flaking off after 28 years. For the sake of safety, the surface should be as reflective as possible to retain the visibility of the tail lights and brake lights. Spraying it with Rustoleum chrome makes it pretty again.
Silicone caulk is great stuff, but the sealant from McMaster -Carr works like the OEM material. It is (item# 7606A49) a flexible polyurethane applied with a caulking gun. If there is a need to replace a lens in the future this material works like the original sealant.
The newly rebuilt tail light lenses are in place.
