Broken tabs on H7 headlamp units

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Bodge
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Broken tabs on H7 headlamp units

Post by Bodge »

Well I've discovered the first broken thing on the car I just bought! :(

The outermost attachment tabs on the headlight units are snapped. The one on the LH unit has broken clean off and the one on the RH unit has snapped and almost broken off.

It would also appear that someone changed a bulb really badly on one side. The main beam bulb was just loose in the reflector and not clipped in. Also the rubber cover has obviously been left off at some point as the unit is full of insects!! I have a huge daddy long legs preserved in there!

I am tempted to just buy new Hella units from carparts4less. £91 per side with all the discounts. Not bad for genuine Hella parts. But still an expense I'd like to avoid if possible.

I've seen some tab repair kits on ebay, but not sure how good they are. Anyone tried them? Also I assume I can't easily split the lamps to clean out all the bugs?!

Has anyone else experienced this problem and do you have any advice?

My lamps are the original halogen units with H7, W5W & PY21W (made by Hella).
LH: 6R2 941 007 E
RH: 6R2 941 008 E

Thanks guys! :D
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iichel
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Re: Broken tabs on H7 headlamp units

Post by iichel »

Your VW dealer will sell you an OEM repair kit as well
Bodge
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Re: Broken tabs on H7 headlamp units

Post by Bodge »

iichel wrote:Your VW dealer will sell you an OEM repair kit as well
Yeah I spotted them while browsing ETKA this morning! Brilliant. The headlamp mouldings even have the holes in them already for the screws! Excellent forward planning from VW there.

Ordered the LH and RH kits from my local dealership now.

LH kit: 6R0 998 225
RH kit: 6R0 998 226

About £18/kit. Will do it over the weekend and feedback on results.

I'll have to give the units a good shake and wiggle to try and remove the dead insects!
EdwardBall
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Re: Broken tabs on H7 headlamp units

Post by EdwardBall »

Bodge wrote:
I'll have to give the units a good shake and wiggle to try and remove the dead insects!
I had the same problem as you, mine came with 2 missing rubber seals :cry: I looked into taking them apart and cleaning them, but its a royal PITA to unseal and seal it back together to make it watertight. I just used a cloth attached to a long rod and cleaned it as best i could with some spirits on the cloth. Came out alright, although never going to be perfect.
Bodge
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Re: Broken tabs on H7 headlamp units

Post by Bodge »

The original tabs are terrible! One of the inner ones just snapped off like it was nothing while removing the lamps today.

Will be fitting the repair kits I bought from VW tonight and cleaning out the units.

Currently trying to resist spending loads of money on Philips X-treme bulbs!
Bodge
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Re: Broken tabs on H7 headlamp units

Post by Bodge »

Right, all sorted now. The repair kits from VW are great. I noticed they are made by Hella and the plastic is glass reinforced so should be more robust.

I easily snapped off the remaining tab by breathing on it. Then just cleaned up the edges with a very sharp scalpel. I tried a few ways of removing the leftover material (you have to do it so the new brackets can fit properly). A tiny hacksaw with plastic cutting blade, a file, stanley knife etc but the scalpel was the best and gave the cleanest finish.

Anyway, happy with the result and saved me buying new light units.

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Jayziph
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Re: Broken tabs on H7 headlamp units

Post by Jayziph »

Hi, just saw this fix and if this works I'll be ecstatic. Just been in a fender bender recently and it broke the top and bottom plastic mounts for the headlights on my polo 6r. Went to a mechanic and he said there is absolutely no way to fix those mounts (even when I told him i'd found a repair kit for them, he called it b*******s) and it is two new headlights for 500 quid+. Since then I've found a full vid on yt of someone repairing his in this way and this forum thread. Feel like going back to the mechanic and giving him the finger lol.
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Re: Broken tabs on H7 headlamp units

Post by RUM4MO »

Jayziph wrote: Mon Nov 21, 2022 6:40 pm Hi, just saw this fix and if this works I'll be ecstatic. Just been in a fender bender recently and it broke the top and bottom plastic mounts for the headlights on my polo 6r. Went to a mechanic and he said there is absolutely no way to fix those mounts (even when I told him i'd found a repair kit for them, he called it b*******s) and it is two new headlights for 500 quid+. Since then I've found a full vid on yt of someone repairing his in this way and this forum thread. Feel like going back to the mechanic and giving him the finger lol.
Your mechanic was clearly preparing for Christmas.
Jeevika
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Re: Broken tabs on H7 headlamp units

Post by Jeevika »

Hello everyone
Which adhesive works best for headlamp bracketsgb whatsapp?
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