ilyap
03-03-2017, 08:04 PM
Greetings.
This is my first ever post on this forum, although, I've owned a ZHP since 2006. I have a 2004 BMW 330i ZHP with 105K miles on it. ~80K of those miles were from California, then it sat in garage for 3 years (lived in Chicago and NY) and I've been driving it again for last 3 years in Atlanta, Georgia. Lots of good stuff on this forum, but I wasn't able to get any decent recommendation on what to do in case of headlamp oxidation.
Recently the car was in a minor fender bender and getting the hood and bumper replaced ( no internal damage ). While getting this work done, I am also putting in the time to replace other interior parts impacted due to normal wear and tear. Where I am stumped is what to do about headlamps that now provide poor visibility due to oxidation. The shop where my car is currently getting serviced refused to provide polishing service saying that headlamps are beyond restoration. Couple other shops that have seen the headlamps offered to polish it, but gave it less than 50% of success.
New OEM parts ( 63127165791 and 63127165792 ) are roughly $1,500 each, although, mechanic suggested I call around local salvage yards to find cheaper ones. Looking on ebay, I can see these parts being sold for anywhere between 400-800 each, but I am not sure about quality. I am being told this is a common problem on older BMWs.
Looking for suggestions from other BMW owners on how they have dealt with this problem.
This is my first ever post on this forum, although, I've owned a ZHP since 2006. I have a 2004 BMW 330i ZHP with 105K miles on it. ~80K of those miles were from California, then it sat in garage for 3 years (lived in Chicago and NY) and I've been driving it again for last 3 years in Atlanta, Georgia. Lots of good stuff on this forum, but I wasn't able to get any decent recommendation on what to do in case of headlamp oxidation.
Recently the car was in a minor fender bender and getting the hood and bumper replaced ( no internal damage ). While getting this work done, I am also putting in the time to replace other interior parts impacted due to normal wear and tear. Where I am stumped is what to do about headlamps that now provide poor visibility due to oxidation. The shop where my car is currently getting serviced refused to provide polishing service saying that headlamps are beyond restoration. Couple other shops that have seen the headlamps offered to polish it, but gave it less than 50% of success.
New OEM parts ( 63127165791 and 63127165792 ) are roughly $1,500 each, although, mechanic suggested I call around local salvage yards to find cheaper ones. Looking on ebay, I can see these parts being sold for anywhere between 400-800 each, but I am not sure about quality. I am being told this is a common problem on older BMWs.
Looking for suggestions from other BMW owners on how they have dealt with this problem.