Headlight Eyebrows
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 174
Likes: 5
From: Vancouver, B.C., Canada
1992 Mercedes 400E
Headlight Eyebrows
Well, at least that's what the seller call them. A member pointed out on this forum that after I installed my HID headlight retrofit inside a 94-95 headlight onto a 92 car, there is a vertical gap between the grille and the headlight. The eyebrows fill that gap, but changes the look of the car. Whether the new 'look' is for the better or not is up to you; the new look has grown on me - it makes the front look a bit more aggressive, without being overly so. Also, before, the round HID projector looked a little "lost" inside the unit; now the eyebrows reduces the space somewhat. Anyways, have a look yourself from the pictures.
I bought the two pieces of plastic from an Ebay seller in England, about $30 I think for the two.
Pic #1 shows the gap, and the masking tape to help in alignment and keep the glue off the headlight lens. Be sure to use painter's masking tape and not regular masking tape!

The eyebrows were painted with paint from Tower Paints, then a Dupont clearcoat from the same supplier. My Brilliant Silver turned out a little darker than the rest of my car, not sure why, but if I had to do it again, I would use a plastic primer next time. Tower recommends 5-7 days drying time between the enamel and the clearcoats. I sanded with #400 and then #600 as the finish on the plastic could be better.
Another view of the unit, this time from straight on. This also gives you an idea of how little area you have to work with to bond (glue) the eyebrow to the unit, and where you need to concentrate placing your glue.

This shot shows the back of the eyebrow with JB Weld glue applied and ready to be bonded on. Note that because the eyebrow is not flat, you have to "build up" the glue to compensate for the rolled lip at the edge. (I used 2 packs of glue). I held it in place for 5 minutes by hand. Be very careful not to get glue on the front painted surfaces!

Here is the eyebrow glued on, compare it with the first picture.

The other side:

This bad pic shows (from the top) the gap that is left at the corner of the eyebrow since the headlight surface is not flat. It also shows the glue down the vertical leg of the eyebrow.

Another shot of the gap at the corner.

And a closeup:

Here's one side done, and the other side not done:

The final product. Note that euro wipers will not fit anymore.
I bought the two pieces of plastic from an Ebay seller in England, about $30 I think for the two.
Pic #1 shows the gap, and the masking tape to help in alignment and keep the glue off the headlight lens. Be sure to use painter's masking tape and not regular masking tape!

The eyebrows were painted with paint from Tower Paints, then a Dupont clearcoat from the same supplier. My Brilliant Silver turned out a little darker than the rest of my car, not sure why, but if I had to do it again, I would use a plastic primer next time. Tower recommends 5-7 days drying time between the enamel and the clearcoats. I sanded with #400 and then #600 as the finish on the plastic could be better.
Another view of the unit, this time from straight on. This also gives you an idea of how little area you have to work with to bond (glue) the eyebrow to the unit, and where you need to concentrate placing your glue.

This shot shows the back of the eyebrow with JB Weld glue applied and ready to be bonded on. Note that because the eyebrow is not flat, you have to "build up" the glue to compensate for the rolled lip at the edge. (I used 2 packs of glue). I held it in place for 5 minutes by hand. Be very careful not to get glue on the front painted surfaces!

Here is the eyebrow glued on, compare it with the first picture.

The other side:

This bad pic shows (from the top) the gap that is left at the corner of the eyebrow since the headlight surface is not flat. It also shows the glue down the vertical leg of the eyebrow.

Another shot of the gap at the corner.

And a closeup:

Here's one side done, and the other side not done:

The final product. Note that euro wipers will not fit anymore.
Hey man,
yea was looking at getting those headlamps down the track.. nice conversion by the way. hey what model would those HID's be from??
yea that gap was kinda getting to me a little
but I reckon the front looks alot more "finished" in that respect. I reckon you should snoop around for an Avante garde grill or something similar.
good work bro
Mitch.
yea was looking at getting those headlamps down the track.. nice conversion by the way. hey what model would those HID's be from??
yea that gap was kinda getting to me a little
but I reckon the front looks alot more "finished" in that respect. I reckon you should snoop around for an Avante garde grill or something similar.good work bro
Mitch.
Hey Eric,
Car looks great with the projectors. Are you going to paint the eyebrows?
Off topic, but I am moving from Calgary to Vancouver in a few weeks, selling my house here and keeping one condo, looking to rent there, most likely in the Kits beach, Yaletown, Coal Harbour area, what do you think about those spots?
Car looks great with the projectors. Are you going to paint the eyebrows?
Off topic, but I am moving from Calgary to Vancouver in a few weeks, selling my house here and keeping one condo, looking to rent there, most likely in the Kits beach, Yaletown, Coal Harbour area, what do you think about those spots?
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 174
Likes: 5
From: Vancouver, B.C., Canada
1992 Mercedes 400E
Um, the eyebrows are painted & clearcoated, they came as black. Had problems matching the colour, even with paint from Tower Paints.
I'll send you a PM about renting in Vancouver.
I'll send you a PM about renting in Vancouver.
Trending Topics
I am not a fan of eyebrows... but these look good... I am even less of a fan of big gaps, so they look good in my opinion... too bad they dont match the car color better... weird how that happened.



