Hi...I got a question for ya'll...back in 04 I noticed my car had a tiny crack on the drivers side foglight...ever since then, the crack hasn't increased in size...I'm interested in buying some Lamin-X yellow film to cover my housing....it's not too prevent the housing from cracking more but to increase my yellow appearance of my foglights...but my question is...will it be okay to apply lamin-x film to a foglight thats slightly cracked?

I don't feel like dishing out $100 something for a new foglight housing so thats why I'd ask here...I mean the crack hasn't produced any problems for the past 1yr or so...just wondering it's okay to apply the film...and for those of you who want nice yellow bulbs... http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=444853&page=1

 

Oh yeah, I am running stock wattage bulbs...if that matters

 

I put my clear film before my foglights cracked, and I would do it again whether they were cracked or not. I recommend it because it will save you from future damage from rocks and debris.

 

how did your foglight crack when u put a clear film on there? also what kinda bulbs were u running? I plan to run my luminics yellow H3 stock wattage...check out some pix here

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=444853

 

I tried it and have had wierd results. I have one factory foglight housing (drivers side) and one OEM replacement (passenger side) that I purchased from usautoparts.com. I covered both lenses with Lamin-X 40-mil clear film, both were not cracked; factory one (drivers side) was in excellent condition, and the other one (passenger side) was brand new. I have been running PIAA Super Plasma GT-X bulbs in them. The Lamin-X film on the passenger side foglight started turning brown, burning too hot I guess. And a few days later I noticed that the lens was cracked. The drivers side foglight lens had been fine;i.e. no signs of turning brown/ burning too hot. Well a few weeks ago, I noticed that my drivers side is now cracked. I have no idea how it got cracked since I sent back the passenger side foglight and stopped using the foglights all together. I wouldnt think a rock wouldve cracked the lens since it is covered with the film. Anyhow, I got a new, "new" replacement foglight (passenger) and am awaiting on the replacement Lamin-X film, replaced and shipped free of charge thanks to Lamin-X. Oh yeah, I had been running the GT-X for a while now and they were awsome. I think the colder weather played a small part in it, but not definately sure. So now I am going to have one cracked, covered foglight (drivers side) and one new, uncracked, covered foglight (passenger side) figlight. I hope the Lamin-X does not turn brown on the passenger foglight again. I dont want it to crack either, but if it cracks and doesnt turn brown, I'll settle with it. A covered, cracked lens is better than an uncovered, cracked lens when trying to keep moisture out, I hope. Im pretty sick and tired of spending time and money on stupid stuff like this, but what are ya gonna do? Sorry if this was lengthy, but I thought it would help. PM me if you have any other questions. And one more thing, I was thinking about getting on that GD for the Yellow bulbs cause I think they shouldnt burn as hot as the GT-X bulbs, but then again, what do I know...Im just another guy trying to get his whip right!

 

I put the clear film on first, then put in PIAA Super Plasma GTX's and a month later both lenses were cracked. I'm assuming it was heat related. I'm not going to replace the fogs unless they start leaking and blowing bulbs.

 

Glass fogs mostly crack due to heat and not stone chips...

 

I have the Piaa 5 inch driving lights. There glass and have the Piaa super plasma GT-X. Had them for about 4 months. They have the Lamin-x blue film on them. They aslo get pretty hot but still no cracks yet.

 

This is very good information. It appears that the foglights are getting so hot that it is "cooking" the film that covers them. I have always thought that this was the problem from the beginning. My passenger side cracked 6months after I had the car and the bulb blew 6 months after that. I haven't used the fogs since. Since our lights are actually oval, I haven't found any descent replacements yet.

 

UPDATE!!...
So I covered my new passenger OEM replacement foglight (DEPO brand) with the replacement Lamin-X film (40-mil) and heres what happened. At first they looked awsome. No signs of burning too hot; i.e. turning brown or cracking. They stayed like that for about 2 weeks or so with only city driving. However, over New Years weekend I took a trip to Destin, Florida, about a 450 mile trip each way. On my way down while getting a bit of gas I looked at my passenger lens and noticed that it was cracked. Once again, Im not sure how it happened. I had my lights on the entire way down, which was about 8 hours, but not sure if that had anything to do with it. Since the trip I have washed the car and noticed that it might have cracked a bit more, more noticable cracks. The cracks look like they started from the inside. Anyhow, since they are covered I hope that no water gets into them. Im was a bit pissed at first, but as mentioned in my first post, as long as they are cracked and covered, they should still be ok. I am not going to replace them any time soon. Hope this lengthy info helps all who are skeptical about using Lamin-X film. I think it is a great product at a very reasonable price. I believe that my foglights would have cracked on they're own, but atleast theyre protected from water getting in them. Best of luck to everyone trying to protect their foglights from cracking!

 

Like I said

 

I took a closer at my cracked driver's side fog today and the cracks appeared to be on the inside of the housing and not on the outside, so I'm led to believe that Igzy is likely right.

 

Sorry that you guys are going through this trouble. I consider myself lucky to have 2K plastic fogs. I learnt about this glass problem on one of my past cars (Olds Trofeo) that had glass fog lenses and they cracked on the lens itself, and you could feel that the outside was smooth and tiny pieces of glass on the inside. At first I tried the protective lens films but they still cracked. On one replacement fog assembly, housing cracked and it was a vicious circle until I replaced them with aftermarket fogs with plastic lenses...

 

do you guys think the piaa ans luminics bulbs that are higher wattage and brighter have anything to do with the cracking?
i just bought a set of luminics, and i think they are more powerful. i am kind scared to put them in now because i dont want to crack my lenses.

 

I am not sure if you can find this info about the bulbs you get (perhaps from manufacturer's sites), but the main thing of concern is the heat they generate... One can assume that the brighter the light the higher the operating temp as the filament heats to produce the light, etc...

You can perhaps set up a poll in a new thread or something along those lines, I am sure there are many orgers with cracked fog lenses and ask them to post what bulbs they had in at the time when the lens crecked... From there you can see what may be the best way to go... The results may as well just reveal that they break no matter what, which is also a point to consider...

 

good idea. how do i create a new poll? the only option in "new thread" is include poll, but it does not give me any tools to create a poll.

 

Hm, I honestly don't know. I have never created one... Perhaps look up in stickies, or there is a forum for trying out posts, just to play around... There may be tips there on how to do it unless one of the more experienced orgers contributes

 

has anyone ever tried fixing a small hole in the fog lights with epoxy?

 

Ive used "Goop" which can be bought at The Home Depot or Lowes for relatively cheap. It is a clear epoxy that dries pretty clear. It works pretty well and is easy to take of if you are unhappy with the results. Im not 100% sure on this one, but Id say that it should keep water out as long as you apply it correctly. I used it on the edges of the lens where the film does not cover just for insurance incase the cracks let water in....so far so good. Good luck.