2001-SC2, water in both headlights

[greencoupe02]

We recently purchased a seconfd Saturn. This one is a 50,000 mile one owner 2001 SC2. Both headlights assemblies contain water droplets. I cannot see any visible cracks. I did check with the local Saturn dealer and I was told this is a common problem. Replacement units are $209 each. I contacted the Saturn manufacturers website, and their customer service group replied that they are not technical people, and would not send the question / complaint to the factory. What needs to be done to remove the water, and seal these units.

[Uzzy]

There should be a drain/vent hole in the headlights. Usually it was done at the factory, but sometimes it was done at the dealer. Check for a drain hole and make sure it's not blocked. If there is no hole (I believe it's somewhere at the bottom) I can take a look at mine and tel you where it's at.

[entheos]

Originally Posted by greencoupe02

... I contacted the Saturn manufacturers website, and their customer service group replied that they are not technical people, and would not send the question / complaint to the factory. What needs to be done to remove the water, and seal these units.

Not technical people? What are they answering questions on? Your favorite color Saturn? Anyhow, I have a little older saturn with a little different headlights (99 SC2) but mostly similar. I removed the water droplets by removing the headlight bulb from the back and then waving a heat gun at the front of the lens and then trying a hair dryer to get airflow to dry out the airspace. After a while (30 minutes or so) all the droplets were gone, but I had a dimesize white spot where I left the heat gun pointed at it too long. Droplets haven't come back since.

As for your newer car having droplets, since the these are not truly sealed bulbs (The replacement tiny sealed bulb has a gasket to seal it into the larger reflector) your bulb may not be cracked or otherwise breached. Avoiding temperature fluctuations and humidity are the only way to completely avoid this (Have a heated garage in an arid climate)!

[greencoupe02]

I posted the question that started this thread. I just looked inot the archives and found that someone had mentioned a recall on 2001 SC2 headlight assemblies related to water build-up. Does anyone know anything about this?

[Uzzy]

Originally Posted by greencoupe02

I posted the question that started this thread. I just looked inot the archives and found that someone had mentioned a recall on 2001 SC2 headlight assemblies related to water build-up. Does anyone know anything about this?

I don't think it was a recall, I think it was a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB), but I'm not sure. Your local dealership would have more info, and they would be the ones to do the work if it is covered under a recall or TSB. It was a common problem for sure.

[greencoupe02]

I did stop at the dealership the other night, and spoke with the service writer. He ran the vin number and no recall notices apply to the car. He said there is avent tube in these 2001-2002-??? headlight assemblies, but off-hand he could not remember where. Being it was late in the day and they were closing we did not have time to pull a new part of the shelf. I looked in their used car lot and service parking area, and there were no 2001-2002-??? model SC-2 vehicles to look at. Any ideas?

[Uzzy]

I've got an '02 and so far no condensation. I'll see if I can take a look at mine when I get a chance today, and let you know exactly where it is.

[saturnsctwo]

ah yes, the water in the headlights problem i know it well. i had one headlamp replaced & the other twice because of this problem. also both back-up lights for the same problem. there's no recall on this problem, just a bulletin on the guidelines regarding when replacement is necessary. they are replaced when you see actual droplets of water in the lights & some in the bottom of the lights. light fog is normal at times which drys up promptly. the reason why this happens is the white glue/caulk that the factory uses to assemble these light assemblies tends to dry out over time & crack mostly from bulb heat & just time causing leaks in the housings. this is the main problem causing water entrance in the lights. actually any car with these type of lights are prone to the same problem because they use the same adhesive. you can use some epoxy glue to seal them up, or some caulk, but these fixes tend to be short lived as those adhesives also tend to fail in a short period of time. we have a 2001 malibu which has the same problem & i epoxy the one leaking light. it lasted a few months & leaked again. replacement of the lights seems to work best for me. i seen saturn aftermarket lights available on various sites for about half what saturn wants for theirs. don't know the quality level of these lights though, but ya usually get what you pay for in this world. if they would plastic weld the units together this would eliminate this problem, but then they can't make money on selling replacements....

[saturnsctwo]

Originally Posted by greencoupe02

I did stop at the dealership the other night, and spoke with the service writer. He ran the vin number and no recall notices apply to the car. He said there is avent tube in these 2001-2002-??? headlight assemblies, but off-hand he could not remember where. Being it was late in the day and they were closing we did not have time to pull a new part of the shelf. I looked in their used car lot and service parking area, and there were no 2001-2002-??? model SC-2 vehicles to look at. Any ideas?

the vent tubes are on top. they are little rubber hoses coming out of the back of the assemblies. they are plain in the open to see, but if the assemblies are leaking, the vents won't allow enough air in the lights to dry out all that water. ya need to just take the bulbs out of the light assemblies, & let the housing dry out in the sun, then re-glue the lights together especially where the leak is, but this is usually short lived. i only replaced the leaking units when they leak....