Water in Rear "ACURA" Lens

[SJJ28]

I went to look at a 91 Black/Black 5spd today, and it had water condensation in the center rear reflector. Is this a common occurence, or should i look closer to see if there may6 have been some damage to that area?
Thanks

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Steve Jenkins
Currently looking for a mint 91 Silver or Black

 

[Edo]

Steve, I wouldnt worry about that foggy thing, My 91 has the same thing. And I think I've heard other owners complain about it. Does anyone know how to get rid of it? I cant seem to find a way to get that stupid cover off so I can wipe it clean. The 3 screws I found were set sideways right next to the lip that holds it in..an obviously difficult spot to use a screwdriver on...I tried compressed air, but the opening on either side is too small and pointed in the wrong direction it seems. It looks very ridiculous and is somewhat embarassing. Alot like driving around in an NSX with one panel primer colored. Anyways, any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Tetsuo]

you could remove the unit by remove the inner trunk liner....then you will see 4 small screw i believe 8mm. Take that off and the part with the acura will come out. You will see some screw on the back of it but that doesn't take the lense apart from the backing. You will need to use a heat gun around the edges (to heat up the glue) to take it apart...i've also heard of people boiling their lense assembly.

Once this is apart it is a good time to clean it up and replace the acura with NSX
heat up the glue again and screw everything back on.

OR

You can take the cheap way out....my lense was fogging up on the left and right tail light assemblies...pain to take off the car therefore....i removed the center part that say acura and drill small holes on the top and bottom of the lense assembly....i use my compressed air and and blew air into it until all the water was gone.....just note that most of the water will just now sit on the bottom of the lense and will raise when it gets really hot out....so you'll just have to do it again....thou i blew mine out a few times and it has been good for a while now. To seal the holes up get somekind of sticky stuff...such as the stuff they seal speakers to the door or holding that plastic sheet onto your doors. I am sure the clay bar we also use would do the trick.

Hope this helps you

 

[Chris W]

The first thing I noticed after purchasing my NSX was all the condensation behind the tail lenses after a good rain. Believe me it's pretty embarrassing dirving around town wondering what people are saying to themselves. "Nice car but what is up with all the water in the tail lense? Here is a remedy that I used to fix this situation. It took a lot of patience and care not to damage the tail lens. This is one part that you don't want to half to replace. (about $500). DO NOT attempt this project unless you are confident with your mechanical ability.

After removing the tail lense assembly from the car (about 10 8mm nuts under the carpeting) remove the black plastic trim piece on top of the assembly. There are about 5 or 6 phillips head screws holding this piece on. Next I used a heat gun to heat up the glue surrounding the lens and carefully pried the lens free from the housing. There are tabs around the outside of the lense that need to be pried up with a flat screwdriver in order for the lens to come off. The glue starts to harden as it cools so you have to keep applying heat to keep the glue soft. I also used a razor blade to cut away the soft glue. Once the lense is free there is a clear reflector attached to the inside of the red lense that is held in place by plastic tabs. Remove this reflector and clean the reflector and the inside of the lens with a good glass cleaner. Remove the old glue from the lense at this time. Put the reflector back in the lense and seal the perimeter of the reflector with clear silicone sealant/adhesive. (This is how all the moisture is getting into the lense. It's about an 1/8th inch gap all the way around the reflector.) Let this dry for 5 or 6 hours before reassembling tail assembly. While it is drying use a heat gun to remove all the old glue from the other half of the assembly.

Apply a bead of silicone sealant/adhesive to the other half of the assembly in the channel that the lens fits into and join the two pieces together. There are tabs around the perimeter of the lens that should snap back into place. Once this is allowed to dry (24 hours) reinstall the tail lense to the car. Repeat this for the other tail light and the center piece. I peeled off the ACURA sticker and left the lens blank. You could also put the NSX logo or other design.

We just had another huge rain storm and I no longer get water behind the lens. A lot of work but believe me it was worth it. I am no longer embarrassed by the ol' foggy tail lights.

I don't know why Acura would skimp on such a simple product design as the tail lights considering all the thought that went into making such an extraordinary vehicle. Hope this helps.

 

[Jonathan]

That is strange how some have this problem and others don't at all.

My '91 tail lamp covers stay bone dry even up here in the great NW. However due to my recent tail lamp break up, perhaps I will develop this problem after the repair .. heh.