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Hello Y'All. I'm new to this Forum but not to Jaguars. I'm on my 6th. I have a 2012 XK that I took to have washed. I can't do my own wash because I live in a Condo Community and they don't allow us to wash our cars here. So I take it to a "Hand Wash" facility. So they use a pressure hose to rinse the car of the soap and when they got to the back of my car, the tail light lens that raps around from the back above the fender came off. It didn't break or scratch. The glue dried up and it didn't take much to dislodge it. They said it was the first time it ever happened and they do thousands of cars. I took it to 2 good Body Shops and they don't want to touch it in case their glue doesn't work and the lens comes of and breaks, then they would be liable and have to buy me a whole tail light assembly. Has this happened to anyone here and how did you repair it? I want to just use "Super Glue" but I'm afraid some water may leak in. Any suggestions? This was taken before the lens came off.
What if you hold the body shop harmless and forego any warranty? I'm sure they'd give it a go then. I don't know who would have better adhesive/experience than a body shop. Without pics, it's tough to visualize what you have to work with in terms of DIY.
AFAIK, this is the first time anyone has reported a tail light lens separating from the assembly. I agree with you about trying to glue it back on, since that's much cheaper than replacing the assembly.
I used Rhino Glue to reattach the rear glass of my convertible top to the fabric over 3 years ago and it's still holding. The small bottle has a brush applicator that would work for your repair.
Follow the instructions and work quicky because it dries fast. Don't use too much, so it doesn't squish out when you press the lens back onto the assembly. Use masking tape to secure the lens while the glue dries. It's like Super Glue, just a lot better, so don't get it on your skin.
See this thread for my top repair. It's a long thread and this link takes you to my Post #121, when I decided to try Rhino Glue. Other Forum members followed my advice with the same success. https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...p-97478/page7/
Wish mine came off as easy as yours! I had to remove both lenses due to water intrusion/condensation.
I used black RTV to seal the lens back together. Note that the RTV will be visible through the lens all around the edge, so don't use too much. However I guess you can use clear RTV to avoid this. The crazy glue I tried first didn't work because the edges are not smooth enough. The OEM stuff looked like some kind of cement so you may want to google that solution as well.
Whatever you go with should be thick enough to make a watertight seal, otherwise you'll have problems every time you go back to the carwash!
Also make sure you have clamps ready to to hold everything in place while it cures.
The front lights are held together with butyl of some sort, as it can 'give' a little bit as opposed to CA adhesives that harden and can crack.
Me, I'd get a tube of butyl from the Auto Parts Store, or a strand of goopy rope from some other store. RVs use a TON of butyl to hold and seal weathertight stuff.
ON a Jag, that's a first. You could try a custom shop that does light assembly mods or as suggested, pick up a used one on ebay. They are not that expensive and not likely to come apart like yours.
I went to 4 reputable Body Shops including the Jaguar Dealerships Auto Body Shop and they all steered clear of it. I ended up going to O'Reilly Auto Parts and getting some J-B Weld Plastic To Plastic Clear Epoxi Glue in a tube that has a narrow nozzle to dispense a thin line of the epoxi onto the area needed to adhere the lens cover to the tail light assembly. It's working out great so far. Thanks for the suggestion.
XK Tail Light "Lens" Replacement
