'74 Excella 500 tail light housing removal

[bkahler]

I've tried searching for the answer with no real success.

How does one remove and subsequently re-attached this style of tail light housing?



I couldn't find any attachment points on the outside so I'm assuming they are removed from the inside. I have not yet peeled back the inner skin. I guess maybe I'm hoping someone has a magic answer that keeps me from having to tear into the inner skin!

Thanks,

Brad

[overlander63]

Brad, that's a '75, not a '74. There are pins inside you can only access after removing the interior panels. If you only have to swap those housings out, you can do what I did, and shear off the pins with a putty knife driven by a hammer. 6 long 3/16" rivets in holes drilled through the housings into the exterior skin should hold them on, and a bead of Parrbond or Sikaflex should keep the rain out.
Oh, be really careful with those side marker lights, they are unobtainium.

[bkahler]

Terry, are you sure about 75? The title says 74!

What I'm considering doing is removing the tail light housings from the 74/75 excella trailer and putting them on my 74 Argosy motorhome.

The big plastic tail light housing on the Argosy is cracked all over so I'm looking at alternatives.

Other than mounting holes are there any other holes required in the outer shell?

Thanks!

Brad

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by bkahler

Terry, are you sure about 75? The title says 74!

What I'm considering doing is removing the tail light housings from the 74/75 excella trailer and putting them on my 74 Argosy motorhome.

The big plastic tail light housing on the Argosy is cracked all over so I'm looking at alternatives.

Other than mounting holes are there any other holes required in the outer shell?

Thanks!

Brad

The serial number should read something like "E31T5J12345"
Or "E31D6S12345". 1975 and 1976, respectively. Of course, somebody could have put the newer taillights on there for some reason, like they ran out of 1974 taillights at the end of the model year, or after a rear end collision.
As for holes, you'll have the large-ish hole in the skin for all the wires and the taillight monitors. You should already have something like that on your Argosy.

And, in the grand tradition of Murphy's Law, I just ran a Google search for "1974 Excella 500", and found a single example with the newer taillights. If there's one, there are more.
Yet another reason to never say "never".

[DKB_SATX]

Originally Posted by bkahler

Terry, are you sure about 75? The title says 74!

What I'm considering doing is removing the tail light housings from the 74/75 excella trailer and putting them on my 74 Argosy motorhome.

The big plastic tail light housing on the Argosy is cracked all over so I'm looking at alternatives.

Other than mounting holes are there any other holes required in the outer shell?

Thanks!

Brad

I'm thinking of doing the same thing with my Argosy trailer. The donor Argosy had those Excella taillights installed on it at some point in its past, so I have them available and they look pretty good on it. Sounds like using them may require peeling back the interior skins, though... fun stuff. TANSTAAFL!

[bkahler]

I'll try and get the serial number tomorrow after work. You have me curious now

So there are no big holes for the light buckets themselves like the later motorhome lights had. That's good news.

I might just peal the skin back inside to remove them.

Brad

[bkahler]

DKB_SATX,

It's interesting to know that its been done previously!

I really don't want to spend the time and effort trying to fix the housing knowing that its just going to crack again.

The more I think about this swap the better it sounds

Brad

[Colin H]

Originally Posted by bkahler

DKB_SATX,

It's interesting to know that its been done previously!

I really don't want to spend the time and effort trying to fix the housing knowing that its just going to crack again.

The more I think about this swap the better it sounds

Brad

Brad,
We installed a pair of late model cast aluminum taillight housings on a 72 Argosy trailer about 8 years ago. Oddly enough, they fit really well & looked cool. They come up on ebay once in a while & i'm sure they could be found at a salvage yard.
Colin

[bkahler]

Colin, it's beginning sound like a common occurrence to swap the later light assemblies inplace of that plastic piece of junk.

I don't need to buy any as I already have a pair.

Brad

[Silver Hawk]

As to the year: Mine has those taillights and was manufactured in the fall of 1974, sold in the spring of 1975. It is listed as a 1975. Thus they use the year sold not the year Manufactured. His could very well be a 1974.