Rather than a chemical insulating formula to protect K.I.T.T. from the thermal laser, the early drafts of the story had Bonnie and Elliott develop a special refracting windshield that would deflect the beam for the required 10 seconds.
The script originally had Michael deactivate K.I.T.T. as he went after Gifford, leaving him in further jeopardy when they trained the thermal laser on him.