DIY J-Code tinted front reflectors

[CLEAR]

OK, here we go as promised... but bare with me as some of the pictures got messed up in the process of uploading. So might need to post some now and some more in the morning.... enjoy.

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to be continued

[beemercer]

Looks great, much cleaner .

[PYSpeed.com]

Great DIY write up...., looks much better! =)

[scottyuk]

Looking forward to seeing the rest of it.

p.s. What bulb is the indicator? Is it easy to swap out once the head lights removed?

[rayjpep]

liking the clean look!

[inNout]

subscribed

[agkellyboy]

Can you stick the housing in the oven like I did with my B7?

[Tone-Dogg]

subscribed

interested

[CLEAR]

back... sorry for the delay.. and there's a missing step-5... the file got truncated for some reason, have to retake the photo.

for the rest...

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Can you stick the housing in the oven like I did with my B7?

you could as long as you make sure all ballasts, headlight servos and all electronics are removed (those puppies are expensive). It's a lot more work that way...

end result will look like this...

[Tone-Dogg]

Very Nice, thanks for this DIY

[Ryan_T]

Hm, now where can I get dark tint vinyl in small quantities.

Is there such a thing as white tint vinyl? I wonder if that'll look nicer with a white car.

[CLEAR]

Hm, now where can I get dark tint vinyl in small quantities.

Is there such a thing as white tint vinyl? I wonder if that'll look nicer with a white car.

I can cut you some small pieces, but believe me... actually the tinting IS the hardest part of this DIY. To get it perfect really took me as long as the time for me to take off the lights, open the lens etc.

There's no white tint. that would be transparent :D
I should make it clear, it is white reflective vinyl. Thus it will reflect the color white just like license plates.

[Okan509]

Looks really good! You are tempting me to do this ahah

[JSitthi]

Has anyone done this yet? Thinking about doing it but I'm not sure how I should go about changing the reflector. Gloss black vinyl to match the car, or just tint it?

[BlackB6]

That was a great write-up.. Looks good too.

[Comp4k]

Looks awesome! How long did it take?

[CLEAR]

Looks awesome! How long did it take?

3-4 hours, first time was 5-1/2 hours :D

the longest time was with the 'tint vinyl' hard to get perfectly smooth and no bubble.

[Alkivar]

CLEAR have you looked at a pair of B8 A5/S5 headlights yet?

[CLEAR]

CLEAR have you looked at a pair of B8 A5/S5 headlights yet?

same procedure...

[JSitthi]

I plan on just removing the reflectors and taking them to a tint shop to get them tinted at the same time my car is tinted...I'll post results after tomorrow :)
EDIT: Forget I said that; I'll try during my Thanksgiving break. Heating the housing took a while and I eventually gave up when it wouldn't budge. About how long should I be heating it for before attempting to open it? Or should I heat it section by section?

[ASU Daniel]

i would use some dark tint spray on the reflectors rather than film

[Spacecadet_CC]

Just a clarification: Do you simply heat up the original sealant and then press together and heat some more? Or do you add new sealant as well? If so, any particular kind or brand?

[CLEAR]

Just a clarification: Do you simply heat up the original sealant and then press together and heat some more? Or do you add new sealant as well? If so, any particular kind or brand?

Takes up to 30 minutes to completely heat sealant around housing before they become tacky and able to separate the back housing from the glass. Just keep heating on the move, don't focus on one area longed than 3-5 seconds

I always think put back what you take out just to be safe :) so I did just that, pit back 99.5% sealant I took out. Nothing more, nothing less (first time, pit less and got fog inside housing afterward)

I didn't spray since it's more permanent, and if you messed up the reflector covers, you can't purchase them individually (dealer don't have part #). I did contact manufacture of said plastics, and no reply (thinking I was going to order them in clear white)

Patient is the key. Good luck

[JSitthi]

Takes up to 30 minutes to completely heat sealant around housing before they become tacky and able to separate the back housing from the glass. Just keep heating on the move, don't focus on one area longed than 3-5 seconds

I always think pit back what you take out just to be safe :) so I did just that, pit back 99.5% sealant I took out. Nothing more, nothing less (first time, pit less and got fog inside housing afterward)

I didn't spray since it's more permanent, and if you messed up the reflector covers, you can't purchase them individually (dealer don't have part #). I did contact manufacture of said plastics, and no reply (thinking I was going to order them in clear white)

Patient is the key. Good luck

So you're removing the sealant as you heat it up?

[S3S4]

Anyone thought of just replacing the turn indicator bulbs?

On my WRX when doing the headlight mod we would remove the plastic amber pieces and replace the indicator bulb. The bulb looks black/charcoal in color but when lit it turns orange. I believe they were called silver coated amber or something along those lines. They were also really cheap off ebay...


This is an example of what it would look like:



Ive never been inside our headlights so I don't know how easy this would be to do or if it is even possible..

[CLEAR]

anyone figured out what is the correct replacement for our turn signal bulbs?