i'm thinkin about saving myself 400 bucks and spray my headlights into jdm headlights, what's everyone's take on it. is it easy? is it dangerous? tips/tricks please



these are the real jdm headlights for those who don't know, basically i just want to spray paint my headlights into those

 

people on here have done it. i personally wouldn't but that's only because i dont have $200 to spend on a replacement headlight if i screw up. painting is easy but getting it apart can be tricky. you can either try the oven method or a heat gun.

 

There also were three different types of JDM headlights. Black, black chrome, and chrome.

~Cheers~

 

i never knew that, only thought it was the sexy black ones, thank you

 

NP, m8.

~Cheers~

 

The black chromes were always my fvorite. I always wanted those and the inspire tails when I still had the tl.

Anyways to seperate the headlights just take off all the plastic and metal clips. Preheat your oven to like 225 degrees, then turn your oven off, and then place your headlight inside for 10-12 Minutes. Take them out and have a screw driver and knife ready to cut the glue. Mask everything off carefully, and paint. The hardest part is masking the headlight because it takes time. To put it back together just push the headlight to gether heat up the oven again and throw it in. When they come out push it back together again and lock in the clips. Try this at your own risk though, because OEM headlights are expensive if you do fuck up.

 

thanks man, i was looking for an informative reply like this. if it's not too much to ask though what kind of paint should i use? should i definetly use a primer? should i use high heat? should i gloss it? if anyone could answer some of those question and maybe post a pic of some homemade jdm headlights that would be fantastic

 

beware the oven method. don't think you can crank the oven temp up and put them in for a shorter time, do it in moderation. if it takes an hour, 5 trips in and out of the oven, prying off sections one at a time, it's ok, you're being safe and it'll pay off in the end.

as far as paint, any plastic spraypaint will work. as with any spray paint project though, wetsand the parts you're spraying with a fine sandpaper (1000 grit) and soap/water. let it fully air dry and then go on to spraying primer. once that's dry you can spray the color. do as many coats as you want, but make sure and do them very lightly and wait for them to dry before applying a new coat. lastly, spray on some clear. after that, reverse the oven method and install them.

 

thank you so much again dude, my friend today gave me a bright idea i'm gunna try and use the same color as my car, the dark green and see how that works out.

kind of like how people do it on 3G

 

haha word i remember when i wrote a how to on this on acura-tl.com in like 02 haha.

worrd.. Mine still havent leaked. Kinda wish i masked off the corner light though, i ended up dritching the wiring to the corner light for the side marker anyhow. Real jdm side markers stay on constantly and dont flash with the turn signal..

What im curious of is if anyones managed to get a set of hid's into the fog light bulb sockets or if theres a kit made for that style light. Its hard as fuck to find those bulbs and for some reason my car likes to blow them out on occasion, Who knows.

 

there are many diy's on here about this. just follow the steps for another year and do it the same way. good luck

 

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38960


theres the how to i wrote almost 5 years ag0 in a few days. haha.

 

thanks for all the help, gunna start this mod next week after i hopefully buy this instrment cluster

 

Just remember to get high temp paint, and taking it slow is important. Personally I use flat black paint, and remember that multiple thin coats is better then a few heavy ones.

 

i believe go90go has/had them on his tl. if you look on ebay, it's not that hard to find an H3C HID kit.

 

I was trying for half an hour yesterday just to post that, hehe. I am the only one so far from what I've read on the boards and what I've seen everyday to have H3C HIDs. They're available in Japan for the Silvias and cost about ¥60,000 depending on the colour temperature/brand, etc.

~Cheers~

P.S. I think I have a pic of them on, but I'll have to look for it.

 

60k yen....
whats that converted into round eye


im looking for 4300k im not into the glow worm 12341234k ones that do lasik eye surgery on passerby's retnas. Were you able to keep the yellow domes in there with them?

 

It's roughly $550~$600, and I have the 3000K kit without the condoms, and they work a treat. 4300K would be cheaper, since anything below 4300K, or above 8000K costs more.

~Cheers~

 

they have the real one like the one on the 1st post with best offer on them so maybe u can get it more cheaper than 400 bucks

 

his TL was in an accident a while back, he's not going to be ordering them.

 

You don't get the black chrome effect, but it still works. Just remember to seal the headlights properly and take your time doing it, or else you'll end up resealing the headlights numerous amounts of time. I Had that issue with my car a few years ago and had to get new silicone to seal it cuz the old one was too old and just brittled and broke off.