a little history of my TL (lots of pics, 56k warning)
08-17-2008, 12:02 AM
#121
Instructor
Thread Starter
took off the AR2s
thanks for the comments!
tlpinay, i'm still waiting to hear what kind of teins you're dropped on
your camber doesn't look too off, did you put kits in?
took the AR2s off, they looked like ass in person...i lowered the car A LOT to make them look better in the pics but it was undriveable that way, cracked my paint where they rubbed the wheelarch
...
finally put in the legend calipers and new rotors in the front. HOLY HELL do they stop the car better! bedding them in was so much fun. i could never lock up my old brakes except in the rain but now its too easy...i got out after 8 runs from 60-10 and i saw all this smoke pouring from the wheel wells...no squeals, no pulsation, i'm very satisfied with this setup...rotors were from r1concepts...
took some pics with my new dslr, let me know what you think...i tried to take some more interesting shots but i like what i like...
paint the front calipers gold for kicks, i like the contrast...but not worth the hassle IMO
rear calipers not painted
my new toy, canon xsi
wide out
wide in
sunset
messing around
the end
tlpinay, i'm still waiting to hear what kind of teins you're dropped on
your camber doesn't look too off, did you put kits in?took the AR2s off, they looked like ass in person...i lowered the car A LOT to make them look better in the pics but it was undriveable that way, cracked my paint where they rubbed the wheelarch
...finally put in the legend calipers and new rotors in the front. HOLY HELL do they stop the car better! bedding them in was so much fun. i could never lock up my old brakes except in the rain but now its too easy...i got out after 8 runs from 60-10 and i saw all this smoke pouring from the wheel wells...no squeals, no pulsation, i'm very satisfied with this setup...rotors were from r1concepts...
took some pics with my new dslr, let me know what you think...i tried to take some more interesting shots but i like what i like...
paint the front calipers gold for kicks, i like the contrast...but not worth the hassle IMO
rear calipers not painted
my new toy, canon xsi
wide out
wide in
sunset
messing around
the end
08-20-2008, 11:06 PM
#123
oahu grown
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: HAWAII
Age: 44
Posts: 36
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
hey sorry haha umm their dropped on super street teins and no ive gotten no kits on it...i have it on hand but didnt put it on just yet...camber isnt that bad...still would be a better thing to invest in rather den buyin new tires every now n then...ya know what i mean haha....
10-10-2008, 02:40 AM
#125
Instructor
Thread Starter
snapped a few new pics
some practice shots at a new location i found. i like how the lights make everything look gold. i was shooting handheld so i had to up the iso to 800/1600 to get steady (but grainy) shots
check out that cutoff!
better pics to come when i get a tripod
check out that cutoff!
better pics to come when i get a tripod
10-15-2008, 04:35 PM
#130
Instructor
Thread Starter
it all depends on the vane orientation, since the vanes on these rotors are not directional, the slots can face any direction...
from what i have read, "forward" facing slots give better bite while "rearward" facing slots give better longevity...
from what i have read, "forward" facing slots give better bite while "rearward" facing slots give better longevity...
12-16-2008, 10:00 PM
#131
Instructor
Thread Starter
TSX HID projector retrofit DIY
finally got around to posting a DIY for the hid projector retrofit
tsx projectors (smooth lenses) into JDM headlight housing from ebay
bake at 150-200 F for about 10 min or until golden brown. i put them on a Ground Control sleeve instead of a baking sheet.
undo all the clips with a philips screwdriver and then begin to pry apart the headlights. be careful because the lights will be hot as hell. the piece you see on the bottom comes apart and that's the part you spray paint if you want black headlight housings.
reflector removed and projector placed for fitment. if you look closely i'm going the L bracket route. i joined the forums at hidplanet and that was the best way to go about installing projectors into our headlights.
before
after, there's no going back now!
the back
back fitment
finally done
front fitment
looks funny but this is how i aligned the projectors with the reflectors so i could use the stock adjustment screws
drill holes on the bottom of the reflector for the L brackets
closeup of the brackets. there are washers under the L brackets to level out the projectors since the bottom of our reflectors are not level, they slope down and to the side.
the bottom
closeup of the L brackets. the bottom one is how they come, the top one I bent to compensate for the sloping reflector floor, i just eyeballed it since i knew i could still make adjustments with the stock adjusters
back in the housing
back of the housing, i tried to get the back of the projector as close to the stock position as possible. I have a really bulky P32D connector so i needed as much room as possible.
here's how i did all the cutting, i also used a hand file to get a perfect fit
you can just make out the hole for the L brackets
pair done
i wasn't careful and i scratched the hell out of the reflectors so i painted them flat black. if i could do it all over again, i'd be more careful and tape up the reflector and keep them nice and shiny.
almost done, just waiting for custom bezels to be made.
baked and sealed back up. i just reused the old sealant that was left on the headlights. bake the back part of the housing first for about 10 min until the sealant gets tacky and then mate it to the front headlight lens. put on as many clamps as you can get (i returned them all later). i took off the rubber covers to get a better grip on the headlights.
i didnt take any pictures of the painted headlights housings. its pretty simple, i used krylon fusion satin black spray paint for plastics. i also didn't take any pictures of the bezels but they were made from 2 walmart garden lights (you can buy them individually in plastic bags) and 2 pipe flanges from ace hardware, just make sure you get the right size. i cut and sanded the garden light to fit the reflector and used high temp silicone adhesive to attach it and the flange to the projector. let the silicone cure for a few days before sealing the headlights back up so fumes don't fog up your headlights.
all done. the hardest part is aiming the lights so that they're level and centered. i probably spent more time aiming the lights than anything else. but once i got the hang of it, it wasn't that bad.
tsx projectors (smooth lenses) into JDM headlight housing from ebay
bake at 150-200 F for about 10 min or until golden brown. i put them on a Ground Control sleeve instead of a baking sheet.
undo all the clips with a philips screwdriver and then begin to pry apart the headlights. be careful because the lights will be hot as hell. the piece you see on the bottom comes apart and that's the part you spray paint if you want black headlight housings.
reflector removed and projector placed for fitment. if you look closely i'm going the L bracket route. i joined the forums at hidplanet and that was the best way to go about installing projectors into our headlights.
before
after, there's no going back now!
the back
back fitment
finally done
front fitment
looks funny but this is how i aligned the projectors with the reflectors so i could use the stock adjustment screws
drill holes on the bottom of the reflector for the L brackets
closeup of the brackets. there are washers under the L brackets to level out the projectors since the bottom of our reflectors are not level, they slope down and to the side.
the bottom
closeup of the L brackets. the bottom one is how they come, the top one I bent to compensate for the sloping reflector floor, i just eyeballed it since i knew i could still make adjustments with the stock adjusters
back in the housing
back of the housing, i tried to get the back of the projector as close to the stock position as possible. I have a really bulky P32D connector so i needed as much room as possible.
here's how i did all the cutting, i also used a hand file to get a perfect fit
you can just make out the hole for the L brackets
pair done
i wasn't careful and i scratched the hell out of the reflectors so i painted them flat black. if i could do it all over again, i'd be more careful and tape up the reflector and keep them nice and shiny.
almost done, just waiting for custom bezels to be made.
baked and sealed back up. i just reused the old sealant that was left on the headlights. bake the back part of the housing first for about 10 min until the sealant gets tacky and then mate it to the front headlight lens. put on as many clamps as you can get (i returned them all later). i took off the rubber covers to get a better grip on the headlights.
i didnt take any pictures of the painted headlights housings. its pretty simple, i used krylon fusion satin black spray paint for plastics. i also didn't take any pictures of the bezels but they were made from 2 walmart garden lights (you can buy them individually in plastic bags) and 2 pipe flanges from ace hardware, just make sure you get the right size. i cut and sanded the garden light to fit the reflector and used high temp silicone adhesive to attach it and the flange to the projector. let the silicone cure for a few days before sealing the headlights back up so fumes don't fog up your headlights.
all done. the hardest part is aiming the lights so that they're level and centered. i probably spent more time aiming the lights than anything else. but once i got the hang of it, it wasn't that bad.
The following users liked this post:
omega1911 (12-30-2012)
12-17-2008, 08:13 AM
#133
Burning Brakes
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: elkins park, pa
Age: 35
Posts: 1,015
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
yoo thats amazing i am gonna need to do this. so i can order the tsx projector off ebay, and the wires..come with them? will they fit the stock headlight harness? and i see that you got a silver ring and a black boot around the projector that i didnt see prior to the last pic. when where the items purscahes and how much? sorry just really interested i will order a extra headlight housing for my car to mess around with.
12-18-2008, 04:30 PM
#136
Instructor
Thread Starter
yoo thats amazing i am gonna need to do this. so i can order the tsx projector off ebay, and the wires..come with them? will they fit the stock headlight harness? and i see that you got a silver ring and a black boot around the projector that i didnt see prior to the last pic. when where the items purscahes and how much? sorry just really interested i will order a extra headlight housing for my car to mess around with.
the black boot and silver ring are the bezels, all the info on them is in my post above. buy 2 walmart garden lights and 2 ace hardware pipe flange covers, trim to fit and put in place with silicone adhesive. next time i'm at either store i'll get the specific names of each.
12-18-2008, 05:17 PM
#137
Pro
very sweet ride mane!!
12-30-2008, 01:32 PM
#142
Instructor
Thread Starter
retrofitting TSX HID projectors into a different set of headlights. you can throw in an HID conversion kit but our headlight relfectors were not meant for HIDS so the beam and cutoff are wrong. retrofitting TSX projectors gives you the same beam and cutoff as TSXs but in our headlights. go to the hidplanet forums for more info.
01-01-2009, 01:08 PM
#145
Wow, this is a VERY interesting thread and a VERY sexy 1st gen TL. You should have used bigger projector shrouds for the retrofit but it looks damn fine with those fogs in the highbeams. I myself am retrofitting TSX clear lens on my 1st gen CL.
Very nice. One of the nicest 1st gen TLs I've seen. Keep up the good work!
Very nice. One of the nicest 1st gen TLs I've seen.
Keep up the good work!
01-02-2009, 02:42 PM
#147
Instructor
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Toronto, On, Canada
Posts: 194
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
they cleared out on their own. after that i sealed up the back of the headlight with foil tape to prevent water from getting in.
retrofitting TSX HID projectors into a different set of headlights. you can throw in an HID conversion kit but our headlight relfectors were not meant for HIDS so the beam and cutoff are wrong. retrofitting TSX projectors gives you the same beam and cutoff as TSXs but in our headlights. go to the hidplanet forums for more info.
retrofitting TSX HID projectors into a different set of headlights. you can throw in an HID conversion kit but our headlight relfectors were not meant for HIDS so the beam and cutoff are wrong. retrofitting TSX projectors gives you the same beam and cutoff as TSXs but in our headlights. go to the hidplanet forums for more info.
Also i like your tailights too how did you get them like that.
happy new years
01-02-2009, 04:50 PM
#149
Instructor
Thread Starter
Thank you man, so its the actual head light you changed not just the bulbs. So to start if i wanted to have the signal (left and right) light blueish white like yours what would i need to do. thanks again man.
Also i like your tailights too how did you get them like that.
happy new years
Also i like your tailights too how did you get them like that.
happy new years
the taillights are JDM units from ebay, search for inspire jdm
01-03-2009, 12:10 AM
#150
Instructor
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Toronto, On, Canada
Posts: 194
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
the corner lights next to the headlights are LEDs, try superbrightleds.com or v-leds.com. they make new LEDs all the time so they just keep getting better and better. i remember when they used to be super dim but the ones i have now keep impressing me every time i look at them. i don't remember exact ones i got but i tried to match the temperature to the HIDs as best i could and get the ones with the widest area of illumination to better fill out the reflector.
the taillights are JDM units from ebay, search for inspire jdm
the taillights are JDM units from ebay, search for inspire jdm
01-08-2009, 05:10 AM
#151
Banned
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 114
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
honestly, it handles great like any properly done lowering would do but the ride is not the same. turns are super flat and there is no nose dive when you brake hard but i don't think the stock shocks can handle the springs. i only cut my bumpstops in half and i bottom out in the rear so many times, even going over speed bumps. i drive so much slower now that i have the coilovers in because i'm afraid of bottoming out. i drive to san francisco every other weekend and even at city speeds my car bottoms out in the huge potholes they have in sf. maybe if i cut my bumpstops some more i'd gain some more travel to absorb the bumps.
my only other concern is that when you jack up the rear, the rear springs do not remain compressed like they do in the front so the springs can move around and if you do not lower the car back down slowly then the springs may not seat properly on the perch or on the silicone spring hat.
ok, all that aside, i love the coilovers. the handling is great when the roads are smooth. i can adjust the height any way i want and i LOVE the way it makes that car look. i have the front slightly lower than the back because i love the raked look and you can't do that on springs alone (at least not for the first gen TL). would i do it again knowing all this? YES. i think the ride will improve when i replace the stock shocks with konis because when i go over bumps on the freeway, i can feel the back of the car shoot up really fast because the shocks can't cope with the spring rates.
when i was reseaching coilovers, i was afraid they would squeak with every bump and turn but they have been dead silent since i installed them. i rode with the backseat removed for a while so that i could hear the suspension and there was an annoying squeak for the longest time and it ended up being the silicone spring hat rubbing on the chassis. i jacked up the car and readjusted it and added some wd40 and its gone.
adjusting them is easy but only if you have the c-wrench used to turn the spring perch, witch they DO NOT include with the kit. just call GC and they'll send you one for free, it really makes turning the perches much easier. to adjust the front, i had to remove the nuts on the threaded shock rod so the suspension could fall as much as possible. i found out the hard way that the entire front end has to be jacked up because the front two wheels are connected by the sway bar and there is no way you can turn the perches if one wheel is still on the ground. in the back adjusting them in much easier, you only need to jack up one wheel at a time if you wish.
one more thing, get camber kits front and rear. i went with SPC and was not disappointed. you can find reviews on the 2nd gen forum but Austin512's reviews and instructions sold me on them. i got the kits for a 1.5" drop or greater. i rode for ~1000 miles w/o the kits and my tires were out of round already. i did not get an alignment after i dropped the car because i knew that the springs were going to settle and i knew that i wanted to get the camber kits on first. i got the kits on and adjusted them by eye and went to firestone and got a lifetime alignment. funny thing is when they put it on the machine, the camber was all within spec just from me eyeballing it. the only that had to be adjusted was front toe. i guess if you do a mild drop then you won't need camber kits but then you wont need coilovers either. i've seen eiback pro-kits on ebay.
cliffs notes - GC = harsh ride and bottoms out but handles great and looks even better. buy them (and camber kits f/r) and drop it just how you like it. i'll see how the ride is after i get enough $$ for the konis...
my only other concern is that when you jack up the rear, the rear springs do not remain compressed like they do in the front so the springs can move around and if you do not lower the car back down slowly then the springs may not seat properly on the perch or on the silicone spring hat.
ok, all that aside, i love the coilovers. the handling is great when the roads are smooth. i can adjust the height any way i want and i LOVE the way it makes that car look. i have the front slightly lower than the back because i love the raked look and you can't do that on springs alone (at least not for the first gen TL). would i do it again knowing all this? YES. i think the ride will improve when i replace the stock shocks with konis because when i go over bumps on the freeway, i can feel the back of the car shoot up really fast because the shocks can't cope with the spring rates.
when i was reseaching coilovers, i was afraid they would squeak with every bump and turn but they have been dead silent since i installed them. i rode with the backseat removed for a while so that i could hear the suspension and there was an annoying squeak for the longest time and it ended up being the silicone spring hat rubbing on the chassis. i jacked up the car and readjusted it and added some wd40 and its gone.
adjusting them is easy but only if you have the c-wrench used to turn the spring perch, witch they DO NOT include with the kit. just call GC and they'll send you one for free, it really makes turning the perches much easier. to adjust the front, i had to remove the nuts on the threaded shock rod so the suspension could fall as much as possible. i found out the hard way that the entire front end has to be jacked up because the front two wheels are connected by the sway bar and there is no way you can turn the perches if one wheel is still on the ground. in the back adjusting them in much easier, you only need to jack up one wheel at a time if you wish.
one more thing, get camber kits front and rear. i went with SPC and was not disappointed. you can find reviews on the 2nd gen forum but Austin512's reviews and instructions sold me on them. i got the kits for a 1.5" drop or greater. i rode for ~1000 miles w/o the kits and my tires were out of round already. i did not get an alignment after i dropped the car because i knew that the springs were going to settle and i knew that i wanted to get the camber kits on first. i got the kits on and adjusted them by eye and went to firestone and got a lifetime alignment. funny thing is when they put it on the machine, the camber was all within spec just from me eyeballing it. the only that had to be adjusted was front toe. i guess if you do a mild drop then you won't need camber kits but then you wont need coilovers either. i've seen eiback pro-kits on ebay.
cliffs notes - GC = harsh ride and bottoms out but handles great and looks even better. buy them (and camber kits f/r) and drop it just how you like it. i'll see how the ride is after i get enough $$ for the konis...
01-08-2009, 09:23 PM
#152
Three Wheelin'
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: The Hella part of Cali
Age: 33
Posts: 1,896
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes
on
2 Posts
I was wondering what you needed to change to put on the legend type II calipers. Which caliper brackets do I use, what rotors do I use, and what pads do I use? I just have a set of these sitting in my garage that are pretty much extras since I'll be getting another set soon anyways. Thanks in advace!
btw, i think your car is the only thing preventing me from trying hard to sell it. lol
btw, i think your car is the only thing preventing me from trying hard to sell it. lol
01-08-2009, 11:37 PM
#153
Instructor
Thread Starter
I was wondering what you needed to change to put on the legend type II calipers. Which caliper brackets do I use, what rotors do I use, and what pads do I use? I just have a set of these sitting in my garage that are pretty much extras since I'll be getting another set soon anyways. Thanks in advace!
btw, i think your car is the only thing preventing me from trying hard to sell it. lol
btw, i think your car is the only thing preventing me from trying hard to sell it. lol
i was running raybestos ceramic pads on stock rotors and they dusted like crazy so i switched to axxis deluxe plus (which are organic btw, i think the our TLs came stock with ceramic pads) and they dust waaaay way less. braking performance is also MUUUUCH better but i doubt if its the pads alone. the only thing i didn't do was upgrade to ss braided brake lines. i have them waiting to be put on but then i read all the horror stories on here and nsxprime about them failing/leaking so i didn't put them on when i changed the brakes...
upgrading to type II brakes is one of the MOST worthwhile mods, up there with coilovers and HID retrofit...
01-09-2009, 02:23 AM
#154
Three Wheelin'
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: The Hella part of Cali
Age: 33
Posts: 1,896
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes
on
2 Posts
ic ic. I have a set of nissin stock replacement pads here in the garage. i guess I'll just get some legend rotors and throw everything on. thanks for the info!
same here.
01-12-2009, 03:40 PM
#157
I am picking up TSX projectors, ballasts and bulbs for $250(everything).
Sounds like a good deal or not????
And is there anything else I need for this project..I mean is it plug and play kind of thing or what??
Sounds like a good deal or not????
And is there anything else I need for this project..I mean is it plug and play kind of thing or what??
