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So, I dropped my car off again at the beginning of August to get the lights readjusted and I purchased a set of housings online to make it easier. My lenses were scratched to hell and the new set of housings provided a nice clear lens along with more material to work with. The shop reworked my headlights and I got the car back yesterday. Here is the current situation.
-They look 100x better with the clear lenses.
-They fixed my low beams from pointing way up and blinding everyone I drove by. They still need a minor tweak to make them perfect, but the shop says that will just be a simple day.
-When I got the car back on the passenger side the two outside DRL's are dim. I am guessing it is an issue with the ground, probably has to be cleaned or something because it is still getting power just not as bright as it should be. Low beams and high are unaffected by this. Check it out and let me know if you agree because if I have to buy another set of MDX jewels I will be very very upset.
It is possible that was the reason for selling. However, most likely they were just off a wrecked MDX. Did you buy them from the same seller or separate? Some better quality photos would be nice. Still a great mod.
It is possible that was the reason for selling. However, most likely they were just off a wrecked MDX. Did you buy them from the same seller or separate? Some better quality photos would be nice. Still a great mod.
No,
When they were first installed they were fine, look at my original photos. Generally a dimming has to do with the electronics and wiring not with the LED's themselves. Considering the replace battery light kept going off and on and the battery is perfectly fine (I had it checked) the problem is most likely one in the same, a simple wiring issue.
^^^ I recommend you just use Meguiar's PlastX on the inside...don't wetsand!
When I opened my headlights a few months ago I tried to clean the inside of the housing and make it look horrible (hazy and scratched to hell). It took me a solid hour of rubbing with the PlastX but it looked great when done (only did one). It's held up since then as well.
That won't last long-term on the outside but I highly recommend it for the inside.
Thanks for the advice... I may try this.
Wonder if I should try getting some UV coating to resort it, tho I feel it would look like crap and then I'd need to remove it.
It looks like great staff to be applied to your headlight lenses. In my case I have Suntek PPF applied to my headlights lenses. They still look like new to this present day. I also use wolfgang deep gloss paint sealant 3.0 right on top of the suntek ppf every few months plus wolfgang Füzion Estate Waxon top of all that. The UV protection is the key to your headlights looking new for a very long time period!!!!
Sorry for taking so long, I just bought a house and have been busy as hell with it.
Here is a shot of the output
And here is a shot of what she looks like just sittin' pretty at night.
Couple things I am currently doing:
-I am throwing the stock exhaust back on (leaving the V2 Jpipe though). I have done resonators, new mufflers etc etc etc and I have come to the damn conclusion that I despise drone and cannot take it any longer. I have had cars with catbacks, but the drone at 2,000RPM's became unbearable and the tone of it was absolutely awful so I give up. Some people clearly like it, which blows my mind with this specific platform!
-The headlights need a minor adjustment one last time so the drivers side beam is raised a hair.
-The inside DRL connection was not fixed but the one on the edge was (the guy just missed the inside one kind of hard to see)
-The headlights are getting some condensation still
-Want my DRL's to stay on in AUTO mode during the day! driving me crazy switching back and forth, but at night the headlights function in auto mode perfectly.
Hopefully I can be on more often now that ive gotten a lot of things out of the way!
Looks great, props for spending the time and money to make it happen. I saw your post on HIDplanet as well and here are a few pointers that may help in getting the retro all sorted.
-- I am not sure how the company installed the projectors but to properly align the output you'd have to go in and tweak the mounts as they are off significantly and over time the misaligned output will drive you up the wall, if it already isnt.
-- The MDX DRL needs 12V power supply to run at full brightness where as OEM 4G TL DRL power supply is only at 6.4V. The reason why your DRL might be running low on brightness is exactly that; its not getting enough juice. To rectify the issue you'd have to rewire the DRL directly from the battery and a DRL module and bypass the OE DRL power supply.
-- As far as condensation, thats something that might be due to lack ventilation within the headlights, the headlights usually have breather holes, make sure they are not eliminated.
-- The issue with the horn may be due to a power supply or ground being tapped.
to set up the wiring here is what I'll do.
MDX LED control module has four pertinent input wires.
+ Low
+Hi
+DRL
- Ground
For low, use the factory low beam power supply, this way they will come on auto mode.
For DRL, set up a dedicated DRL module to run directly from the battery making sure its sending full 12V to the LED driver. The DRL module has a positive input that needs to be supplied from factory low beams. This insures that when you turn your low beam on, the DRL module shuts the DRLs.
For Hi beam, use the factory hi beam power supply, BUT you need to install some sort of relay in the middle that only opens when full 12V power is supplied or else the hi beams will be getting 6.4V whenever the OE DRLs are on, another way to bypass this is to just pull the DRL fuse from the fuse box.
For ground, just use a common ground thats constant e.g. directly to the chassis.
Looks great, props for spending the time and money to make it happen. I saw your post on HIDplanet as well and here are a few pointers that may help in getting the retro all sorted.
-- I am not sure how the company installed the projectors but to properly align the output you'd have to go in and tweak the mounts as they are off significantly and over time the misaligned output will drive you up the wall, if it already isnt.
-- The MDX DRL needs 12V power supply to run at full brightness where as OEM 4G TL DRL power supply is only at 6.4V. The reason why your DRL might be running low on brightness is exactly that; its not getting enough juice. To rectify the issue you'd have to rewire the DRL directly from the battery and a DRL module and bypass the OE DRL power supply.
-- As far as condensation, thats something that might be due to lack ventilation within the headlights, the headlights usually have breather holes, make sure they are not eliminated.
-- The issue with the horn may be due to a power supply or ground being tapped.
to set up the wiring here is what I'll do.
MDX LED control module has four pertinent input wires.
+ Low
+Hi
+DRL
- Ground
For low, use the factory low beam power supply, this way they will come on auto mode.
For DRL, set up a dedicated DRL module to run directly from the battery making sure its sending full 12V to the LED driver. The DRL module has a positive input that needs to be supplied from factory low beams. This insures that when you turn your low beam on, the DRL module shuts the DRLs.
For Hi beam, use the factory hi beam power supply, BUT you need to install some sort of relay in the middle that only opens when full 12V power is supplied or else the hi beams will be getting 6.4V whenever the OE DRLs are on, another way to bypass this is to just pull the DRL fuse from the fuse box.
For ground, just use a common ground thats constant e.g. directly to the chassis.
Hope this helps, good luck.
Hey man, thanks a lot for all of that info it's definitely going to help me to get these wrapped up.
I just learned a whole lot about these jewel eyes and the TL from this!
Why no update? I've been watching and waiting to follow in your footsteps. can u please update photos and the current status if you are still pleased with your jewel eye mods?
Imi dying to get mine done.
We are all driving a 4,000 pound metal pig that is the 4th Gen TL. Not to speak for everyone, but with this platform I'm quite positive nearly all people that get aftermarket wheels are doing it for the cosmetic appearance, not the weight savings.. I mean hell if you save 5 pounds a wheel you haven't even shaved 1% off the weight off the car. It would be equivalent to a 180 pound man losing half a pound.
If you're looking for a platform to "tune" which is the term you seem so adamant in using, then you've chosen wrong. The 4G TL is terrible with aftermarket support and the lack of forced induction makes it a bad candidate to try to get big gains out of.
Dropping a few grand on those customized jewel eyes certainly looks like it is worth the appearance, it will certainly turn heads. But, to each his own. I for one am going to drop the hammer on these as long as I can find a competent person to retrofit the MDX jewels in my TL's housings. I like the "what kind of car is that" appearance it gives the car. I for one have already spent a few thousand on my car modifying it and I have the bug. Generally I don't fall for cosmetic upgrades, but this one is seriously awesome looking. It looks factory, but totally badass.
Hey whats up bro? i am purchasing 2 sets of MDX JEWELS AND I WILL BE ATTEMPTING THEM ON MY NEW 2013 PEARL WHITE TL. WHEN I AM DONE I WILL SHOWCASE THEM ON A NEW FORUM ON HERE, IF YOU LIKE THEM I WILL BE HAPPY TO BUILD THEM FOR YOU. I HAVE A 3G that i modded as well... here they are!
Hey whats up bro? i am purchasing 2 sets of MDX JEWELS AND I WILL BE ATTEMPTING THEM ON MY NEW 2013 PEARL WHITE TL. WHEN I AM DONE I WILL SHOWCASE THEM ON A NEW FORUM ON HERE, IF YOU LIKE THEM I WILL BE HAPPY TO BUILD THEM FOR YOU. I HAVE A 3G that i modded as well... here they are!
Ive got a 2012 White Acura TL. Please let me know the deatils of when and where and how and your price
09-01-2015, 01:13 PM
It looks like great staff to be applied to your headlight lenses. In my case I have Suntek PPF applied to my headlights lenses. They still look like new to this present day. I also use wolfgang deep gloss paint sealant 3.0 right on top of the suntek ppf every few months plus wolfgang Füzion Estate Waxon top of all that. The UV protection is the key to your headlights looking new for a very long time period!!!!
Looks Amazing!
