cobalt123
Platinum Member
Disclaimer: I cant take credit for the how-to, if its yours pm me will discuss it there.
I know smoking the tail lights has been done, but I figure it hasn't been done on a sedan yet so hopefully this will help some people with some of the basics of removing the tail lights...
Things you'll need:
10mm ratchet
VHT Nightshades (ebay this)
Clear Coat
Removing the tail lights is not too hard. When you open your trunk you'll see two hex bolts (pic1) that you need to remove first. After this, if you have a cargo net, remove the plastic bolts (pic 2) that it is attached to by first detaching it and then unscrewing them by hand. Pull back your carpeting (pic3) to reveal the back side of the tail light, and a nut that needs to come off (pic 4). Either use a deep well socket or a ratcheting wrench to remove this. I suggest a ratcheting wrench because if you have the built in sub on the left hand side, you can get to it without removing the sub, but i don't think you'd be able to with a ratchet.
Once all of the bolts are removed, simply pull the tail light out. There should be three cables going into the tail light, you need to remove all three by simply rotating them (counter clockwise I think, but it says on there) and pulling them out (pic 5). Congrats! Now rinse, wash, and repeat for the other side.
Now we move on to getting the light bar out. To remove the carpet on the trunk itself, there are a number of plastic clips that are very easy to break (pic 6). Gently pull these out by pulling in a rocking motion to avoid breaking these. Once these are off the light bar will be revealed (pic 7) and you need to pull the cable off (it has a clip on the back side, so be careful not to break it, use a screwdriver to pull the clip out then pull it off) and unscrew the nuts on each side. Finally, there are clips next to the nuts on each side (pic 8) so pull these back and pull the light bar out.
I won't go over the tinting in detail, other than to say that if you screw up, you have to sand it off like I did (pic 9) so take your time and do many light coats, lightly sanding between coats. I suggest only one can of Nightshades as this will get you plenty black while still keeping your lights bright enough to see, but keep it legal either way (heh). Finally, do a final sanding with fine grit wet sandpaper, and cover with clear coat. I suggest a light coat of the clear coat (it will look tacky) followed by a heavier (BUT NOT RUNNY) coat which will look sheen.
In the end, put it back together and appreciate the sexiness!
I know smoking the tail lights has been done, but I figure it hasn't been done on a sedan yet so hopefully this will help some people with some of the basics of removing the tail lights...
Things you'll need:
10mm ratchet
VHT Nightshades (ebay this)
Clear Coat
Removing the tail lights is not too hard. When you open your trunk you'll see two hex bolts (pic1) that you need to remove first. After this, if you have a cargo net, remove the plastic bolts (pic 2) that it is attached to by first detaching it and then unscrewing them by hand. Pull back your carpeting (pic3) to reveal the back side of the tail light, and a nut that needs to come off (pic 4). Either use a deep well socket or a ratcheting wrench to remove this. I suggest a ratcheting wrench because if you have the built in sub on the left hand side, you can get to it without removing the sub, but i don't think you'd be able to with a ratchet.
Once all of the bolts are removed, simply pull the tail light out. There should be three cables going into the tail light, you need to remove all three by simply rotating them (counter clockwise I think, but it says on there) and pulling them out (pic 5). Congrats! Now rinse, wash, and repeat for the other side.
Now we move on to getting the light bar out. To remove the carpet on the trunk itself, there are a number of plastic clips that are very easy to break (pic 6). Gently pull these out by pulling in a rocking motion to avoid breaking these. Once these are off the light bar will be revealed (pic 7) and you need to pull the cable off (it has a clip on the back side, so be careful not to break it, use a screwdriver to pull the clip out then pull it off) and unscrew the nuts on each side. Finally, there are clips next to the nuts on each side (pic 8) so pull these back and pull the light bar out.
I won't go over the tinting in detail, other than to say that if you screw up, you have to sand it off like I did (pic 9) so take your time and do many light coats, lightly sanding between coats. I suggest only one can of Nightshades as this will get you plenty black while still keeping your lights bright enough to see, but keep it legal either way (heh). Finally, do a final sanding with fine grit wet sandpaper, and cover with clear coat. I suggest a light coat of the clear coat (it will look tacky) followed by a heavier (BUT NOT RUNNY) coat which will look sheen.
In the end, put it back together and appreciate the sexiness!
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