Well its been a while since an update. I have had very little spare time to dedicate to this and I'm up to the hardest part... mounting/aiming.

In the mean time I need to decide which style of reflector to go for, blacked out, partially black, or original chrome. With the full black I think I would need to black the indicators as well for it to suit.

Anyway here's the pics.

Last edited by MAD on Mon Jun 28, 2010 10:54 am, edited 1 time in total.

All chrome might suit the white colour better.

wonder of the side indicator lenses can be sanded clear like the headlights too. Would be epic job imo

so when can i send you a pair of EL Mont Lights and the Impreza lights i have here to do the conversion with?

looks tops dude!

I reckon they could be, but I dont think I'll bother with that. It still seems to work together as it is.


When I lose my mind or feel the urge punish myself.

Thanks.

TBH I think the std indicator style looks quite good. I think you'll find the lenses aren't anywhere as thick as the headlight ones to allow you to sand them clear.
Yeah, there's more than enough labour doing your own - let alone someone elses.

Well it's been ages since an update on this, and amazingly I'm still going (albeit very slowly)
As has been the case for so long, I'm still fine tuning the 'clearing' of the headlight lens.
I'm trying out an acrylic clear coat that will aid in the clarity and will double as a UV shield for the polycarbonate lens. I don't know how it will go on the inside of the lens though.
The paint is much easier to polish to a perfect finish than plastic.

Here's a couple of pics to keep you interested.
I tried out a couple more colour combos. I really like the white and the black I had done previously but they only looked good from the front not from the side or looking down, but the chrome looks good looking down at it but I dont like how it looks from the front. I think I'll probably stick with the combo in the last photo though. In that pic the projector was painted black but everything else is left chrome.




I also found a new projector that makes installation and aiming a little simpler and I just fitted these to my friends car over the weekend. Yeah it's a VE commodore, don't hold it against him.
I couldn't get a good photo of the park lamps. it's just a white LED behind the projector but it illuminates all around it and looks quite menacing.




While I didnt fit this shroud to his headlights, I thought I better get a photo of what it looks like while I had the chance. I think it's almost perfect for them. Add some CCFL rings and it would look even better.

Are those the projectors off ebay?

No, they're not off ebay. The ebay ones have built in angel eyes that I personally hate the look of.
I like angel eyes but the ebay ones look really tacky.

These ones can be purchased from www.theretrofitsource.com

It's been a while since my last update, and I've found a new method to finish off my lenses.
I couldnt get the clear from a spray can to go down as nicely as I wanted, but this new method is super simple and super clear. It also has the bonus of having UV blocking qualities.

Here's the finished product.



I had finished off the other side too, but discovered that I hadnt sanded it 100% smooth and it distorted the light output a lot. So I had to go over it again. I've just applied the finishing coat to that lens last night.

The wiring is all done ready to go, the only stuff left to do now is:
- Fix the shrouds in place so they dont fall off inside the headlight
- check final alignment
- attach ballasts to headlight caps so it looks factory
- close the headlight

Tonight I should have the final alignment checked, the ballast mounts sorted and the shrouds glued in place. The glue for the shrouds needs to cure for 72 hours so there arent any fumes released inside the housing that will fog up the lens, so they will be ready to be closed up on Thursday.

Finally, after many delays, major losses of motivation and hefty amounts of procrastination, they will be fitted up to the car permanently this weekend.

Well I got a bit more done, as expected. Checked final alignment and found I needed to make a tiny adjustment to the projector mounting, thankfully it was a fairly simple task.
All the internal wiring to the headlights, for normal operation, is finished. Just one feature to wire in later on a separate switch.
The shrouds are siliconed in place and the ballasts have been mounted to the caps.



Now just to wait for the silicon to cure fully before fitting them to the car for the final time.

Awesome work there mate, they look top notch!! Will be good to see them once they are fitted up

Thanks.

I cant wait to show off the output of these things! Hopefully I can capture it properly in a photo.
More importantly though, I cant wait to drive with these things.

They're in!


Driving with these is very different. It's such a sharp difference between light and dark above the headlights. The width is amazing though. They would easily light 8 lanes if I were in the middle I reckon.

I need to get to a nice light coloured flat wide wall to get some pics of the output.

I'm still screwing around with the parkers, My original idea didnt turnout as bright as I thought it would. Ok for night time but not very good in hazy day conditions.
The new plan is to have a couple of bright white LEDs in the indicators that will turn off when I indicate and come back on when the indicator turns off.
I'll put up a video when I've got it finished.

Last edited by MAD on Tue Jun 14, 2011 4:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.

All credit to seeing the project through.
So how did you get the finish with the acrylic spray ??
Many coats/sanding/buffing back ??

Maybe with the indicators, you could do a split level setup like the XR's have ??

I didn't continue with my project, as both my cars are going to XR lights with HID's - the halogen low beam projector will be replaced with a specific HID projector.

I am working though on improving the EL wagon tailight setup look - more like the AU's and on.