So I was in Wal-Mart the other day buying some microfiber towels (cheaper than Advance Auto Parts!) and saw the 'do it yourself' tint. I would never consider buying this stuff and doing actual window tint myself, but got an idea.
I found the product that was made just for the 'windshield strip' (see picture below) and thought that it was cheap enough to experiment with. I brought it home, cut out some pieces and measured 'em up against my tail lights. I have a '07 ML500 with AMG, and that means no smoked tail lights like the 'Appearance Package' or new 'Sport Package' gives you. Anyways, you can see the results below.
It was pretty simple and really cheap. So for you guys who don't want to experiment with a more permanent solution like VHT Spray-Tint, this is for you. I simply cut out some pieces, held 'em up to the light (this is easier with two people, you can tape it up if you're doing it alone), used a thin thin pen/marker to get the outline of the section I wanted to tint. Then cut it out. Drenched the light and the tint film excessively with windex (it's recommended to use mild soapy water, but windex worked fine). The moisture on the inside of the film and on the taillamp itself helped stick the film to the light, like glue almost. I carefully positioned the film (it's loose enough to move around for a while). After finding the right positioning I used a credit card to smooth out any bubbles and moisture. I sprayed it down a few more times and left it to dry. It's now been a week and I can say that the film isn't going anywere. It's pretty much stuck on there, I've washed the car twice and we had sleet/rain and I've experienced no peeling or discoloration.
The best part is, this is a modification that is easily done and easily removed. To remove it you simply wet excessively (again with a soapy mixture/windex) and use a credit card or soft, non scratching blade/plastic to chip/peel away at one edge of the film.
When people use VHT Spray, it is also removable to some extent, however if exposed to the sun/heat for long enough, the spray often 'bakes on' and is later much harder to remove.
See the pictures, I took some pictures of one side finished with the other not finished so you could see the comparison. You can see in my messy trunk that this required really no tools except a knife, scissors, paper towel, and a bottle of windex.
Yes but, dosen't the film reduce the brightness of the taillights? Safety First!
No, actually it doesn't. I only tinted the clear part, which is only used for turn signal and reverse lights, both of which are extremely bright as it is and not used that often.
I had a friend drive the ML while I drove his car behind last night. I wanted to see the look - and it's still brighter than other cars on the road.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GregW / Oregon
Did you tint the red part? It doesn't look as tinted as my Appearance Pkg. ones.
Didn't tint the red part....not yet at least. I had a few ideas - I was either going to tint the red part and leave the clear as is, or tint the clear and later MAYBE do the red. It's not exactly like the Appearance Package ones.
The Appearance Package tint also doesn't cover the entire clear part or entire red part. It's sort of does both on the side and then fades towards the rear. What I've done is tinted the entire clear strip and left the red.
If I end up getting LED tails, I may experiment with these a little bit more in the future to see what else looks good.
see the difference?
Stock:
My Modification:
Appearance Package:
Last edited by revolt1112 : 03-20-2007 at 09:23 AM.
No, actually it doesn't. I only tinted the clear part, which is only used for turn signal and reverse lights, both of which are extremely bright as it is and not used that often.
The Appearance Package tint also doesn't cover the entire clear part or entire red part. It's sort of does both on the side and then fades towards the rear. What I've done is tinted the entire clear strip and left the red.
Here's a pic of my Apperance Package ones for comparison. I think you could also simulate it ba misting some black paint on the inside.
Linear Mode
