Hello again from the folks at HeadlightArmor!

Protecting your headlights with clear protective headlight film has been a popular DIY project over the years. Now the same headlight protection is available in colored versions too! With the widespread adoption of composite headlights in every shape imaginable, this task requires some different techniques. With these step-by-step instructions & photos, along with our pre-cut kits, they are a pretty straightforward install.

As with the smoked taillight kits there are a wide variety of materials being used today and each has its own preferred application method. The most important tip I can offer is to follow the instructions for whomever's product you go with. Depending on what the material is made from you will see a variety of processes needed for installation. These steps are specifically designed to work with our film.

Items required not included with our kit.
-Clean spray bottle (plant mister works great) fill with just plain old water.
-Sharp razor knife
-patience and a positive attitude ;)
-your car of course LOL

First off, clean everything, your lamps, the area around them, your hands etc. Installation is best preformed out of the wind in a clean, calm and well-lit area. The film is much happier when warm - 80-90 is a nice sweet spot. If you are working in a hotter environment (we are in TX sun) the adhesive is a bit more sensitive - it is more pliable but the adhesive is a bit more sensitive (pressure sensitive). If it is cool gentle warming with a hair dryer works wonders. You don't want to go wild with the heat; if the film is too hot to touch it is too hot.

After cleaning everything - Without removing the lens cover from the backing paper hold it up to the lens and make sure you have the correct side and the correct orientation. Wet down one lens with water.


Wet down your hands and peel the kit part way off the backing paper (hold the edges with wet hands or the handling tabs) and mist with water. When the piece is off the backing paper mist down both the kit and the taillight and them place the piece on the taillight.



Handling the edges align the front corner of the piece - (left side of the above photo) then generally align the remaining edges. The piece will be 'floating' on the beads of water on the lens. Be gentle the adhesive is pressure sensitive. Now squeegee the 'front' corner as shown below.



Generally align the bottom horizontal section to the 'corner'.



Generally align the upper horizontal section - in steps 3-4 you want to make sure that the piece is centered top to bottom.



Align the far back corner.



Verify alignment and then squeegee the front corner - about the first 3-4 inches.




With the far corner aligned squeegee the corner - a couple of inches, just enough to hold the piece in place.



Mist down the outside surface and firmly squeegee from the front corner where you started diagonally along the ridgeline down to the back corner that you just tacked. In the photo from 7 o'clock to 2 o'clock - 'dragging' the squeegee firmly as shown.



Now squeegee down from the center diagonal area in step 8 toward the bottom of the kit. NOTE: This kit was installed with ambient air temps ~90 degrees F. If it is cool out the use of a hair dryer on low will be necessary for steps 9-11. Do not overheat the film; you just want to warm to about 90 degrees F. Squeegee in .5 - 1.0 inche increments from left to right to distribute the film.



Continue firmly squeegeeing in short strokes as in step 9.Continue to the very bottom of the kit until all film has laid down.



Repeat steps 9-10 on the top half of the kit.



With a sharp razor knife carefully trim off the handling tabs. If you have any areas that are misaligned or overhanging you can either wrap the edge if it a flat surface or simply trim off the excess.

Go over the edges with a suede detail cloth / paper towel wrapped squeegee to make sure the edge is fully set. Gentle heat from a hair dryer on low can help things along if it is cool out.



Now that they are done just refrain from washing the vehicle for a few days and you will good to go. A periodic wipe down with a high quality non-petroleum based vinyl conditioner will keep them looking good for years. With our HID Blue protective headlight covers you will be able to change to look of your vehicle while protecting your headlights from being sandblasted to death. Our HID Blue film was designed to mix with the light from your headlight and produce a bright white beam!

You can remove these at some point in the future if you are so inclined - though they can only be used once.

While we do try and make our kits as 'installable' as possible we realize that even an easier kit can be harder than it needs to be if you install them from the seat of your pants. We hope the photos of the process were helpful, and please let us know if you have any questions about the process.

HeadlightArmor.com

 

i would like to see some pics of it at night with the lights on.

 

hahaha HID blue light cover!!

 

Would it make existing little rock dings look like crapy little bubbles though? Mine might be too old, hmmmm. Looks good though.

 

chillin, actually we use the covers -clear or HID Blue as a refurb tool at some of our dealers. The adhesive actually settles into most existing pitting making the lenses look clearer. Although it is best to protect your headlights as soon as you get the vehicle, the covers also work wonders for those that have some pitting already.

 

Here is a night shot showing out GT Yellow on one side and HID Blue on the other. The shot was taken against a beige shop door at the Aston Martin dealer.


HeadlightArmor.com