How To- Install XPEL Headlight Film on S14 Kouki

[INeedNewTires]

Alright guys, time for my 2nd writeup... Installed Xpel headlight protection on my kouki and took a bunch of pics so i figured I'd do a lil writeup, so here goes.

1. Layed out the film, tested it for cut and fitment, its perfect. As with any film, prep work is key, so i went over the headlights first with soap & water, then with a razor blade, then with solvent, then with a scrubbing pad, and finally buffed them with compound. They were PERFECTLY clean when done.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21709.jpg

2. Heated it up, set the Wagner gun on 1150* F till it got quite flexible. This shit is 40mil thick which is frickin Ridick! you can barely bend it when its cold, its really thick, but thats good. According to their website it can withstand a 1cm diameter rock at 60mph with no damage at all.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21714.jpg

3. Then we sprayed the headlights and our hands with the water/baby shampoo solution. Even though the website says to use water and alcohol, my friend who has tinted many windows, prefers this solution because its a bit sliperey'er so we could move it around better. Then peeled the backing off and soaked it with the solution as well. Lined it up with my friend, left 1/8" in on all sides, it fit awesome i must say.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21716.jpg

4. Once its lined up, I held it in place whil my friend used the squegie to scrape away the solution and get it to stick in place. What you want to do is line it up as good as you can, and scrape it on the flattest part. Then once its stuck and linedup, we rinsed the rest of the solution away with pure water and then continued to squeegy.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21718.jpg

5. Then you wanna wrap the squeegy in a paper towel (preferably lint free) and go over it finely using the heat gun to mold it into place. The headlights themselves were easy compared to the compound curves in the fogs....

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21724.jpg

6. Okay done with one headlight, didnt make a huge difference on light output, i think they look sweet though.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21710.jpg

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21712.jpg

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21713.jpg

*7.* Important step* Now on to the dreaded corners.... Start by curving the piece with backing still on it around the corner, and heat it to mold to shape. Once its following the natural curve, let it cool and it will be much easier to work with. I also noticed that the light came out on the outtermost points of the corners, but on the inner part where it meets with the headlight it has a black void of light about 3/8" thick. So in order to make it look good with no white border light coming off the edges, i lined it up as close to the outside edge first as possible, and bent it around the corner to the front where it had some leeway. You can see in this pic how close it is to the edge.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21732.jpg

8. Repeat same steps above, only going slower, and with lots more heat this time. I made sure to seal first on the outter flat parts, and then work my way around.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21724.jpg

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21725.jpg

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21726.jpg

Again use lots of heat and go slow, making sure to push the water out evenly. Another Baller tip, if you look close the kouki corner had a crease in the middle of it, so with a very strong or hard squeegy wrap a towell around it and wet the outside so you dont tear or poke through the Xpel, and push it out. With enough heat and time it will seal up nicely and sit flush with it.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21722.jpg

You can see here how its wanting to pucker out, heat and time (dont rush) will fix this.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21723.jpg

And there ya go, she's all done

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21730.jpg

Took about 1.5 hrs from start to finish. I love how they look, and light output didnt decrease very much.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21737.jpg

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21734.jpg

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/ineednewtires/S14a%20Pics/writeupphotos21741.jpg

So what do ya'll think?

[HS13KLS]

looks pretty cool to me!!
+1 to you man

[murda-c]

Now it looks like a zenki that's been in the sun since 95...

haha jk man looks ok

[jrbump]

Does it come in clear or only in "urine"?

[stiizy]

^ clear,blue,yellow,smoke, and maybe other colors


nice i had the rockblocker ones on my car..

[kensreliableb18b]

not my style, but honestly, it looks pretty good on your car.

[98s14inaz]

I like it. Although if you wanted yellow headlights I would have traded you my zenki's lol

[1989rps13]

Does it come in clear or only in "urine"?
:rofl:

i think it looks really good but maybe a diff. color none the less great write up

[INeedNewTires]

comes in lots of colors n stuff, I got it from Enjuku Racing for a bit cheaper than from the dealer, plus wanted to help out a more nissan specific enthusiast shop, than a general manufacturer. Heres the direct link

http://www.xpel.com/products/headlight_protection.asp?prevtype=1&prevyear=1997&prevmake=29&prevmodel=493&prevsubmodel=0&prevseries=0&type=1&year=1997&make=29&model=493&submodel=1262

Thanks for the compliments and reps guys!

[INeedNewTires]

Where i got em

http://enjukuracing.com/xpel-headlamp-protection-film-nissan-240sx-9798-p-6487.html?cPath=2_97

[ROUGE180]

Cool man. Nice write up. Functional and stylish at the same time. I went to the dealer site. Seems like they have a pretty good selection. They also have film for S13 and S15. Thought that was pretty cool.

EDIT: They have it for Silvia's only. No pop-ups

[240drifter1]

Fuck man.

That looks awesome, I plan on doing that or smoked on mine.

[nismo racer]

i like the yellow headlight look, i did it to my coupe but with krylon glass stain paint.

[Jtuned_andy]

Lamin-X is also the same shit, Honda guys have been jocking this for awhile. Not to say there were others first, but I'm only into Nissan/Honda so...

[SMOKE'N'TYRES]

I will say this, they look better when the car is moving.

[WoolyS14DET]

Great DIY with pics but not my cup of tea !!

[Modrified]

cool write up.

[jackjack]

not bad.... not bad......

i dig it.