Blacked out Headlights/Brakelights Modification on 22 Mavericks?

[luciusxlt]

Ok thank you! Did you use the zep that said 25% stronger on the bottle?

i could not find it. I use this one it work perfectly i got it from advance auto part, this method is only for the taillight, not headlight for the headlight you need to crack open the headlight so you don't take the chrome of the high and low beam reflector

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[MikeyG]

i could not find it. I use this one it work perfectly i got it from advance auto part, this method is only for the taillight, not headlight for the headlight you need to crack open the headlight so you don't take the chrome of the high and low beam reflector

Ok.. yes I saw someone mention that it’s only for the taillights. So I basically takes all the chrome off so there won’t be anything to reflect the light inside? So that’s why you said to upgrade to leds builds? Are the BAP done the same way or they have some of the chrome inside?

 

[luciusxlt]

Ok.. yes I saw someone mention that it’s only for the taillights. So I basically takes all the chrome off so there won’t be anything to reflect the light inside? So that’s why you said to upgrade to leds builds? Are the BAP done the same way or they have some of the chrome inside?

i dont know on the original BAP i would assume it has some chrome on the reflectors , but with the lasfit Led its so bright you dont need it

 

[JamesC]

Has anybody else had quick success with the regular strength Zep? I plan on doing my tail lights soon.

 

[FunctionSpec]

Has anybody else had quick success with the regular strength Zep? I plan on doing my tail lights soon.

Did mine today using the Zep Industrial Purple Degreaser found at Home Depot in the yellow bottle container. Used full strength and it stripped the chrome off in 10-15 minutes. Didn't have any issues and used just 1 gallon for both taillights. Could have probably used just half a gallon if I reused the degreaser. Seems to be just as strong as whatever old formula they had before. The chrome came off super easy and clean. This was bought in Southern California so don't know if it's regional. Rinsed using reverse osmosis filtered water for a spot-free finish.

 

[CG_HotWheel]

Thank y’all so much for introducing me to this easy (and cheap) tail light hack that saved me from spending waaaay too much money ordering and possibly never even receiving the Black Appearance package tail lights. This weekend, I did my tail lights and third brake light up top and it turned out so much better than I could have even imagined! So thanks again for sharing this!

 

[PLG]

Glad so many people is doing this mod since I posted it! nice job everyone

 

[FunctionSpec]

I was so excited how it turned out that I forgot to post a picture to this thread. Totally changes how the truck looks. Highly recommend this mod.

 

[TRUCKHEF]

How bright are the rear brake lights after stripping off all the reflective surfaces...wouldn't this be a safety issue?

 

[mdl20813]

How bright are the rear brake lights after stripping off all the reflective surfaces...wouldn't this be a safety issue?

it only strips where the reverse lights are in the middle of the housing. There’s no issues, especially if you have swapped to LED bulbs

 

[TRUCKHEF]

it only strips where the reverse lights are in the middle of the housing. There’s no issues, especially if you have swapped to LED bulbs

You sure? just checked the taillights, its all connected and hollow. There's no barrier to prevent the degreaser from stripping the brake lights as well. Love the mod looks so good, just not sure if its worth getting rear ended. Have you seen how many threads there are with Mavericks getting rear ended and totalled recently?

 

[mdl20813]

You sure? just checked the taillights, its all connected and hollow. There's no barrier to prevent the degreaser from stripping the brake lights as well. Love the mod looks so good, just not sure if its worth getting rear ended. Have you seen how many threads there are with Mavericks getting rear ended and totalled recently?

Could there be some chrome in the brake lens portion I didn’t bother looking at when I did it, sure. Would it be enough to all of a sudden dim the lights coming through an already red plastic lens, no.

I did this months ago and there is 0 difference in the brightness of any of the taillight sections. I can’t speak for anybody who still runs the halogen bulbs but brightness is a non issue if you have LED bulbs in. Even had my wife trail me before and after and she said they looked the exact same.

 

[1ma2t]

I am interested in this mod. But curious if it will work on lariat tail lights.
I know lariat has strip of led around the edges and don’t want to ruin the lights.

 

[Lane]

Love the mod looks so good, just not sure if its worth getting rear ended. Have you seen how many threads there are with Mavericks getting rear ended and totalled recently?

I stripped my tail lights and rather than wondering or speculating on the difference, I took a few photos so I could see. Keep in mind, these were taken in daylight.

This photo shows the stripped lens on the driver's side, stock on passenger side. These are the factory halogen bulbs. The lights are on so this is the tail light only (no brake):

Again, this was tail lights only that we're looking at in the daylight. Brake being applied was even brighter. Even with this difference, nobody is going to tell you 'hey, your tail lights are dim' when they look at them at night. They're not dim, they're just not as bright.

As a part of this project, I did put Lasfit bulbs in the rear. The Lasfit in the stripped light housing did bring back any lost brightness compared to the original halogen bulb in the original housing. If you're that safety-conscious, it's definitely worth doing.

If Mavericks are getting rear-ended, it probably won't be due to that small amount of light difference. It'll be from someone texting, talking on their phone, not paying attention, or they're just plain crappy drivers. A light that's a little brighter won't fix that.

 

[KenJ45]

Do they offer the black trim option on XLT models? If so, maybe I can just buy them from the dealership and then sell my stock headlights to make back some of the money. I'm feeling too lazy to do all of this work but want the look, lol.

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