Second..... Whoever says "it's easy to get the front number and headlights off a CJ Lancer", is either kidding themselves or a panel beater by trade... I didn't even undo my skid plate under the front to save on some time and effort.... lol
Third.... For the love of God...!! Check your angel eyes before you start the bumper and light removal, and baking.... processes!!
- or just do one Headlight housing and then check your angel eyes for them being the correct size and actual work.... i.e hook them up somehow...
I say this, as I believe the ones I have been delivered are the incorrect size for the CJ lancer's headlights, and to add insult to my installation, one of my large rings (lowbeam) does not even power on at all!!!!
(Box has a sticker that says BMW 140mm / 114mm..... blanka or Matty - what did your's say?)
I assume it was either DOA, or has been damaged in delivery or in the process of installation, before I power tested them....
** I recall being extra careful with them, so don't think it was broken here....
- I had already removed the bumper and the lights.... Took a while....
- I Baked them, and cracked them both open...... A very messy job with lots of options to serious damage the plastic around the surrounds with the jabbing and prizing and sticking with screwdrivers....
- Took a lot longer too, as the wife had hijacked the oven, and cranked it up to 180c and starting some baking....
So, I had to wait for that.... Plus, they were then a bit too big for my oven too, and had the door open a bit !!! lol
- All this before I had even got the angel eyes out of their box......
- I placed the ring on the highbeam circle of the headlight, and it was too large...!!
- WTF !! Too large!!! - by about the width of the ring itself, which means that they do not follow the highbeam ring, at sit in it all flush - but, instead, they step out, off the ring to one side (like the lowbeam rins end up doing because of the shape...)
I had a crucial decision to make -
1) Stop.... Re-bake and glue together the HeadLights.... Re-assemble the front end of the car and then think about how I really don't want to have to do all that again when, and if, AutoMoGlow gets me any replacements.... OR....
2) Think - "I really don't want to have to do all that again when"
also if I get any replacements... and "I can live with that, and the end effect will be the same anyhow...." So I continued with the installation....
Other issues that happened...
- I threaded all the cables before I re-installed them into the front of the car and I used the existing hole and grommet on the Highbeam access port - but didn't realise until after I finished rebuilding the car, that my son had pulled the O-Rings out of them...!!! EDIT: Rubber seal o-rings
I will now have to either cut the rings to be able to put them around the seal again, or un-thread the cables out of it (not silconned yet anyhow), and then try to get them back - all while the headlights are installed on the car....
- Worked out a neat way to splice into the side lights wiring for power, and with the front of the car 90% re-built, and after about 5-6 hours of lateral thinking and design adjustments based on the available tools and equipment....
I turned on the sidelights - only to find the one lowbeam ring not working....
WTF - WHY ME !!! GGGAGGAGAHHAHAAAAHHHHHHHHHH
So..... Not left with too many options....
- I need to get into the back of the them to install these O-Rings, and I'll need to silcone this section up anyhow, so that should be fine to do on the car - as they are sort of accessible enough....
But,
- If I want to pursue the delivered rings size being wrong and DOA issues with AutoMoGlow....
I've installed them now..... so if I need to return them to him before I get replacements, that would mean another episode like today to get them out of the headlights and then another episode once the new ones return to get them all back in again..... For a third dis-assemble / re-assemble sequence!!
AND - Hope AutoMoGLow at least provides a replacement for wrong stock received
OR - Just disconnect the other lowbeam ring on the other side to match, and just run with the highbeam rings active - which are off-set from the housing rings, yes, but light up just fine, and still give some of the net effect of having the angel eyes.
Pretty disappointing day all round actually... and a notice for others considering the purchase and installation.
I doubt I'll be able to get replacements for the DOA ring or the others that are, imo, the wrong size... and then, do I really want to go through that bumper and baking process all over again...? Not so sure....
Maybe if I get 4x rings that are correct and working, and delivered to me, so I can do the job once to replace the broken and wrong for working and correct. I might be tempted if that happens....
Those of you are the cruise next weekend and check it out and form your own comments and take your own pictures of them...
Going to bed to try and work out what to do....
