Ni_Mo

I had laid off doing anything to the 997 and decided after long deliberation that I liked the look of the upgrading the rear lights to the Dectane LED ones. To give the car of a more dark look I also bought the Lamin-X gun smoke tail light tinting film and got about installing them.
The hardest part is installing the tinting film, it really is a PITA. After 40 minutes with a hair dryer the first light was finally finished!
Here are some shots of the install. Would have gone the gen 2 bumper & lights but after a complete engine rebuild before summer due to an IMS failure I went the next best.

osteoman

That looks great!

shyamvenky

looks stealthy

Ni_Mo

Thanks guys I wasn't 100% sure if I would like the Dectane style LEDs, but I think with the tint it makes a difference.

PhilD

Looks great.

Depending on your state laws you may run into an issue at inspection time. Tinting tail lights is illegal in Texas and I could not get the vehicle to pass an inspection with them installed. Of course you can just swap in the old ones when it is inspection time should you be so inclined.

997_Toronto

Looks great

socalgt3

I like the black out rear!

ECS Tuning

That turned out great Now you need some LED tag lights, for more information Click Here. Hows the engine been so far after the rebuild?

widers911

Nicely done! I just did my rear tail lights with Lamin-x all red film and it was major PIA as well. using the hairdryer helped thou

dasdman

I like the blacked out rear-end. Although I think it would be legal (law just says must be visible from 300 ft away), I would be worried about getting hit from behind and some moron using my tail lights as an excuse. I just did the Carrera letters and had the exhaust tips ceramic coated.



That would completely black out your back and make it look even meaner!!

PhilD

Varies from state to state, Texas is 1000' and you cannot tint them. From the TX DPS web site;

Any device that impairs the required effectiveness of headlamps, tail lamps, reflectors, etc, is prohibited. The lights, both front and rear, are made by the manufacturer to meet this safety standard. An alternate or additional material, particularly something dark, would impair its effectiveness. Additional information on lighting can be found in the Texas Transportation Code, Chapter 547, Subchapters D & E.


That is definitely something I could see happening!

Ni_Mo

Thanks for the link, was on my list of next things to do

The engine so far has been spot on, have done about 2000 miles with 1 oil change at 1500 miles with Millers Nanodrive CFS 10w50. I had all the head work done at the same time so the car really does pull.
TBH I have peace of mind now knowing that all the inherent problems with these engines have been removed

Ni_Mo

I like the exhaust tips! Being rear ended was one of my biggest concerns, I went for the Lamin-X smoke tint, which is the mid tint of their range and as I can see the LEDs are a "stronger light" than the original. As long as your lights are visible from 300 ft then I cant see how they can use it + alot of modern VWs & Audi's have tinted OEM lights.