JhnRX7 Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 So I have been trying to think of some ways I can give my S130 a nice subtile updated look. I saw some pictures of KTM-EXC's S130 (beautiful S130 BTW) and noticed he had smoked his tail lights. His car inspired me to try it on mine. They look great on his black car, but I was not so sure how it would look on my red car. So, I found a REALLY cheap pair of tail lights on ebay and figured I would give it a shot. I used one can of VHT NiteShade. I did not want the lights too dark so i only did a couple really light coats. I also had them professionally clear-coated. If you are thinking about tinting your lights with this stuff then I would absolutely recommend getting them professionally cleared. Night and day difference! They turned out great, however I have not decided if I like it yet. Let me know what you guys think. How light looks under direct sunlight. All the lights shine through without a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrumpetRhapsody Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 They look good that way, matches your tint nicely. Now get a body kit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruiz Racing Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 were did you get those and what kind of red is that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JhnRX7 Posted August 5, 2008 Author Share Posted August 5, 2008 Thanks for the input TrumpetRhapsody! Im not really in love with any of the body kits that are available today. Stock body is fine, but maybe with a little adjustments... I was thinking about possibly shaving the stubs on the front and rear bumpers, however I have not looked too much into that yet and don't even know if it is possible. It definitely needs to be lowered though. I think I am going to save up and go all out. Modern Motorsports rear coilovers and front... coilover kit thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RB26powered74zcar Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 That looks really nice!! You have a great looking ZX, and you deserve the props... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JhnRX7 Posted August 5, 2008 Author Share Posted August 5, 2008 were did you get those and what kind of red is that? The paint is "Performance Red" off of a 2000 Mustang. I "smoked" them myself (except for the clear coat at the end). It is pretty cheap. The VHT NiteShade was about $20 shipped from ebay. Other places also sell it, but apparently everywhere is out of stock due to something going on with the company that produces it. Getting it clear coated really depends on who you know or where you go. It could be free or as much as $40-$50. It is really simple to do: 1) Remove tail lights. 2) Wet sand tail lights using 1500 or 2000 grit sand paper. if your tail lights are the 81-83 version like mine try and go easy in the cracks when sanding. It is painted black in between the raised sections and I did not want to sand through that black in some spot and have it look uneven. 3) Clean and spray on VHT. Spraying this stuff is pretty tricky, you have to keep it at least 10" away and spray in long even strokes. It is very easy to mess up and make it look uneven. If you don't want to make them too dark like i did, then you don't really have room for error. Mine was only 2 light coats. 4) LIGHTLY wet sand with 2000 grit. Just barely enough to scratch the surface and make it smooth. If you press too hard or sand too much you will go straight through the paint. 5) bring to paint shop and have it clear coated. They did mine while I waited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rustyfriend Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 that is a very nice looking s130! it is screaming for exhaust though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JhnRX7 Posted August 5, 2008 Author Share Posted August 5, 2008 that is a very nice looking s130! it is screaming for exhaust though... Thanks! I want to get an exhaust REALLY bad, but at the same time I want to wait until I do the L28ET swap. When I go turbo I am going to want to have a 3" exhaust. I don't want to have to get an exhaust twice, or go 3" on the NA because I cant imagine that would sound good... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JhnRX7 Posted August 5, 2008 Author Share Posted August 5, 2008 That looks really nice!! You have a great looking ZX, and you deserve the props... Thank you! Here are a couple of night shots I just took. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rturbo 930 Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 I like em. Very clean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daeron Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 Wow, I wasn't expecting to see Palm Beach county on the tag... Nice ZX! I like the smoked tail light look, but one question.. have you considered photoshopping a picture to paint the area between the tail lights body color? That might bring the effect of the smoked tail lights out a bit more, but it might not. Also, have you considered getting one of the finishing pieces that mount in place of the license plate? Especially if you go with a "280ZX turbo" one, smoked.. the effect might be DEVASTATING... I don't head down to Boca much, but hopefully one of these days I will see you on the road!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woldson Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 I was thinking about painting the "lines" that red, smoked or not, with Daeron's suggestion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
e_racer1999 Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 i personally like the full blacked out rear section. If it were me, I would paint those thin remaining strips between the tails and the black section so that it's all black. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JhnRX7 Posted August 5, 2008 Author Share Posted August 5, 2008 Wow, I wasn't expecting to see Palm Beach county on the tag... Nice ZX! I like the smoked tail light look, but one question.. have you considered photoshopping a picture to paint the area between the tail lights body color? That might bring the effect of the smoked tail lights out a bit more, but it might not. Also, have you considered getting one of the finishing pieces that mount in place of the license plate? Especially if you go with a "280ZX turbo" one, smoked.. the effect might be DEVASTATING... I don't head down to Boca much, but hopefully one of these days I will see you on the road!! I actually just brought the car up to Philly with me. Im in my 3rd year of school up here. ...I dont know too many neighborhoods in Boca that have row homes haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daeron Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 I actually just brought the car up to Philly with me. Im in my 3rd year of school up here. ...I dont know too many neighborhoods in Boca that have row homes haha Well, I could TELL it wasn't in dear, muggy old so-fla...... (I stepped out of my air conditioned bedroom this afternoon, out into my hallway with no central AC.. it took effort to walk through the air. 346429% relative humidity for the loss ) I live in about the closest thing I have seen to an "old brick house" down here.. and its just an old CBS house with brick fascia on it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JhnRX7 Posted August 6, 2008 Author Share Posted August 6, 2008 i personally like the full blacked out rear section. If it were me, I would paint those thin remaining strips between the tails and the black section so that it's all black. I think this will tie it together nicely. I will do this the next chance I get. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JhnRX7 Posted August 6, 2008 Author Share Posted August 6, 2008 I also smoked the front turn signals and marker lights. I went much darker with these, to the point where I was concerned that the light would not shine through. Shines through perfectly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cockerstar Posted August 8, 2008 Share Posted August 8, 2008 The NiteShade stuff is pretty awesome! You can make taillights look almost completely black and still have it shine through without any problems. You can definitely see that with your front turn signals Personally, I think your car would look great with black bumpers. Seeing them in red is kind of throwing me off a bit. Same with the side view mirrors As far as exhaust, I'd go for a 3" system now. If anything else, it will just be motivation do get the l28et swap going. What happened to your headlight covers? Any plans for the rear side markers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JhnRX7 Posted August 8, 2008 Author Share Posted August 8, 2008 The NiteShade stuff is pretty awesome! You can make taillights look almost completely black and still have it shine through without any problems. You can definitely see that with your front turn signals Personally, I think your car would look great with black bumpers. Seeing them in red is kind of throwing me off a bit. Same with the side view mirrors As far as exhaust, I'd go for a 3" system now. If anything else, it will just be motivation do get the l28et swap going. What happened to your headlight covers? Any plans for the rear side markers? I like the look of the painted bumpers. Side view mirrors in black might be cool though, I would like to eventually Get the fender mirrors. One of the headlight covers was cracked so I took them off. Also, the ones that were on there were really dark and the headlights could barley shine through. Im starting to like the look of it without the covers. Rear side markers are going to stay red. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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