brociouz

iTrader: (65)

Awesome job man! Does the clear lens make a big difference? Been thinking about that lens mod for a while but wasn't sure how dramatic a change it would be.

OPTiK

Pretty sick, I was planning on doing the same mods this summer (JVX inspired). The only thing that scares me a little is retrofitting the H1's into the fogs, lots of fab work getting them to fit. In terms of head lights I was just gonna black them out and replace the lense with the STi lens...though I might have to rip that vinyl idea

binhster

I think the STI-R lenses are worth it if you decide to black out the housings, but probably not worth taking apart for soul purpose of swapping lenses. As you probably already know, the width of IS HID projectors is narrow and intensity is so-so compared to other HID projectors out there (i.e. TL/TSX/S2k/RX AFS, Mini H1/D2S). Intensity definitely improved a little and of course cutoff is sharp now. I didn't complete any comparison tests though to back up my claim. There is a tinge of orangish/yellow and slight purple in the cutoff though, but not much. My TL ZKW-R is probably wider than the IS projectors with AFS on. Same can be said about my previous Mazda3 D2S OEM projectors with clear lenses.

CTlex7

so dope. jealous

relaxfoo

iTrader: (1)

can you do my set!?

binhster

The shroud and reflector bowl are metal inside the foglights. I discovered this when I took then apart a few days ago. As far as cutting/grinding, it doesn't look like it's that hard to mess up since the metal is strong so if you cut too much off the reflector bowl, it'll still be robust enough to handle the projector's weight.

Due to the small volume inside the foglights, I think using carbon fiber vinyl will be too risky unless the heat buidup issue can be mitigated. The grey adhesive inside the foglights have a higher melting point than the black adhesive used in the headlights.

MDOTM

ganasta...good job

fr0st

iTrader: (6)

do you feel like you noticeably get better visibility by changing out the lenses?

joeker

iTrader: (8)

Not my cup of tea with the CF, but nicely executed.

viprtwo

iTrader: (15)

how much are the STI lenses? did you have to open up a set of STI lights for that?

OPTiK

Yeah, its too hot in the fog assembly, i meant the headlights Definitely post some pics of the fog assembly mod process if you have time, that'd be awesome!

brociouz

iTrader: (65)

Reading is your friend.

You buy the lenses separately. The "R" stands for replica, btw, since these are aftermarket lenses.

CCM03

iTrader: (1)

Very nicely done! looks great

kumquatism

iTrader: (10)

I'd say it's too much work to just open up the headlights for only a lens swap. If you already plan on opening them up for other reasons (painting) then I'd go with a lens swap.
It's actually not too hard to swap the lens once you get the headlights opened up. I put a TSX-R lens into my S2k projectors, and it adds a nice blue color to the cutoff line. The IS projector obviously wont get the same results, but from what I hear, you get a much sharper cutoff, as you can see in his pictures. I'm not sure how much output is affected though...as that's primarily affected by the projector design rather than the lens.

binhster

Short answer is yes, it is noticeable especially since I can see the cutoff everywhere I drive. It's really easy to spot the AFS in action now. Also, I noticed that the projectors go cross-eyed when I hit big dips going down a hill since there's a little play inside the AFS swivel mounts by design. All things I did not notice before.

The stock OEM lenses have the fresnel ripples as well as small round dots all over them sort of like a golf ball. All these play into the poor cutoff. When I stare through them, I can barely recognize objects on the other side. With the STI-R Lens, I can cleanly see through it. They also do not have a slight yellowish tint of color like the stock ones do.

I can't quantify the increase in light output, but they're definitely more than adequate enough for me to be satisfied with. The Mini H1's will cure any desire for a hybrid projector retro inside the headlights.

As for doing this mod for other people, I simply do not have the time to endure this procedure more than I have to, but I'm more than willing to offer anyone advice/guidance if anyone needs it.