Fun with decals on the third brake light.
Fun with decals on the third brake light.
So I'm going through amazon.com to see if I find anything worth my money to get for the crossfire.
This for some reason pulled my eye a bit, and I personally think it's both a fun little mod and cheap.
What do you guys think? Is it worth to get a few laughs out of the people we leave behind when we pull away in our xfires?
This for some reason pulled my eye a bit, and I personally think it's both a fun little mod and cheap.
What do you guys think? Is it worth to get a few laughs out of the people we leave behind when we pull away in our xfires?
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Murfreesboro, TN
Age: 40
Posts: 6,349
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Re: Fun with decals on the third brake light.
I had to remove the rear wing to address a common leak/rust issue, so while I had the trim off I very carefully removed the CHMSL and applied the letters. I sprayed multiple coats of black Krylon Fusion over the entire red plastic area. After the paint had reached a tack-point, I very carefully used a needle/pin to lift each individual letter off the CHMSL. The result was pretty neat -- now, every time I apply the brakes, the word "CROSSFIRE" lights up. I like this mod especially since I de-badged the rear deck; this preserves the car's identity a bit.
Someone in the vinyl industry could easily replicate this, by offering the "strip" of black vinyl with the Crossfire letters cut out. All one would have to do is simply clean the surface of the CHMSL with alcohol, peel & stick, and secure with a heat gun/hair dryer. No painting, no tedious peeling. Best yet -- if you don't like the effect, you can peel it off. This could work for the roadster guys as well
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Murfreesboro, TN
Age: 40
Posts: 6,349
Likes: 0
Received 14 Likes
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13 Posts
Re: Fun with decals on the third brake light.
~ i would love to help if there's an interest ... i would need some measurements of the 3rd brake light flat area.
perhaps we can keep them under $10 shipped for the crossfire font lettering?
design ideas? thoughts? will they adhere to the textured area? is it easy to disassemble?
cheers!
perhaps we can keep them under $10 shipped for the crossfire font lettering?
design ideas? thoughts? will they adhere to the textured area? is it easy to disassemble?
cheers!
Re: Fun with decals on the third brake light.
Umm, the only problem is the fact that it would need me to take out the third brake light lol. I think I would break that stuff in a second since I'm not well versed with assembly stuff. Who wants to put in the lettering for me? I'll pay in beer/money/more beer if need be!:P
Re: Fun with decals on the third brake light.
~ i would love to help if there's an interest ... i would need some measurements of the 3rd brake light flat area.
perhaps we can keep them under $10 shipped for the crossfire font lettering?
design ideas? thoughts? will they adhere to the textured area? is it easy to disassemble?
cheers!
perhaps we can keep them under $10 shipped for the crossfire font lettering?
design ideas? thoughts? will they adhere to the textured area? is it easy to disassemble?
cheers!
The lens is very smooth so a vinyl decal should work well.
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Murfreesboro, TN
Age: 40
Posts: 6,349
Likes: 0
Received 14 Likes
on
13 Posts
Re: Fun with decals on the third brake light.
~ i would love to help if there's an interest ... i would need some measurements of the 3rd brake light flat area.
perhaps we can keep them under $10 shipped for the crossfire font lettering?
design ideas? thoughts? will they adhere to the textured area? is it easy to disassemble?
cheers!
perhaps we can keep them under $10 shipped for the crossfire font lettering?
design ideas? thoughts? will they adhere to the textured area? is it easy to disassemble?
cheers!
Dis-assembly is a piece-o-cake. Remove the quarter-sized screw cover in the handle part on the lower trim panel, and remove the small torx screw. Now, firmly grab the lower trim (near the latch on the liftgate) and pull down. It simply pops off. Next, you'll see two more torx screws on the U-shaped piece of trim that surrounds the remainder of the hatch. Remove those screws, and pop the trim off. The CHMSL is now exposed -- simply loosen the three screws (Phillips head) and unplug the harness. You now have the CHMSL in your hand, ready to apply vinyl and/or paint. Reverse the process, being careful to replace any of the tiny black foam pieces used to reduce NVH (they fall off over time). Female velcro can work as well, if you've lost all of the silencers.
Cheers,
Re: Fun with decals on the third brake light.
The red LED cover on the Coupe is smooth, but it's embossed in a convex manner -- think "reverse egg-crate". IF you prep the area with alcohol, the vinyl would have no issue sticking. I'd say to use an adhesion promoter (3M vinyl adhesive) but I fear that would result in a chemical "fogging" once the panels are reassembled. That area is in direct sunlight and is sealed pretty tight once everything is back in place -- meaning any outgassing would simply obscure the glass. Since the trim is held on by those dreaded plastic clips, it's best to keep the removals to a minimum.
Dis-assembly is a piece-o-cake. Remove the quarter-sized screw cover in the handle part on the lower trim panel, and remove the small torx screw. Now, firmly grab the lower trim (near the latch on the liftgate) and pull down. It simply pops off. Next, you'll see two more torx screws on the U-shaped piece of trim that surrounds the remainder of the hatch. Remove those screws, and pop the trim off. The CHMSL is now exposed -- simply loosen the three screws (Phillips head) and unplug the harness. You now have the CHMSL in your hand, ready to apply vinyl and/or paint. Reverse the process, being careful to replace any of the tiny black foam pieces used to reduce NVH (they fall off over time). Female velcro can work as well, if you've lost all of the silencers.
Cheers,
Dis-assembly is a piece-o-cake. Remove the quarter-sized screw cover in the handle part on the lower trim panel, and remove the small torx screw. Now, firmly grab the lower trim (near the latch on the liftgate) and pull down. It simply pops off. Next, you'll see two more torx screws on the U-shaped piece of trim that surrounds the remainder of the hatch. Remove those screws, and pop the trim off. The CHMSL is now exposed -- simply loosen the three screws (Phillips head) and unplug the harness. You now have the CHMSL in your hand, ready to apply vinyl and/or paint. Reverse the process, being careful to replace any of the tiny black foam pieces used to reduce NVH (they fall off over time). Female velcro can work as well, if you've lost all of the silencers.
Cheers,