painted tail lights??

5literstang

New Member
Apr 15, 2003
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Clark, NJ
ok can someone in here please tell me everything i need and exactly what i have to do to paint to my tail lights flat black? i ordered the saleen bezels but they keep screwing up my order so i said foget it and i am just goin to paint them. what kind of paint? what type of sand paper? and does the peice i am painting detatch from the red tails? or do i have to tape those up? thanks
 
I used a roll of 3" wide masking take, razor black, and black Krylon Fusion when I painted mine. Just tape off the lenses, cut it out with the razor blade, make sure the surface is clean, then spray the paint on. I think I ended up using 3 coats and make sure you give it enough time to dry.
 
I used 400 grit paper but its not needed. I just had some rough spots on my lights that I wanted to take off. Its totally up to you if you want to sand them first or not. If you do, use a fine grit paper so you wont see any sand scratches in it. Extra paint always helps cover up the scratches too.
 
I had mine like that for 5 months with no problems or fading and my car sits outside all the time... Heres a picture of my car. But I got my car repainted back in Nov and painted my tail lights back Rio Red because they wouldnt have looked good with black stripes.
pic03.jpg
 
It wont take you all day. I'd say a few hours max. The hardest part is taping the lenses up, but once you figure out a good way, its easy from there. I like to put one piece of tape on at a time, cut that one, then stick another one on, cut it, etc... That way your only cutting through 1 piece at a time. Good luck and post some pictures when you get it done.
 
Why tape the lenses? Just take the bezel off. Be very careful though they are kinda fragile. If I remember right theres a few small screws, once those are removed theres a few plastic clips. (This is for the 96-8) Take your time and you should be all set. Its alot easier than masking the lenses. I bought my 96-8 taillights on ebay for $50 but they were green. The body shop wanted $125 to spray them to match the car. I got a $5 can of Krylon satin black and a little sandpaper instead. I painted them a year ago and have had no problems with the finish. I did get some clear satin as a top coat though. (another $5)

http://forums.stangnet.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=9520
 
I think i read somewhere that the 94/95 lenses don't separate from the bezel like the 96+ ones, or at least don't come apart very easily. I dunno for sure tho, I've never tried to take them apart. But taping the lenses would be pretty easy. Just take your time.
 
pop your trunk and there should be plastic type screws on the trunk liner on the sides, not on the floor but on the sides. There a wing nut type screw so you can do it by hand, once those are out you can peal back the trunk liner and there are several screws w/ bolts on them that hold the lights onto the body. Unscrew the bolts and just pull, they will come right out. They should pull right off pretty easy, if not dont yank on them b/c you prob missed a screw just look for it, make sure you have a flashlight if your not in a well lit area so you can see better.

I sprayed painted my lights this past Nov b/c I had one new one and one used one and one was fadded more then the ohter so I painted them both. I did the same thing that 1105 did. I took them off, taped them up and painted them glossy black. I did sand them down some just to get a better surface for the paint to stick to. I used Krylon interior exterior paint. I also used a few coats of clear coat for the hell of it. They look really good, alot cheaper then taking them to a shop. Just take your time and dont rush it and they will look fine.