Headlight mods with Bavgruppe DTM style LED rings

[thetastelingers]

Back a couple of months ago, I saw an @ozc thread here showing his headlight mods. With his inspiration, I decided to tackle my own headlights.

This will not be a complete DIY, because I can't remember to take pictures of everything I do. I just hope that posting what I did can help people in the future tackle what they have in their heads for their headlights.
I'll also be adding my comments on the bavgruppe instructions and what I would do differently.

I found another thread by M3PO here showing all the information and more details on how he did his.

A good friend in town does some headlight mods as well as hydrographics. He will be doing this full time starting in 2018. If you are interested in having something done, he can be contacted via facebook here

Took a before shot.
20170921_202036 by thetastelingers, on Flickr


Here's a shot after baking and removal of the front cover.
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When you purchase Bavgruppe LED rings, they send you a link on their suggestions on how to install them.

Here are all the parts removed.


20171009_193037 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

For the install, there needs to be a relief cut made into the shroud as shown.


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I went to a local automotive paint store and got them to mix up some paint.I don't have a good set up for painting, so I tried out these sprayers. They did an alright job. I ended up taking my parts to a friend that mods headlights and had him spray the clear on all the parts for me with his pro setup.

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Here are the parts sanded and waiting for paint.

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Here is one cut shroud vs the uncut shroud. There were no measurements provided for where to cut or how long or deep, so there was quite a bit of time figuring out exactly where to make the cut.

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Here are the white painted parts before the clear coat was applied.

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And the rest of them.

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Continued...

[thetastelingers]

At this point, I wanted to do a test fit and see what I had going on.
This is still before clear coat.


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There was one shroud that was a complete PITA.
When we shot clear over it, the paint started to bubble up.
I ended up having to strip the entire thing. When I did, it messed up some of the plastic, so I had to do some filling.

20171017_205744 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

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Test fitting with clear applied.

20171019_125536 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

At this point, it is time to start setting the LED Rings.
You want to set the rings parallel to the ground. This is a painstaking task.

20171019_132108 by thetastelingers, on Flickr


Lots of looking and tweaking

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Shoe GOO is what I used to mate the parts together. It is workable for a few minutes, dries like epoxy and can be removable if needed. The instructions say to plastic weld the rings in, but this way if they need to be removed, it won't be as hard.

20171019_155419 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

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Something else I added to my build (to the suggestion of my buddy Eric) were some new lenses. He also some etching for me. (also at his suggestion)
He mods headlights and provides this service if you are interested. You can find him on facebook here

20171023_190605 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

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MORE test fitting

20171023_203512 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

continued...

[thetastelingers]

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Ok so time to fit the Eyebrows and do some cutting on the Rings. trimming the ring is required, because they are too wide to allow the cover to go on. IMO they should cast the rings with this into them already since they are made for this car anyway.

20171024_210953 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

In this picture, you can see the ring and where I started cutting.

20171025_213759 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

I ended up sanding the cut portion with 320, 400, 800, 1500, 2000 grits, then finishing with "finesse" polishing compound.

More fitting and clearance testing.

20171101_225630 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

Eric said TEST EVERYTHING before you put the covers on. He said you can get pretty angry if it is all together and something doesn't work.

Here is the driver side.

20171102_100113 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

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Ok, so I purchased the butyl sealant to put the headlights back together.
Got everything back together and see a spot on the eyebrow. Turns out that maybe it being smushed against the cover and the heat caused the paint to smudge. Below is a picture of that.

20171102_110502 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

Now that the driver side is together, time to do the passenger side.
Here is the passenger side.

20171102_114332 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

Here are both of them finished side by side.
I got a little bit of the gray smudges on the passenger side, but a lot smaller than the driver side.

20171102_124836 by thetastelingers, on Flickr

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continued...

[thetastelingers]

Final fit on the car.

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Got the car outside for the finished pictures.

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Really happy with them.

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If I had it to do over again, I would buy new covers. These covers have some pitting in them. I would also cut more on the rings, so that the cover wouldn't push on them and make the shroud look crooked vs the lens.
Other than that, I am pretty happy with them.

I hope this helps any of you who choose to tackle this task.
There is a reason these pros charge so much to do these headlights. Everything they do has to be top notch and no corners cut, or it is a reflection on the job they do.

I'll gladly answer any questions.

Thanks

[Davidnguyen204]

Well done sir!

[Spun Crankhub]

So even after trimming, the rings still obstruct re-insallation of lenses?

[thetastelingers]

Originally Posted by TacoChris

So even after trimming, the rings still obstruct re-insallation of lenses?

Yes. Even after trimming that is required at the base mount for the shroud and trimming the top of the ring, they still hit the lens and push on the shroud.

[kerrit]

Thanks for the thread. This re-affirms that I will not be doing any painting, and just going to do the DTM halos and CF eyebrows when I do the mods this winter

[jiggz]

Originally Posted by kerrit

Thanks for the thread. This re-affirms that I will not be doing any painting, and just going to do the DTM halos and CF eyebrows when I do the mods this winter

At least w/ OneEighty, they require you paint at least the shrouds. They said trying to handle the chrome shrouds, the finish is so delicate that it almost always gets messed up, so they prefer to paint. They tried to retain the chrome on mine but messed up my shrouds and we're going to try again with a spare set they had, but it was just taking so long, and I needed the headlights back, so they painted them gloss silver. I also didn't have any lens upgrade options (euro clear lens & clear cornering lens) w/ the chrome, they wouldn't even try. Once painted, I was able to add the better lenses. Which I recommend if you're pulling the headlights apart.

Anyhow, just an FYI. Not saying whatever you have planned won't work. Good luck!

[///IVI III]

Originally Posted by TacoChris

So even after trimming, the rings still obstruct re-insallation of lenses?

To avoid contact with the lens, I resorted to sanding down the corner edge of angel eye with Dremel, then applied 800 grit sand to the area, then 1200 grit, then metal polish. (Could have probably done with more polishing)
You can see the frosted area in image below. Not ideal but is better than scratching the inside of your lens. There is about a 1mm gap between angel eye and lens. (At the top)
It does not affect light output.

[Spun Crankhub]

Originally Posted by thetastelingers

Yes. Even after trimming that is required at the base mount for the shroud and trimming the top of the ring, they still hit the lens and push on the shroud.

Thanks for making this diy. Ive done a few sets with the old round rings, and rings touching lenses was not an issue. Got some DTM's for my next set, so definitely glad I am armed wit this info.

[Spun Crankhub]

Originally Posted by ///IVI III

To avoid contact with the lens, I resorted to sanding down the corner edge of angel eye with Dremel, then applied 1200 grit sand to the area, then 800 grit, then metal polish. (Could have probably done with more polishing)
You can see the frosted area in image below. Not ideal but is better than scratching the inside of your lens. There is about a 1mm gap between angel eye and lens. (At the top)
It does not affect light output.

Good info, and great looking lights! My preferred sand/polish technique is usually 600 grit - 2000 grit, followed by Meguiar's M205 polish, and sealed with Chemical Guys Blacklight sealant. For me I am always left with a crystal clear, scratch free finish that will be protected from the sun.

[///IVI III]

Originally Posted by TacoChris

Good info, and great looking lights! My preferred sand/polish technique is usually 600 grit - 2000 grit, followed by Meguiar's M205 polish, and sealed with Chemical Guys Blacklight sealant. For me I am always left with a crystal clear, scratch free finish that will be protected from the sun.

Thanks mate.
by the time I reached this stage of the headlight mod, my patience was running short.. and I could not find 2000 grit.. didn't even know it exists.. anyway..
Will definitely consider your method for next time..

[thetastelingers]

Originally Posted by ///IVI III

To avoid contact with the lens, I resorted to sanding down the corner edge of angel eye with Dremel, then applied 800 grit sand to the area, then 1200 grit, then metal polish. (Could have probably done with more polishing)
You can see the frosted area in image below. Not ideal but is better than scratching the inside of your lens. There is about a 1mm gap between angel eye and lens. (At the top)
It does not affect light output.

Originally Posted by ///IVI III

Thanks mate.
by the time I reached this stage of the headlight mod, my patience was running short.. and I could not find 2000 grit.. didn't even know it exists.. anyway..
Will definitely consider your method for next time..

Yeah going to 1500 to 2000 was a big difference then hitting with polishing compound helped even more.
Thanks for posting the pictures. It'll give the next person more ammo to work with.

[thetastelingers]

Originally Posted by TacoChris

Thanks for making this diy. Ive done a few sets with the old round rings, and rings touching lenses was not an issue. Got some DTM's for my next set, so definitely glad I am armed wit this info.

Exactly why I posted all this. I love being able to find information on the internet before I start with a project.
Just trying to do my part.

[Spun Crankhub]

Originally Posted by ///IVI III

.. and I could not find 2000 grit.. didn't even know it exists..

2500 is out there, and if you are really serious about your finish get hold of a 3m 3000 grit finishing pad. When using those two I like to use Meguiar's quik detailer as lube instead of water.

[Chris_Rav]

Do you have any pictures of the wiring or a wiring diagram by any chance? Or even just instructions that came with the rings for wiring them up?

I want to purchase a set of these to replace the failing rings in my headlights now but somebody else wired them and I want to see if the bavgruppe rings wire up the same way.

[azndrunk74]

Originally Posted by Chris_Rav

Do you have any pictures of the wiring or a wiring diagram by any chance? Or even just instructions that came with the rings for wiring them up?

I want to purchase a set of these to replace the failing rings in my headlights now but somebody else wired them and I want to see if the bavgruppe rings wire up the same way.

wiring is plug and play into the original angel eye plug.

[EYC.M3]

impressive!! We are also gather ideas and planning to do our shop car as well!

[thetastelingers]

Originally Posted by azndrunk74

wiring is plug and play into the original angel eye plug.

[Sherbakoff]

Looks pretty cool.
What's the reason to place new angel eye above stock one?
Also interested in how the eyebrow is held inside?

[thetastelingers]

Originally Posted by Sherbakoff

Looks pretty cool.
What's the reason to place new angel eye above stock one?
Also interested in how the eyebrow is held inside?

The stock angel eye is what holds the assembly together.

Eyebrow is held with double sided sticky tape and the housing pushes against it
to hold it in place as well.