Tinting the tail lights

I'm not a fan of the 2010-2013 LR4 tail lights. The 2014+ tails are marginally better but cost a bomb to buy. After trying Lamin-X and some random Amazon vinyl tint I realized I'm really REALLY bad at applying vinyl.

That led me to the VHT Nite Shades spray tint. I have used the black spray on some cars in the past so I figured the red tint would work well for me. I started with doing a 1500 grit wet-sand of both tails, then followed it up with an alcohol wipe to make sure they were as clean as I could get them.

I laid down four coats of the red tint and wet sanded them to remove imperfections and the random garbage that got stuck in the paint due to the wind. I followed that up with four coats of Spraymax 2K clear. I still need to wet sand and polish the final product once it fully cures but I'm super stoked on the results.

I would have done more coats of clear but the clearcoat spray can decided to stop working near the end.

In the future I plan on getting a set of LR3 tails and bodging them together to keep the ECU happy. This is a nice interim solution.

While I am generally not a fan of tinting tailights I applaud your effort for an improved look. Put me in the camp of not liking the LR4 taillights, I much prefer my LR3 reds.

Decided the orange peel doesn’t bother me that much so I’m forgoing wet sanding for the time being. Since the clearcoat has cured sufficiently I hit the tail lights with Meguiars 105, followed up with 3D Speed, and then topped with Griot’s 3-in-1 Ceramic Wax. Still really happy with the results.

EDIT: Yes I’m still waiting on my plate. The DMV sent me my plate without a current registration decal. For some inexplicable reason they sent my registration decal to the dealer in Illinois… who is then going to mail it BACK to me in KC. I’m so perplexed but then again nothing the DMV does surprises me any more.

Looks great.