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Ghost96R's Morimoto D2S 4.0 projector retrofit

5K views 28 replies 9 participants last post by  dv3andrs 
#1 · (Edited)
Let me preface this by saying I could not, or would not have attempted this without the help and guidance from @GreatAvalon post regarding his retrofit. I appreciate all his help! [emoji1360]

You can find his very detailed write-up here. GreatAvalon's Retrofit v2.0: 2016 Tundra

http://www.tundratalk.net/forums/showthread.php?t=659721


The purpose of me writing this was to just point out some of the difficulty I had, problems, and setbacks that some may encounter

I purchased Morimoto D2S 4.0 projectors, Morimoto MotoControl Relay Harness, 35w Morimoto Ballast, Gatling Gun 1.0 shrouds, and Osram CBI 5500k bulbs. Couple Silica Gel packs, Retrorubber and I was good to go.

Let's start with the bad.
Ok, the 235* temperature didn't quite work out so well for me for opening up my headlights. The black plastic wasn't hot enough to bend and separate from the lens when trying to separate from the Permaseal and I ended up spending about 2 hours just getting one lens apart.

Oven Toaster oven Kitchen appliance Home appliance Microwave oven

I started getting impatient with it and decided to up the temp to 260*, and went back in multiple times to get the Permaseal soft. It seemed to work much better and was more pliable.
Kitchen appliance Oven Home appliance Toaster oven Microwave oven

So here's tip #1 : there may be slight temperature variations between ovens, my suggestion would be to start off slow and get a feel for how pliable the Permaseal is, if it's tearing or you can't bend the back plastic back, you need to go up in temp.

Moving on.

Once everything was apart, I used this cutting dremel bit from the inside of the lens and slowly shaved out the size I would need for the projector to seat in.
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Its about $8 at Lowes.

Tip #2 : don't be a dumbass like myself and cut a round circle when the projector might be oval shaped. I learned this after the first one and made a more appropriate cut on the second lens.
Vehicle Car


Next, time for paint and primer. Nothing fancy and I was surprised how closely the Metallic paint matched the Magnetic Grey. Take your time and don't overspray. Multiple light coats are best.

Product Tire Automotive tire Rim

Material property Label

Footwear Personal protective equipment Wood Shoe Shorts

Motorcycle accessories

Clothes hanger Wood


Then run your wiring, ballasts and all that stuff. I would avoid anything permenant until your almost done because I found my ballasts and grounds would not reach the same areas that his did. Here's my passenger ground
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Then I zip tied the projector to the bumper to test the bulbs, high beam function, etc for about 10 minutes to make sure I didn't have issues once the projectors went in.

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Once everything was painted and dried, I went with GreatAvalons suggestion to mount the projectors with JB Stick (obviously since I cut the hole already) Discussing with him we discovered that this stuff will harden at different times probably based on ambient temperature. I'm not kidding when I say that this stuff was rock hard in less than 5 minutes for my application. It was also 90* outside.

Land vehicle Vehicle Car Automotive exterior Auto part


And here's where I ran into another issue... it's very hard to hold the projector when it's lit to align the beam against the garage wall, apply JB Stick to the back, not get the lens dirty, and not obstruct the beam. These Morimoto D2S 4.0 lenses don't have much of a body to hold onto when trying to push them into the reflector bowl. Just forewarning. I don't know of another way to accomplish it though. Just gotta go for it.

Automotive exterior Vehicle door Vehicle Headlamp Auto part

White Wall Tile Architecture Line

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Now came time to mount/trim the projector shrouds. I wanted the Gatling Gun 1.0's.... they suck. They don't suck because they're ugly, they suck because they don't fit on the new projectors. This was confirmed by LightWerkz only after I emailed them asking how they are supposed to mount and if it was even possible. There isn't a clipping function on them like most shrouds. I was told," Yes the only way is to trim out the inner tabs/edges. Its not the easiest shroud to fit on this model."

Here's what the inside lip of them looks like.

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And they are small.... like I couldn't squeeze them on to save my life. So, I spent WAY too much time shaving these down with my dremel to eventually get it like this.

Headlamp Automotive lighting Light Automotive design Auto part


Now since I don't have any tabs or clips on the backside to clip to the lens, I avoided the JB Weld on the lip and decided my best option was a small lip of Loctite plastic epoxy on the area between the shroud and the metal lens holder. I literally applied this with a toothpick around the circumference of the lens. It sucked and it's not pretty. I pride myself in attention to detail, but there was just no way of making this perfect. This is a photo of the worst spot.

Automotive lighting Light Headlamp Auto part Automotive fog light


Which brings me to my next issue on these shrouds.... because I needed to trim them to fit deep enough into the bowl and around the lens, they lost some of their width at the base and didn't cover the projector or all the JB stick securing them in place. A pretty big eyesore of you ask me, but at this point I didn't care as long as I knew they were secure and weren't moving.
If you look closely on the right edge you can see it, I tried to paint it flat black, but if you look hard enough it's still there.

So there it is... couple tips for you guys. I'm humble enough to admit my failures and learn from some of my mistakes on this first retrofit. Hopefully this can prevent someone else from making the same mistakes I did.

Overall I think they turned out ok and they are definitely have the form follows function approach. Here's some completed photos.

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Car Headlamp Automotive lighting Vehicle Automotive exterior

Headlamp Automotive lighting Automotive exterior Vehicle Car

Car Vehicle Automotive lighting Automotive exterior Headlamp
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Now the good....
The light output is ridiculous, I mean like really ridiculous.... clear, wide and bright.

Light Bumper Automotive exterior Automotive lighting Auto part

Headlamp Automotive lighting Car Vehicle Light


I haven't been able to get many night driving shots, but rest assured a retrofit is the way to go for these trucks. @GreatAvalon was right when he said the high beams are like turning on the sun. You can see for miles! I'll have more night shots to follow eventually.

Enjoy guys!
 
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#3 ·
GreatAvalon has the great write up, not me. I simply wanted to point out issues.
 
#4 ·
Forgot to add... if I didn't mention a step on the retrofit it's because I did the exact same thing as GreatAvalons post and didn't feel necessary to write it in.
 
#5 ·
They look awesome, great job!

I think you addressed a lot of things people will run into as they work their way through the whole retrofitting process. Should be really helpful for people doing their research before starting. :thumbsup:

A huge takeaway from your retrofit is use different shrouds :D
 
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#7 ·
I appreciate it!

I'd say other than the total tools and equipment I already own such as the dremel, it probably cost me $50 outside of the retrofit itself.

Dremel cutting bit- $8
2 JB stick- $10
1 JB weld- $5
Paint cans- $15
Miscellaneous clips, RTV silicone, screws- $15

I also bought a spare set of headlights off Craigslist for $150.

The entire retrofit kit cost about $400 from LightWerkz.

The biggest "cost" I would say is the time it takes to complete the retrofit.
 
#8 ·
im going to attempt this here next week thanks for the write up along with the others...You put the JB weld stick on the backs of projectors press them into the reflector housing and align them all before cure time correct?
 
#9 ·
Yep. So lightly press the projector into the housing to get an idea where the contact points hit the bowl, then I think I put 3 smaller pieces on the corners I could grab. Once it cured (after 5 mins) I started adding little bits and pieces in areas I felt could benefit from reinforcing.
 
#10 ·
i like your style. those shrouds are a pain but look the best imo.
 
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#13 ·
Automotive lighting Car Vehicle Light Automotive design


Side note... with these projectors (maybe any projector) you get a pretty cool, slightly ominous look sometimes when the lights are off.
 
#16 ·
I feel like this next video addresses exactly what GreatAvalon was saying in why it's easier to try his method. Enjoy guys.

 
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#17 ·
^Yep, that's EXACTLY why I did and recommend an alternative mounting method rather than thread mounting. Very reassuring with Cesar saying the same. Thanks for sharing that video.

Did you end up using any screws with your JB mounting, or did you just stick with the JB?
 
#18 ·
Only able to put two screws through one of them, the other holes were blocked with JB stick on the other light. [emoji53]
 
#19 ·
Here's a short clip of my dashcam video showing how the lights perform. I think a little light output is lost at the edges on the video, but that appears attributed to the limitations of the dashcam as I don't have those dark areas present when I'm driving. I think the color and intensity is comparable to what I'm seeing when I'm driving.

 
#21 ·
Here's a short clip of my dashcam video showing how the lights perform. I think a little light output is lost at the edges on the video, but that appears attributed to the limitations of the dashcam as I don't have those dark areas present when I'm driving. I think the color and intensity is comparable to what I'm seeing when I'm driving.

https://youtu.be/pc2bwWJthfk
Can't tell if this is high or low.

Looks like your right light is higher as the zag on wall in center is present throughout.
 
#20 ·
Same trip just the second clip from the dashcam. Mostly hilly and winding road will give you an idea on how the lights work.

 
#25 ·
Hey, thank you! I certainly agree
 
#27 ·
The photo right underneath it shows the number and color code from the UPC code.
 
#28 ·
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