Eagle Eye LED concern

[Newjack]

Okay so after I started installing them I found one thing that concerns me. Khoalty's DIY mentions a black trim piece that you will need to save from your old lights and put on the new ones. My car doesn't seem to have this.

"Also you have to use the black trim things off your current lights and move them to your new ones. These are a b*tch to remove if you have never done it before. The easiest way I could do it was to insert a small flathead screwdriver between and pry up gently. You could try spraying WD-40 on the fins that clip and then sliding it off… but I don’t know how well that would work. I went with the screwdriver. Getting these off your old lights and onto your new ones is probably the toughest part aside from pulling all the panels off the car. You can see the black trim I am talking about on the outside of the trunk on the left side of the picture."


Ok so I originally thought it was this piece.



But that piece doesn't look like it is supposed to come off, and there would be no way to attach it to the EE light.

Notice the lack of a gap when the OEM light is installed.


Compared to the gap with the EE light installed




Will this allow water to leak in over time? Or am I just over reacting? Why doesn't my car have the black trim piece that is mentioned in the DIY?

[UdubBadger]

yeah water will run through there when you wash the car or it rains. it's basically a gutter system to keep the contents of the trunk from getting wet... at least it was in my last 2 BMW's

[Newjack]

yeah water will run through there when you wash the car or it rains. it's basically a gutter system to keep the contents of the trunk from getting wet... at least it was in my last 2 BMW's

So the EE's are ok?

[UdubBadger]

personally, i'd throw some weather stripping or something in there to block it up a bit more but you might be ok w/o it.

[UdubBadger]

this is what I meant by the gutter

[Newjack]

Yeah I saw that video earlier during my search. The thing is, my car doesn't have that black weather stripping piece. Compare my car with the car in the video. Its different.



Gingervolt + TT

[kayger12]

Maybe a PO changed out for EEs at some point, and re-installed the stock tails prior to sale but didn't replace the stripping?

[Newjack]

Maybe a PO changed out for EEs at some point, and re-installed the stock tails prior to sale but didn't replace the stripping?

Sorry, let me try to explain this again, its tough to explain this stuff through text.

In the above video, they guy mentions a plastic weather stripping piece that you will need to replace. On his car there is space for it. On my car there is only a gap maybe an inch wide that I could put that plastic piece. It's as if my rear end is different from every E46 that I have seen with EE installed. I don't have that plastic piece because it wouldn't fit in my car.

I just can't figure out why my car is different than all the other ones I have seen. Does that make sense?

[kayger12]

Ah-- yep, I got you now.

Weird.

[cakM3]

Yeah I saw that video earlier during my search. The thing is, my car doesn't have that black weather stripping piece. Compare my car with the car in the video. Its different.



Gingervolt + TT

When I installed my Eagle Eyes, I detached the black trim part from my original tail lights and tried to install them onto my Eagle Eyes.....no fit. I don't know what part that guy used to get them to fit on his car but the solution I came up with resulting in no leaking whatsoever is this:

I got some weatherstrip material from Home Depot


Cut thin strips to place around the opening. Leave no openings...

Then I mounted my Eagle Eyes and this is what you should see...

The small crack you see in the weather strip is on the outside part...the inside is snug and sealed...



I have taken my ZHP to the car wash and used the pressure washer and no leaks were found. I haven't had any issues with my eagle eyes either...

I find that the weatherstrip part that comes with the Eagle Eyes are too thin and flimsy so adding additional weatherstrip around the openings provided just enough material to adequately seal the rear taillight area from the environment.