Video Review & Installation

If you're looking to take a break from the boring factory-style headlights in your '05 to '09 Mustang, then you might wanna consider the Axial Smoked options here, loaded with the CCFL Halos. Now, these DOT approved lights will combine the very aggressive smoked lens on with that bright white CCFL Halo ring off or right around that $200 price point for the pair. Now, installation will involve the smallest bit of wiring here in order to get everything up and running. So, therefore, the site is gonna not just own up to a soft two to three wrenches on the difficulty meter and take you about an hour or so to knock out from start to finish. And if you guys are curious about what kind of wiring is involved, just hang with me for a bit and we'll walk you through the job later in the video. So, the Axials that we have here will feature a two-pronged approach to spicing up the headlights on that early S-197. Now, first and foremost, you're getting that smoke blend, right?Now, I don't have to tell you guys that smoked lights in Mustangs just go together perfectly and, by itself, this feature will be enough to radically change up the appearance of the front end alone. But then factor in the CCFL Halos and that officially takes these lights from mild to wild, which some owners might like others, maybe not so much. Now, if you are into this look, here's what you guys can expect, a bright white halo or ring that's going to illuminate here around the headlight bulb or reflector area when those parking lights are switched on. And that halo is gonna remain on even when your headlights are switched on. And, hey, if you're really wanna make a statement, then you might want to consider pairing these up with a CCFL fog light option, which we do have a few here on the site to choose from as well. Now, as far as your actual bulbs here with the Axials, well, guess what? They do kick in a brand new set of dual elements, each 13 style bulbs.But if you do have a little bit of worry about light output shining through those dark smoked lenses, well, that's something you can always upgrade down the road to something brighter, such as an LED option or something similar. Now, also quick heads-up guys, these things have been both DOT and SAE approved, meaning they are legal for use in all 50 states and again are sold in sets of two.But now let's segue into the installation as promised earlier and, honestly, this one won't be too bad even given the small amount of wiring needed. But as always, to give you a better idea of what I'm talking about, here's a detailed walkthrough along with your quick tool breakdown.The tools used for this install are quarter-inch ratchet, cordless impact driver, 10-millimeter socket, five and a half millimeter socket, a Phillips head screwdriver and a clip removal tool. So, the first step of this install is gonna be to get underneath the hood and to remove the radiator cover at the top in order to get access to the screws and bolts necessary for removing the front bumper.Next, I'm gonna use a clip tool to remove the push pins that hold the rad cover down. Now, I'm gonna use the 10-millimeter socket to remove these two upper bumper bolts. As you can see, I removed the front wheel to gain access to the inner fender liner. I did this to get access to these three screws and these three clips that hold the fender liner in the front to the bumper so I can peel this back and get access to the bolts behind it. Now that I've peeled back my fender liner, I can get access to these two 10-millimeter nuts from the back of the bumper. I can also get to my two plugs that are a little further in. Now, I'm gonna repeat that same process on the driver side. Before I can remove the bumper, I'm gonna pull the three bolts at the back of the belly pan so that I can remove everything all at once. With everything unbolted, I can remove my front bumper assembly. But while I do so, I have to make sure that I either unplug or unclip my fog lights from the light bulbs themselves.There are three bolts that hold the headlights to the vehicle. There are two at the bottom and one at the top. I'm gonna use the 10-millimeter socket to remove those three bulbs and then unplug the connectors from the back. In order to make the halos for these headlights work, I'm gonna need to tap into the running light circuit. I peeled back the looming on the running white wires and I'm gonna tap my power into the red and white wire on the driver side and the black wire also on the driver side. I'll use the provided vampire clips to tap into those two circuits before I install my headlights. Now, I'll just install my power wire from my halo into the factory power wire for the running light and use the vampire clip to close them together. And then I will repeat this with the ground wire. Now, I can feel the double stick tape on the back of the resistor block for the headlights and stick it to my inner frame rail before I make my headlight connection and reinstall the new headlight.Now, I'm gonna repeat the process on the passenger side and make the same electrical connections I did on the driver side. Now, I've got all my electrical connections made and I tested my lights before I go to throw my front bumper back on to make sure that everything works before I button it up. Make sure that you plug your fog lights back in before you install your bumper. Once the bumper's in, you will not be able to access the fog light bulbs.And that's gonna wrap up this review and install for the Axial Smoked Headlights with Halos for your '05 to '09 Mustang. Thanks for watching and, for all things Mustang, keep it right here at americanmuscle.com.