my lights are still VERY bright at night. so bright, there is no way anyone would think that it has covers at night. in the daytime they are also still bright enough as well. they do not black out the lenses, just tint them a little darker. enough light still gets through that i HIGHLY doubt youd have any problems with the law. ive driven about 10k miles since i put them on and have never had a problem whatsoever. most people just think i got new taillights

 

I had mine sprayed. It looks cleaner when it's finished and lasts longer. I tried the tinting film from American Muscle and it didn't cover the entire light properly. If you do get them sprayed, have them block out the reverse light portion. Throw some LED reverse lights in there and you're golden. Like others have said, there are no issues at all if you get them tinted / sprayed properly and don't go too dark. Here's a shot of mine. During the day and at night they are still VERY bright when the lights come on. I get lots of compliments at night also:

 

Discodave, god I love your car! good choice on spraying the tails. I'm glad i sprayed mine as well much better look. The covers look tacky as hell

 

What type/brand of spray did you guys use on your tail lights?

 

I had mine professionally sprayed by a guy who does awesome Airbrush paint jobs on cars

 

I painted mine as well using VHT nightshade. Wouldn't think twice about doing it again. Just follow the basic paint tips and it will come out smooth as glass and look factory. Good thing about the paint is you can wet sand it until you get the exact level of tint you want. With covers and tint you can't darken or lighten them to your liking. All three options work well in getting the end results just different ways of getting there.

It one of those personal decisions you have to make as I really don't think one is "better" than the other. Just different taste in darkness and level of difficulty in installing.

Covers - No brainer to install
Tint - A little effort to make sure it sticks and doesn't get bubbles
Paint - Need to have some basic painting skills or have a pro do it unless you want orange peal on your lights ;-)

Couple pics of mine below.

 

Thanks Jeff. I was not sure how much light would be blocked. Sounds like they will work out fine. Now where is my charge card...?

LOL!!!
Phil