HID Headlights

[Nage Waza]

I am considering HID headlights for my car. I can get a set with the ballasts installed for 450. Is that a good price? Are they worth it? I do drive through some wooded areas to get home where it is really dark, and I have already hit one deer and a few other close calls. I would like the brightest lights possible.

[DownhillGoat]

Depends on the make and year, so I can't comment if 450 is a good price, but HIDs are well worth it. I have them in one vehicle and it's so much easier seeing animal eyes in the dark.

Beware though, it makes the reflective signs shine that much more as well.

[Pinner]

And people that have them aimed too high, should have them smashed into little bits.

[Nage Waza]

I will have them professionally installed. I think that means I won't have my beams aimed at everyone's eyes.

I think if they are home jobs the cops give tickets?

[Madman]

What year is your car?

If it is older and has the "diffused" headlight lenses on it, then save your money as HID headlights are no good in these:

[STeeLy]

HIDs are best with specifically designed HID projectors. They're good with regular projectors designed for halogens. There are such things as HID reflectors as well.

[keratosis]

Originally Posted by Nage Waza

I will have them professionally installed. And have them periodically adjusted. I think that means I won't have my beams aimed at everyone's eyes.

I think if they are home jobs the cops give tickets?

fixed

[Nage Waza]

The car I am putting them in is an '06.

[worth]

What kind of car? Do you have hi/low beams in one bulb, or is it seperate?

$450 seems like way too much to me. Friend of mine was supplying and installing them for $100. Don't know if you can find a deal like that anymore. Certainly not if you are having them professionally installed as you have said.

[Pinner]

Make sure to let us know how it went/cost etc.

I think driving lights & upgraded OEM type bulbs would be more than enough unless your on a hardcore night driving routine.

If your used to driving at night around street lights, well, it takes awhile to learn to see at night.

[burn_this_city]

Originally Posted by worth

What kind of car? Do you have hi/low beams in one bulb, or is it seperate?

$450 seems like way too much to me. Friend of mine was supplying and installing them for $100. Don't know if you can find a deal like that anymore. Certainly not if you are having them professionally installed as you have said.

The ballasts on the cheapo ones die fairly quickly.

Nage, make sure your headlight modules can take them. Some get hot and can melt the housing. Also if you're doing a lot of night driving, keep in mind when switching from high to low beam if the ballast isnt the greatest it can take a sec or two for them to brighten up, especially if you've had them off for a minute or longer.

[Nage Waza]

Originally Posted by burn_this_city

The ballasts on the cheapo ones die fairly quickly.

Nage, make sure your headlight modules can take them. Some get hot and can melt the housing. Also if you're doing a lot of night driving, keep in mind when switching from high to low beam if the ballast isnt the greatest it can take a sec or two for them to brighten up, especially if you've had them off for a minute or longer.

I think the set I looked at are pretty high end. Like I mentioned, I have a few kms in narrow roads with forest on either side that has a bunch of critters. After nailing one, I don't want to hit another. The more light I can bring the better! I heard there can be a lag but as long as I always have light I should be fine.

Does 450 installed seem high?

[CRXguy]

My uncle has a 2006 Tundra. He had a cheap HID kit before and it was actually decent. Not much glare. He retrofitted Infiniti FX HID projectors into his stock headlights, and it's crazy how much better the light output is.

So what do you drive? 2006 what? $450 installed for a plug and play kit is expensive.

[Nage Waza]

I have a 2006 Accord (sold my Subaru for an Odyssey and got the Accord for driving to work). My Subaru head really good lights and floods, so the Accord is a bit of a let down. I don't think anything is more important than visibility so am willing to get the best lights.

[CRXguy]

Go read up on www.hidplanet.com

If you want HID's, do it the right way.

[TylerSVT]

Originally Posted by CRXguy

Go read up on www.hidplanet.com

If you want HID's, do it the right way.

OMG YES!

Someone else on here is on that board too?

What everyone else is saying is 100% correct. DO NOT INSTALL HID'S in your car. Unless you can post the exact make/model of your car than i must assume that it has a reflector based housing which means that installing HID's will BLIND every single person on the road regardless of how high or low you aim them.


HID's are a different type of bulb than a typical Halogen and produce a different kind of light. The reason you get blinded 100% of the time by some jackass who did a Plug and Play (PnP) kit is because the the reflector just shoots the light in every which way.

The ONLY thing to do is to retrofit a projector into the housing which gives you the BEST light output because the focal points are designed correctly and will give you the best optics.

Go to HID planet and do some research if you have more questions you can PM me.

go to Theretrofitsource.com for the parts that you will need, they are the BEST supplier and Matt is an awesome guy to deal with.

I would even be willing to do the retrofit for you which would give you a Bixenon projector HID setup that is superior to most stock Bixenon setups.

For Reference here are some pics of my current retrofit as well as some comparison output pics:








In this pic you can see the hole that i widened as well as the hole to feed the bixenon wires through.



done both:






With Lens on:







Here are some pics to show you exactly why NOT to do a PNP kit.

GLARE!!!!




Halogen reflector on the left, PNP glare fest on the right. This is what EVERY OTHER DRIVER will see.



Glare that shoots into everyones eyes.





This is my fav pic, it shows exactly why PNP kits suck. Notice how high up the wall the PNP kit goes(car way in front), notice how the projector (drivers car) is perfectly aimed and has no glare to anyone on the road, also notice how the light from the projector setup actually cuts right through the crappy PNP light.








Here are what proper Projectors will get you:





Highbeam:





Cutoff, notice no glare above the cutoff line.






Like i said, if you have any questions feel free to PM me, id be willing to help you out with a retro if need be, and the cost will be under 400 bucks and for that you get a full on bixenon projector.

[TylerSVT]

Originally Posted by Nage Waza

I have a 2006 Accord (sold my Subaru for an Odyssey and got the Accord for driving to work). My Subaru head really good lights and floods, so the Accord is a bit of a let down. I don't think anything is more important than visibility so am willing to get the best lights.

If you want the best lights than do a retrofit.

A PNP kit can actually give you a much worse light output because the focal points change on the lights and therefore send the light in unpredictable patterns.

PNP kits are also illegal technically.

[burn_this_city]

Originally Posted by Nage Waza

I think the set I looked at are pretty high end. Like I mentioned, I have a few kms in narrow roads with forest on either side that has a bunch of critters. After nailing one, I don't want to hit another. The more light I can bring the better! I heard there can be a lag but as long as I always have light I should be fine.

Does 450 installed seem high?

It really depends on the quality of the kit, if its a good one that price is fair. You might want to consider changing out the headlight modules for ones with the projector, that would be the ideal setup for installing HIDs.

[HodgePodge88]

I have 55W Xenon HIDs in stock reflector housing lights. I would get the retrofit but projector housings are $350+!!! Way too rich for me. Paying $100 for the Xenons was enough for me.

[Pinner]

I can't see any advantage to blinding the driver of a large vehicle, seriously, if your low beams are blinding someone in a tractor trailer unit, you're doing it wrong.