JDM 1-piece headlights.. confused with bulbs

[cb7jersey]

Hey guys got myself a pair of JDM 1-piece headlights but the bulbs slot look confusing and nothing like the headlights on the car now.... not sure if i have to convert to HID... anyone got any suggestions... will post pic later on 2day.. thanks becuase im not sure what to do want to install them.

[tommi]

low beams are h4 and highs are h1 on jdm headlights. normally u would need to make an adapter harness to connect h4 to 9006 and h1 to 9005. or get aftermarket ones, the bulbs should have an adapter that separates from the bulb itself at the base.

[deevergote]

Don't go HID unless you install projectors. HIDs in stock housings blind oncoming traffic, and I know of at least one jerk in NJ that will swerve at anyone careless enough to blind him with projector-less HIDs.


As tommi said, an adapter harness is your best bet. You could just cut the wires and splice on the proper connectors for the H1 and H4 bulbs, but cutting your stock harness is never a good idea, and should be avoided whenever possible. (I learned that the hard way... my harness is cut.)

[Raf99]

Yep, these guys are correct. And for the high beam you can buy conversion harnesses for the H1 bulb but you'll still need to crimp ends on the wires and buy 9006 female ends. You are basically making your own adapter.






I think I explain all of this in my MRT somewhere....

[cb7jersey]

Yep, these guys are correct. And for the high beam you can buy conversion harnesses for the H1 bulb but you'll still need to crimp ends on the wires and buy 9006 female ends. You are basically making your own adapter.






I think I explain all of this in my MRT somewhere....

So do you think it'll b just easier to go HIDs for the high and low beam?

[Jarrett]

Easier, sure. But you'd be a douche if you did it without the use of projectors in those headlights. Do an ounce of research on running HIDs designed for projectors into housings without them and you'll see that I'm not the only internet warrior on this issue.

The housings in the JDM or USDM headlights are designed for a non-HID halogen bulb. By putting in a "High Intensity Discharge: bulb and hardware you are surpassing the housing's capability to properly reflect the light onto the road. Stray light goes everywhere and the shroud is no longer effective. That includes the eyes of oncoming traffic. Aiming them low enough to not blind traffic puts them on the ground right in front of the car which doesn't accomplish anything either.

Mighty Car Mods has a good video on this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2nJfH_RXnk

*watch it all the way to the end

[sonikaccord]

Don't go HID unless you install projectors. HIDs in stock housings blind oncoming traffic, and I know of at least one jerk in NJ that will swerve at anyone careless enough to blind him with projector-less HIDs.


As tommi said, an adapter harness is your best bet. You could just cut the wires and splice on the proper connectors for the H1 and H4 bulbs, but cutting your stock harness is never a good idea, and should be avoided whenever possible. (I learned that the hard way... my harness is cut.)

^^^^^^^^^

So do you think it'll b just easier to go HIDs for the high and low beam?

You shouldn't do HIDs for high beam...xenon bulbs don't do well with the intermittent, on-off style of high beams. Once you turn them on, keep them on to extend the life of the bulb.

[Raf99]

Agreed with the folks here. Don't do HID unless you are using a headlight housing made for it or you retrofit the housing to accept a HID bulb. Otherwise you are blinding people with HIDs worse than a lighthouse. And I suspect that it will only take the blinding of one police officer coming towards you before you get a ticket or worse.

Plus.....
- ebay HIDs are cheap and break easily
- the light output is poor/cheap
- it's not worth it in the long run

[deevergote]

Just to add my $.02 on the matter, I also agree 100%. Blinding headlights are annoying, and HIDs in stock housings without projectors are blinding. I know some people (names will not be named) that swerve at anyone that blinds them with irresponsible headlight modifications.

[Raf99]

I will high beam anyone doing it. What frustrates me is lifted jeeps/trucks that do this and also put HIDs in their fogs! Not sure why the police let that go.., probably an education thing.

[deevergote]

The sad thing is that those that modify their cars irresponsibly end up inspiring the lawmakers to ban ALL headlight modifications. Therefore, HIDs in proper projectors that are a perfectly safe and functional upgrade, will be banned alongside HIDs in stock housings that obnoxiously blind oncoming traffic.
It's much easier for those that make the laws, as well as those that enforce them, to simply ban ALL such modifications... rather than trying to differentiate between types to determine legality.

Yet people who modify their headlights irresponsibly don't understand why their fellow tuners that are responsible get irritated with them. Not only do irresponsible modifications irritate everyone that is blinded by them (including the responsible tuners...), but it also puts a very popular (and obvious) modification option at risk. Because Tuner A didn't want to modify his headlights responsibly, Tuner B's responsibly built $500 HID setup may be made illegal... So Tuner A will have cost Tuner B $500, a quality modification, the cost of a ticket (most likely), and the cost of restoring his car back to proper halogen lights. So yeah, it's perfectly reasonable for other tuners to get annoyed by someone that is being irresponsible! We're all in this together!

[cb7jersey]

DAMN had absolutely no idea it could be that serious... well the 1-piecers are not goin on my CB7... they are goin up for sale any1 interested LMK...

[sonikaccord]

DAMN had absolutely no idea it could be that serious... well the 1-piecers are not goin on my CB7... they are goin up for sale any1 interested LMK...

It's not. You can still run the stock low beam with an adapter. I just cut and crimped mines, took like 5 minutes. I can solder on a stock one if I wanted to. I don't recommend that unless you are confident in your wiring skills.

[deevergote]

Just keep in mind that the JDM headlights are aimed for RHD roads. Instead of aiming off to the right, as our LHD lights are aimed, they are aimed to the left... at oncoming traffic.

The best thing to do with JDM lights is to do a projector retrofit. Morimoto no-cut projectors are a good option, and I believe they don't require permanent modifications to the headlight housings. Then run an HID kit. Light output will be good, it will look good, and it won't blind anybody!

Otherwise, halogen lights would be way better in the stock housings, as stated. You wouldn't "have to" convert to HID... as HID lights weren't even an option when the CB was new. Using an adapter would be smarter than cutting your stock harness.




Finally, please do not attempt to sell things in this section. That's a very good way to get yourself banned.

[Grumpys93]

DAMN had absolutely no idea it could be that serious... well the 1-piecers are not goin on my CB7... they are goin up for sale any1 interested LMK...