HID questions

[GeoffM]

Just a few pointers I can't find clear cut answers to:

1. Where can I find/make a wiring harness for the ballasts?
- Do I need a harness?
2. I'm not putting in projectors. No one else around here does it, and I'm not at all concerned with them. That being said:
- I'd like as close to white as possible. The ad I'm looking at advertises 5k and 6k. Any opinions?
3. These are for low beams.
4. The ad
5. The difference between 35w and 55w? Like I said, I'm not at all concerned with other drivers (Yeah, yeah), but is 55w brighter?

[islandhopper]

If you're running ballasts you won't necessarily need a heavy duty harness since the ballast is sending power to the bulbs and not through the vehicles harness.

4300k will be the whitest light. 5k will look blue. 6k even bluer...

The main difference between 35w and 55w is brightness. More power to the bulb will shorten its life unless they are quality bulbs rated for 55w.

That being said...i do not condone using HIDs in halogen housings for many reasons stated many times by myself and others. But those are the facts.

And the fact that you blatantly admit you don't care for other drivers is fucking bullshit and makes me want to smash your headlights in... Just get some decent high-wattage halogen bulbs or nut up and retrofit some projectors. Don't be an ass just cuz most everyone else is...

[GeoffM]

If you're running ballasts you won't necessarily need a heavy duty harness since the ballast is sending power to the bulbs and not through the vehicles harness.

4300k will be the whitest light. 5k will look blue. 6k even bluer...

The main difference between 35w and 55w is brightness. More power to the bulb will shorten its life unless they are quality bulbs rated for 55w.

That being said...i do not condone using HIDs in halogen housings for many reasons stated many times by myself and others. But those are the facts.

And the fact that you blatantly admit you don't care for other drivers is fucking bullshit and makes me want to smash your headlights in... Just get some decent high-wattage halogen bulbs or nut up and retrofit some projectors. Don't be an ass just cuz most everyone else is...

Ah. I wasn't sure quite how they worked. Does that mean I could run HIDs straight from my stock wiring, no ballast needed?

Sounds like I'll shoot for 5k. Slight blue is ok. Very slight though. I'm overall going for the brightest light period.

I'll try to look for a 55w setup. If not, I'll just go with this.

The limiting factor keeping me from retrofitting for so long is it requires quite a bit of work and I can't find a clear cut walk through of how it's done, with clear and concise answers. Because of that (and money) I've chosen to ignore them and move onto the next step.

[islandhopper]

If you run it through your harness you run the risk of burning it up and causing a fire under your hood.

35w will be more than enough to blind anyone one coming down the road at you. 55w is overkill and just plain inconsiderate...but that doesn't seem to bother you.

It's not 'quite a bit of work', it's actually quite simple. It's too bad you feel that the only way to do it is to have someone hold your hand through every little detail. The basics are covered and the smaller details/snags are part of the fun/learning experience.

Live a little and be considerate of others..lest karma be a bitch.

[GeoffM]

If you run it through your harness you run the risk of burning it up and causing a fire under your hood.

35w will be more than enough to blind anyone one coming down the road at you. 55w is overkill and just plain inconsiderate...but that doesn't seem to bother you.

It's not 'quite a bit of work', it's actually quite simple. It's too bad you feel that the only way to do it is to have someone hold your hand through every little detail. The basics are covered and the smaller details/snags are part of the fun/learning experience.

Live a little and be considerate of others..lest karma be a bitch.

I assume I'd need to open my headlights, black house them (can't remember if that was necessary), find some projectors that would fit. Customizing them to fit, them reassembling the entire thing and plugging in my bulbs.

If it's as simple as that, finding a projector is what seems the most difficult to me.

[islandhopper]

I don't know why you'd think black-housing was a necessary step, but no, it's not. It's purely for aesthetics.

You've broken down the steps to a very basic state, but yes, that is approximately what you'll need to do...minus the black-housing.

Finding the projector is VERY simple. Matching it to your budget may not be.

theretrofitsource.com has "garage sales" or parts bin projectors for quite cheap. Included in the selection will be morimoto mini H1 and D2S projectors, which are proven to be a very easy retrofit. The reason they are cheap is mainly due to performance issues such as 'bowing' and/or lens focus, but many people have had success with them. Even more if they 'tune' them themselves.

[illinois_erik]

I like 5000 Kelvin, very white with a subtle hint of blue. EYE CANZ SEE NOWH. Please dont dont go any higher than 5K. 1) It looks stupid 2)Bluer the less visibility you have.

[CB7 R3ason]

Ah. I wasn't sure quite how they worked. Does that mean I could run HIDs straight from my stock wiring, no ballast needed

Yes running HIDs you will need ballast most plug and play HIDs come with all the parts you need in order to make them work...

I used to have P@P HIDs and i hated them they might give you a brighter output than halogens but its too scattered and when it rains i couldnt see 5 feet in front of me then I retrofitted my lights (H1s) it was very time consuming but was worth it.... just go to a junkyard get you a pair of headlights that way you dont have to take your car apart...and your not in a rush. there are many people on this forum that have retrofitted lights that wouldnt mind answering your questions and helping you....check out my MRT i have progress pics of when i did mine...

[GeoffM]

I bought some off ebay. They were DOA. I think Karma knew I was going to install them without projectors

[Quashish]

So they no work?

[dysfunk]

I bought some off ebay. They were DOA. I think Karma knew I was going to install them without projectors

The ebay kits require you to swap the polarity. otherwise they won't work.. just plug them in backwards....

[Quashish]

thats what i was thinking.

[GeoffM]

The ebay kits require you to swap the polarity. otherwise they won't work.. just plug them in backwards....

That's what the seller said. I'm going to go try it now.

[GeoffM]

Ran out there this morning before school. I tried just flipping the connector and jamming it in there. No luck, it just bent the connector.
I used the included swap harness, and viola!



Douchebag mode activated.
Also I only had time to do 1, so.....

[Leung]

I had HIDs in my Civic's low beams and it was nice for a while but then they started flickering and stuff which drove me nuts. I took them out and popped in some Xtravision bulbs and driving at night has been so much better; i also run my foglights on too to give me a wider beam to the sides since they don't have the shield in them.

The ballasts i had were from HIDextra and they were recommended to me by a buddy who drove TC. I should have paid a few extra bucks for the slim ballasts as those seemed to work better and they never flickered compared to the regular fat ones.