aa1911

iTrader: (1)

yes, I think a rewire would surely help as the stock wiring is tiny... I have tons of wire and relays so it's just a matter of time... need to do the rear lights first though, I'm only getting 9.9v back there, hardly anything...

I went with 8000k's for no particular reason, it was either those or 6000k but wanted to see how bad they really are, it's a pretty subjective thing... I do plan on having some very nice fogs/driving lights to go with and if it's not enough then I'll sell these ones I ordered and find a better setup.

Like I said, anything is way better than what I have now so I garantee I will see just fine with 8000k's for now.

I got so tired of reading for HOURS and HOURS about HID options and searching for best prices on top of that, I decided to just do my own experimenting, everyone seems to have opposite opinions on HID's.

and the Silvestars are not bad at all, I got the best ones Autozone sells, they are twice as good as the stock lamps and they were only $40 I think? the light is whiter and much much better and if someone doesn't want to spend more than a few bucks or do any re-wiring/fitting then they are fine. I just want MORE!! I do wish I had known about the OSRAMs though before I bought this last set of bulbs, everyone seems to agree that those are great...

anyway, I'll post up the results when the kit shows up and we'll see if they blind oncoming traffic or not! like I said, this is a start...

aa1911

iTrader: (1)

I think TRS will get some of my $$$ for their FX-R projectors, they look like a great option... I can easily fab those into my existing housings with what I have laying around... probably wind up changing bulbs though, depending on how they work together...

experience is the best teacher! YT is a close second though...

shaeff

Right on.

I gotcha. However, I still think you'll find that 8000k is a mistake. I'd never go higher than 5000k, ever. If/when you switch to something closer to 4300k-5000k, you will be amazed at how much extra light is provided by the bulbs alone, changing nothing else.

I've done both the PnP kits, and a true retrofit. Trust me when I say that the PnP kits literally cannot hold a candle to a proper retrofit. Here's a few shots of my Infiniti FX35 bi-xenon, blacked out shield, removed second shield, TSX clear lens swapped, drilled low beam lens, ZKW euro headlights that I built for my e36 M3:




150ft away- note how sharp the cutoff is even at this distance. No blinding of oncoming traffic here!


25 feet away:



Note: this is just ONE FX35 projector. That's enough light to drive by with just one. Also something to note: A projector designed for HIDs will have a much, much wider beam and light spread than one that's designed for halogen. And that goes tenfold if you're stuffing a PnP kit in halogen reflector housings. Narrow beam comparatively.



Better than stock, yes, surely. However, the bulb life on Sylvania Silverstars is seriously lacking. The Osrams blow them away. Period. (again, I've used both)

You'll likely have to aim them fairly low, thus making your low beams kindof useless.


They're fantastic. The bulbs from your PnP kit will not work. The FX-Rs use D2S bulbs, not rebased D2S that are meant for PnP kits (like the ones you ordered are rebased to fit an H4 housing) Once you retrofit, you will see where I'm coming from. Retrofit>all.

aa1911

iTrader: (1)

sweet, thanks for the advice! if I go with the FX-R's, the kit I ordered will not fit; the bulbs they have (D2S) looks like what I will go with either the 35w or 55w... I did find a 35w complete kit/bulbs for $53 on a different site but was kinda leery about that cheap of a package. TRS looks like quality stuff.

8000's are for sure over the top, I will most likely sell them but I am curious to see how good or bad they really are for comparison sake. I should've stuck with my original plan of 6000k's being my ceiling of color temp. I'll find some ricer who want's em, hahaha

After seeing TRS's projectors I'm sold on doing an entire retrofit, it looks pretty easy. I think for about $300 I can do the whole project right.

As for the Silverstars, I've read all kinds of complaints about their life span (poor) and will most likely try out the OSRAM's... I'll run 'em until they burn out...

thanks again for the helpful advice guys, hopefully I will have everything within a week so I can install a good setup with some 4-5000k's. I'll take plenty of pics...

MaK92-4RnR

I just through HIDs in my housings, angle the beam down and you wont have to worry about blinding anyone.

shaeff

No problem! TRS is great! I've done business with them several times and everything is always well packed, and arrives quickly and in good working order! 35w is plenty, but the 55w will be a LOT whiter. You can get away with a slightly higher temp bulb (6000k) if you go with 55w because the extra power tends to wash out the color a bit. I still see no reason and strongly recommend 4300-5000k, but just figured I'd let you know.

I'm using OEM Nissan/Infiniti (Matshuitas) ballasts. Why? Because they're OEM quality. They don't flicker, they fire every time, perfectly in sync and just don't fail. They tend to have a much higher service life than cheap-o HID kits with adapters. The connectors on the Matshuitas are quality, not cheap plastic with a crap rubber seal- these seal really nicely and don't break if you look at them funny. LOL.

In H4 housings it'll be really easy for sure. My M3 retrofit wasn't so easy because it's a very tight space in there. I have another set of the FXs here that I plan to slap in some cheap housings next summer after my 7M swap.

You will love the OSRAMs. There is a distinct difference in output.

If you have any other questions feel free to ask. If I forget to stop back in this thread shoot me a PM and I'll help all I can!

The downside to that is now your low beam is too low. Sure, it might be significantly brighter, but not nearly as wide as a proper HID setup, and the cutoff isn't nearly as sharp as what I posted above. I'll never do a PnP kit again. I used to swear by the one I had in my Pickup. I guess you could say that I've "seen the light" LOL!

I'll continue to preach: OEM/quality retrofit, or just stick with properly rewired halogens using 10-12awg wire, good sealed relays, relay harnesses (also sealed), and ceramic/high temp headlight connectors. Also, if staying halogen- run a diode from the output on the high beam relay to the trigger on the low beam relay- that will allow the low beam to stay lit when you've got the highs on, but keep the highs off when you have it on low beam.

ProjectMcFly

Agreed 100%. My daily has OEM projector HID, and it's unreal. My good friend had Audi E-Codes in his Honda and they were along the same lines. He had an el cheapo kit in his old Grand Prix and they were garbage. Sure, they were bright, but they didn't do anything other than give a lot of light right in front of you, and blind everyone in sight.

Lighting, brakes, and tires...the 3 places I refuse to cheap out on when it comes to vehicles.

I'm saving up for the Hella conversion with the +50% Xenon bulbs based on the data from RallyLights.

Sealed beams are terrible...I couldn't imagine having them be "cutting edge" technology. (I guess I'm showing my age, huh?)

aa1911

iTrader: (1)

will do Shaeff, thanks! I will probably stick with 4300k and the 55w, sounds like a better choice for max light and what I really want.

I also want to take this opportunity to SLAM www.HIDnation.com, TERRIBLE!

I'm sure that lots of folks have gotten better service than me but when my kit showed up on Thursday last week, the ballasts had huge gouges and dings in them! their return policy is that they don't have one, always pays to check that one out... They have NO phone number, just email and they did get back to me in less than 24hrs (amazing) but stated that I couldn't prove that the product was 'defective' until I had installed them.

I never stated 'defective' I stated 'damaged', big difference. I told them that I thought it was crap that they were OK with sending damaged crap out and then not allowing people to return it. Yes, I'm sure they would function but what the crap!?!?

I highly recommend to never buy anything from these clowns, I seriously question their products now after seeing it firsthand and for sure don't trust their quality control measures, sending DAMAGED crap out and passing it off as fine.

anyone want some 35w 8000k's??? hahaha basically ate this one, but I'm a LOT smarter now! amazing how that works...

looks like it's time to post up on CL... or maybe I'll put them on my garden tractor, that would be sweet...

laskt9

i hope you guys get tickets for running hids in those ebay hid housings.

aa1911

iTrader: (1)

raffle tickets....

shaeff

Right on. Good usable light is a thing of absolute beauty! I'm assuming the Hella conversion is HID, considering you stated xenon bulbs. (unless they're the "xenon" labeled halogens that just give the HID "look".

My guess is going to be that the FX-R output is incredibly close to that of the Hellas and likely for a fraction of the cost. I didn't price anything on the Hellas, though.


Anytime! You're making a very wise decision! Also note, those pics I posted above of my FX retrofit, those are 35w, so 55w will be even brighter with a wicked sharp cutoff, so no blinding anyone.

Sucks to hear about your misfortune with HIDnation. That's pretty terrible! TRS is awesome- I'm actually planning to buy a set of FX-Rs to do a retrofit on my girlfriend's '99 Subaru Legacy SUS Sedan. Stock lighting on that is pretty terrible!

Perhaps you should read the whole tread before jumping to conclusions. None of us are talking about slapping a PnP HID kit on crappy ebay housings. We're talking about a proper retrofit, which, when complete, will yield results that are on par with OEM xenon setups on higher end cars.

Therefore, both our light output will be increased, thus making it safer for US to drive, AND the cutoff line will be so sharp and low (2' off the ground from 20' away is the general rule of thumb to tweak from) that nobody will be blinded by the setup.

BIGR79

dont buy the ones at top of post!
I bought a set off ebay with the hid kit, the hid ballest burnned out in 5 min started smoking, and they were installed corectly too!!! I put regular bulbs in the housings and they worked ok till winter came around and they fogged up and also have water in them, I loved the way they look but I also would rather be able to see at night so I put the old sealed glass lights back in and took a 80$ loss on that mod

laskt9

please excuse my gfs brother he thinks hes an internet hardass

Vato Loco

I bought the crystal clear headlights with an 8000k HID kit and no problems at all...never been flashed by anyone.

fierohink

Or get the harness from 4crawler, $50 and even with my old tired bulbs light output improved leaps and bounds. No more yellow lights, nice clean bright white light.

shaeff

His harness is sweet for sure, but I'm a DIY guy.

aa1911

iTrader: (1)

^^Holy crap dude! that's the cleanest looking vehicle I've ever seen!

shaeff

Cleanest except for those headlights.

BIGR79

True that

C5VetteLS1

That was excellent advice Robert. I finally had them installed today. WOW, what a difference! I'm totally impressed with how huge of an improvement they are. Buying the lights and having them installed came to about $125.00. Well worth it. Thanks for the advice, your posts are great contributions to the forum. It's appreciated.