There are so many different HID kit out there, how do one know which one is the right one to get?

 

Xenon Visions FTW!

 

I was told a lot of them are made in china or taiwan so the quality or maybe lack of? is the same...I do suggest you get the digital ones... the balasts are much smaller, so its easy to mount...and they don't get as hot....

 

Pretty much a lot of them are the same quality regardless of the price. I had a set of $60 ones on my 95 Civic that I put on over a year ago, yanked those and put them on my Fit and still kicking. I am going to actually buy a different kit though that has a high and low beam. Search Supervtec on ebay...has a bixenon kit for $108.

I would love to do a projector setup but this car is under warranty, brand new, etc lol. I'm only sticking with plug n play.

 

Mcculloch is good, but expensive.

 

Are most of these HID conversions plug and play?

what are the negative aspects of doing this?

 

You create lots of glare blinding oncoming traffic. Putting an HID capsule into a housing designed for halogen bulbs will cause this.

I recommend reading this article.
Daniel Stern Lighting Consultancy and Supply

 

Thanks. Good link. Reading it now..



+reps

 

Yes, good link. I was all set on getting HID. Now, I'm not sure...

 

Replacing just bulbs definitely illegal. Any DOT-approved conversions yet? They will have the better optics to take advantage of the bulbs and won't blind people.

 

Just to add something, Daniel Stern Lighting has been a resource on the web for years. He used to not sell anything but just offer tips and share his knowledge. Now he does sell some items and if you look through those, it's E-code headlamps, relay kits, fog/driving lights from Cibie and Marchal, etc. What's missing are HID retrofit kits, blue coated bulbs, etc. While he could sell those and I'm sure make money, he doesn't for reasons spelled out in the tech section. You have to respect someone telling you NOT to buy a product they could just as easily sell you.

 

The most proper conversion is to retrofit a projector into your housing. That way it has a nice cutoff, doesn't blind people, and so on. I used Hella 90mm projectors on mine with a Hella Gen III ballasts and bulb set.




If the car wasn't like 1000 feet away the cutoff line would be a lot sharper but no glare and lots of color

 

I also meant to say that is a lot easier than having to rip apart the headlight housings on the Fits. This is just an example of what a real conversion should be like. I opted for the easier route on the T/A just because the pop-ups make things way to complex.

 

Props to F3 for a link to a good article; it explains entirely the doofi I have seen with odd colored/unfocused lights, and why the high/low beam problem is, well, a problem.
I'm not sure that a lot of the HID talk isn't just about bragging rights, rather than good lights.
Moon

 

Nice job on the retrofit! +reps for sharing your pics.




I retrofitted a pair of Acura TSX HID projectors into my M3. It's a bit involved but if you're curious, click the pic for my DIY procedure.


When retrofitting HID projectors into any car with halogen headlights, you're trying to achieve these goals.
- Straight beam (i.e. cut-off is not tilted).
- Projectors can be aimed both horizontally and vertically using the aiming mechanisms on the factory headlight.
- Maintain the original relative position of the low beam to the high beam.
- Solid mounting of the projectors to prevent a shaky beam over rough roads.
- Headlight housing will still be water-tight after the retrofit.
- No wiring or electrical issues after retrofit.
- Should work like factory OE. Looking OE is a bonus.




Click pic for beam shots. This is what it's all about...definitely worth the effort.

 

Nice work man that looks great. I have a set of E46 projectors laying around and it's tempting to put them into the Fit but no! haha. I think mine are still aimed a bit too high but I only drive the car occasionally now so I'm not tooooo too concerned about it anymore.

Another example of a strait line...I'm holding an E46 projector in my hand with a 3000k bulb in it. I'm tempted to actually put those bulbs in the trans am lol.

 

you and your TA lol

 

dirtybird is right on the spot! ..when my customers come to me and ask how they can get more out of their HIDs, I tell them to retrofit, it prevents blinding oncoming traffic (also those pedestrians!) and enhances and re-iterates TRUE HID

 

lol it's my baby! I've put a lot of time, work, and $$$ into that thing and proud of it. I would love to do some work on the Fit but it's my DD...maybe once the warranty is up or I can start finding spare parts for cheap!

 

i hope it at least looks good, cuz the TAs i've seen, bleh, there color is faded and their headlights are cracked and thier fender has a gap, man.. im glad your one of those that do pride teh TAs