HID Headlamps

jackbauer

Apologies if this has been asked before but does anyone know the legal position re fitting a HID kit to a car that had normal halogen headlamps?

Had something like this in mind :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/250802178885?ssPageName=STRK:MESINDXX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1436.l2649

Mr.Boots

Legally....I have no idea.
Aesthetically....Your a nob end.

Seriously...they look pants on most cars and blind oncoming drivers.

Saw a hi-ace with DRL's and Hid's last week...nearly soild myself

MugMugs

jackbauer wrote: »

does anyone know the legal position re fitting a HID kit to a car that had normal halogen headlamps?

There is none AFAIK

Mr.Boots wrote: »

Aesthetically....Your a nob end.

:eek::mad:

mullingar

There is nothing directly illegal with them. Its only a nuisance to other drivers if the headlights have too much scatter (blurry aim).

Once the aim is correct you WILL pass the NCT.

They really suit headlights with projector lenses.

Do not get anything 6000k or higher!, get anything between 4000-5000k. This is a true white and suits human eyes as daylight is approx 4400k.

Suprab1

Don't get them unless you have projector lenses as the beam pattern will be all over the place. I have 6000k in my supra & they light up the road very well.

Midnight_EG

If you're wondering about what the different powers are like, here's mine...6000k's

Suprab1

I prefer the 6000k as it gives good light & looks modern. I will be going for 6000k in the evo aswell.

mullingar

IMO 6000k+ looks silly, its a blue white and is straining on human eyes.

Before anybody says that their 6000/8000 don't give them eye strain, drive 300 miles straight with 6000k, then 300 miles with 4500k, you WILL thank me. Why do ALL the factory installed HIDS eg Merc/Lexus/BMW etc etc use between 4500-5000k???


By all means if you want to stand out from the crowd to say "look at me", get 6000k+, but its silly IMO - (maybe Im getting old:p)

Edit,

Always remember, the higher the K, the lower the brightness. 4300k is about 20% brighter than 6000k for the same wattage!

jackbauer

4500k it is. Thanks for the replys. I don't want to stand out just save energy:D

MarkR

Are they projector headlights, or reflective in that car?

JerCotter7

Make sure you get 4500k 35W ones. Or else 6000k 55W ones. Both have pretty much the same colour. Bit more blue from the 55W ones.

vectra

I have 5000k ones in my car and would prefer 4500k ones.
They are just a bit too blue.
If it is better lighting you are after get the 4500's

jackbauer

Normal reflective as far as i'm aware. The ones I looked at on ebay are quoted at 35w each.

mullingar

JerCotter7 wrote: »

Make sure you get 4500k 35W ones. Or else 6000k 55W ones. Both have pretty much the same colour. Bit more blue from the 55W ones.

Sorry to burst your bubble but 4500k is a very different colour to 6000k.

But, I would say the brightness (lumen) is similar between a 4500k-35W to a 6000k-55W due to the better energy conversion of the lower temperature 4500k bulb

MarkR

Reflective can be a problem. Light tends to scatter, meaning you don't light up the road evenly, and can be VERY glaring. By all means try them out, see how well you can allign them. Get someone to drive against you to see how they look. If you get flashed alot, you could be blinding people.

vibe666

one thing to consider is that the bluer the light, the shorter the wavelength and the less effective it will be at longer distances.

also, bluer light causes the human iris to contract less than the whiter light from normal headlamps so it will tend to be more dazzling for oncoming road users.

so 6000k + 55w is going to cause a lot more eye strain than 4500k 35w would, both for you and the people coming the other way.

greglo23

There are two different type of HID bulbs available for reflector or projector lights. The proper bulbs for reflector type lights have a strip of material on the bottom of the bulb which stops the scatter effect. I got a set of these by mistake for my projector lights so this is how i know The light output was very poor compared to the correct bulbs. Make sure you specify which bulb you need when ordering !!
http://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/h7r-anti-glare-replacement-hid-bulb.html
This is the bulb for reflector type lights/

Nforce

Afaik there are plans to ban aftermarket HID's in the UK from next year? If it goes ahead I can see it happening over here too.

vectra

Nforce wrote: »

Afaik there are plans to ban aftermarket HID's in the UK from next year? If it goes ahead I can see it happening over here too.

Yes indeed.
I have read that on other UK forums.

JerCotter7

mullingar wrote: »

Sorry to burst your bubble but 4500k is a very different colour to 6000k.

But, I would say the brightness (lumen) is similar between a 4500k-35W to a 6000k-55W due to the better energy conversion of the lower temperature 4500k bulb

What bubble? I was wrong about the colour, it was the lumen that is similar. Want a cookie?

EDIT: Just looking it up again there and everywhere says the 55W whitens the light to make it look like a lower k. Oh well. I'm not even purchasing them so no idea why I am looking it up :rolleyes:

jackbauer

Looks like LED may soon be an option:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PIAA-H-437-HB3-HB4-PERFORMANCE-LED-REPLACEMENT-BULBS-/310306614264?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item483fb72bf8

Does say not for road use though ...

barone

ive also heard that if you flash other drivers when you have hid's you can blow the bulbs as they need to heat up to work fully,is this true anyone?


providing of course that your lights are turned off when your flashing other drivers

barone

jackbauer wrote: »

Looks like LED may soon be an option:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PIAA-H-437-HB3-HB4-PERFORMANCE-LED-REPLACEMENT-BULBS-/310306614264?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item483fb72bf8

Does say not for road use though ...

says there fog lights though, i can see led's being in headlights pretty soon myself

BrokenSpiral

barone wrote: »

says there fog lights though, i can see led's being in headlights pretty soon myself

BMW, Audi and Aston Martin have all introduced LED's for some headlights recently! They are using a horizontal piece of glass, like a small block of glass, as a lens to project the light across the road rather than the round standard HID projector lenses...but I would imagine it'd be a while before we see PROPER aftermarket LEDs for headlights! But wouldn't it be nice to never have to change a bulb again.......

JerCotter7

barone wrote: »

ive also heard that if you flash other drivers when you have hid's you can blow the bulbs as they need to heat up to work fully,is this true anyone?


providing of course that your lights are turned off when your flashing other drivers

HID's are usually only put into the dipped beam. Pointless in your full lights. They wont blow. They (well mine anyway) flash bright for a split second when I turn them on then go dim. Then slowly get brighter again. Takes about 5-10 seconds. But the other car would be gone at that stage. The other driver would hardly notice you flashed them.

vibe666

i've seen some combo xenon/HID lights where the regular driving lights are hid's, but the high beams are of the halogen/xenon sort. seems like the way forward for that kind of thing.

Anan1

barone wrote: »

ive also heard that if you flash other drivers when you have hid's you can blow the bulbs as they need to heat up to work fully,is this true anyone?


providing of course that your lights are turned off when your flashing other drivers

Factory bi-xenons use a movable mirror to change from low to high beam, BMW (and most likely others) also have 'flash to pass' halogen bulbs.

Fishtits

4200 is the Bosch listed standard temperature.

EU legislation ties their fitment down pretty tight, self levelling etc.

Unfortunately we as usual, lag behind so no regs here.

Given it will probably take several years to adopt the regs, and several more years to equip the relative folks to enforce the regs I'd guess we've just got to put up with it.

Unless... some forward thinking Gov. would adopt the principle of roadside checks, ala The Ozzies (bring in their double penalty points for a bank holiday weekend while you're at it) Are you listening Leo?

Would scare the bejasus out of yer average yob. not to mention the odd taxi driver... HINT HINT

Tropheus

I put a set in my wife's A2 a couple of years ago. The A2 has standard reflector lenses. We didn't have any problems with dazzling and were never flashed by other drivers. They also came through an NCT.

Recently one of them blew and I decided to replace them with the R version bulbs. These have a small reflector on the bulb and are supposed to be designed specifically for reflector lenese. There was more of a noticable cut off on the beam pattern and, again, no issues with other drivers flashing.

However, they didn't come through the NCT as the beam pattern was all over the place. I decided to replace them with Nightbreakers which are very good. They're not HIDs, but not far off it.

Another problem with these after market HID kits is that they can causes radio interferrence. I don't think the ballast electrics are shielded very well. I don't have this problem with the OEM HIDs on my Allroad (which are 4300k BTW).

I also installed a set in my father-in-law's B5.5 Passat. It has projector lenses and they work great. No problems with NCT either. However, we did experience the radio interferrence problem with both cars when the lights are on.

My advice is to only install in projector lenses. Some reflector lenses work better than others with HIDs, but you're likely to dazzle oncoming drivers.

Hiace.

Why would anyone bother with them, what are the real benefits ?

jackbauer

The only reason I was interested was that they use less power than a standard halogen. From what I have seen here I think i'll give em a miss.

Berty

jackbauer wrote: »

The only reason I was interested was that they use less power than a standard halogen. From what I have seen here I think i'll give em a miss.

My only thing about HID's is:

Ensure you have projector headlamps before embarking on an installation because you will not get any benefit from the bulbs.

It also depends on your car as well. You might have Canbus warning systems in your car so the bulbs may not work or might flicker. You may need a Canbus friendly kit or also purchase a Canbus lead.

HID's use less power but use a ballast to perform this. Many new cars like Audi, VW and BMW has warning systems which tell you that you have a blown bulb because less power is going to the lighting system.

vectra

Beer Baron wrote: »

My only thing about HID's is:

Ensure you have projector headlamps before embarking on an installation because you will not get any benefit from the bulbs.

It also depends on your car as well. You might have Canbus warning systems in your car so the bulbs may not work or might flicker. You may need a Canbus friendly kit or also purchase a Canbus lead.

HID's use less power but use a ballast to perform this. Many new cars like Audi, VW and BMW has warning systems which tell you that you have a blown bulb because less power is going to the lighting system.

If your car is a VAG model and has Canbus system.
DO NOT get a canbus friendly kit.
Get non canbus and get your system coded to suit.

Suprab1

6000k isn't too blue, well not the kit that i got from knight racer uk. Here's what they all look like.

Anan1

Suprab1 wrote: »

6000k isn't too blue, well not the kit that i got from knight racer uk. Here's what they all look like.

It seems fairly obvious from that that 4300k is the one to go for.

Suprab1

For best light yes but alot of people like there car to look more modern. If you look at any car with HIDs as stock they all have a coloured tint to them, sure the Range Rover looks nearly purple.

Anyway the most important thing is get them from a good company & try to avoid cheap ebay kits. I have no radio interference & i have seen ebay kits which say 6000k next to my Supra & theirs has a much stronger blue effect.

Hiace.

jackbauer wrote: »

The only reason I was interested was that they use less power than a standard halogen.

So when you factor in the extra cost of purchase, exactly how much money would that save you on fuel ?

pudzey101

where can u get these other than ebay?

Suprab1

pudzey101 wrote: »

where can u get these other than ebay?

This is where i got mine, they are very good & the company has a great rep.

http://knightracer.com/shop/index.php?route=product/category&path=42

pudzey101

Suprab1 wrote: »

This is where i got mine, they are very good & the company has a great rep.

http://knightracer.com/shop/index.php?route=product/category&path=42

would u go for 4300k or 6000k on a black levin?:)

papu

Osram Nightbreakers are great uprated bulbs if you decide not to go down the HID route!

Suprab1

pudzey101 wrote: »

would u go for 4300k or 6000k on a black levin?:)

I would always go 6000k but as someone has said it will be very scatterd on a levin as the don't have projector head lights.

pudzey101

Suprab1 wrote: »

I would always go 6000k but as someone has said it will be very scatterd on a levin as the don't have projector head lights.

what lights other than stock could u tink offhand i could put into levin:) whats these Osram Nightbreakers:) thanks supra yet again !:)

sean1141

i have 5000k in the dips on the leon. i fitted projector lights. i had 4300k in the standard reflector lights before that and they were all over the place compared to the projector lamps. if you have reflector headlamps there are bulbs made to reduce the glare. they have a R at the end of the bulb type. eg H7R H1R.

there is way better light out of hids compared to halegon bulbs. if you can get them that they are not blinding everyone else on the road you are on a winner.. nothing worse than older cars with 6000k + kits fitted..

night breakers etc are good compared to standard halegon bulbs but not a patch on hids.

Suprab1

pudzey101 wrote: »

what lights other than stock could u tink offhand i could put into levin:) whats these Osram Nightbreakers:) thanks supra yet again !:)

You won't really get near HIDs with any normal bulbs. I would send an email to Knightracer (the link in my last post) & see if they can recommend an alternative.

pudzey101

Suprab1 wrote: »

You won't really get near HIDs with any normal bulbs. I would send an email to Knightracer (the link in my last post) & see if they can recommend an alternative.

ya il drop them an email now and see what they say:)

jackbauer

Hiace. wrote: »

So when you factor in the extra cost of purchase, exactly how much money would that save you on fuel ?

Lets just say I'm a bit more concerned with "fuel efficency" than most:) The other reason I was looking at an alternative to filament lamps is that my 12v systems really do run at 12v. Not 14.5v so there is a little loss in brightness. HID would (should) not have this problem. That said from what I'm reading here its more trouble than its worth. LED would be the way forward. Just not there yet...

Suprab1

jackbauer wrote: »

Lets just say I'm a bit more concerned with "fuel efficency" than most:) The other reason I was looking at an alternative to filament lamps is that my 12v systems really do run at 12v. Not 14.5v so there is a little loss in brightness. HID would (should) not have this problem. That said from what I'm reading here its more trouble than its worth. LED would be the way forward. Just not there yet...

Get your alternator checked.

I wouldn't wait for LEDs because i don't think that will happen. They are ok as a driving light (like audi, kia ect) but don't give out the light of a halogen & nothing like HIDs.

vibe666

papu wrote: »

Osram Nightbreakers are great uprated bulbs if you decide not to go down the HID route!

ditto on the nightbreakers, much better output than regular bulbs, or even the upgrated ones you get in halfords, but without the added glare so you don't get people flashing you every 5 minutes thinking you've got your main beams on, the newer ones last a lot longer too.

Suprab1

poul111 wrote: »

Do not get them unless you have the projector lens as the beam is completed. I have 6000K in my supra and they illuminate the road very well.

A fellow Supra owner