HID headlights (automobile)

[Clint]

I've become quite the "expert" on headlights over the last few days........had a long drive in a snowstorm last week & one headlight went out. Also, driving to see family that moved closer (still 3.5 hours away) I've had a chance to see a lot more headlights in the dark.

So my work van has the sealed beam like everything used to use, & I've used the sylvania silverstars for as long as I can remember, and I ordered a set of headlights after looking around for budget/effectiveness....easy to spend $299 each so...um, no.

These got cancelled after I found another option:

I read a bunch of forums, searched, watched videos of people modifying projector lenses to fit in their stock or new headlight housings, watched videos of people installing HID (xenon & bi-xenon) upgrade kits in their cars. Watched comparisons between HID, LED, & Halogen, read more than any one person should on the topic. Now I know the difference between LED & CCFL angel-eye halos (been noticing a lot of the cars use these in place of running lights, I especially notice it driving up & down the canyons where the automatic systems are compensating in the shade.

So for my work van that had the failed headlight I'm going with these (generic sealed beam housings modified with a projector lens & to take halogen/LED/or HID lamps), I called & talked with the people & they told me what type of HID kit to get (type of lamp etc)...

seems to be pretty straightforward...... I also ordered a custom set for my 11 year old truck, not that it's needed but because I started looking...

this is what I'm getting for my truck (ccfl daytime halos, 6K <white/slight blue>, LED high beams)

I've gone with pretty budget stuff but the enclosure for the truck is a name brand, only modified with extras. So far it's just an idea (and an online order) so wish me luck.

 

[Lew Newby]

Good luck, hope they do the job for you.

 

[Clint]

Good luck, hope they do the job for you.

thx me too! I hope they work & hold up....and that the ones for the van pass inspection. I'll try to update either way - the lights for my truck will be here tomorrow, and the van's should be here on Fri

 

[Cliff Bartlett]

Those must be the ones that blind you and wipe out your night vision for three minutes when the oncoming car does not dim their lights. Regardless, good luck with your upgrade Clint!

 

[Clint]

Those must be the ones that blind you and wipe out your night vision for three minutes when the oncoming car does not dim their lights. Regardless, good luck with your upgrade Clint!

I'll be giving out lessons: You think those are my brights?! HERE'S MY BRITES!

No just kidding (I hope). I'll change them if I draw too much attention.

The projector lenses are found in more modern cars, not all of them, but look at the big round bulbous lens, that's called a projector lens I believe - if you put an HID (xenon) or LED in a halogen reflector they'll scatter light all over and blind other drivers, but if you run it through the projector lens it's supposed to shape the pattern with a defined cutoff, & that needs to be adjusted so it's not too high.

I'm sure that some I've seen that have made an impression on me were just LED or HID "upgrades" in a halogen reflector. I'm not too interested in drawing more attention and definitely don't need help upsetting anyone, so I'll be carefully adjusting these. I went with the lower power (35 watt instead of 55 watt) in both, too. Really not sure what to expect. Some of those CCFL patterns I see completely replace the daytime running lights and are very bright by themselves... Hopefully it's reliable - I don't remember changing the headlights since I bought my truck 8 years ago. The van lights are another story - they seem more prone to cracking by rocks, or maybe it's just because it sees more miles on the road. It's about a $70 upgrade for a pair of those (housings & hid kit), so pretty close to the same price as the silverstars I usually put in it. The truck costs a little more (3x) but everything is modular & replaceable I think.

I've had people behind me that cast my shadow in front of me - I don't think I want to be that guy either (irritates me!).

edit:>>>kind of wish I'd have gone with the 4300K instead of the 6000K after reading this: http://www.toyota-4runner.org/engin...-hids-everything-you-need-know-then-some.html

 

[Rich Dahl]

I solved the oncoming bright light and burned out headlight problem with this easy fix.... I don't drive at night anymore, lights don't burn out if not used and no more hurtling down the highway half blinded after some dim bulb moron didn't turn his high beams down.

 

[JayHeyl]

Not long after I got my Acura with the HID headlights I was driving home from work in the dark. Just before getting to the turn into my neighborhood I descend a very steep hill. The Acura headlights are generally well behaved, but like all HID lights they are very bright if you're in their path. The steepness of the hill made it so the van that was in front of me was down far enough to be in the path of the beam. I guess he was annoyed because as we both made the turn he immediately pulled over to the right, letting me pass, and then pulled right back out and hit me with his brights. I chuckled out loud as my auto-dimming rear view mirror darkened to compensate for his brights.

 

[Clint]

I noticed this as I was securing the wires (hot glued the LEDs in place, secured the ballast for the CCFL rings, modified the harnesses to fit..)

I drove around for a bit to see how they worked, and how they looked to other drivers - I was happy to see that the cutoff was below the door/window of other cars as I was turning into parking lots, that it was below their trunk/rear window at stop lights. I drove around for 20 minutes or so, in traffic & then I switched to neighborhoods & some of my bike routes (big 2-way streets, on hills with trees). It became clear pretty soon that my headlights were pointing too far down.......I had a close encounter with a doe in the sunset on my motorcycle a few months ago on one street I took, and I was definitely overdriving my lights in that (& all completely dark sections. So I'll have to adjust & try again. The halogens aren't all bad, the brights (halogens, I thought they'd be LED but no) were respectable.

I could've just installed these but NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00U1OLAJA/tvwb-20

I do like the new enclosures, and one of them had separated on the inside, not that it mattered, and I like the new turn signal better etc, so it's freshening up my old ride.

I might've got flashed once - I don't think so, it was like when there's a bump in the road, and the car was just turning into the street I was on (scenic winding wooded neighborhood road). I don't mean to P anyone off, so I'll play around with it, & if I get flashed more than once a week in the beginning, I'll try with those phillips crystalvision halogens behind the projector lenses, & in the high beams.

 

[Len Dennis]

Certainly is confusing. Found this site describes the differences
https://www.powerbulbs.com/ca/blog/2016/03/headlights-halogen-xenon-led-laser-conversion-kits

 

[Ron G.]

Had HID Bi-Xenon on my previous Volvo S60-R

They were NICE (threw a good, white, bright beam) BUT:
-Replacement Bulbs = $200 ish
-Replacement Ballast = $400 ish, and burried within Bumper Trim
-If a light is out, not always easy to determine if problem is bulb or Ballast

In our part of the country, you can almost never use your high-beams, unless you are REALLY in the "back-country". It seems that no matter the time or place, there is ALWAYS some idiot driving towards you where you should turn-off the "brights"

(Is it just ME - or am I the only one who misses the old-school floorboard "clicker" for normal / brights...?)
[It also seems that with all of the complicated hullaballoo and need for Universal Icons for light settings - that people are more confused than ever, and a LOT of them end-up driving around without tail lights / incorrect settings for conditions? Maybe the auto makers should "standardize" the controls like the old pull-out lever that was ALWAYS on the left side of the dash... (plus, how many of us have cars equipped with fog lights but almost never USE the suckers?)]

 

[Brad Olson]

While I've never bought anything from him (yet), Daniel Stern (not the actor) has been a good source of information over the years.