I've been reading a lot about HID kits and wanted to buy one but there is too much confusion as to whether a plug-and-play kit will work with stock reflector based headlights. So I guess I'm going to stick with halogens since I don't want to but aftermarket projectors or do an expensive retrofit. Any suggestions? I want something bright, clean, and with a noticable blue tint like HID systems.

Thanks,
Slats

 

search.
or go to the vendor section.
they sell lots of goodies.
I used to use Vision X halogen bulbs, pretty decent.
PIAA doesn't hurt!

 

are those aka angel lights? yeah im new -_- ijust got my hondda and i wanna do something with it.. like with audio? or head lights

 

sylvania silverstars are pretty much the most recognized aftermarket halogen bulb in terms of light output and color...

 

The HID Plug & Play kits work when they offer either the 9005/9006 bulb substitutions. They are designed to take the place of the stock Halogen bulbs..
They are NOT intended to be mounted in Aftermarket Projector style headlights because of heat and optics considerations. (Most Aftermarket Projectors bite the proverbial BIG ONE!)
By performance listed worst to best:
Incandecent
Halogen (Tinted)
Halogen
Halogen (Silverstars)
Xenon
HIR
HID

P

edited for silly a..s spelling error 1st thing in morning


Modified by P_Adams at 5:24 PM 1/2/2006

 

second that

 

SO you guys are saying I could go with a plug and play HID kit and put it into my existing factory headlights? Some people swear it will create glare, but a guy told me it would not. He reminded me that older Acuras like the TL used reflector headlights with HID. What do you guys think? SHould I go for it?

Slats

 

All you're doing with the HID kits is making the bulb generate more light. The optics of the housing it's mounted in determines where the light is distributed. You should see the same light distribution pattern as before but much brighter.

P

 

What color temp do you recommend? I want a noticable blue tint but nothing that screams hey look at me. I was think of something in the 6000K-8000K range.

 

Luminics from the honda-tech market place.....Great customer support....

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Slats &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">SO you guys are saying I could go with a plug and play HID kit and put it into my existing factory headlights? Some people swear it will create glare, but a guy told me it would not. He reminded me that older Acuras like the TL used reflector headlights with HID. What do you guys think? SHould I go for it?

Slats</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yes there are certain cars that use reflector based HID lighting like the older Acura TL and Lexus IS300 HOWEVER, the reflectors they use are DESIGNED to be used WITH HIDs. The angles of the reflector is designed such that when the light is reflected, it doesn't create glare. I also believe that cars that have OEM reflector based HIDs use D2R bulbs which have a shield as part of the bulb which also helps reduce glare. Projectors are the same story, true OEM HID projectors have a reflector bowl designed to focus and reflect the light so that it doesn't create glare and instead gives a nice wide, focused beam with an internal shield in the projector to control the cutoff. Aftermarket projector headlights like the kind you find on Ebay are not like this, they're jus regular halogen "projectors" and don't have the optics in mind in their design.

Cars with regular halogen reflectors are designed to be used with dispersing the light intensity produced by a halogen bulb in mind. Regular reflectors tend to scatter the light in every direction, but focused more downward, that's why there is no definitive cut off line if u point ur headlights at a wall. Keep in mind that HID bulbs burn brighter than regular halogens.

NOW think about putting an HID kit into your regular halogen reflector knowing that reflectors "scatter" the light and that HID bulbs give a more intense light. Since halogen reflectors don't take the more intense light output into account when they're designed, you're going to get glare and you will get more light output into the air rather than the ground.

In short, I wouldn't waste the money on a kit because it does cause glare. Don't get me wrong, an HID kit will give you more light than a regular bulb any day of the week, it's just not THAT much better to justify that money. If you want HIDs, do a retrofit, that's the only way to get light output that is at OEM levels without being a hazard on the road. Plus you'll feel better when you're driving on the freeway and you're lighting up both the left and right lanes lol. Sorry for the long rant, hope this helps.

*edit: By the way, I forgot to mention that the blue "tint" that OEM HIDs have are not a result of the bulb being tinted, but it's the optical properties of the projector that cause this color flicker. Imagine taking a prism and shining light through it, then turning it at different angles. You'll get different colors depending on the angle. That's what happens with a real projector headlight, when a car goes over a dip or bump, you'll see a flicker of purple or blue, that's caused by the angle of the light inside the bowl, but when you look at HIDs up close (like right next to it), you'll see that the light is pretty much pure white. HID kits try to mimic this but the light will always stay blue. You should see the looks I get when I'm color flickering like mad from a distance and when I drive by they realize that it's an Accord lol!

 

Thanks for your input! I feared as much, I just want HID so so bad. How much do you guesstimate a retrofit would cost in and of itself? I really hate to change my headlights, so maybe I'll just end up getting some cheezy blue tinted bulbs to get the look I want. BTW, what year Accord do you have? Pictures?

Thanks,
Slats

 

A typical retrofit will cost as follows:

headlights: round 100-200
Projectors, ballasts and bulbs (from hidplanet.com's kit): 370. On your own you might be able to put it together cheaper from used parts, but this is everything youd need brand new.
Retrofit services: 2-500 depending on the job and the quality of the installer.

I'd personally go with the company that did -Bionic-'s retrofit because everything i've seen that has come from there has kicked major ***.

If you want color, get silverstars, Luminics, PIAA, etc.

If you want good light performance, try HiR bulbs. I did a 9005 HiR bulb setup on my car and they are bright as ****. HiRs have halogen color but produce much more lumens due to a special infrared reflective coating on the bulbs. I've used mine for 5 months now wiht no problems

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Slats &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I've been reading a lot about HID kits and wanted to buy one but there is too much confusion as to whether a plug-and-play kit will work with stock reflector based headlights. </TD></TR></TABLE>
Your best bet is to keep looking for a reputable reseller who will sell you a plug and play kit that he personally knows works well with your particular car's reflectors.

The best beams are going to be produced by projectors specifically designed for the bulb that's in them, but there are definitely huge improvements to be had with reflectors and the correct focal length bulbs.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">So I guess I'm going to stick with halogens since I don't want to but aftermarket projectors or do an expensive retrofit. Any suggestions? I want something bright, clean, and with a noticable blue tint like HID systems.</TD></TR></TABLE>
The best aftermarket halogen 9005/9006 bulbs I could recommend would be the Sylvania Silverstars. They produce a noticeably brighter and whiter light. The light is in the visible spectrum, where it does you good, not in the blue shift where it can reduce the visible light produced.

All high performance halogen lights, the ones that actually produce more visible light, are all going to suffer from one problem: To produce more light, they must burn hotter, and they will not last as long as conventional bulbs.

The real answer to your question is that there is <u>no</u> alternative to Xenon lights if you are after that kind of performance. Xenon lights produce a huge improvement in visible light while only consuming 35 watts, and no halogen bulb is going to do that.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Slats &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Thanks for your input! I feared as much, I just want HID so so bad. How much do you guesstimate a retrofit would cost in and of itself? I really hate to change my headlights, so maybe I'll just end up getting some cheezy blue tinted bulbs to get the look I want. BTW, what year Accord do you have? Pictures?

Thanks,
Slats</TD></TR></TABLE>

accordselux is right on the ball, the parts can be either expensive or cheap depending on which route you take. The best projectors are obviously in high demand and will cost you quite a bit more than the more common or less desired ones. A very good projector used are usually the ones from the Acura TSX, which can run from $180-210 depending on demand and seller. Bulbs and ballasts are about right and can go cheaper if you buy used. I got my retrofit done in September and it cost me around $1,000 Canadian, but that's including shipping costs and new headlight assemblies.

You should definitely check out http://www.hidplanet.com and read the forums, there are many comparisons with pictures between HID kits and HID retrofits. I wanted a kit back in the day and almost bought one until I saw this site and all the knowledge I've gained from it really set me straight . The retrofitter (Richard) that did my lights is a friend of -Bionic-'s, great workmanship, very helpful, great communication. I drive a 6th gen and he specializes in 6th gens, but he also does other Accords and cars as well. Check out his website, http://www.customlightz.com, you can see the kind of work he does.

As for pictures, I got my retro done quite recently so I'm still waiting for more of a colorshift before I take pics, plus it's winter and snowing/raining (go figure lol). Plus I don't have a camera LOL, so I don't have any pics yet. I'm supposed to submit some pics to Rich so he can stick them on his website, but as of now I have none, sorry man.