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School me on HID's

Started by Monsterlover, September 29, 2010, 01:47:58 PM

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Monsterlover

September 29, 2010, 01:47:58 PM
The headlights on my Accord aren't that great, even with the bulb upgrade I did.

I ran across these:

Link

Link

Link

The car's black and any of these would look pretty cool, but I'm not gonna buy garbage.

What's the difference between HID - projector - xenon and all that stuff?

Don't true HID setups cost a lot more than these do?

These things are all over ebay for just about any vehicle made in the last 10 years.

Im interested, but wary.
"The Vincent was like a bullet that went straight; the Ducati is like the magic bullet in Dallas that went sideways and hit JFK and the Governor of Texas at the same time."--HST    **"A man who works with his hands is a laborer.  A man who works with his hands and his brain is a craftsman.  A man who works with his hands, brains, and heart is an artist."  -Louis Nizer**

Grampa

#1
September 29, 2010, 01:52:29 PM
fyi..... when working at delerships in the service dept..... we saw lots of fried headlight wiring because of people switching out headlights.
Gaspar, Melchior and Balthasar kicked me out of the band..... they said I didnt fit the image they were trying to project. 

So I went solo.  -Me

Some people call 911..... some people are 911
-Marcus Luttrell

Monsterlover

#2
September 29, 2010, 02:08:13 PM
That was another thing I was wondering about

a) extra heat

b) current draw
"The Vincent was like a bullet that went straight; the Ducati is like the magic bullet in Dallas that went sideways and hit JFK and the Governor of Texas at the same time."--HST    **"A man who works with his hands is a laborer.  A man who works with his hands and his brain is a craftsman.  A man who works with his hands, brains, and heart is an artist."  -Louis Nizer**

Porsche Monkey

#3
September 29, 2010, 04:58:56 PM
Quote from: bobspapa on September 29, 2010, 01:52:29 PM
fyi..... when working at delerships in the service dept..... we saw lots of fried headlight wiring because of people switching out headlights.
[thumbsup]   can't believe Joel actually has something constructive and relative to add to the conversation and that I agree with him. Wtf?
Quote from: bobspapa on July 18, 2009, 04:40:31 PM
if I had a vagina...I'd never leave the house

ungeheuer

#4
September 30, 2010, 06:11:06 AM
Quote from: bobspapa on September 29, 2010, 01:52:29 PM
fyi..... when working at delerships in the service dept..... we saw lots of fried headlight wiring because of people switching out headlights.
I fried the headlight multi-stalk switch in my '08 Ford Falcon (yes 2000 and 8  :P) in an ultimately temporary attempt to improve the shite stock lighting.  All I did was fit 'em blue looking aftermarket bulbs... same wattage...  Worked great.  Big improvement.  Right up until I couldnt turn em on at all.  The Ford tech ripped em out and said polite words to me which really meant "dont try that again, Dick Head". 

But as I'm a slow learner..... I'd like to know more about HIDs too....

[popcorn]
Ducati 1100S Monster + Ducati 1260S Multistrada + Moto Guzzi Griso 1200SE

Previously: Ducati1200SMultistradaDucatiMonster696DucatiSD900MotoMorini31/2

zooom

#5
September 30, 2010, 06:41:56 AM
Quote from: ungeheuer on September 30, 2010, 06:11:06 AM
   All I did was fit 'em blue looking aftermarket bulbs... same wattage...  Worked great.  Big improvement.   
[popcorn]

same wattage maybe...but not the same resistance...hence why these headlight wiring harness or pigtails are frying when people do things like this...some people delay the inevitable with this process by packing the connector full of dielectric grease...but ulimately it will still cook...

on HID's and conversion...some of the various seemingly inexpensive kits out there have results that may be marginally better than stock, but that is because they are using all the energy of the bulb(which is more lumens, generally speaking, than your stock halogens) but is doing so without the benefit of the proper refraction...nowadays the manufacturers are very good at designing these heavily polyagonal reflector/refractors in the headlight to spread the beam in a very specific way....they heavily account for the spacing, not only of the bulb, but for the placement in the bulb of the filiment for to get the maximum effect...alot of the inserted HID kits that are just a bulb and ballast and relay with wiring, do not exactly account for this and you may not get the best effect...some cars might be more amenable to the modification or with headlight adjustment get closer to the objective, but unless you are doing the reflector to accompany the bulb, I think it is somewhat of a lost modification for your time...this is before even looking at which range of gas discharge rated bulb even comes into the picture...then things can get really funky when you think about 4000, 6000, 8000, or which suits your wants best and your driving conditions...
99 Cagiva Gran Canyon-"FOR SALE", PM for details.
98 Monster 900(trackpregnant dog-soon to be made my Fiancee's upgrade streetbike)
2010 KTM 990 SM-T

Porsche Monkey

#6
September 30, 2010, 06:50:47 AM
^^ [clap]
Quote from: bobspapa on July 18, 2009, 04:40:31 PM
if I had a vagina...I'd never leave the house

Monsterlover

#7
September 30, 2010, 06:57:55 AM
Holy crap!

What do you think I should do to get more output?
"The Vincent was like a bullet that went straight; the Ducati is like the magic bullet in Dallas that went sideways and hit JFK and the Governor of Texas at the same time."--HST    **"A man who works with his hands is a laborer.  A man who works with his hands and his brain is a craftsman.  A man who works with his hands, brains, and heart is an artist."  -Louis Nizer**

zooom

#8
September 30, 2010, 07:03:32 AM
Quote from: Monsterlover on September 30, 2010, 06:57:55 AM
Holy crap!

What do you think I should do to get more output?

depends on the year/make/model as to what advice I would/could offer...
99 Cagiva Gran Canyon-"FOR SALE", PM for details.
98 Monster 900(trackpregnant dog-soon to be made my Fiancee's upgrade streetbike)
2010 KTM 990 SM-T

Grampa

#9
September 30, 2010, 07:04:27 AM
Quote from: Porsche Monkey on September 29, 2010, 04:58:56 PM
[thumbsup]   can't believe Joel actually has something constructive and relative to add to the conversation and that I agree with him. Wtf?


every so often a blind squirrel finds a nut..... I be that nut  8)
Gaspar, Melchior and Balthasar kicked me out of the band..... they said I didnt fit the image they were trying to project. 

So I went solo.  -Me

Some people call 911..... some people are 911
-Marcus Luttrell

Monsterlover

#10
September 30, 2010, 09:21:49 AM
Quote from: zooom on September 30, 2010, 07:03:32 AM
depends on the year/make/model as to what advice I would/could offer...

2004 Accord EX-L v6/6spd
"The Vincent was like a bullet that went straight; the Ducati is like the magic bullet in Dallas that went sideways and hit JFK and the Governor of Texas at the same time."--HST    **"A man who works with his hands is a laborer.  A man who works with his hands and his brain is a craftsman.  A man who works with his hands, brains, and heart is an artist."  -Louis Nizer**

ducpainter

#11
September 30, 2010, 09:25:26 AM
Just put a couple of 1.21 jigwatt bulbs in there and be happy. ;D
"Once you accept that a child on the autistic spectrum experiences the world in
 a completely different way than you, you will be open to understand how that
 perspective
    is even more amazing than yours."
    To realize the value of nine  months:
    Ask a mother who gave birth to a stillborn.
"Don't piss off old people The older we get, the less 'Life in Prison' is a deterrent."


Staggerlee

#12
September 30, 2010, 09:35:20 AM
Quote from: Monsterlover on September 30, 2010, 06:57:55 AM
What do you think I should do to get more output?
Wire in a couple of relays to get full power to your headlights.  You'd be amazed at the voltage drop you'll get through the factory harness.

This will 'splain everything:

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/relays/relays.html

Unless your headlights now are a projector beam style, I would not mess around with the drop-in HID kits.

zooom

#13
September 30, 2010, 09:58:26 AM
Quote from: Monsterlover on September 30, 2010, 09:21:49 AM
2004 Accord EX-L v6/6spd

and I assume you have already inspected and tried making sure the lenses are clear and done something like a headlight wet sanding and buffing restoration kind of thing right?...and put in just regular new bulbs, since the tungsten filiments do have a lifespan where as they burn do naturally get somewhat dimmer over time...

just checking on the obvious 1st...
99 Cagiva Gran Canyon-"FOR SALE", PM for details.
98 Monster 900(trackpregnant dog-soon to be made my Fiancee's upgrade streetbike)
2010 KTM 990 SM-T

Monsterlover

#14
September 30, 2010, 10:02:34 AM
The lenses are good. One is as clear as new, the other is starting to haze a little in one spot but it's not bad.

The bulbs are factory replacements I put in maybe four months ago.
"The Vincent was like a bullet that went straight; the Ducati is like the magic bullet in Dallas that went sideways and hit JFK and the Governor of Texas at the same time."--HST    **"A man who works with his hands is a laborer.  A man who works with his hands and his brain is a craftsman.  A man who works with his hands, brains, and heart is an artist."  -Louis Nizer**
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