Xenon-lighting; do or don't?

[mistadave]

I've just brought myself 3 sets of HIDs to convert main, dipped and fogs.

I did a lot of reading up on the various kits before spending the cash and went for kits from HIDS4U.co.uk as they happened to be local to me and had by far the best kits available.

None of the suppliers on ebay could provide me with a kit that met the same specifications:

instant start up: you can use these bulbs on the main beam and still flash with them as they start instantly

reflector compatible bulbs: they have a black coating on parts of the bulb and are designed for reflector lights, anything else is for projector lights and although they will work ok, you will get more light spill and glare. I've tested these at night and the beam pattern is EXACTLY the same as on the old bulbs, the lines at the edge of the pattern are very clean, I've seen other photos where the definition at the edge of the beam pattern is very poor due to non reflector bulbs being used. Although it is still technically illegal, I don't see any reason why these reflector HID bulbs should be, as the only difference is they are brighter, the pattern remains identical.

no bulb warnings: their ballasts don't need a resistor fix or anything like that

this was with their Pro kit for £99 - more than a lot of the ebay ones but well worth it. There is a lot more information on their site which is worth reading if you are looking at upgrading

Unfortunately i haven't tried the fogs yet as the bulbs were the wrong type - anyone wanting to change them should check as my fog bulbs were actually h1, not h3 like all the bulb sites say.

I know my post sounds like a bit of an advert, but im just really impressed with these and the guys there are really helpful. I also brought some led lights from them so there is no yellowy halogen light left on the car now!

Dave

[kevin derby uk]

Originally Posted by Dandle

You shouldnt really be fitting HIDS into light reflectors made for halogen bulbs. The light scatter will be all wrong, HIDS are normally fitted into projector lenses as they cutoff the light correctly at the edges of the beam. You will also find if they run aot hotter than the halogens they replace they will eventually start to burn off the reflector silver near the bulb.

An alternative halogen lamp is the Osram Silverstars, they give alot more light over standard and are a merked improvement.

this is not the case at all
1 they do not blind any one because the bulb is behind a bulb cover inside
the lens
2 light scatter is the same
3 hid,s run cooler than halogens but not much (i used inferred temp meter)

i'v fitted hi beam too and trust me you will see for miles. mine have been fitted for over 2 1/2 years with no problems

[Dandle]

Originally Posted by kevin derby uk

this is not the case at all
1 they do not blind any one because the bulb is behind a bulb cover inside
the lens
2 light scatter is the same
3 hid,s run cooler than halogens but not much (i used inferred temp meter)

i'v fitted hi beam too and trust me you will see for miles. mine have been fitted for over 2 1/2 years with no problems

I was wrong about the temp but the rest is true. The hid lamp is a totally different design to the halogen lamp and as such the cover in the light unit isnt correct for hids. Light scratter is much greater with hids because they output much more light than the lens/reflector was designed to handle. Hids should be fitted to reflectors(of projector lamps) that are disigned to control the light of them the stanadard S40 lens isnt so they do cause scatter and while you see better because light is everywhere they can blind other people. The fact is if the light units were acceptable for HID lighting they would be "E" marked as such and they aren't.

[coolerking]

my hid kit arrived today and i fitted it really quickly but as i said earlier, ive done a couple now ! they look great and the light they give off is great, will see the difference on my normal route to work tommorrow! will get some photos for you all! i have tidied most of the cables up but there is still a little to do but it was too dark, started raining and i couldnt be bothered continuing!