A few years ago it cost nearly $1000.00 US to convert to HID, now I see "kits" avalaible for $40-50 USD. I saw a Bosch kit for maybe $45 US , [ Bosch is well known to not make anything junk] are these any good. if so for a person with aging night eyes, it sounds like a cheap and great way to get " light"
You get what you pay for... There are many "HID" kits out there are aren't actually HID - they're just high wattage bulbs with a normal filament.
IIRC, a true HID does not have a filament in the bulb.
The kits I have seen have a ballast-ignitor and HID bulbs, Bosch is well known and is sold cheaply now
i am interested in this too, seeing kits for high and low beam for my mid 90s caravans just over 200 bucks/
I'd definately like to know where I could get a $50 HID kit for my 93 Mazda
626
Well I can't even buy a pair of 9007 Sylvania SilverStar halogen bulbs for under $50 bucks so I don't see how an HID kit is going to cost under that.
I just replaced a pair of 9003 Sylvania Silverstar bulbs for under $30, a pair is $25 on-line but I didn't want to drive around with one burned out waiting for the mail.
I'd considered the HID replacements, they really are available for $50 and up with Bosch HID bulbs and off-brand ballasts, but for my Subaru's
9003 bulbs, they'd become low-beam only. Not really what I want, so I stuck with halogen.
Check out ebay Bosch HID
$75 shipping... ya, right.
Harbor Freight has some HID kits now, item 96637, 96639, 96640. They do indeed appear to be real HIDs with remote ballast modules and they claim DOT certification.
Oh for the days of the hi/low $3 sealed beam at Canadian Tire!
I wouldn't trust any HID kit that only replaces the bulb inside an existing reflector/lens assembly. If they are complete replacements for a sealed beam lamp they might be OK but I suspect that you might get better results simply by using E-code sealed beam replacements and a relay harness to increase the voltage to the bulbs. check out Daniel Stern Lighting (he has a website) for ideas.
If you have aero-style headlights IMHO the only way to do HIDs properly is to use a full kit specifically designed for your car, either by getting factory-optional HIDs from a junkyard or one of the rare instances where there may be an aftermarket kit that completely replaces the lens and reflector with one designed specifically for HIDs.
Also, keep in mind that there are legal ramifications to modifying your headlights; even E-codes are not technically legal in most states. If you go with HIDs make sure that your lights as a complete assembly are DOT approved, or at least ECE approved (will not be technically legal, but will at least give you assurance that you will have a safe, useful, non-glaring system.)
nate
We have a lot of two lane roads around here and it is really a pain to drive at night with the glare from HID lights. I really wish they would ban them unless manufacturers can come up with a better design.
The problem is the crappy DOT beam pattern. ECE regs require a sharper low beam upper cutoff and also self-levelers for HIDs so glare is only a problem when an oncoming vehicle crests a hill etc. However NHTSA will not adopt the ECE beam pattern, possibly because of NIH syndrome. Too bad, because they really are superior. I have ECE halogens (H4 bulbs in a Cibie E-code reflector/lens assembly) in the Fabulous BeaterPorsche and I couldn't be happier with the results; excellent light output on both low and high beam with no glare (I've had people follow me while I was driving another car on several occasions, and I'm a fairly glare-sensitive person; a Ford truck, say, will make my rear view mirror pretty much unusable.) The only downside is that my setup is technically illegal although it would be perfectly acceptable in Europe.
If you do buy E-code lights, be aware that the beam pattern is different depending on which side of the road you drive on, as the beam pattern kicks up on the curb side on low beam to illuminate roadside signs. So a light from Germany, say, would work well in the US but a light from England would not.
nate
They claim DOT certification, though whether that is legit or not is debatable. I wouldn't consider them for replacing the regular low beam on my truck (9006), but would consider them for the high beams (9005) and as a starting point for custom off road lights since I seem to be spending more and more time off road lately.
George wrote in news:6LSdna9mtpe4bfbanZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:
They feel like lasers burning my eyes out.
just drive with your eyes closed. that's what i do. i have to wear earplugs though.
too much screaming from the passenger.
regards, charlie cave creek, az
Same there, 9003 replacements are low-beam only on all the sets I've seen.
I just give them full brights.
Steve
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