HID lights

[enclo537]

Originally Posted by Bludger

curse all the cars that fit HID kits.

blinding oncoming traffic.

The problem I'm having is, my headlights are extremely dim. In rain, fog, snow, I can't see squat. So I end up turning on my high beams.

And I don't know what to do, changed light bulbs but still with the same problem.

Its been like that ever since that damn auto shop (hit a deer) "fixed" my car. Took it there several times but same thing.
.. There it is

[fordem]

The first step into solving a problem should be to define or identify the problem.

If you stand infront of the car and look at the headlights - are the low beams noticeably dimmer than the high beams? If the answer to that is yes, I would suspect a wiring problem. If the answer is no, I would suspect an alignment problem.

If the problem resulted after an accident, there is a possiblity that it may be caused by one of two things - bad alignment or possibly low quality aftermarket replacement lights (if the lights were replaced) - it should also be noted, that if the damage was not properly repaired, then the actual headlamp may be so far out of position that it cannot be aligned using the standard alignment methods.

Changing the bulbs won't fix that problem, fitting HIDs won't fix that problem.

If you have a volt meter, let's start by checking for damaged/defective wiring - measure the voltage at the back of one headlight with them on - measure between ground (the battery negative) and the red wire in both high & low beams & repeat, measuring between ground and the red/white wire.

In both cases, you're going to see a voltage very close to 12V and another very close to 0V - we're actually interested in the one that is closer to 0V (Suzuki uses ground switched headlights) - I would expect a reading of less than 1V, and I would expect similar readings on both wires.

If that passes, find a flat surface (maybe a garage door or a wall) and park the car perpendicular to it, facing it and no more than 15' feet or so away - wait until it's dark and switch the lights on ...

Low beams - you should see a clearly defined pattern - a horizontal line, bright below the line, not as bright above, you should also see two diagonal lines rising as they goes to your right (this assumes a LHD vehicle since your location is Connecticut), and these diagonal lines should intersect with the horizontal one at a point, more or less, infront of each light.

High beams - you should see two bright or "hot" spots, again, more or less, infront of the each light.

If you're not seeing these patterns or they are not where they are supposed to be, find a repair shop with headlamp alignment equipment and have them take a look at it.

[cms1172]

DDM Tuning 35W and 55W HID Kits

this place is where i get my kits, they warranty forever too.
and they do stand up, have used the warranty before,
In Idaho, I have never had a problem and I fit all my vehicles, motorcycles, cars.
in fact just ordered this kit for my 08 reno, just bought dirt cheap with moderate miles, in almost perfect condition.

[digitaldelay]

Originally Posted by cms1172

I have never had a problem

You wouldn't have a problem. It's oncoming traffic that is a problem for.

Your problem will eventually come from your insurance being voided after a collision.

Jason

[cms1172]

Has anyone ever really been pulled over for HID lights?
has anyone read all 538 pages of that thing?

[fordem]

Idaho is also subject to FMVSS108

Originally Posted by digitaldelay

Your problem will eventually come from your insurance being voided after a collision.

That might be a best case scenario - here's a different one - he's on a winding two lane country road, one lane in each direction (ever driven through the dells in Wisconsin?), comes around a left turn and halfway through, meets a car coming in the opposite direction - the oncoming driver is momentarily blinded, doesn't realize that the road turns and for that split second continues straight ahead ...

Even on a dead straight road, there's a danger that the oncoming driver, dazzled by your lights, will veer into your lane - the brain subconsciously focuses on the light and you drive towards it - you have to each yourself to look past the light.

[fordem]

Originally Posted by cms1172

Has anyone ever really been pulled over for HID lights?

has anyone read all 538 pages of that thing?

Yes - and - yes.

[cms1172]

guess we are lucky in hickville.

[fordem]

That might depend on your interpretation of luck - not being pulled over - or - surviving the accident.

We've got five vehicles here, four with halogen headlights, and the fifth with factory fitted HIDs (HIDs are low beam only, high beam is halogen) - quite frankly the HIDs are not all they are hyped to be.

Yes - they are noticeably whiter and brighter - but - a properly focused low beam HID has no greater range than a properly focused low beam halogen headlamp, and the halogen high beams on that particular vehicle are miserable. Please don't bother to tell me that bi-xenon HIDs exist - unless you're prepared to tell me which vehicles have them fitted as OEM equipment.

I am not anti-HID, just anti-dazzle, it doesn't matter whether that dazzle is caused by misaligned halogen headlamps, or illegal HID conversions that cannot be aligned correctly.

The majority of HID conversion aficionados only believe they are seeing better, the light scatter from the HIDs illuminates the area directly in front of the vehicle giving that illusion, but the brighter foreground causes the iris of the eye to close, and reduces their ability to see further away from the vehicle.

Strangely enough - the one vehicle with factory fitted HIDs also came with factory fitted halogen driving lamps - on the roof - that are no match for the Hella halogen driving lamps sitting on the front bumper of my Suzuki, even with the height advantage.

[dkguffe]

First of all, I agree with ALL the comments that Fordem has made on this topic so far.

I do want to share a bit of my personal experiences though.

For a start, then I agree partly with the problem of people fitting HID to whatever they can. It does show itself primarily as a safety risk to on-coming traffic, and somewhat to traffic going in the same direction in front of you as well. I'm sure that I'm not the only one that have felt annoyed by this Mitsubishi Lancer or whatever with HID "high beams" stuck on (read lowbeams with HID) It can be sooo annoying.

HOWEVER...

The second generation GV came with a number of different headlight configurations. To my knowledge, it came as parabolic high AND low beams, Parabolic High, Xenon Lens low, and Parabolic High, HID low.

For the version with parabolic low and high, HID is a BIG no no.

For the Xenon lens version, HID's can be fitted correctly with a bit of workmanship. If you expect to buy a kit of Ebay, to fit it straight away, then don't do it. You will need to make up a couple of custom spacers to fit the HID correctly in relation to the optics of the headlight. I did this, and I dare say, you would not be able to tell the difference between my "upgrade" and an OEM HID (third version)

With the HID filaments correctly aligned, you WILL get a perfect cut-off beam, with NO glare.

That only leaves the headlight washers. For now, I manually keep my headlights nice and clean, but I will add the washers on a later stage.

So, IF you have the right light fitting, and the skills to align the filament correctly, it can be done safely. Still, it WILL be illegal to do, but, chances that it would cause any problems are MUCH less.

For the reasons above, I decided to fit HID in my GV, but would NEVER fit HID in my other car which only have the parabolic high and lows.