HID Projector retrofit - DONE - PICS - NO 56k
#9
ah sorry i didn't take pictures of the process so i can't do a proper write up. but if anybody have any questions, i'll be very happy to help where i can. basically what i did was:
1) bake headlights at 200* for 10 minutes, pry apart front lens, and tape up the ridge where the glue sits so i don't get dust and debris inside.
2) using a dremel with cutting disk, i cut off the back portion of the light where the 9004 bulb goes.
3) cut a piece of sheet metal to size and cover up the back side which is one big rectangluar hole after cutting, the metal also serves as the back plate where the projector mounts
4) cut a hole in the middle of the sheet metal plate where the projector will stick out. drill 3 holes like - =, like 3 out of 4 corners in a rectangle.
5) use jbweld and glue the backplate to the headlight housing and let it cure overnight.
6) mount the projector to the backplate with three 3" bolts and wing nuts. the two diagnal bolts/nuts will be the up/down and left/right adjustment. i did that to center the projector inside the headlight. i used the stock adjustment screw to make the final aiming.
7) seal up the back where the projector sticks out with sillicone so no water gets inside the headlight.
8) once the projector is mounted and secure, heat the headlight glue again and put the front lens back on.
i assume you guys know how to wire up ballasts to light the hid bulb.
and there it is. simple as, well, building HID lights from parts.
1) bake headlights at 200* for 10 minutes, pry apart front lens, and tape up the ridge where the glue sits so i don't get dust and debris inside.
2) using a dremel with cutting disk, i cut off the back portion of the light where the 9004 bulb goes.
3) cut a piece of sheet metal to size and cover up the back side which is one big rectangluar hole after cutting, the metal also serves as the back plate where the projector mounts
4) cut a hole in the middle of the sheet metal plate where the projector will stick out. drill 3 holes like - =, like 3 out of 4 corners in a rectangle.
5) use jbweld and glue the backplate to the headlight housing and let it cure overnight.
6) mount the projector to the backplate with three 3" bolts and wing nuts. the two diagnal bolts/nuts will be the up/down and left/right adjustment. i did that to center the projector inside the headlight. i used the stock adjustment screw to make the final aiming.
7) seal up the back where the projector sticks out with sillicone so no water gets inside the headlight.
8) once the projector is mounted and secure, heat the headlight glue again and put the front lens back on.
i assume you guys know how to wire up ballasts to light the hid bulb.
and there it is. simple as, well, building HID lights from parts.
#12
by the way, how long did it take you to do this install, and what are ballasts? ive never heard of them before. also, did your projectors come with the harness to wire them up or did you have to buy an hid kit as well. and my last question, with a kit, can you change to diff bulbs whenever you want, like change from a 6000k to a 12000k using the same kit? sorry for all the questions, but i dont know much about hid's.
#15
lovely.
yea what type of projectors.
i need a list of all the parts to collect to do my set.
ballasters, igniters, bulbs, projectors- i know i'm overlooking something. shrouds?
oh you got a PM.
yea what type of projectors.
i need a list of all the parts to collect to do my set.
ballasters, igniters, bulbs, projectors- i know i'm overlooking something. shrouds?
oh you got a PM.
#29
wow, sh!tload of questions. let me post some pictures first.
some daytime pics after a wash this morning - everything off
CCFL rings on. they're pretty bright even in middle of the day. CCFL is way brighter than the cheaper LED based angel eyes and OEM bmw angel eyes that feed thru a fiber optic cable.
some daytime pics after a wash this morning - everything off
CCFL rings on. they're pretty bright even in middle of the day. CCFL is way brighter than the cheaper LED based angel eyes and OEM bmw angel eyes that feed thru a fiber optic cable.
#32
i used TSX projectors in this retrofit because i got a great deal on two sets on ebay. i'll be doing my tC next. i spent about $350 a set including projectors, ballasts, and bulbs. the S2K projectors have a sharper cutoff than TSX, but are $300-330 for just the projectors alone. TL projectors are even more expensive. TL projectors are bi-xenon, tsx and s2k are low beams only. the best projectors out right now are the LS430s. brighter and wider than S2k and tsx but around $400 for just the projectors. All these are made by Stanley, and output from all of these are better than the german counters parts like hella and bosch.
so for me, this retro costed me about $350 which is waaaaaay worth it considering sh!tty HID kits are almost $300. for the maxima, i used tsx projectors, bmw ballasts made by bosch, and osram 4100k bulbs. you can plug in other bulbs with higher kelvin rating, but they are usually cheap asian bulbs that won't last very long. however, phillip makes 6000K bulbs, the ultineon or something. they're bluer but a whole lot more expensive. all OEM manufacturers use either phillips or osram 4100k bulbs. the blue and purple you see from audis and bmws is from the color band at the cutoff and usually visible from far away. upclose the light is bright white.
as of right now i don't have time to do retros for others, yet. i still have my other car to do. maybe at a later date i can offer the service in the forsale forum
so for me, this retro costed me about $350 which is waaaaaay worth it considering sh!tty HID kits are almost $300. for the maxima, i used tsx projectors, bmw ballasts made by bosch, and osram 4100k bulbs. you can plug in other bulbs with higher kelvin rating, but they are usually cheap asian bulbs that won't last very long. however, phillip makes 6000K bulbs, the ultineon or something. they're bluer but a whole lot more expensive. all OEM manufacturers use either phillips or osram 4100k bulbs. the blue and purple you see from audis and bmws is from the color band at the cutoff and usually visible from far away. upclose the light is bright white.
as of right now i don't have time to do retros for others, yet. i still have my other car to do. maybe at a later date i can offer the service in the forsale forum
#38
you mod those tsx's @ all? doesnt look it in the pics, if not you should. you can get a ton of color w/ tsx'x and still have a razor sharp cuttoff. you can either shimm the shield or put 2 washers on the nipples at the bottom of the projector. either way gives lot of color.
the pic below is a set of TSX's w/ shimmed sheilds i did for another org member. mmmmmmmm color
(MDX's in sig)
the pic below is a set of TSX's w/ shimmed sheilds i did for another org member. mmmmmmmm color
(MDX's in sig)