After seeing the lights of my friend's new rental camry (and flat spotting the tires) I've decided that I'm going to blow some money on some kickass projectors.

I want bixenons, and TL is pretty much the way to go when you get bixenons. I remember some talk about them being too big to put into A32 headlights. Is it doable?

Also, was browsing ebay--I'd need a spare set of lights to use to retro them into.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/95-99...87890394QQrdZ1

I remember CE or someone coming out with some totally clear headlights (no lines on the lens), are these them? Are they acceptable, quality-wise? Obviously beam pattern won't matter as I'll be ripping them apart right when they get here. I just want them to be able to "protect my investment" so to speak, and not crack, need to seal properly, etc. They're certainly cheap enough... hope that doesn't say anything about the build quality.

Any input is greatly appreciated.

 

yeah there the same ones that ce used to offer and quality is the same and aretro would be fine inthose

 

Bought.

Alright, how about TL projectors? Do they still fit with the solenoids sticking out or am I going to have to cut a hole in the bottom of the housing and seal it? Has anyone DONE TLs in stock housings yet?

 

I have a set of murano projectors if interested.

 

Those headlights are in fact the same ones gtr_rider used for his setup. As for the TL questions, I've got no clue.

 

Yeah I jumped in joy when I found the clear lensed ones. Your sig pic rawks btw.

 

If you buy those, are they still 9004 sockets? Because I saw another auction for headlights on ebay that said the housing was 9006/low and 9005/high.

 

I’m currently running TL’s with clear lens.

In my opinion, they were a difficult projector to retrofit. You will need to cut out the bottom of the housing to get them in. The TL’s are taller then the stock A32 (me I had to cut a lot of the housing to get them aligned they way I wanted)

You will also need to make a custom mold to reseal the housing and protect the solenoid. Depending on which year TL’s you have you will need to make sure you give the solenoid space to move.

I’m taking my TL’s out shortly; IMHO they are a great projector but not an ideal candidate for the 4th gen maxima.

Good Luck!

 

Yup, those are the ones im using

 

Thanks. It's odd, I took it earlier this week and today it's like 50º+ outside
Those are likely the "R34" headlights.

 

i have TLs they are great and i love them...

 

I am currently about half way done with TL bixenon w/ZKW lens in R34 housing...and let me tell u that it is a B*** to fit!

the freakin solenoid on this thing is monstrous! if u want to fit these then u will definately have to cut up the bottom of the housing. It is very difficult to put in and I am not looking forward to aiming these suckers.

If this is ur first retrofit then I would definately not go with the TL projectors. They are very nice but the infiniti FX is probably way easier to fit.

The FX actually has a wider beam pattern than the TL but the FX lacks a little intensity. Go with the FX...it will be a lot easier and u dont risk the chance of F-ing up ur headlight housing.

which clear lens did u use? ZKW by any chance?

 

where can u get TL projectors? I'm kind interested in doing a 3 socket projector with the R34s that I've ordered

 

they are not that bad to do.... sure it takes a little while but its all worth it at the end....

 

I just did some testing of the TL/ZKW hybrid and it is SICK!!! The distance is amazing. definately worth all the time i am putting into this.

It took me about 7 hours so far and I still need to bolt them up (couldnt today cause all the hardware stores closed at 9pm), aim, and reopen if necessary. Im guessin I still have about 2 hours left in the project if everything goes as planned. so that is 9 hours total and this is my 4th retrofit so far.

so I would definately recommend the TL if u are willing to work very hard and meticulously. if u want an easier retro then go with the FX.

 

Well I'm torn between FX and TL projos now... ZKW lenses are fuggin' EXPENSIVE, it's ridiculous. Gotta pay to play and all that, but TL/ZKW is over twice as expensive as just the TLs themselves.

Anyone know what type of solenoids the FX and TLs use?

I basically want the "best," I've been waiting a long time for kickass lights and now's my chance. Screw the 9007 conversion.

 

They're plastered all over egay.

 

Wait, why are you pulling 'em? You've already done all the work...

 

well the "best" is TL/ZKW. it is very expensive...so far I have spent:
R34 housing: $200
TL Projector: $220
ZKW Projector: $240
Denso Ballast and Bulbs: $150
TOTAL: $810

And I still have to make a harness.

So u are torn between the TL or FX? what are u looking for? width or intensity or both?

Width...FX
Intensity...TL
BOTH...TL/ZKW

IF u are not willing to go with the ZKW because the lenses are so expensive and hard to find...u can mod the FX with a clear lens. The TSX clear lens is a perfect match for it....gives a lot more intensity but makes a weird cusp in the bottom. heres a pic... FX is on top and S2k is on bottom


notice the width and intensity...but also notice the cusp in the bottom middle.

 

I'm just wondering if anyone has ever done a retrofited all of the R34s headlight slots, I'm wondering if anyone can photoshop me what it would look like cause the way I'm imaging it, its pretty hot.

 

Everyone is entitled to thier own research, to me stock S2K > All.

 

Well width is important to me but distance/intensity is more important. Also, I'm not going to buy another set of projectors just to mod one set. I won't be doing any modding to projectors. I also don't really like that the FX has a yellow cutoff stock, color isn't all that important to me, output is more important, it's just kind of annoying. Apparently you can get rid of it with a washer mod though.

Also high beams are important. I want bixenon for a reason, I do mountain driving at night, sometimes long trips at night and I want to be able to see EVERYTHING and see FAR. This is why I'm willing to spend ~$600 on a retrofit. I do like the cool factor but I'm more interested in output.

Stock TLs vs S2k:


TL high beams vs. S2k:


TL high beams are pretty sweet. They're also in much greater supply (ebay).

 

What are you using for high beams? Or are you getting rid of them?

 

well then i think u should go with the TL. It is very good for distance and width and has the best high beam out there. As long as u are gonna be using a headlight housing other than the R34 then u will be fine. U will need to cut the bottom of the housing a bit for the solenoid but sealing it up should be easy.

also the color mod of the TL is very easy to do...just take out the stopper behind the shield.

u will love the TL projectors...I wish i went with these the first time around. Just make sure u plan everything out.

 

Ok on TLS u DONT MOD THEM!!! ok modding them reduces the light output drastically.. do not do it... same goes with teh color mod...

 

Wasn't planning on it. Thanks for the pointer though. Pretty sure I'm going with TLs, I can handle the extra cutting and sealing for the results.

Haha, one of my lights is out right now (the harness is screwed), I might just leave it like this until I get a retro so I can tell an even bigger difference.

 

Except for the LS projectors w/ bowl

...but they would never come close to fitting in a Max headlight housing.

 

Pix.

Also... those who have retroed TLs, are there any pics or anything that you'd have of your housing after the retro?

 

LS are HUGE....about as big as the Q45. No way they would fit.

 

Notice the large "bowl" at the bottom of the projector? That lets some of the light from the projector (when the high beams are flicked on) flood out of the bottom of the projector into that bowl where it is reflected, increasing the width dramatically. Unfortunately, I can't find any pics of the output There's even a good one retrofitted on a 2000-ish Benz that shows the output really well.

 

Well, here we are... the moment of truth (and a big hole in the wallet).

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Acura...spagenameZWDVW

Oh, and look what showed up today...




Wish me luck?

 

Maxima owners don't need luck...

 

Not a bad price for the whole lot.

This thread keeps reminding me I need to perform some light surgery of my own. Gotta take my headlights out and finally remove the angel eyes I had installed at the time of the retrofit that I basically never used. Now they just look tacky haha. Need to AE my clearance lights as well...

 

need miracles




If I were to do it again, I would get the TL projectors because of the awesome blue cutoff line. And then some D4S bulbs/ballasts

 

D4S... hmm, you know at some point I knew the difference between all the HID bulb types but by this point I've totally forgotten. Care to enlighten me?

 

Yeah actually I probably could have snooped around some more and gotten it for $100 or so cheaper, but I'm not a ballast expert--I know Hella gen 3s are decent and was sick of looking around, so I just took a dive. Now I need a friend with a holesaw.

P.S. take out the angel eyes... pleeassee... you still with the E46 bix?

 

Yessir, still have the E46 bix's and I love 'em. The angel eyes are coming out as soon as we get some warmer weather. Something I decided was cool at the time and wholly regret now. I'm also considering modding my ballasts when it gets warmer out, but I'm still up in the air on that. I may also get some ECE lenses for my E46's (I have DOT now).

 

Man, don't say you want to replace the lens on your E46s... my mind goes from E46 to ZKW to ZKW lens, and then I realize the reality and am disappointed. So, no plans to upgrade projos?

Yeah I wanted to try and either get some actual 50W ballasts or mod mine as well, that might come later... depending on how satisfied I am straight out of the box.

 

Nope, no plans to re-retrofit. No need. My E46's are good enough as-is. Plans for the lenses and ballasts are mostly out of boredom. Kind of one of those, "Well it would be nice if..." situations.

My projectors also need re-aimed a little. I'm not sure if maxgtr2000 did something wrong or if my headlights are screwed up or what, but the driver's side is a hair too low and if I aim it any higher (with the housing adjustments) the headlight housing actually pops out a little and looks stupid.

So there's all kinds of little things that annoy me and that I wish were better, but, then I think, "I could be rocking halogen reflectors right now..." I'll get everything fixed here shortly, anyway, so it's all good.

 

d4s=d2s.... d4s are mercury free...