R34 headlights with Morimoto Mini H1 retro (pics)
10-12-2011, 09:39 PM
#1
R34 headlights with Morimoto Mini H1 retro (pics)
I had a huge post started with a partial how-to, pictures, and everything, then I accidentally closed my browser. 
I have reconstructed some of it, but I've left a lot out. The pikture says betterer then I coulda. 
(To see the pics, I have a link to my Flickr page at the bottom of this post.) This was a really simple install. Took a while to complete, but I took a lot of breaks. You could do this in an afternoon if you were prepared. I took 10-15hrs spread over Mon and Tues night and this morning. I just bought the stuff and did a little trial and error until it looked right.
Parts list:
Black R34 headlights - $140 ebay
Bi-xenon Morimoto Mini Stage III Kit (H1)
Bulbs: H1: XB35 4300K
Ballasts: Morimoto 3Five (35w)
Adapter Plate: 9006
Wire Harness: Relay: 9006
Shrouds: Mini Gatling Gun
$300 theretrofitsource.com
I got the 9006 alignment washer (which I did not use) and the 9006 harness. Since the retro harness is pnp and the R34 headlights come with a 9004 to 9006 adapter, I was able to just plug everything up and connect it to the battery. I haven't connected the high-beam solenoid yet, but I do have the halogen highs. The MH1 is designed to bolt into a factory headlight housing. From what I understand, the only difference between the MH1 kits are the alignment washers and harness connectors. The only modification I had to do was grind down a lip on the reflector so that the projector would sit flush and drill a hole for the solenoid wires.
The mounting order that I used: shroud -> projector -> small silicone washer -> lock nut -> H1 bulb mount
The projector is not fully enclosed, so even with a shroud on, a lot of light will shine out of the back. I did not paint the reflector, so going on the word of others on hidplanet.com, I taped over the gaps with aluminum tape. You can only see it if you are looking for it. I'm glad that I did. I would have a ton of squirrel finders if I hadn't taped it up. Good luck using anything other than the Mini Gatling Gun. I was able to work the shroud in without any grinding or cutting.
I still need to find a bulb cover for the back of the headlight, it isn't sealed where the bulb is mounted. I also need to cleanup the wires, but besides that, I say it's pretty kickass. Definitely recommended for a first retro.
Pictures weren't loading so here is a link to my flickr page. I've added some more pictures since posting and I have organized them into sets.
See post 24 for an update covering the few issues that I've had. The majority of my job is driving and I use my Maxima for all of that. As of 6/19/12, those are still the only issues and these lights are still really bright (I'm now at about 1000hrs of use).
-crackhead
I have reconstructed some of it, but I've left a lot out. The pikture says betterer then I coulda. (To see the pics, I have a link to my Flickr page at the bottom of this post.) This was a really simple install. Took a while to complete, but I took a lot of breaks. You could do this in an afternoon if you were prepared. I took 10-15hrs spread over Mon and Tues night and this morning. I just bought the stuff and did a little trial and error until it looked right.Parts list:
Black R34 headlights - $140 ebay
Bi-xenon Morimoto Mini Stage III Kit (H1)
Bulbs: H1: XB35 4300K
Ballasts: Morimoto 3Five (35w)
Adapter Plate: 9006
Wire Harness: Relay: 9006
Shrouds: Mini Gatling Gun
$300 theretrofitsource.com
I got the 9006 alignment washer (which I did not use) and the 9006 harness. Since the retro harness is pnp and the R34 headlights come with a 9004 to 9006 adapter, I was able to just plug everything up and connect it to the battery. I haven't connected the high-beam solenoid yet, but I do have the halogen highs. The MH1 is designed to bolt into a factory headlight housing. From what I understand, the only difference between the MH1 kits are the alignment washers and harness connectors. The only modification I had to do was grind down a lip on the reflector so that the projector would sit flush and drill a hole for the solenoid wires.
The mounting order that I used: shroud -> projector -> small silicone washer -> lock nut -> H1 bulb mount
The projector is not fully enclosed, so even with a shroud on, a lot of light will shine out of the back. I did not paint the reflector, so going on the word of others on hidplanet.com, I taped over the gaps with aluminum tape. You can only see it if you are looking for it. I'm glad that I did. I would have a ton of squirrel finders if I hadn't taped it up. Good luck using anything other than the Mini Gatling Gun. I was able to work the shroud in without any grinding or cutting.
I still need to find a bulb cover for the back of the headlight, it isn't sealed where the bulb is mounted. I also need to cleanup the wires, but besides that, I say it's pretty kickass. Definitely recommended for a first retro.
Pictures weren't loading so here is a link to my flickr page. I've added some more pictures since posting and I have organized them into sets.
See post 24 for an update covering the few issues that I've had. The majority of my job is driving and I use my Maxima for all of that. As of 6/19/12, those are still the only issues and these lights are still really bright (I'm now at about 1000hrs of use).
-crackhead
Last edited by crackhead; 06-19-2012 at 12:48 AM. Reason: no pictures, changed flickr url, added more pics
10-12-2011, 11:51 PM
#3
tl;dr - YMMV with the tape.
Thats what I thought too, several people on the forums at hidplanet.com have used the tape on the mh1 and 1 or 2 had the glue fail on them. I think most of them are wrapping more of the projector than I am (fully enclosing it with tape). The tape on my projector is basically on the outside, right next to the heat, but hopefully the glue wont melt over everything. The shroud stops where the projector bowl begins and I put the tape along that seam. The shroud has slots cut in it near the front and it doesn't sit flush on the lens. I don't know if that is providing any significant amount of ventilation or not. I'll be keeping an eye on it and see if it holds up. It may actually look good with that extra light in the back. The reflector isn't too big so there might not be much glare. I wanted a cleaner look so I went with the tape.
Thats what I thought too, several people on the forums at hidplanet.com have used the tape on the mh1 and 1 or 2 had the glue fail on them. I think most of them are wrapping more of the projector than I am (fully enclosing it with tape). The tape on my projector is basically on the outside, right next to the heat, but hopefully the glue wont melt over everything. The shroud stops where the projector bowl begins and I put the tape along that seam. The shroud has slots cut in it near the front and it doesn't sit flush on the lens. I don't know if that is providing any significant amount of ventilation or not. I'll be keeping an eye on it and see if it holds up. It may actually look good with that extra light in the back. The reflector isn't too big so there might not be much glare. I wanted a cleaner look so I went with the tape.
10-13-2011, 05:05 AM
#5
10-13-2011, 10:43 AM
#11
i was thinkin about doing a retro with these. they look a little far forward for my taste i wouldve set them back more i think. but good work.
is it just me or are they aligned a little low?
is it just me or are they aligned a little low?
10-13-2011, 03:24 PM
#15
Thanks for all the compliments. I drove about 3hrs today with the lights on and I don't see any problems with the tape yet. Everything is still right where I left it and no visible fogging. Can't wait to waste some more gas tonight...
Thanks! Yes, I think it would be a lot easier to get them into the stock housing. There is not a lot of room in the r34's. By my measurements, the stock headlight is a little over an inch deeper and a small amount larger on the inside height. These projectors barely fit the r34's. They're around a 1/2in from the lens and the shroud is tight against the top and bottom of the reflector.
Thanks! Yes, they would look better with a bigger shroud or further back, but I decided to KISS. These bolt into the bulb hole on the reflector. No hacking the shroud or headlight up, no jb weld-ing any holes or seams, and no need to align any bolts or make any mounts. I didn't have to do any of that, so it was much less complicated. To adjust them I use the adjustment screw on the headlight. They are centered in the reflector, so no horizontal adjustment was needed. To adjust the cutoff, I grab the bulb mount with a pair of pliers. Can't get much simpler than that. Me = lazy 
. I haven't seen any mh1's in the stock headlights. Those are probably big enough to sit back further with a larger shroud, so better looking. I drive ~1500mi/week and some of that is at night. I bought these more for the performance, looking good is a nice bonus (probably should have mentioned that in my 1st post). Like I said above, I definitely recommend these. Take a look at the regular size Gatling Gun or E55-R shrouds. Those + ccfl halos + mh1 + stock headlight w/painted reflector (might)= 
I would have put them into the stock headlights if the previous owner hadn't put spray tint on all of the lights. 
I did do some more adjustment after taking those pictures. I need a better camera. My Droid doesn't do them justice. If you want to see some better pictures of the light output: link <- That thread on hidplanet.com is what really sold me on these projectors. Sorry for the long reply, got carried away there...
I would get in touch with Matt at TRS (Matt@TheRetrofitSource.com). He goes by TRSMatt on the hidplanet.com forums. He knows a lot more about this than I do. He can tell you exactly what you need to convert to a full retro. I don't think you would need anything besides that. Might need different bulbs to fit the projector.
. I haven't seen any mh1's in the stock headlights. Those are probably big enough to sit back further with a larger shroud, so better looking. I drive ~1500mi/week and some of that is at night. I bought these more for the performance, looking good is a nice bonus (probably should have mentioned that in my 1st post). Like I said above, I definitely recommend these. Take a look at the regular size Gatling Gun or E55-R shrouds. Those + ccfl halos + mh1 + stock headlight w/painted reflector (might)= I would have put them into the stock headlights if the previous owner hadn't put spray tint on all of the lights. I did do some more adjustment after taking those pictures. I need a better camera. My Droid doesn't do them justice. If you want to see some better pictures of the light output: link <- That thread on hidplanet.com is what really sold me on these projectors. Sorry for the long reply, got carried away there...
I would get in touch with Matt at TRS (Matt@TheRetrofitSource.com). He goes by TRSMatt on the hidplanet.com forums. He knows a lot more about this than I do. He can tell you exactly what you need to convert to a full retro. I don't think you would need anything besides that. Might need different bulbs to fit the projector.
10-15-2011, 01:20 PM
#17
Just to add an update, I've added more pictures of the exterior and cutoff and organized all of them into sets. Here is the revised url.
Also, these lights are worth every penny. I drove 8+hrs yesterday and I had the lights on the majority of the time. About 3-4 hrs were after dark. I checked the tape and it is still in place and no visible fogging on the lens. I had an older Escalade using my light for about an hour, because his OEM HIDs were crap compared to mine (probably had old, cheap bulbs - they were more blue than OEM).
These make it much easier to drive at night. I had "upgraded" to 9007 TruView bulbs before installing these projectors. They did reduce the glare off of street signs compared to Silverstars, but not by much. On a long drive, I still got eye strain. Last night though, the eye strain was not a problem. The headlights from other cars on unlit roads were not annoying and there was no glare from street signs. I was expecting to not be able to see anything above the cutoff, but that wasn't the case. Except for the very twisty, very hilly back roads, I could see everything I needed to.
Also, these lights are worth every penny. I drove 8+hrs yesterday and I had the lights on the majority of the time. About 3-4 hrs were after dark. I checked the tape and it is still in place and no visible fogging on the lens. I had an older Escalade using my light for about an hour, because his OEM HIDs were crap compared to mine (probably had old, cheap bulbs - they were more blue than OEM).
These make it much easier to drive at night. I had "upgraded" to 9007 TruView bulbs before installing these projectors. They did reduce the glare off of street signs compared to Silverstars, but not by much. On a long drive, I still got eye strain. Last night though, the eye strain was not a problem. The headlights from other cars on unlit roads were not annoying and there was no glare from street signs. I was expecting to not be able to see anything above the cutoff, but that wasn't the case. Except for the very twisty, very hilly back roads, I could see everything I needed to.
10-15-2011, 02:45 PM
#18
Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 111
Yep, you pretty much pushed me into retrofitting mine lol. Headlights looks nice. I'm looking at either the Iris or Ocular shrouds since they look like they should fit without any extra cutting. I emailed Matt about what I am gonna need.
10-15-2011, 06:42 PM
#19
Awesome! Make sure to let us know how it goes. I would really like to know if it really is as easy as I said it is and if it looks any better in the stock housing (guessing you are doing that). I don't know why we haven't seen this kit before now. I've been lurking on this forum for years now and I have only seen OEM retros. I would put headlights near the top of my "performance and safety list", right up there with good tires and brakes. On a difficulty scale of 1-10, if changing a light bulb is a 1 or 2 and a custom retro with oem projectors is a 7-10, these get a 4 or 5 in my book.
Just for reference, the outside diameter of the Mini Gatling Gun shroud (the one that I have) is just over 3.5" or 90-91mm. The height of both the Iris and Ocular is 115mm. The E55-R is the shortest full-size shroud at 103mm and the GTI-R is 2nd at 107mm. You may still have to do some cutting on them. I don't know how far back the projector will sit. I do like the look of the Iris.
What ever you get, make sure you have stuff to control the dust. That was what gave me the most problems. I planned to buy some powder-free gloves and cans of compressed air, but forgot. I had cheap microfiber cloths from Walmart, but those left lint behind. Right as I was finishing, I tried an old cotton t-shirt and that worked really good. Be really gentle on the chrome (I have a few swirls in mine), don't use alcohol or cleaners (could ruin the finish 
), and it will look great
Just for reference, the outside diameter of the Mini Gatling Gun shroud (the one that I have) is just over 3.5" or 90-91mm. The height of both the Iris and Ocular is 115mm. The E55-R is the shortest full-size shroud at 103mm and the GTI-R is 2nd at 107mm. You may still have to do some cutting on them. I don't know how far back the projector will sit. I do like the look of the Iris.
What ever you get, make sure you have stuff to control the dust. That was what gave me the most problems. I planned to buy some powder-free gloves and cans of compressed air, but forgot. I had cheap microfiber cloths from Walmart, but those left lint behind. Right as I was finishing, I tried an old cotton t-shirt and that worked really good. Be really gentle on the chrome (I have a few swirls in mine
), don't use alcohol or cleaners (could ruin the finish ), and it will look great
10-16-2011, 03:54 PM
#22
Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 111
Awesome! Make sure to let us know how it goes. I would really like to know if it really is as easy as I said it is and if it looks any better in the stock housing (guessing you are doing that). I don't know why we haven't seen this kit before now. I've been lurking on this forum for years now and I have only seen OEM retros. I would put headlights near the top of my "performance and safety list", right up there with good tires and brakes. On a difficulty scale of 1-10, if changing a light bulb is a 1 or 2 and a custom retro with oem projectors is a 7-10, these get a 4 or 5 in my book.
Just for reference, the outside diameter of the Mini Gatling Gun shroud (the one that I have) is just over 3.5" or 90-91mm. The height of both the Iris and Ocular is 115mm. The E55-R is the shortest full-size shroud at 103mm and the GTI-R is 2nd at 107mm. You may still have to do some cutting on them. I don't know how far back the projector will sit. I do like the look of the Iris.
What ever you get, make sure you have stuff to control the dust. That was what gave me the most problems. I planned to buy some powder-free gloves and cans of compressed air, but forgot. I had cheap microfiber cloths from Walmart, but those left lint behind. Right as I was finishing, I tried an old cotton t-shirt and that worked really good. Be really gentle on the chrome (I have a few swirls in mine), don't use alcohol or cleaners (could ruin the finish ), and it will look great
Just for reference, the outside diameter of the Mini Gatling Gun shroud (the one that I have) is just over 3.5" or 90-91mm. The height of both the Iris and Ocular is 115mm. The E55-R is the shortest full-size shroud at 103mm and the GTI-R is 2nd at 107mm. You may still have to do some cutting on them. I don't know how far back the projector will sit. I do like the look of the Iris.
What ever you get, make sure you have stuff to control the dust. That was what gave me the most problems. I planned to buy some powder-free gloves and cans of compressed air, but forgot. I had cheap microfiber cloths from Walmart, but those left lint behind. Right as I was finishing, I tried an old cotton t-shirt and that worked really good. Be really gentle on the chrome (I have a few swirls in mine
), don't use alcohol or cleaners (could ruin the finish ), and it will look great I may just have to suck it up and get the cutting bc irises are on the top of my list lol
10-19-2011, 01:04 AM
#23
Thanks Swazey and Mr. Blue Sky! Just doing my part to keep people away from ebay pnp hid kits.
Yeah, I don't have any space on the top and bottom. Both of them are rubbing against the reflector. There is around 20-25mm on the the side facing the corner light (That is to the furthest part just inside of the black trim. It curves inward like the reflector.) and less than 5mm on the opposite side. Good luck!
Someone on here with the black R34s made a flat shroud that covered the entire reflector with the projector lens sticking out just past the shroud. It looked really nice. The black plastic that holds the lens on the MH1 isn't very pretty though.
I've had the lights on for well over 10hrs now and no problems with the aluminum tape. The car looks a whole lot better now that I've washed it. Wish I had a better camera.
Thanks for the info! I have the black R34s as well. I looked at them the other night and oculars would definitely be too big. How much space or mms do u have left around the shrouds? looks like none lol....
I may just have to suck it up and get the cutting bc irises are on the top of my list lol
I may just have to suck it up and get the cutting bc irises are on the top of my list lol
Someone on here with the black R34s made a flat shroud that covered the entire reflector with the projector lens sticking out just past the shroud. It looked really nice. The black plastic that holds the lens on the MH1 isn't very pretty though.
I've had the lights on for well over 10hrs now and no problems with the aluminum tape. The car looks a whole lot better now that I've washed it. Wish I had a better camera.
01-18-2012, 11:26 AM
#24
Another update for those of you that have been thinking about doing your own retro with the MH1 and the 1pc headlight. This was a reply to a PM, but I think everyone could use this info.
For the most part I haven't had any major issues with the MH1 except one. Check out this thread here on HIDPlanet (lots of good info). I decided not to lubricate or sand down the plunger for the cutoff shield. I thought that I wouldn't have any problem with the high beam, but it did. The left side doesn't come all the way back up and the right is off by a tiny amount. I was able to get the left side back up to the correct position and then I disconnected the high beam solenoid. I can still use the right side though (the cutoff still gets stuck down sometimes, which is not good). The highs with just the right side and some silverstar 9005s are insane. You could easily run someone off the road with the one projector.
I might not connect the left side back up because I don't need it. I prefer the clean cutoff, which I lost when the shield didn't come back up correctly.
As far as the minor issues go, I occasionally got a tiny amount of flicker at idle. I just recently moved my ground from the chassis to the battery and it is almost gone now. Pretty sure it's my electrical system (bad alternator or corrosion) or something on the wiring harness I made (for my 9007 swap, I just didn't take it out). The 9004-9005/6 adapter that came with the headlight has cheap connectors that don't make a very good connection. I had my driver side light cut off when I hit a big pothole or bump. I wiggled all of the connections on my harness until I found the bad connectors on the adapter. I haven't had any problems since I re-seated it.
Not really a problem, but something I would still like to add would be a threaded stud for the bracket side of the headlight. I kinda stripped the screw putting in the left side because I didn't want to remove my battery. It would be much easier to adjust and install/remove the headlight with a nut instead of a screw. I haven't really taken the time to find the stud yet. These lights take about 20-30 seconds to completely warm up, which isn't a problem, just annoying when it's dark. Hope this info helps, these are still one of the most kick-a$$ lights around after about 500hrs of use.
crackhead
For the most part I haven't had any major issues with the MH1 except one. Check out this thread here on HIDPlanet (lots of good info). I decided not to lubricate or sand down the plunger for the cutoff shield. I thought that I wouldn't have any problem with the high beam, but it did. The left side doesn't come all the way back up and the right is off by a tiny amount. I was able to get the left side back up to the correct position and then I disconnected the high beam solenoid. I can still use the right side though (the cutoff still gets stuck down sometimes, which is not good). The highs with just the right side and some silverstar 9005s are insane. You could easily run someone off the road with the one projector.
I might not connect the left side back up because I don't need it. I prefer the clean cutoff, which I lost when the shield didn't come back up correctly.As far as the minor issues go, I occasionally got a tiny amount of flicker at idle. I just recently moved my ground from the chassis to the battery and it is almost gone now. Pretty sure it's my electrical system (bad alternator or corrosion) or something on the wiring harness I made (for my 9007 swap, I just didn't take it out). The 9004-9005/6 adapter that came with the headlight has cheap connectors that don't make a very good connection. I had my driver side light cut off when I hit a big pothole or bump. I wiggled all of the connections on my harness until I found the bad connectors on the adapter. I haven't had any problems since I re-seated it.
Not really a problem, but something I would still like to add would be a threaded stud for the bracket side of the headlight. I kinda stripped the screw putting in the left side because I didn't want to remove my battery. It would be much easier to adjust and install/remove the headlight with a nut instead of a screw. I haven't really taken the time to find the stud yet. These lights take about 20-30 seconds to completely warm up, which isn't a problem, just annoying when it's dark. Hope this info helps, these are still one of the most kick-a$$ lights around after about 500hrs of use.
crackhead
03-26-2012, 01:45 AM
#26
).For those that care, I still haven't had any major problems with this setup including the aluminum tape (see minor issues in post 24).
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