Retrofitting SL headlights
 

I've been doing a lot of reading on headlight upgrades, and how not just any projector lens can be used for HID bulbs. Apparently, if the housing is plastic, the bulb emits material that can permanently damage the housing. Typically, metal housings are used for HID installs.


1. Does anyone know the material of construction for the projector housing in the 8th gen Maxima?
2. Has anyone actually done a retrofit of the headlight assembly for their HID install, and exactly how easy/difficult is it to do?

In case anyone is interested, here's the article for anyone thinking about doing an HID conversion.


http://www.danielsternlighting.com/t...nversions.html

Damage to halogen lamp using HID
 

Here's the link I was referring to about potentially damaging a halogen lamp by using HID bulbs. Not sure if there's any plastic parts in the Maxima lamp (I assume so), but certainly something to consider.


https://www.reddit.com/r/cars/commen...lamps_and_led/

I have done the retro on the new maxima, the projectors are easy to swap. The headlights are also easy to open.

Thanks for the info. So what projector did you use when you swapped out the factory lamp? Did you have to remove the bumper? I know just a little heat from a heat gun will loosen the glue to open the headlight.

We normally start building the customer's headlights off a brand new set but the bumper needs to come out for sure. The original projector of the new maxima is a 2.5" diameter lens, this means you would need to get the same type, a mini h1 would be best but prepare yourself to modify. If you are worried about a bumper removal i highly suggest you to make sure you can get this done before attempting. We have many customers that have tried and end up damaging something or doing a new set with us and wasting even more money in the process. Good luck and count on me if you need any help for these or any lighting question you may have.

Thanks for the info...! This is helpful. So even if the Maxima has separate circuits for the low and high beams (different bulbs), you can still install a Bi-Xenon HID projector in the housing? How does that work?

That is correct, you get the low beam projector to work with splitters and they will turn on together with the high beams. We do a 12000 lumen led kit on the high beam to "flood" it and the low beam projectors to reach out.

Thanks again.......you mention in a previous post that the H1 mini is a good option for the retrofit, and that there is some modification needed. What type of modification would be needed if I chose the H1 mini, other than just using an H1 bulb type instead of H11? Any addition material that needs to be purchased (shroud, and if so which one, etc.)? What's the best way to reseal the housing? Do you use a particular glue/adhesive? Any precautions I need to take to avoid moisture getting into the housing?
Thanks again,

Hello, i have been looking to contact www.hidretrofitkit.com company for my new 16 maxima retrofit headlamps, still deciding on the look I want to get because there is a lot of options out there, but here is the look of the ones i am looking to get, any suggestions will be appreciated, thank you

https://www.hidretrofitkit.com/produ...ts-led-lights/

I love those lights to but am not going to pay 1900 for head lights

Morimoto H1 mini
 

Did a little more digging on the retrofit. TRS has a Retro-Quik kit for the Altima/Maxima. While the description states that its for the 7th gen Maxima (2009-2015), I confirmed with a TRS rep that Nissan uses the same projector in the 8th gen headlight. Looks like this kit has the hardware necessary to do a direct swap without modifying the mini H1. Here's the link, if anyone is interested.


https://www.theretrofitsource.com/co...ma-maxima.html


You can build the kit based on what hardware you already have, or start from scratch, which gives you some flexibility.


Now all I need to do is feel comfortable removing the bumper and baking the headlight assembly!!!

Removing bumper and headlight video
 

I did a search for videos on how to remove the bumper and headlight assembly, and came up with this. It was primarily intended for replacing the halogen bulbs, but as most know, going through the wheel well is much easier.


REALLY nice video showing step-by-step instructions.


https://www.carcarekiosk.com/video/2...ghts/headlight

Bump.....
 

Come on folks :) Any DIY'ers out there that have done a retrofit on their 8th Gen headlights? I'd love to hear your experience with it. Has anyone actually used the Altima/Maxima Retro-Quik kit from TRS successfully? Everything fit OK without any additional modifications? How easy/difficult was it to open and reseal the headlights? Any tips/tricks you can share? How many screws/clips need to be removed before baking?
Thanks in advance!!

Hidretrofitkit is the right company to do your headlights if you are looking to upgrade them the right way. They did my 17 altima and I am very happy with the results and their work too.

Unfortunately I'm not in FL, so that's not an option for me. Besides, I can't justify the $2000 for a retrofit. If I were to have someone do it, Lightwerkz is really close to me, so I would go with them. I'm really looking for help from someone who has actually cracked open the 8th gen headlight, and what their experience was....tips....how-to. The video I found on bumper removal shows it to be very straightforward, so I want to get that same warm and fuzzy feeling with the headlights lol.

I have heard about those guys to lightwerk but when I checked them , they seems to it do what I was looking for and hidretrofitkit company are able to do many other things , in fact,, I will be contacting them by middle
Of September to do my fogs into retrofit.

I know hidretrofitkit gives you the lamps you don't have to send your housings to them, just talk to them and let gen know your budget and what you want to get done. Good luck.

Just visited the TRS website, and they have updated the Altima/Maxima kit to include the 8th gen Maxima. This is very good news, as it takes the guess work out of the retrofit. I may just do this in stages. Getting ready to try out the HID kit using the existing halogen projectors first. If I'm not satisfied, I'll most likely do the complete retrofit with the Morimoto Mini H1 7 HID projector.

HID headlights are dead.

OP you should look at LED headlights. This is the most popular choice now. No BS with ballast failing etc, typically the new LED bulbs are plug and play.

May new cars are now coming from the factory with LED headlights as manufacturers are moving away from HID.

Does Nissan even offer Maxima with factory LED or HID?

Yes, the SR and Platinum trims come standard with LED low beam headlights.

Oh only low beam?

What about low beam is it plug and play or it needs some additional work?

I currently have P&P LED bulbs in my SL. They are the Morimoto 2strokes. They are nice, but a little too much foreground lighting and not as focused for distance.


When you say HID is dead, it depends on what your dealing with. For someone who can retrofit an LED projector into their headlamps, yes I completely agree with you. But for those who can't do that because the LED retrofit technology is somewhat new, there's little out there to work with. For the 8th Gen Maxima (S, SV, SL trims), that's what we are facing right now. Whether Morimoto or someone else will eventually come out with an LED retrofit projector that will fit into our housing without doing some major overhaul, is still unknown. For now, either P&P HID, or better yet, a complete HID retrofit with HID projectors is the best we can ask for.


OEM LED headlamps on the other hand are really nice. My wife just bought a CLA 250 with low/high beam LEDs. There is NO comparison to the P&P I have in my Maxima right now.

If you're referring to aftermarket LEDs, yes they are plug and play. No additional work. Just have to get the right size for the Maxima, which is H11. .

Cool!!! I thought it was much difficult. Can you recommend any particular brand? Im looking on Amazon and there are lots of those ranging from 35 to 45 dollars per set.

Thank you

Yes SR model factory leds witch i hate i want hids and you can’t replace the bulbs so leds are out guess what ? Get new headlights.

But leds are suppose to last for years tho???

There are lots of aftermarket bulbs out there. Here's a comparison of several. I'd stay away from $40 amazon bulbs.
https://youtu.be/SQF5ESBHLrw

Does anybody know what color temperature are daytime running lights?

Hi, dumb question. I just installed H11 leds.. wasn’t that difficult but what should I do with capacitors? I left them hanging because I wasn’t really sure about that situation.

Thank you.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/maxima....99cb69fe9.jpeg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/maxima....245f086bc.jpeg
Retrofit my stock halogens with LEDs and happens to go on business trip for 800 miles. Drove a part of the road in complete darkness and I gotta say for only 30 bucks it’s not that bad. I happened to driven the same route on Lexus which was equipment with full led package. So I know what to compare it with.

7th gen projector with 8th gen headlight retrofit
 

Do you think the HID projectors from 7th gen Maxima will fit the 8th gen?

If you're asking if the HID retrofit kit that The Retrofit Source offers will fit in the 8th Gen Maxima, the answer is yes.

I have the SV and want to retrofit the assembly (lens) from 7th Gen

Nope. I was asking if the stock OEM projectors from 7th gen will fit the 8th gen. So instead of using Morimotos I could use these. Someone on another thread pointed out that they will. Please let me know if you think differently. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/maxima....b898c408cf.jpg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/maxima....55395db21f.jpg

Hmmm....I'd be surprised if they are a direct swap without any modification to the mounting alignment, but I could be wrong.

They're less than half the price of Morimotos and OEM so I think I'm going to figure out a way to use these. Trying to pick up Denso ballasts. Do you know what kind of harness I'd need with that?