integroid Posted November 9, 2006 Share Posted November 9, 2006 Any problems or regrets? Are they to bright for everyday use? I am on the fence between the 35Watt kit and the 50Watt kit. Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drewski Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 I run 4, yes 4 switchable Densos (35 to 75 watts in 5 steps) on my ride and two non switchable Densos. The two non switchables drive a set of Ultinons in the fogs. One set of switchable runs the bi-xenons (TLs) and the other set drives a set of rebased bulbs in the reflectors housings. Because of the EXTREME glare of the reflectors they are used on the back country roads ONLY (mostly to find deer at night) - same with the additional power. I ONLY run 35 watts on the TLs in the city, and ONLY use the additional power when I am in the backwoods. 50 watts in the city is NOT needed and will only cause annoyance to oncoming drivers. My advice, unless you can switch from the 50watt setting to 35, I'd avoid them. Not worth the potential saftey hazard in the city... 35 watts from a good OEM ballast and a good set of 4300K bulbs is more than enough light - even for an HID head like me OK, maybe not for an HID head... hence my addiction. Hope this helps and does nto add more confusion. Cheers, Drew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laz Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 ^^^ pics of all this HID greatness?? X --- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drewski Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 Oh yea - also note, the "stick" controls the highbeams just as usual, but the reflector high beams have a "cut out" switch installed so only the Bi-Xenons are activated unless I specifically NEED more light in a very dark area in the rural backwoods where my mother in law lives (plenty of late-night trips there to pick up my son when she baby sits) - since HIDs should not bve switched on and off a whole lot, I found that this was the best option. That way I ONLY activate them WHEN NEEDED, and when I am 99% sure there will not be another car coming at me for a LONG period of time... even if you have 400 horsepower it doesn't mean you drive fast all the time, right? Gotta be disciplined with them. They are potentially dangerous if you are not extremely careful with them.... you could really screw up someone's night vision if you didn't dim well in advance of when they come into range of your lights. Yea, best advice... stick w/ 35s unless you can switch it out. Better safe than sorry. Also you need to ask - do you really NEED more light? In my case the only reason I run such a ridiculous amount of power is because I frequently find myself in some very remote areas that are PLAGUED with deer and other wild life. Even driving at very prudent speeds the light is a real help to see these furrly lil SOBs WELL in advance. And again the only time I ever run at higher output is when I am well out into the boondocks - and even then I am extremely curteous in watching for any signs of oncoming drivers so I can dim back to 35 well ahead of when they will see my lights directly. I am not a lawyer - but I am pretty damn sure if my lights caused an accident that I would be hosed in the courts.... hence my paranoia in operating them. Cheers, Drew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yuhocheung Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 i got the apexcone 50w 6000k hid and i'm quite satisfied with them.... not as bright as i expected... but good enough Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drewski Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 ^^^ pics of all this HID greatness?? X here are the CCFLs I did... http://www.legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19784&page=6 and the HIDs: http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c107/phisch13/lEGACYhid5.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c107/phisch13/LegacyHID4.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c107/phisch13/LegacyHID3.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c107/phisch13/LegacyHID2.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c107/phisch13/LegacyHID1.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drewski Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 My retro is lacking IMHO... so I am re-doing it. I am pulling the TLs (they are just too big and hard to focus well for the LGT) and dropping in FX's. Probably won't have them up and running until spring. I am "Suffering" with the TLs until then. Oh, to answer your Q - what do I hate about the TLs? They are too big for the housings, and even with some pretty trick installation they sit funny in the housings... and they tend to point downward too much (a result of not enough clearance to mount them ideally) causing massive foreground lighting and not enought "throw" up the road except for when you have the high beam solinoids on. The FXs will fit a whole lot better and will fix that little (or not so little) issue. Stay tuned for the second retro next spring. Oh, FTR, the fogs actually DO work decently with HIDs. I can (and have... but that is a whole other story) run with ONLY the fogs on at night and I get plenty of light to drive safely in town. HID is a sickness. It really is. Once you start - you don't want to stop. If some is good, more is better. On my grand cherokee I ran 4 TL projectors with the adjustable ballasts. Oh and for bulbs... hee hee heee.... I run THESE: http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c107/phisch13/dl50wp.jpg The ORIGINAL Philips DL50s. Some bad mother farkers there. Hard to find and expensive, but worth it when you run moded ballasts. Oh, and heat? No prob. I run COOLER than I did with the stock halogens. Even at 70 watts (but just barely so). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laz Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 Nice, I though your avatar was the way your GT looked, i was wondering how you had dome double projector. So the TL projector is not a good fit huh? what is it too small? I am looking at getting RX330 projectors, and maybe using my aftermarket XTEC and rebase the h7 bulbs? Not sure how this will work out, or maybe just get true D2S bulbs? Since I alrady have the HID ballasts, I wanted to just resue that. Of course this all depends if my car sells or not in teh near future. I currently have the aftermarket plug and play kit and it leaves something to be desired. That is a true retrofit project! EDIT: Posted after your last post, so the TL's are too big, good to know. X --- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VXCL Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 drewski on the tl bixenon does the shield drop completely or just slide down a little??? the ones that drop the cutoff completely down aand run full open are more light then anyone would ever need. i cant believe you're running that much electronics. you addicted?? tsx units, older audi s4, and 04ish bmw 5 series units fit nicely. the tsx and audi are slightly better with output MAYHEM #122/22 STS NNJR SCCA AUTOX4U.COM XENON RETRO GUIDE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drewski Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 drewski on the tl bixenon does the shield drop completely or just slide down a little??? the ones that drop the cutoff completely down aand run full open are more light then anyone would ever need. i cant believe you're running that much electronics. you addicted?? tsx units, older audi s4, and 04ish bmw 5 series units fit nicely. the tsx and audi are slightly better with output The TLs solenoid is front-to-back mounted with the action pointing toward the lens. The solenoid pulls backward and activates a lever that makes the semiphore (sheild) tilt forward toward the lens and hence, out of the way. The FX's solenoid is way different... and the semiphore drops straight down on those. Cool. Hella has some (E55 I think) that the solenoid is side to side, and the lever makes the semiphore slide down on a pivot. Check out this site for some really, really accurate HID info: Projector Compendium: http://www.theretrofitsource.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=101 Bulb Compendium: http://www.theretrofitsource.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12 Outputs: http://www.theretrofitsource.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=13 Great information here. No political Bullsh1t either. The moderator is not an a-hole that edits everything that is said. Posts don't majikally disappear.... like some other HID forum I know Cheers peeps, D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
integroid Posted November 18, 2006 Author Share Posted November 18, 2006 oopsy...I didnt read your post on not getting the 50 Watt kit. Well, I purchased the 50 watt apexcone from a vendor here and they are beautiful at night. I miss having HID's and can see why I miss them so much. I dont think I should have a problem with the 50 watt kit. Doesnt seem to be too bright. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VXCL Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 oopsy...I didnt read your post on not getting the 50 Watt kit. Well, I purchased the 50 watt apexcone from a vendor here and they are beautiful at night. I miss having HID's and can see why I miss them so much. I dont think I should have a problem with the 50 watt kit. Doesnt seem to be too bright. check your bulbs and ballasts. i bet they are 35 watt and the ballasts just have a 50watt sticker over where it says 35 watt. i still bet the bulbs are 35 watt. MAYHEM #122/22 STS NNJR SCCA AUTOX4U.COM XENON RETRO GUIDE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
integroid Posted November 19, 2006 Author Share Posted November 19, 2006 How do I check if the bulbs are 35W? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VXCL Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 How do I check if the bulbs are 35W? since they are rebased bulbs most likely there won't be anything stamped on the bulb. there are higher wattage systems and bulb, but they are not used in any oem xenon setup. They are not cheap which is why a kit selling for 300 claiming to be a real 50watt setup is suspect to me. you look at any 35watt system dead on and it will blind you ridiculously. MAYHEM #122/22 STS NNJR SCCA AUTOX4U.COM XENON RETRO GUIDE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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