Daft Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 The stock covers had to be cut ( I ordered replacements just incase I want to go back to stock), so as to fit the D2 connector onto the d2s bulb. What kind of cutting was required? A hole for the bulb harness or just thinning of the cover the get it to close over the connector? Actually, is there any way that you could measure the distance from the bulb base to the cover ceiling? That would be a huge help. I'm trying to decide what type of ballast to use. There's alot of options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ridgeracer Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 So a little more investigation... The LCL (Light Center Length) of a H7 Bulb is (0.98in) 25.0mm, LCL of a D2S/D2R is 27.0 (1.06in). Because I hate making statements without backing them up with good research... Here is GE's specifications on every lightbulb they make including the standards definitions of the bulb type. http://www.gelighting.com/na/business_lighting/education_resources/literature_library/catalogs/lamp_catalog/downloads/cat_mini_sealed.pdf That said. If the LCL of the the D2S is ~2.0 mm longer than the H7 LCL, shouldn't the adapter plate be 2 mm and placed on the inside of the D2S bulb to bring the focal point closer to the rear of the housing? This adapter you have may make it easier to sit the bulb physically in the housing but it does not put it in the right position. I'm going to do a little more investigation and see if I'm the only one that thinks this way. Because so far every H7 Adapter plate I've seen has been shown on the outside, but that just doesn't make good mathematical sense. I would have to concur with you on this. I also have modded my Legacy Gt with a 4300K kit that I had installed once in my 98 Accord. They are a fair improvement but the focal point does seem a little off. The reason I say this is because the cutoff is very out of focus compared to projectors specifically made for d2s bulbs. It has the blue band at cutoff but its very thin. I don't thinks its that noticalble to other drivers as they pass. Also when I installed the d2s bulbs (actually I used d2r bulbs with the paint scraped off), I made sure to place the return lead of the bulb facing downwards inside the housing. Usually if its turned any other way, it casts a shadow thats visible in the beam. When it is facing downwards, the shield inside the projector blocks the light from the bulb that has this shadow so you don't see it. "Gimme mines Balboa...Gimme mines".....Clubber Lang - Mr. T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ridgeracer Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 BTW...Bluedragon nice install...!!! What kit did you use? "Gimme mines Balboa...Gimme mines".....Clubber Lang - Mr. T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue dragon Posted February 16, 2005 Author Share Posted February 16, 2005 What kind of cutting was required? A hole for the bulb harness or just thinning of the cover the get it to close over the connector? Actually, is there any way that you could measure the distance from the bulb base to the cover ceiling? That would be a huge help. I'm trying to decide what type of ballast to use. There's alot of options. My ballast came with rubber grommets that were 1 3/4 inches in diameter. I used a hole saw (its a round thing) to cut that size hole in the covers that go on the back of the headlight housings. That size hole allowed me to put the red D2 connector through the hole, and then I used the rubber grommet to plug the hole. If you use the stock phillips LVQ - 212 ballasts, you will have to do the same thing, but if you use a ballast where the connector has been modded, along with aftermarket bulbs, you can remove the headlight from the car, and run the two wires going to the bullb through the rubber grommet at the bottom of the headlight, and into the headlight just like the stock harness. This way is a little more complicated, because you have to drop the bumper, and then the headlights to get at the grommet where the stock harness enters the low beam cavity, but it will give the most OEM look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VXCL Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 I can already tell you, thats going to be tough. The covers on the low beam (projector), will not fit with the HID bulb connector in place. I am thinking of purchasing some spare covers, and modifying those hey let me know the part # and price for a set of low beam housing covers. im still waiting on another ballast before i can get a d2s setup in my lgt. also i dont think those h7 adapters really position the bulb right. the majority of h7 housings i've tested d2s in (celica, audi, bmw) the d2s bulb should only go in to the first part of the base (smaller circle) a washer and that adapter should make up the difference. i would bet if you pulled the d2s bulb back a couple mm you would have a much crisper cut-off. MAYHEM #122/22 STS NNJR SCCA AUTOX4U.COM XENON RETRO GUIDE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue dragon Posted February 16, 2005 Author Share Posted February 16, 2005 Part number for the covers is 84953AG060. I don't know how much they cost in the US, but they cost me $9.97 CAD each. I'll try the washer to see if that makes a difference in the cut off. The beam spread is amazing. I think that its wider than my E46 M3 Bosh bi-xenon projectors, and the amount of light reminds me of the S2000 projectors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdepew Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 hey let me know the part # and price for a set of low beam housing covers. im still waiting on another ballast before i can get a d2s setup in my lgt. also i dont think those h7 adapters really position the bulb right. the majority of h7 housings i've tested d2s in (celica, audi, bmw) the d2s bulb should only go in to the first part of the base (smaller circle) a washer and that adapter should make up the difference. i would bet if you pulled the d2s bulb back a couple mm you would have a much crisper cut-off. This is what I was referring to in the LCL difference of ~2mm. The D2S bulb needs to be pulled back, as you said, that distance. Hence, my interest in a front loading adapter. I ordered a set of rings just like blue_dragon's, despite my concern as it looks as though they may be able to be placed on the front of the D2S's lip. The ones I got were cut from 0.063" Al plates, so that works out to be 1.6mm, so its getting closer. I will measure them more precisely when I get them in hand. Find them here. Oh, I ordered those because I heard back from the guy I linked to before with the D2S mounted in his H7 motorcycle using the front adapter. Apparently it was from an older kit by HID-4-LESS whom I belive is no longer with us. Its a shame because that appears to be exactly what we need. Depending on how happy I am with my install once I get the ballasts/harness, I may consider designing the appropriate adapter ring for production. Will keep everyone updated as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
axis008 Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 Moving this to the exteriors section. Looks good! -ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaptan Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 How much did this setup cost? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue dragon Posted February 16, 2005 Author Share Posted February 16, 2005 ^^ you can find bulbs and ballasts for around $250 US if you browse Ebay long enough Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VXCL Posted February 18, 2005 Share Posted February 18, 2005 ^^ you can find bulbs and ballasts for around $250 US if you browse Ebay long enough i sell alot of xenon parts under the name vx16 on ebay. i have nothing now but i generally sell ballasts and bulbs for $200 a pair. i do have bulbs but no ballasts at this time. anyways thanks for the part number. thats not a bad price at all. also i had e46 bmw bi-xenon in my 97 acura cl and they did not spread light very well compared to a valeo. there bi-xenon soleniod is a poor design also. i wish i would have used valeos but those were the first bi-xenons i ever came across and i had to have them. MAYHEM #122/22 STS NNJR SCCA AUTOX4U.COM XENON RETRO GUIDE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daft Posted February 18, 2005 Share Posted February 18, 2005 My ballast came with rubber grommets that were 1 3/4 inches in diameter. I used a hole saw (its a round thing) to cut that size hole in the covers that go on the back of the headlight housings. That size hole allowed me to put the red D2 connector through the hole, and then I used the rubber grommet to plug the hole. If you use the stock phillips LVQ - 212 ballasts, you will have to do the same thing, but if you use a ballast where the connector has been modded, along with aftermarket bulbs, you can remove the headlight from the car, and run the two wires going to the bullb through the rubber grommet at the bottom of the headlight, and into the headlight just like the stock harness. This way is a little more complicated, because you have to drop the bumper, and then the headlights to get at the grommet where the stock harness enters the low beam cavity, but it will give the most OEM look. Ok so, the next thing I'm wondering is where you placed the ballasts? Are they attached to the bottom of the headlamps or are they in the engine bay area? I have a set of LVQ-212 ballasts but, the bulb connector harness isn't very long. Also, since you used the LVQ-212, does the cover require any modification to get it to close with the LVQ's connector on the bulb? I'm considering using a set of Hella Gen4 ballasts instead of the LVQ-212. The Gen4 ballasts have separate ignitors that sit right on the bulb. The one advantage is that the harness from the ballast to the bulb is thin wire but, the ignitor part is chunky and might not fit under the cover. Can you aproximate the depth of the area behind the D2S bulb with the cover? Hella Gen4 ballasts and wiring: http://flyservers.registerfly.com/members5/d2shid.com/images/gen4_hid_kit.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue dragon Posted February 19, 2005 Author Share Posted February 19, 2005 I had the Hella Gen IV ballasts on my Toyota Matrix when I had it (I did a projector retro), they are larger than the D2 connector on the LVQ-212, and will not fit under the cover. The D2 connector barely fits under the cover, with just enough room to put the rubber grommets on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daft Posted February 19, 2005 Share Posted February 19, 2005 Ok. Got it. That answers my question. Looks like I'll hold onto my LVQ-212 ballasts then. BTW, Where did you mount the ballasts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue dragon Posted February 23, 2005 Author Share Posted February 23, 2005 You can find space in the engine compartment, or mount them under the headlights. You'll have to drop the bumper to do that though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCDetails Posted February 23, 2005 Share Posted February 23, 2005 The passenger one is easy to hide since that scoop thing covers it up. The driver side is easy too. The only part you can see are the wires coming out of the cap. That just goes around to the side and the ballast hides easily there. My kit came with a double stick piece of foam tape that I could mount to the ballast and stick it somewhere. Its pretty secure where it is I think. Its away from any real heat source and won't get damaged. _________________________________________ “Cleanliness becomes more important as godliness becomes more unlikely.” O C D E T A I L S . C O M OCDETAILS BLOG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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