HID's 35W kits v's 55W kits

[danielmaney]

Guys,

Am thinking about buying a full set of hid's for my ssv ute, and i do understand that there are two different wattage output kits for the hid's was just wondering is there really all that much difference in light out put and clarity with the two? Is it worth gettin the 55W kit, Is it that much brighter? any comments would be muchly appreciated and even pics would be great too.. cheers fellas..

[Nidz]

I would say that you don't want 50watt's for your regular lights. 35's work fine. 6000k gets plenty of white light in.

Get the 50's for High's maybe..

[Wonky]

Most people think 35w is plenty for low beam, although some still put 50w in at the risk of dazzling oncoming motorists. I can easily drive at 100kmh on dark roads with my 35w low beam HIDs. If you're also getting high beams then definitely get 50w!! I originally got 35w high beams on my SSV sedan and was disappointed so very quickly got 50w.

[SirNemesis]

50-55w kits are way too bright for low beam use. 35w is more than enough.

[danielmaney]

thats for the information nidz and wonky so 35w for low beam 50w for high beams and 50's for driving lights?

[Clubby250]

http://www.hid-lightsdownunder.com/service2.html

got the gen 2 slim ballasts on my commodore.
H1 70w high beams. standard head lights an compared them to a navara with Narva 100w spoties, an even he was amazed how much brighter they were.
the ballasts are the smallest ive seen. an cheap price for a good quality kits. ive put 3 kits on now ( prado an commdores)

$160 plus 12 frieght.

ill swear by them.

brett

[Nidz]

Yeah look on Ebay.. your crazy if you pay any more than $70 shipped for 1 pair of lights with ballasts. You could get 3 sets for under $200...

[BEARWOOD]

Whats the reason you are wanting to put HID's in? Do you do out of town driving alot? 35w for low beam is plenty, you need to consider other people on the road when you put these sort of lights in.
If you want better vision and need to see more use 4300k or 5000k if you want a pretty bluish looking light get the 6000k or above. I went from 6000k back to 4300k and it's a better light for what i need. I agree with the above about not forking out $200+ for a kit either, i won't be next time!

[danielmaney]

ohh ok.. yer i was looking at them on ebay and havent really seen any bad reviews on here about them.. alot ppl think they are great for the price, personally i couldnt justify spending $200 on a set compared too $70, i no you get what you pay for with everything but in this instance i cant see it being a advantage

[ADAM 26]

iv always used the ebay kits, they are all perfect.

iv got 35watt kits in the fog lights and the low beam. think they were 70 or 80 bucks, then got the led park lights for 10 bucks. (they have 5 led`s in the one), now the high beam is so weak compaired to the hids, ill have to do them aswell. im lookin at gettin the 55watt kit!

[gunrunner]

iv always used the ebay kits, they are all perfect.

iv got 35watt kits in the fog lights and the low beam. think they were 70 or 80 bucks, then got the led park lights for 10 bucks. (they have 5 led`s in the one), now the high beam is so weak compaired to the hids, ill have to do them aswell. im lookin at gettin the 55watt kit!

Im after a pair of spot/foglights for my 06 ute .
What would people recommend and does someone have a link .

[Wonky]

Im after a pair of spot/foglights for my 06 ute .
What would people recommend and does someone have a link .

I think the foggies use H3 and many people find foggies bloody annoying coming towards them, so definitely 35w only.

[SirNemesis]

I'm not sure about those foggies, but mine used a H27W bulb, which isn't available in HID. If you are handly with a needle nose file and you have patience, you can file the socket to accept a H11 without too much drama.

[Thunderbird-1]

I've got 50w in my low's but they are 8000k so not as bright as 6000k and I'm sure to have them aimed down.. Work a treat for me but don't do heaps of night driving really

[bonners]

I got the 35w HID's from gerald at Gadgetmaster. A mate has 50's in his and reckons mine are as bright. Maybe it has something to do with the brand etc.. I had read so much good stuff on here about Gadgetmaster that is the reason I went that way

[Wonky]

I got the 35w HID's from gerald at Gadgetmaster. A mate has 50's in his and reckons mine are as bright. Maybe it has something to do with the brand etc.. I had read so much good stuff on here about Gadgetmaster that is the reason I went that way

From http://www.hid-lightsdownunder.com/page003.html

The key to this is Lumen per watt efficiency (Lm/w). Some of the cheaper HID kits around have a very low efficiency rating, and though they draw 50watts of power, they may only produce enough light to match a highly efficient 35w kit in output lumens.

[HoldenOnn]

I got my HID's for my VZ Calais from ezihid.com

Great to deal with and also really good products. Backup service from an Australian distributor is so much easier to deal with than an overseas distributor.

HIDs are different spread of light output when retrofitted to halogen lenses even on projector lenses. I went for 35w low and 50w high. You can tell that the light spread is different. At the front of the vehicle in low beam there is much less light than at the sides. Halogen and HID have different globe characteristics, so it takes a little getting used to.

Obviously going 50w low beam will make the outer edges/road side even brighter on low beam and the light directly on the road in front will increase. But what mainly dazzles oncoming motorists, even if you have projector lights, and even with 35w or 50w HIDs, is that different characterics which mean that when coming around a bend, the majority of HID light is at the side (hence why the road side lights up well with HID retrofit) and when on an angle to oncoming motorists on a bend, this is when its dazzling to them.

[danielmaney]

got the hids.. anyways just a quiery about the whole setup does that plastic shroud that covers the hid bulb actually serve any purpose at all or does anybody know the reasoning for it?

[NickS]

got the hids.. anyways just a quiery about the whole setup does that plastic shroud that covers the hid bulb actually serve any purpose at all or does anybody know the reasoning for it?

That's only there to protect the bulb ... you remove it when you fit the lights to the car.

Don't touch the bulb though ... :yup:

[Knight Phlier]

Has anyone tried 3000K HID's for the fog lights? I understand a more yellow light on fogs are more effective ...

[Plenty]

Yeah look on Ebay.. your crazy if you pay any more than $70 shipped for 1 pair of lights with ballasts. You could get 3 sets for under $200...

Have we ever heard the saying you get what you pay for? :confused:
Do yourselves a favour and buy the kits from here http://www.gadgetmaster.com.au/, this guy is a forum member has great service and kits are top quality.

Cheap ballast will overheat draw unstable power and will just perish prematurely!

[Wonky]

Have we ever heard the saying you get what you pay for? :confused:
Do yourselves a favour and buy the kits from here http://www.gadgetmaster.com.au/, this guy is a forum member has great service and kits are top quality.

Cheap ballast will overheat draw unstable power and will just perish prematurely!

:yup: Gerald at Gadgemaster's kits are first class! I've bought a dozen sets for myself and friends since 2006 and AFAIK all are still going strong! If there is a problem Gerald's backup and service are first class!

Nidz, see my post #16.

PS Is Gerald now a member on here Plenty? :confused:

[quityabitchn]

yeah i have gadget master in mine, #5w are plenty for low beams. stick With Halogens 6000k for all othe lights, if you have to many HID"S you will get alot of unwanted attension from the FUZZ

[Wonky]

If you've got 50w low beams that could explain unwarranted attention from cops, unless you're one of those wankers who drives around with (HID :eek:) foggies on! If so you deserve it I'm afraid.......... :( I've had HIDs in both high and low beams for well over 3 years and have never been pulled over. Also have 70w HIDs going in my driving lights soon.

[SirNemesis]

unless you're one of those wankers who drives around with (HID :eek:) foggies on! If so you deserve it I'm afraid..........

Aww :( You've hurt my feelings Wonks :smilesandbanana:

[MJR-57T]

If you ump on the philips lighting site http://www.invisionsales.com/philips/bulbs.html and look under OE replacement in the Xenon HID heading on the left, you'll see the difference between projector globes and reflector globes.

The reflector globes have a little painted section at the bottom, something to do with reflection.

Oh and lights downunder's description says "plug and play"
Does that mean that the whole HID harness plugs into the original H4 plug or is there additional joints or connections to be made?

[Wonky]

I'm sure on both my VZ and two VEs it's just been a case of plug the ballasts in between the original lead and headlights. Nothing more to it.

[MJR-57T]

I'm sure on both my VZ and two VEs it's just been a case of plug the ballasts in between the original lead and headlights. Nothing more to it.

awesome, sold me

[Plenty]

PS Is Gerald now a member on here Plenty? :confused:

Maybe i was mistaken by all the approval people were giveing him on here sorry just assumed he was a member, agree service is first class as is the product i couldnt be happier with the kits!

[Wonky]

Gerald was one of the first people to sell HID kits before all the el cheapo kits appeared. That was about 4 years ago now and Jaskel started a thread on how awesome they were so myself and others bought some. As I possibly said above, over about 3.5 years I've now bought a dozen kits for the 3 cars I've had them installed on and for friends, including the auto elec who installed them on my VZ SS and was so impressed he got some for his VYII R8. AFAIK nobody has had a problem but when we thought one car possibly had a dodgy ballast Gerald was very forthcoming about sending down another. Therefore, good product and good support = support on here from forum members (including at least one mod).

[Sluggy]

Another vote for Gerald. 35W 6000K lows, 50W 6000K high in the WK. Better than the Lightforce 240 Blitzs on the old Patrol.

Cheers, SLuggy

[6.2L.Club]

Just so people know l will be finishing up a group buy for VE only today, if anyone is interested. They are the all in one kits

LOOK HERE (http://www.ls1.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=138068)

seeing as this went well l will be doing another group buy for individual kit's, all you do is specify all in one or external balast, wattage and what globe type you want. All are 6000K.

These are kingwood kit's, the same as what gerald sells l believe and come with a nationwide warranty

cheers

Tim

[edz]

I got my HID's for my VZ Calais from ezihid.com

Great to deal with and also really good products. Backup service from an Australian distributor is so much easier to deal with than an overseas distributor.

HIDs are different spread of light output when retrofitted to halogen lenses even on projector lenses. I went for 35w low and 50w high. You can tell that the light spread is different. At the front of the vehicle in low beam there is much less light than at the sides. Halogen and HID have different globe characteristics, so it takes a little getting used to.

Obviously going 50w low beam will make the outer edges/road side even brighter on low beam and the light directly on the road in front will increase. But what mainly dazzles oncoming motorists, even if you have projector lights, and even with 35w or 50w HIDs, is that different characterics which mean that when coming around a bend, the majority of HID light is at the side (hence why the road side lights up well with HID retrofit) and when on an angle to oncoming motorists on a bend, this is when its dazzling to them.

That's a reasonable explanation, but it doesn't really explain the actual difference between halogen and HID. There is a reason most authorities around the world ban this upgrade (including Australia).

The light produced by a HID is different to a halogen bulb and therefore requires different optics to work. Retrofitting gives you a light that appears brighter but in actual fact gives less distance vision due to 'having a very strong pool of light close to the car causes your pupils to close down, worsening your distance vision...all the while giving you this false sense of security. This is to say nothing of the massive amounts of glare to other road users and backdazzle to you, the driver, that results from these "retrofits".'

Before you rush off and fit HID bulbs to lenses designed for halogen bulbs, you should read this article (http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/bulbs.html).

It is written by a lighting consultant who actually has lab tests to back up his warning - don't retrofit HID's into halogen lights! To quote - 'Thinking of converting to HID? So you've read about HID headlamps and have it in mind to convert your car. A few mouse clicks on the web, and you've found a couple of outfits offering to sell you a "conversion" that will fit any car with a given type of halogen bulb. STOP! Put away that credit card.'

'Halogen headlamps and HID headlamps require very different optics to produce a safe and effective—not to mention legal—beam pattern. How come? Because of the very different characteristics of the two kinds of light source.'

The only proper, safe and legal way is retrofitting the whole setup off a similar car with factory HID.

The guy even has his email there so you can argue with him if you disagree, however I found the article an eye opener. You work out what happens when you have / cause a crash and have retrofitted illegal HIDs - your insurance will be null and void for a start..........

Also has some great articles and tests debunking all the new 'superwhite halogen bulbs, 30% brighter from the same wattage', etc

Enough from me, read the article.