Write-Up: HID Conversion

i got the 4300 kit PHILIPS BULBS AND BALLAST they are so F#ing bright i have to aim them way lowwer then the factory bulbs i can see for miles with them and they totally kick ass!! you usually get what you pay for... 40$ crap that has different color bulbs .... even with a lifetime warranty your still gettting more junk if they burn out or quit working. get some REAL phillips bulbs and either phillips or denso ballast 35 w

hey there Steve,
the "4300 kit PHILIPS BULBS AND BALLAST" that you mentioned, are indeed Excellent. that is What i Installed on my Fathers 2000 Seville... and He Loves them... its been over a year now, and he still mentions how thrilled he is that i put them on.

i of course,... am awaiting Delivery from China. i ordered the Exceedingly Modest, yet perfectly adequate H.I.D Kit From DDM Tuning..... Raptor 55w 6000k.
sure, i know... they are not Philips...

but i'm Saving my money for the type of Wheels you have on your Riviera... I WANT THEM !.....lol.... they really look Great !
so, IF you would be so kind as to tell me what brand/model/size, that you are running... that would be great. Maybe Amazon Has a supplier for them, that wont "break the bank".
and i assume that those are not the stock P225/60R16 tires, so i was curious what size you are running, and is it the same O.D. as the original equipment? i would like a slightly wider tire, but not if it affects straight-line Stability, more than a little.

thanks, Steve.

ahh hate to say it but they are stock size they came with the car but i do know what they are i was going to go ahead and order a 5th for a (new full size spare) http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/WheelCloseUpServlet?target=wheelCloseUp&wheelMake=ASA&wheelModel=GT1&wheelFinish=Bright+Silver+Paint

they keep the ride nice and soft for the crap Indy roads but they dont corner super great lol. i like the

http://www.americanlisted.com/delaware_8/car_parts_3/17_oem_buick_lucerne_wheels-chrome-brand_new_440_littleton_14536120.html

if i ever buy new ones that are 17"

but yeah 3 friends have the cheaper HID kits and have different color lights along with mass failure with ballast ...... i did have a ballast go bad 2 times so far but i know of people with saabs and BMWs that they fail on too so not too big of an issue with me ;p

thanks Steve, i followed the link you posted, and i see "the Tire Rack" carries the ASA GT1 Wheels in 17 inch size, if i go with the 17s, i'll run 235/55/17.

on the H.I.D. Kits, i've been particularly lucky in the 4 installations I've done, so far there are no failures. the first one was only about 2 years ago though.

my Kit has a lifetime warranty, but i bet the return shipping charges will Negate any savings in cost, over just trying a different one.
Todd.

Steve, where did you purchase your Phillips HID conversion kit?

well i finished my Raptor 55w 6000k H.I.D. Headlamps installation, about a week ago.
i have been driving back and fourth from Sacramento, through the Sierra Mountains to lake Tahoe, in the wee hours of the morning, 3 times in the last week, and while i am reasonably impressed with the light output, for the Relatively small amount of money invested, i must say AGAIN... that i wish i had ordered the 5000k or 43000k bulbs.(i put in 35w with 6000k last time, too Blue ! oi! i'm stupid ! THE 55W are still wrong, they focus like blue flashlight beams... i exaggerate, they are acceptable) the spread of the light beam is SO WRONG with these Bulbs. BUT YES they work... in a half assed way, in my Humble opinion.
IF, you opt for the additional Wiring Harness... DON'T buy it from DDM Tuning. it is of poor Quality, compared to the rest of the Hardware i purchased. (it was only 15 bucks, so i got what i paid for.)
the 6000k i ordered with the 55w ballast ARE making the bulbs produce a whiter light than the 35 watt, but there is NO DOUBT that the problem here is the Stock Housing. it TRULY is NOT Designed for Xenon.

i installed a Philips 35 watt system on my Fathers 2000 Seville, which originally had standard Halogen Bulbs combined (curiously) with Factory Projector lenses, and the Halogens light output with projectors was terribly substandard, DISMAL is a better word. (Hmm, its as if the Halogens were not Designed for use with the projectors....lol i guess Cadillac anticipated folks converting to Xenon?)
but the Philips 35 watt 6000k conversion in the Seville was IMMACULATE in its Color and Light Distribution, with a crystal white light pattern, and a tinge of Blue Hue....Perfect. PROJECTORS are the Key Here...

just for Giggles, i'm going to test the HIR2 bulbs by Philips, that "Mark" "Eldo Addict" highly recommended (he recommended the lowbeams only)

I REALLY want to Duplicate the Stellar performance of the Projectors that my fathers Seville, and my best friends 5 series BMW produce..... now i just have to figure out what my Best option is to Modify the stock housings... OR...PERHAPS... Projector Driving lights mounted below the bumper??? has anyone tried this ? is it legal ? do i care if its legal?....lol.
ANY IDEAS Folks ?

Amen, Todd. Live and learn, it seems. One reason I've never done this is reading results like yours. But I've always been intrigued by the projector lens conversion from page 9 of this thread. Doesn't look easy, but someone should do it. As for me, I'm keeping my halogens until an LED retrofit option is available.

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/index.php?cPath=25

One of our members on Club EP3 used the Miromoto mini projectors, which are compact enough to be used in most housings: http://www.theretrofitsource.com/product_info.php?cPath=25&products_id=236

Interesting Ibx. So do those need ballasts too?

.. if they do both high and low in one bulb, then we could have 4 of them on a riv.. hmmmm
got a link to the thread on Club EP3 ? or was it not a build thread?

Thanks ILAN,

I've been mulling over the idea of sending the Headlamp Housings out to a Retro-fitter,
Because the Lenses need to be replaced with Clear ones, on my Riviera. that's not really a "do it yourself" type of thing for me. i know its Going to be EXPENSIVE... and that's IF i can find a place to send them to.

i think i need a really good Quality Aftermarket Xenon Driving light, with some Good Mounting Hardware, for mounting below the Bumper.... something as good as main projectors...

Todd.

Seems like you'd just have to do the usual process of baking the lights to get the lens cover glue soft, removing the lens from the headlight, and then putting the bulbs in. Then you'd have to bake again and get the lens on the housing before the glue sets again.

This is the guy's thread, but he only had the car for a little while before it got totaled, which was a real shame: http://forums.clubep3.com/showthread.php?t=798488&highlight=aklass

The lights I linked to specifically have a bi-xenon function where there's a shield that drops out of the way on the high setting to provide a full beam. You can see the extremely sharp cutoff on their website. I don't know if there'd be a way to hook them up without the high function wired and still have it work, but I imagine so.

That link is the projector bulbs only. They're made for HID bulbs to go into, so you would still need the rest of your HID kit.

no ILAN,
I'm Thinking that the "fluted lens" pattern molded into the Riviera Lens Will Distort the beam very badly. (edited) i checked out a video or two, and ILAN is right, the distortion is fairly mild.)
i went outside to inspect the car right after you posted, and i can't see it working without a Clear Replacement Lens... otherwise, i swear that i would do it myself.

RivieraParadise wrote:

just for Giggles, i'm going to test the HIR2 bulbs by Philips, that "Mark" "Eldo Addict" highly recommended (he recommended the lowbeams only)

Hi Todd,

Wow, a FOURTH west-coaster! I've actually been up to Incline twice in the last month myself.
I don't see a signature line - do you have a supercharged Rivi? That's my favorite part about this car: going up Donner, the only thing that can pass me is a Turbo Porche or a blown Vette...

It sounds like you read my writeup in the "SilverStar & others" thread. If you want more "white-white" light that fully fills out the headlight pattern, you'll like them. And if you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

The HIR2's have been going strong for over 2 years now (which is generally more than a SilverStar lasts) and the only thing I might finally do is raise them a tiny bit, cuz the only time I use the high beams is strictly for the higher aim... I lowered these because the very first night I had them, I got flashed by another driver - with the headlamp units in the same position that the regular halogen bulbs had been using for years, without getting flashed!

Mark

Hey Mark...

as for west coast Riviera Performance members... yeah, i guess were pretty much alone out here.

i did read your "SilverStar & others" thread, a few weeks ago. and i decided to go ahead and take a chance on the Xenons in the standard housings, hoping for the best. it was a good learning experience....lol
i actually have a set of silver stars in my trunk for backup, just in case my Xenons give me trouble.
unless i can find a shop that i can send out my stock housings to be Retrofitted with clear lenses, which is what i'm hoping.
i will use the HIR2 bulbs by Philips in the meantime, once i get my Xenons installed in some kind of "Driving light" setup, somewhere down under the bumper. i'm sure there is a writeup, if not perhaps i'll make one, i finally got a digital camera so i can document my modifications/updates.

"Codith" posted this picture in " how to projector lights" of a riv that is now in Duze, Poland. i wanted to show "ILAN" what i meant regarding the lens, and This one is interesting, the way the Highbeam side was left intact with the "fluted lens", and the other section was replaced with a clear lens... Beautiful work.... WHO DOES THIS PROFESSIONALLY?... i can give them my First Born, if necessary..
(edited) ILAN pointed out to me that had i looked closer, i would see the "fluting" is still intact.. the inside of the housing is painted black, and i missed it entirely.



"Aaron" "AA" was mentioning a L.E.D. Retrofit possibility... it sounds intriguing...

Todd.

It wasn't replaced, the only difference is that the inside of the reflector housing around the low beam was painted black for a meaner look. You can still see the ribs fine! The projector should work either way, I imagine.

your right, ILAN (edited) the proper term for the "Ribs" i was describing, is "flutes" or fluted lenses... my bad.)

I can see the "flutes" plainly as well, i'm surprised i missed that... good eye, my friend !

i was reading about the "fluted lenses" and from what i gather, it mitigates 40% of the light output.
now that's with a standard bulb. with smaller focused beam like the Xenon projector,
it may not be as bad as that. but general consensus among folks who went to the expense of the conversion, was that the "flutes" should be removed by Dremeling and Buffing, which takes Hours, or replacing the lens. its a matter of quality i suppose. i was reading about making a new lens by using the old lens a Mold, to Form a new one around... it sounded interesting. i guess i am probably being too fussy...
so, i cant really tell from your pictures, do you have a clear lens on your Honda ? or is there something there to diffuse the light output? (i know its probably clear.... i'm just being a nuisance !)

My Si has clear lenses, but the turn signals have ribs on them to direct most of its light forward. I would imagine that since the projector bulbs provide a sharp cutoff, that the ribs wouldn't make them too hard to use. If you need to disassemble the headlight housing anyway to do the projector retrofit, you may as well experiment, but it's up to you!

DDM Tuning HID
Bought a set of Raptor 55W, 8000s for my Mountaineer. Received them today (took about a week delivery).
Shipping package was third-world, direct from China. No damage noticeable. I think the biggest dent in the box was from a FRAGILE stamp If these work out as described earlier in this thread, I'll get a set for my Riv.
Will report back later.

So im on ballast number 5 and 6 now... seems like my lights flicker a few times before they come on..especially when the car is started. checked all the voltage and everything seems fine ( i have the resistor to do the alt wire trick to increase voltage) not sure what to look at next?? how the heck do i get rid of DRL?? i dont see a fuse or anything for it... i was thinking of the headlight fuses or relays and the headlight switch. any idea what to look for or just replace the stuff?

It's called cheap Chinese product. It seems like most who install these eBay HID "kits" has a ballast problem. The sellers say they'll replace them if they go bad, but who wants to keep returning the same product 5-10 times? They know you'll get tired of it. Meanwhile, they still profit because these ballasts can be had from China for probably under $1.

I'm not saying all Chinese = bad, but when you order an HID system for $35, and a genuine Phillips or Hella kit costs $300+, it says something. The hood-mounted Hella kit we bought for our Lemons race car has been used for 4 years straight, sometimes running for 10 hours continuous, with the components mounted on the outside of the car, in the rain, in the snow. Never had a problem.

A guy I know used to work for a company that sourced inexpensive 2-stroke weed wackers from China. He soon discovered that many of the units were returned because the motors burned up. Turns out the engineered life expectancy for the motors was 20 hrs. The average home owner would take out their weed wacker and use it for 10 minutes once per week during the spring and summer months. This would result in a unit that would operate trouble free for 8-10 years of service. BUT... if you tried to use the unit continuously, as for contracted lawn service, it wouldn't last more than a couple weeks. Even though many units were returned, it was not enough to justify improving the motor design, which would involve investing in new materials, R&D, etc. So they just kept selling them as-is, dealing with the returns, and making good profits.

Hope that helps. It just shows, at the end of the day, when you buy cheap products, you get what you pay for. You also support the system that makes these kinds of products prosper. As long as people keep buying it, they'll keep selling it. China is full of these types of goods. Just look at 90% of the "great deals" sold at your local Wal-Mart store.

the g/F got them for christmas they are suppose to be genuine Phillips... they come from minnisota i believe and they were 190$ not cheap.... i have the same set in the girfrinds car (07 corrola) for 4 mo. now with no problems at all
i even had a freind check them out and he thought they looked pretty legit

http://www.ebay.com/itm/150365760473?item=150365760473&viewitem=&vxp=mtr

here is the link and pics

denim wrote:

DDM Tuning HID
Bought a set of Raptor 55W, 8000s for my Mountaineer. Received them today (took about a week delivery).
Shipping package was third-world, direct from China. No damage noticeable. I think the biggest dent in the box was from a FRAGILE stamp If these work out as described earlier in this thread, I'll get a set for my Riv.
Will report back later.

X2

This is what I replaced my old ones with and they've been great so far.

Sorry, I assumed you bought the cheapies.

If they're genuine Phillips, this shouldn't be happening. Are you dealing direct with the manufacturer? If not, I'd start there. They will be able to tell you if it's something you're doing wrong, if the product has a defect, or if they're in fact not the real deal.

Good luck, and let us know what happens.

AA wrote:

Sorry, I assumed you bought the cheapies.

If they're genuine Phillips, this shouldn't be happening. Are you dealing direct with the manufacturer? If not, I'd start there. They will be able to tell you if it's something you're doing wrong, if the product has a defect, or if they're in fact not the real deal.

Good luck, and let us know what happens.

dealing with the place that stores/test/ships them. last time i talked with the man he suggested the whole kit be sent back for testing and see if its a wiring or bulb problem. i need a special # that my g/f has to get off her paypal account so they can look up the order so it might be tomm. till i get this done