one piece headlights HID or factory bulbs

[92CB7EX-R]

like the title says
i hav one piece headlights but im still thinking if i should put HID or leave the factory bulbs in, i like how both of them look

[Maple50175]

hids son..

[deevergote]

HIDs in the stock housings will blind people... especially if you're planning on using JDM one-piece headlights, as they're aimed in the wrong direction (since they drive on the other side of the road in Japan.)

Do a projector retrofit, or run halogen bulbs. Don't be a ricer. (hell, I gave the finger to 3 different ricers tonight in RSXs that were running blinding HIDs in their stock housing. It's NOT cool. Everyone just thinks you're a dumbass when you do that.)

[92CB7EX-R]

haha
im gonna see what im gonna do cuz i like the halogens

[dejan225]

^^^^ exactly. HID + Projectors. That's the right combiation.

[deevergote]

Halogens are cheap and easy. HIDs are as well, but a projector retrofit isn't the easiest thing to do. Not hard, and anyone with a little patience can do it... but it's more involved than simply plugging in bulbs. Cheap projector headlights for our cars are made for halogen (and they don't work very well that way either...) and HIDs in those projectors rarely work well.

[GeoffM]

HIDs in the stock housings will blind people... especially if you're planning on using JDM one-piece headlights, as they're aimed in the wrong direction (since they drive on the other side of the road in Japan.)

Do a projector retrofit, or run halogen bulbs. Don't be a ricer. (hell, I gave the finger to 3 different ricers tonight in RSXs that were running blinding HIDs in their stock housing. It's NOT cool. Everyone just thinks you're a dumbass when you do that.)

Couldn't you just re aim the stock headlights?
I have my headlights aimed up fairly high. Not enough to be flashed by others, but enough to illuminate bridges with my high beams on.
Do HIDs behave the same way as normal lights, or do you NEED the projector?

[deevergote]

The stock housings are very reflective... made to properly spread the halogen light, not intense HID light. Even aimed down, the only way to keep HIDs from blinding people in a stock housing is to have them aimed so low that they'd be dangerous. They'd be like fog lights!

Basically, yes... you need a projector.
There ARE some cars that have non-projector HIDs from the factory, but the housings were designed for it.

[AccordWarrior]

www.danielsternlighting.com

This website I have found to be the definitive source of information on lighting of all kinds.

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

Discussions on using HID in a non-HID housing.

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

Discussion on HID in general, including drawbacks on the system.

Well worth the read. After reading all the information on this website, I will NEVER run HID in a non-HID housing. A good set of halogen bulbs will be a much better option.

The JDM housings use H4 bulbs.

This website gives a chart of bulbs and information including lumen output and bulb life.

http://www.rallylights.com/Hella_H4_Bulbs.aspx

Look into something like the Hella Long Life +50. Upgraded lumen output compared to a standard bulb, at the expense of the bulb life. That's the bulb I am planning on running when I do a sealed beam to E-Code conversion on my pickup.

Also, look into upgrading your headlight wiring. The additional light output will be FAR better than your OEM setup, and won't have the drawbacks of HID.

Information on upgrading your relays found here.

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/t...ys/relays.html

[GeoffM]

So, why can't we use projectors like Deev said?

Installing HID optics (such as projectors designed to accept an HID bulb) in halogen headlamp housings can be done, but it is a great deal more complicated and difficult to do correctly than is commonly understood. Typically the process involves baking the headlight assembly to loosen the adhesive, removing the lens, cutting the reflector, mounting the HID projector, and using silicone to reseal the lens.

As long as we do the projector retrofits (link) why are HIDs bad?
In one of the articles, the guy said HIDs do put out roughly 2-3 times the light.
You just have to aim it properly, like with projectors.

[Sunny_TK]

Just get HID's and save yourself time and just aim your headlights properly, I will never go back to halogen bulbs. I even put HID's in my folks cars and theyre not going back lol

[Jmurphy]

if you have projector one pieces get the HIDs