HID Install

[Jay]

Saw JChoice HID prior to the new install and the passenger side was dimmer than the driver side. Also noticed a it casts a yellowish tint on top portion of the headlights, and this was even after 15 minutes of warm up. Anyone else notice this on their kits as well?

Seems like a good price and easy install but still debating.....

 

[JChoice]

The more I look at the install, the more I worry about weatherproofing.

Anyone wash their car after the install? Water should seep down between the headlight and the hood and the relay and wiring may get wet.

 

[dochartung]

Uh Mr. Choice weather proofing is the whole oject here. read the NSX install article.... No need to worry anyway to answer your question.

 

[JChoice]

I ask because the relay, which just dangles in an area where water can come in - wire input side (base) up, doesn't seem weatherproof.

I was going to wash my car yesterday and decided against it just in case.

And, UH, I can do without the condescending tone Doc. Thanks.

[This message has been edited by JChoice (edited 15 August 2001).]

 

[dochartung]

You are exactly right JChoice the relay is not compltely weather proof. It does need to be mounted in an upright posistion. Lud and i have to get something in the install article for this, (mounting the relay step).

I am sorry for the "UH" I did not mean for it to sound condescending and meant no disrespect, I just was trying to add a little humor. I thought you were refering to the weather proofing of headlamp assembly. As we know this is compltely waterproof! that is the great thing about this kit.

 

[johndoh]

Originally posted by Jay:
Saw JChoice HID prior to the new install and the passenger side was dimmer than the driver side. Also noticed a it casts a yellowish tint on top portion of the headlights, and this was even after 15 minutes of warm up. Anyone else notice this on their kits as well?

I have a friend that did a JDM front conversion which includes OEM HIDs(shipped direct from Japan) for his Integra TypeR. http://www.nsxprime.com/ubb/Forum6/HTML/000185.html
The beam pattern between the ITR and my NSX is almost identical except that his leftside headlight is aimed higher than the right(that was fixed by lowering the headlight angle). The ITR also casts a yellowish tint to the top portion of the lights. This is probably due to the projector light assembly and the way it projects the beam, so it shouldn't have anything to do with the bulb or the HID. Also, I noticed that my HIDs change color from white to blue to yellow(slightly similar to Audi lights) depending on the angle of view.

I think there might be something wrong with the HID Bulb if it's greener and dimmer than one side. The color and intensity is identical on both sides on mine. Should get that replaced asap.



[This message has been edited by johndoh (edited 17 August 2001).]

 

[1HOT NSX]

I want to get the HID kit but I'm concerned about a few things. I have a 2000 RL that I drive every day and it has the HID lights. The light is just white and uniform accross the field, there are no issues of different lighting patterns, colors or intensity anywhere. There are no issues of "not water tight" for any of it's components. I thought this kit had been developed over some time to be "plug and play" without any problems. I see problems now from people who are not getting the right "color" from both lights and/or not getting the perfomance that they expect it. If you have installed this kit, and have not already posted here, could you please give me your insight on what the true performace of this kit is? I really want to get it, but I won't until Lu installs his kit and tells everyone that is the right thing to to - thank you Blades, again.

 

[JChoice]

I have heard of people having some minor consistency issues with factory HID lighting. A friend of mine has an Audi TT where one side has more of a purple tint and one side has more of a yellow tint. The dealer's position is that the bulbs work and will not replace the light.

Also, I looked at 2 installs of a Bellof kit (a $1000+ Japanese HID kit) and in one case, the color was perfectly consistent and in another, one side was just slightly more yellow in color. I belive that Bellof is considered a highend HID kit.

Based on what I've hard - it seems to me that sometimes, with HID bulbs, there are variances in the bulb color and brightness.

 

[johndoh]

Keep in mind that this is a non-Honda/Acura aftermarket product and not OEM. So, you will be making modifications to an existing setup. Anytime you're making modifications, you're taking the risk of not doing something right or even possibility of breaking something in the process that will not be warrantied.

I'm not promoting the Autolamps HIDs, but trying to provide an unbiased opinion on my experience w/ their kit. However, for $600 this has been the most complete & best plug & play I've seen.

If you have concerns, don't rush into it and make sure you do plenty of research. I'm sure others are also waiting to hear back from Lud regarding the install & quality of the HIDs.

The RLs do not use projection headlamps and have different headlight housings, so the beam patterns(light projected) will be different than the NSXs, Audis, BMWs, Porsches, etc. They also have different intensity and color due to different brand of the HIDs.

 

[BladesNSX]

I posted a similar query on another post but felt it more appropriate here. I have noticed that the HID on some cars project the light in a different way. Cars such as the Audi TT, some BMWs, and especially the S2K project their lights at a high intensity.
From a distant front view you will know these cars when you see them as having HID. You see different colors (I have heard them called waste light) at various angles. I understand that most of these cars have projection type headlights, however, not all of the cars of similar intensity are equiped as such.
I have also seen HID on some cars where the lighting isn't as wide and "bright" as some others. Its a bit confusing. I am not sure, but I think I have seen a model of VW with HIDs.
In the other post Chris of SoS mentioned that Autolamps uses Phillips and RM Racing uses Bosch. I am curious as to what S2Ks use? Is there anyone in the South FL. area with an HID kit? I would love to see it in person.

Blade

[This message has been edited by BladesNSX (edited 21 August 2001).]

 

[dochartung]

Gentlemen, I am posting this to answer some of the question regarding color etc... it is Very informative and NOT hear-say.

"Bosch are a "set" maker as they are known in the industry. A "set" is basically a reflector and lens or light unit as it may be more commonly known. They DO NOT make light sources such as halogen or HID. 70% of the worlds HID OE market is supplied by Philips with the majority of the balance being supplied by Osram/Sylvania. Due to International homologation that covers in the HID case all countries worldwide, these lamps must be interchangeable so they cannot be too different from each other.

There are 2 reasons for different colour on any HID headlamp system:

1. The optics
2. The age of the HID lamp.

All discharge lamps have what is known as SDCM, where the burnback effects the colour temperature. Therefore the older the lamp the bluer it looks, especially a 1000 hour lamp against a new one.

Bosch do operate in the OE and aftermarket in certian countries. The OE business is worlwide and due to quality ALL Bosch OE business is with either Philips or Osram lamps, it changes with the flavour of the month. The aftermarket is not considered with the same demands, so they supply products bought on price. In this case the Bosch aftermarket HID kits are made in Korea. Reason being? Simply maximum profit."


So there you have it, the facts. Now to move on to addressing some issues with one side being "dimmer" than the other? Well with HID bulbs this is NOT possible.

You can clearly SEE Johndoe's install and the color and the beam intensity. Both headlamps seem to match to me and this is what my car looked like after the install.
The problem of one side being "dimmer" is being caused by the alignment of the headlamps. Was your car ever involved in a front end mishap of one kind or another? If so, it could be that your headlamps were never aligned correctly during repair and it was not as apparent with the lower output Halogen bulb. With the high output of the HID these inperfections are obviouly going to be more apparent. So if you have to adjust your headlamps it is very easy. I had to bring up my driver side because it was a tad to low. But no big deal the lights are FANTASTIC and I have HID, so who cares I am happy and my NSX is now complete!

[This message has been edited by dochartung (edited 21 August 2001).]

[This message has been edited by dochartung (edited 21 August 2001).]

 

[JChoice]

"Dimmer" might be describing a color problem and not necessarily a brightness issue. I suppose an easy way to test is to just switch the bulbs.

 

[ScienceofSpeed]

I wanted to clear up my inaccurate statement (I was promptly corrected by the engineer who created my kit). The kit I have (and RM uses) is not a Bosch unit as previously stated. Here are my edits:

- Bosch makes HID ballasts
- The ballasts on my personal kit is Masushita, which is the OE for the Honda HID kits.

I agree with Doc... alignment of the lamp housings vertically or horizontally make a large difference on the appearance of the output color.

Each kit that is not from the factory has it's pluses and minuses. And these should be weighted when you decide to purchase.

As an FYI, it turns out RM Racing has discontinued the club discounts, so the $1295 price is in fact the current price.

-- Chris

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www.ScienceofSpeed.com - Click for more info
www.NSXClassifieds.com - The internet's only exclusive NSX Classified site!

 

[apeltier]

I finally installed the autolamps HID kit this weekend. It took about 2 1/2 hours to do the first side and 45 minutes or so to do the other. Its pretty easy. The instructions could use some info on what to do with the relay and where it should go but that's been addressed in an earlier post so I'm not going to worry about it. Other than that, they're great and very easy to follow. Good job!

I did have one problem. The wires going from the ballast to the relay and the yellow wire going from the relay to the headlight wires were both a tiny bit short on each side. A little worse on the driver side since the wires from the ballast exit a little farther away due to the orientation of the ballast. I was able to get everything to fit, but it seemed like I needed just about 1/2 inch more length on each set of wires. I had to be really careful with the placement of the ballast so that there wasn't any tension in the wires. On the driver side the wires were so short I wasn't able to do anything with the relay. The wires were just long enough to reach so the relay is just sort of hanging there suspended. I'm a little worried about this.

Other than that its a great kit and everything goes together really easy, but it would have been a lot easier with just a tiny bit more length. My kit was put together last minute due to an order mistake so maybe it was rushed or something. On the other hand, the wires going to the battery were too long. Not a big deal. Just unnecessarily long.

Anyway, enough complaining. If you don't have short wires and don't drop any screws into places at the last minute that require you to undo half your work (like I did) its really easy.

Its great too. What a difference. I'm really happy with the results. The color is very good. Very white. After I first installed both, the color seemed different from one side to the other but not when I turned them on for a second time.

I'm really impressed with how effective they are. I was worried that since they're not factory installed they might not cast that much light or something but they're pretty damn amazing. Well worth it so far. I'm very happy. Night and day compared to my PIAA HID "style" bulbs in my GSR which just look white but don't cast any more light.

Overall, I highly recommend them. They make a huge difference and the kit is straight forward and very easy to install.

Alan



------------------
Alan Peltier
Operations Manager
HRE Performance Wheels
[email protected]

'94 black/black
No mods yet. HID on order. Needs wheels!
Performance upgrades coming as soon as I can scrape up the cash! Donations much appreciated!!

Check out our website at http://www.hrewheels.com

 

[dochartung]

Lud did you get yours in yet?

 

[Lud]

Unfortunately not yet... To be honest I am not sure I'll have a chance to do it before NSXPO.

 

[dochartung]

Hey Lud bring it by to my place here in North Jersey and I'll help you install it in no time!

[This message has been edited by dochartung (edited 18 September 2001).]

 

[spike]

Any of you guys have any experience with the HID kit from http://www.hids4less.com ... their quoting me about ~800 for the 9006 kit + $50 installation. Comments / suggestions?

 

[Carguy!]

Spike,
Why would you be looking at that kit? The autolamps kit only costs $600 and is specific to the NSX. I haven't read anything bad about it, I currently have mine on order so I can't speak specifics yet though.

Good luck with whatever you try!

 

[johndoh]

From the looks of their kit for the 9006, I think you'll run into the problem with not being able to fit the protective end caps on your bulbs. Before you buy, I would double check to see if they have done installation on a NSX and whether or not it will fit on the NSX. Be wary of simple and quick answers that say "it'll fit on any car that uses 9006 bulbs" or something like that. Remember that the Autolamps HID kit was specifically designed for the NSX.

 

[ScienceofSpeed]

I agree with CarGuy!

The standard Phillips kit will not work well in the NSX, and may be a risk due to exposed end caps.

$800 is expensive for a base Phillips kit.

-- Chris

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www.ScienceofSpeed.com - Click for more info
www.NSXClassifieds.com - The internet's only exclusive NSX Classified site!

 

[burbel]

So the autolamps kit leaves the stock hi-beam in place, correct? Is anyone working on a replacement HID high-beam kit, or is this not needed? Guess that part just confuses me; living out near the country, my high beams get a lot of usage most nights coming home from work.

Another question -- does anyone in Texas have this kit installed? I would love to see it in action, and wouldn't mind travelling to take a look at an install.

 

[JChoice]

There are new bulbs out or coming out that are brighter than the current bulbs that are out there.

You may want to look into those. Autolamps carries these newer bulbs - I believe that also look slightly bluer than the standard bulbs.

Autolamps uses a modified Philips bulb to make it fit better in the NSX. I don't know if this modification is "NSX specific" - but it might be if no other car requires the type of base modification that the Autolamps kit has.

Just about every 9006 kit out there is "beam pattern correct" but most will not fit in the NSX with modification to the dust cover.

There are new HID bulbs that have BOTH high and low beams. I believe that they are on one bulb so I don't know how effective they would be in the NSX.

The only other option is to use two HID kits - one for high beams and one for low.

 

[johndoh]

Originally posted by burbel:
Is anyone working on a replacement HID high-beam kit, or is this not needed? ...living out near the country, my high beams get a lot of usage most nights coming home from work.

Autolamps and other kits do have highbeam HIDs, although I can't imagine how bright they might be and why somebody would need HID highbeams. Stock highbeams on the NSX work very well with the HIDs. Keeping in mind that the projector lens on the NSX already does an awesome job of casting light. Using both of them, I am never in a situation where I need more light. With the HIDs, you get phenomenal visibility about 30-40' out and with highbeams, it's even better. You have to definitely see it to believe it.

 

[Russ]

Were the hidden-ballast install pics ever put online? I'm seriously considering getting the Autolamps kit and being able to keep the stock look under the hood would be great.

Originally posted by JChoice:

Gary at NSX modified reinstalled the Automap kit for me. The install now is virtually UNDETECTABLE. No ballast just hanging around under the hood, no wires exposed, etc. Everything is hidden neatly underneath the headlamp cover and the wire is hidden.

Originally posted by dochartung:

This is a great idea! So what you are saying is he mounted the ballast under the headlamp cover, on the frame of the headlamp assembly. This is a great option choice for the installer and should be added to the install article. You have to get some pics into this post.

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Russ
'91 black/black