HID headlights

[EastYorkStang 63]

Has anybody converted over to these HID's? I've changed my '70 over to Halogen 9004's and thought these might be even brighter. To say I'll finally get rid of the nagging flickering problem.

 

Your thoughts?

[Grabber70Mach 107]

Lot of debate on HID's, http://forums.stangnet.com/782957-just-put-some-hids.html If your headlights are flickering and you haven't installed something like this http://rjminjectiontech.com/?p=8 your H4's are overloading your headlight switch. They really need to get there power directly from the battery.

[ETstang 10]

Be careful with that relay harness - it is designed for 2 headlight arrangements - will not work on 4 headlight set-there are some other relay harnesses out there for 4 headlights.

Check this out: http://www.rccinnovations.com/Relays.php

Dick

[Jayru 17]

Be careful with that relay harness - it is designed for 2 headlight arrangements - will not work on 4 headlight set-there are some other relay harnesses out there for 4 headlights.

Check this out: http://www.rccinnovations.com/Relays.php

Dick

 

Hey, this kit looks really great. Do you have personal experience with it?

 

I'm wondering about this statement on the website - *Note: It is the responsibility of the purchaser to ensure that the headlight wiring is sufficient to carry the amperage required by the installed lamps.

 

I thought the whole point of the relays were to take the load off of the old wires. If the wires could melt anyway (and need to be replaced) even with the relays, then what's the point? Am i missing something?

 

Also, if i got this kit, where would i source the bulbs? are there direct replacement Halogens?

[Grabber70Mach 107]

Be careful with that relay harness - it is designed for 2 headlight arrangements - will not work on 4 headlight set-there are some other relay harnesses out there for 4 headlights.

Check this out: http://www.rccinnovations.com/Relays.php

Dick

 

Right I didn't think of that, Thanks for pointing it out for those that need the 4 headlight setup that this wouldn't work.

[mikem 13]

Hey Dick, thanks for the link. I just ordered the harness.

[EastYorkStang 63]

I know it's overloading the circuit. I did this conversion on my '65 El Camino last summer and was rewarded with brighter lights and no flickering.

 

Just thought the HID's would be another step brighter...

[ETstang 10]

When you use these relay kits - you are taking the load off of the old wiring that would have the heavy juice going through the light switch to light up the HID's. With these kits - you get the full 12 -14 volts going to the lights and the wiring from the light switch is just turning the relays off and on.

Dick

[Thunder Kiss 13]

My understanding is HID lamps require specific HID projector lenses to operate correctly.

Placing HID lamps into H4 lenses isn't the right thing to do.

 

As for relays, I installed Reenmachine's relay/wiring harness and I'm extremely happy with the quality of the product, its performance, and the good service provided by Pete, the owner.

Edited July 9, 2009 by Thunder Kiss

[EastYorkStang 63]

Gonna get some relays at lunch today and wire it up tonight.

 

Thanks for swaying me away from the HID's

[Angel 24]

Forget halogen bulbs. HID's are the way to go! IMO. I had converted my headlamps to h4 bulbs and they were ok. But last november i installed HID's on my 69. Im never going back! Ive yet to see another 69 with HID's around here. Im sure im the first in the valley with em. HID's run off of 35 watts and produce a light thats closer to 70w. I drive to oxnard about 2-3 times a week and its always in the night. I can see everything! My advice...go for it! You wont be the first, but you'll definitely love em.

 

Oh. one more thing.......no relays necessary. Run em right off the original harness.

[ForceFed70 14]

Oh. one more thing.......no relays necessary. Run em right off the original harness.

 

I tend to agree. HID's actually use about the same amout of energy as the stock bulbs, and a LOT less than the halogens.

[JC69Stang 0]

Any Links to the bulbs you used?

[Pakrat 1,043]

I never did bother with the halogen conversion because I didn't think it was worth all the expense of the harness and hassle since I rarely drive at night but if the HID is actually more plug and play then I'd like to take a closer look.

 

Who has 'em? Links? Cost? :huh:

[Justafordguy 10]

I would also like to try the HIDs. I have halogen now but I do worry about the extra load on the switch/wiring. Any suggestions on a source for the HIDs?

[Angel 24]

i bought my kit from a buddy that sells them. $120 for the kit. kit included bulbs and ballasts, and wires. honestly, the tricky part was mounting the ballast. everything else was plug n play. the ballast acts like a transformer. it takes 35w and kicks out a whole lot more. i used a voltmeter to check the battery before and after installation, i remember gaining back some voltage, .3-.5volts i think. this was last year, you can buy kits for $90 now. ill try to post some pics later.

[EastYorkStang 63]

What about the beam pattern? Others talk of it being detrimental?

[Jayru 17]

HID's without the proper non reflective housings just scatter light all over the place and blind other drivers (it's also ilegal). I had HID's in a Galant VR-4 (PO installed them), the light was everywhere (sky, trees) there was no way to focus the beam. To stop blinding people you need to aim them real low, which then defeats the whole purpose of the brighter light in the first place.

 

The only way to do it right is with the proper housings, which i dont think they make (size wise for our cars). Also, real HID housings (aftermarket) look kinda like bugeyes (cause they focus the beam) which i think end up looking out of place.

 

Don't get me wrong, i love factory HID's, i just dont think there's any way to really do'em right as a retrofit.

[Pakrat 1,043]

Sounded like Angel did it succesfully, guess we won't know though until we see the pics.

[Angel 24]

so i took some pics tonight. as you can see, they are significantly brighter than stock yet, consume less wattage. jayru, you're right about them needing a proper housing but honestly, it looks good without them. light is well dispersed. i have them aimed as high as i can without blinding people. honestly, this is one of my favorite upgrades because i use them very often and they light up soo well. i used to run my stock headlamps on high just to be able to see better at night, this was 4yrs ago. 6 months of that and i upgraded to halogen. last november i added these puppies and i couldnt be happier. i bought 2 kits so i could convert all 4 headlamps but i havent gotten around to doing the grill lights. to be honest, with all 4 it will kinda be overkill. but eff it. i want all 4!!!

.....plus i really like how it complements the LED taillights, front LED turn signals, and LED license plate light.

[jm_obrien 10]

How about a link to buy the kit too??:biggrin::biggrin: I like it, it looks pretty darn good imo!

 

Jon

[Pakrat 1,043]

So if I am understanding all this correctly you pretty much need to upgrade to halogen housings first then to the HID lights since no one makes an HID housing? So there probably is no real "complete" all in one kit for this conversion!?!??!?

[EastYorkStang 63]

That's the path I am taking. I put in the halogens thinking they were brighter. Then they started popping the internal fuse driving me nuts.

 

I have all the parts to do the relay upgrade left over from my El Camino upgrade so it's penny's compared to the 200 bucks CDN that the HID's are going for here.

 

When I looked at the HID's here they were only for the low beam. There was another bulb stuck on the side of the HID for the High beam. Is this the case with hi and low HID's?

[Angel 24]

ok here's the deal. no one makes a kit for a 69 mustang. u can probably find a kit for a 70 since they use the more common 7" housing. but even then, it wont be specifically designed for a mustang. if u want to retro-fit a car, any car, with HID head lights, you have to buy a kit that is designed to work with the bulb your car uses. they dont make sealed beam HID kits to replace the original sealed beam headlamp our cars use. so here is what i did.

 

i replaced the original headlamps with newer housings designed to use an H4 bulb. then i simply bought an H4 HID kit. the HID bulb is designed to fit exactly like an H4 bulb and so is the socket. then , after installing the housing, i installed the kit like i would replace an H4 bulb only that this time i also had to mount the ballast. i mounted the ballast right onto the fender where the splash shield goes. the ballast is exposed but water doesnt affect it. so far at least. its my daily driver and ive driven it through the biggest puddles and rainshowers without them turning off. and mind you, my car is lowered almost 3" in the front so that just goes to show you how well the systems are designed.

 

eastyork, you brought up a good point. most HID kits, like the one im running, are for low beam only...single filament. so yes, ive lost my high beams. however, it feels more like ive lost my low beam and kept my high beams instead. with HID's, you really dont need a high beam. like i said, i have them aimed as high as possible without blinding people....too much. the visibility is great. better than most new cars runnin halogens. so losing the highs isnt much of a sacrafice to me. but if you want to have them, you can. they make HID kits with both low and high beams. like east said, they simply stick another smaller HID bulb right next to the low beam bulb. installation is the same. these kits cost almost twice as much as the single, so for me, it wasnt worth it.

 

pic1, here is what a typical kit looks like(its the one i havent installed yet). pic 2 and 3 show the base is the same and the length of the bulb is the same as an H4 bulb. pic 4 shows the plug, since its only a low beam kit, the third wire for the high beam is absent.

 

pic 5 shows how its all wired. the shorter, thinner wire hooks up to the original headlamp socket. it feeds the ballast(silver block) the 35w required to run it. the ballast then amplifies that and kicks it out to the bulb through the thicker(black) wire. thats it. no need for relays since the system uses less power than the original headlamps. everything will work the same, switches etc. only difference will be that when you pull the headlamp switch....you'll be able to see everything. and you'll have a big smile. and i was the first:biggrin:

 

that concludes my lesson on installing HID headlights. see the light my friends.

[jm_obrien 10]

and i was the first:biggrin:

 

I've noticed this came up before too, it must REALLY mean something to you huh??:biggrin:

 

Jon