# Xenon's or HID Kit?



## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

What really is the better option to upgrade R33 GTR lights?

I haven't had the chance to see how the Xenon's are at night,but have a HID kit fitted to my civic and everything lights up nicely!

Eventually,i want to change the GTR head lights,currently got some white bulbs in there that give the HID affect,but no way near the light output

So,would you say it's worth it to buy the Xenon's,or buy a HID kit,though considering the costs as Xenon's are like £850+ and a HID kit can be brought now for around £140!

Emil


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## Mookistar (Feb 5, 2004)

Emil, if your just after a lighting upgrade, just get a HID kit, cannot rate mine highly enough.

if you also want the cosmetic look, then its xenon's, but at £850 i could think of better things to buy for the car.

mook


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## steve99 (Aug 3, 2007)

*headlights*

could not agree more.bought my HID kit from essex racing for £99 and they work the tits.good luck.steve


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## skyline69_uk (Jan 6, 2005)

I don't want to state the obvious but HID and Xenon are the same thing . HIDs charge Xenon gas to get the light. To confuse things some halogen bulb makers called a range of their halogen bulbs Xenons lol.


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## R4LLY (Aug 9, 2006)

That's exactly what I was thinking....

Xenon HID conversion kits are very reasonably priced now as well, there is a uk based shop on e-bay who sell them for £75 delivered next day.... 

eBay UK Shop - Vision Performance UK: Induction, Tuning, Exhausts

I've had mine a while now and they make the world of difference for night time driving, and look


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## weka (Jul 3, 2001)

JapFreak786 said:


> So,would you say it's worth it to buy the Xenon's,or buy a HID kit,though considering the costs as Xenon's are like £850+ and a HID kit can be brought now for around £140!
> 
> Emil


When you say Xenons (and £850+), maybe you mean a pair of R33 GTR headlights including the HIDS inside them?


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## Mr Gee (May 14, 2004)

steve99 said:


> could not agree more.bought my HID kit from essex racing for £99 and they work the tits.good luck.steve


Steve - were these easy to fit ?


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## hyrev (Apr 30, 2004)

I really loved the HID Kit I installed on the R, PIAA 6200k.
Wish I also had the projectors.


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## doctawoo (Oct 27, 2004)

I been told my HIDs are brighter/sharper than friends factory fitted xenons (on M3/350Z) - so go for HID and get some other goodies with money left over.


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## Spearmint (Aug 7, 2005)

I have HID on mine for both high beam / low beam. They are 8000k rated which I got from here: HIDWORLD.COM - Your Source Of HID Xenon Lighting System. -





They are bloody bright aren't they! 

My first words where (after I installed them, went in for some dinner and came back out in the evening to try them out)

'Ah'

As it illuminated the whole house over the road in front of my garage causing the occupants to flick the curtains back!


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## 323ian (Jun 26, 2006)

Good poll this, I am in the exact same position as you and am wanting to find more out about these HID kits as there seems to be loads available, what K is best to go for, 6K? 8K etc??


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## Spearmint (Aug 7, 2005)

The higher the Kelvin rating you go the less bright they become and the more pronounced is the effect of the blue and even purple tinge.

4000k is the best to go for if you want maximum illumination.


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## 323ian (Jun 26, 2006)

Thanks for that, what rating do you have in your picture <----- please?
So 4000K is best for the brightness and the higher you go you lose brightness and just gain a bit of blue tinge?


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## Spearmint (Aug 7, 2005)

Mine are 8000k. The 6000k will be brighter but less blue in colour.


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## 323ian (Jun 26, 2006)

Thanks thats very helpfull, think i will go for a set of the bi xenon ones that was on the link you posted.


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## 323ian (Jun 26, 2006)

Another question if i could please, what bulbs does the Skyline take? I mean H1 etc??
Also what is the difference between the 55w kits and normal kits?
Thanks for your help, electrics is not my thing!!


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## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

i belive the R33 GTR are H3C or something like that?

reason why i thought i'd ask about the quality,is,if the Xenon's were to be better than HID's,then i would consider spending the huge amount of money due to the better light and the better apperance of the light unit themselves

got a HID kit thats 6000k on my civic and i see everything so i know how could the HID kits can be

thanks everyone though


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## skyline69_uk (Jan 6, 2005)

323ian said:


> Good poll this, I am in the exact same position as you and am wanting to find more out about these HID kits as there seems to be loads available, what K is best to go for, 6K? 8K etc??


Best is 5300K - natural daylight, as that is what your eyes picks up the most off. The different heat ratings have the same output but your eyes just don't see it as well as the 5300K stuff. Anything from 5000K to 6000K is considered best.

Be VERY aware of cheap kits under £100. HIDs work at very high frequency and without proper shielding and testing can cause all sorts of problems with other electrics in the car especially the normal ECU and aftermarket ECUs.

Also if the bulb glass hasn't really good UV filtering it can "bleach" the paint work directly in front of the bulb.


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## Mookistar (Feb 5, 2004)

R33 are H1

look at my guide in the FAQ thread

mook


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## skyline69_uk (Jan 6, 2005)

JapFreak786 said:


> i belive the R33 GTR are H3C or something like that?
> 
> reason why i thought i'd ask about the quality,is,if the Xenon's were to be better than HID's,then i would consider spending the huge amount of money due to the better light and the better apperance of the light unit themselves
> 
> ...


Xenon ARE HIDs and HIDs are Xenon - there is NO difference!


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## MeLLoN Stu (Jun 9, 2005)

skyline69_uk said:


> Xenon ARE HIDs and HIDs are Xenon - there is NO difference!


Think we're talking about OEM Bi-Xenons or aftermarket kits, just with incorrect nomenclature.

I've got a 4300 kit and a 6000 kit, waiting to get the car back to wire them in but tested them previously and they were brilliant (no pun intended).


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## leeaids (May 8, 2007)

would love some but not sure what thay cost


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## MeLLoN Stu (Jun 9, 2005)

anywhere from 80 quid to 200 quid for the HID kits, over 1k for OEM bi-xenons.

I got mine from HIDs4U as posted on the previous page of this thread, due to the excellent exchange rate you can pick them up for about 85 quid delivered at the minute, and the quality of the kit is excellent compared to some of the other kits out there.


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## Steve (Sep 21, 2001)

did you buy these from the USA ?


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## [[njo]] (Sep 26, 2007)

Spearmint said:


> I have HID on mine for both high beam / low beam. They are 8000k rated which I got from here: HIDWORLD.COM - Your Source Of HID Xenon Lighting System. -
> 
> 
> 
> ...



thanks 4 the pics :thumbsup: you would probly get the same eye damage staring into those as staring at the sun!


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## TOMMO_GTR (Sep 8, 2007)

Does anyone know what bulbs are on a 1992 R32 GTR?

Is it possible to get a high+low beam conversion on my car?

On that HIDWORLD site it says there isn't a 5300k kit but there is a 4300k - which do you guys think will be best out of 4300k and 6000k. Dont car about the look...just want the best lighting.


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## skyline69_uk (Jan 6, 2005)

MeLLoN Stu said:


> I got mine from HIDs4U as posted on the previous page of this thread, due to the excellent exchange rate you can pick them up for about 85 quid delivered at the minute, and the quality of the kit is excellent compared to some of the other kits out there.


Ditto for me too, great kit.


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## 323ian (Jun 26, 2006)

Mookistar i cannot find your guide anywhere mate??


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## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

plus anyone know what the head lights are for projector style on R32's?


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

Has anyone been through an MoT since fitting an HID conversion? That's the only thing that concerns me, seeing as we don't have auto height adjustment on the headlights (which is I presume the reason that the UK cars had the xenons removed).

Obviously you'd not expect them to fail OEM lights but if the spec is clearly aftermarket I wondered if it'd be cause for concern?

I hope not becuase I'd love to do HID conversion on both of my cars.


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## Spearmint (Aug 7, 2005)

Mine passed its MOT a-ok and the MOT tester was quite strict.


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## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

if in doubt,then just take it off?
My civic's kit takes all of 10mins to un-plug fully and another 10 mins to put back together


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## hpt_simon (May 20, 2006)

im after an aswer too for a r32gtr, wich would be best bet ?
and why the hell are kits like bellof so expensive?
you will understand i havent got a clue about electrics


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## 323ian (Jun 26, 2006)

Has anyone upgraded both the low and high beam of their skyline?

Do you have to upgrade the headlight fuse to cope with a HID kit?


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## Micky Hanson (Oct 1, 2006)

sorry to ask a dumb question but may be looking to put HID's on my 32, but which bulbs does one use after the upgrade??


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## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

the HID kit contains all the bits required,and it's either a H3C,H1 or H4 bulb in the R32


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## biff32gtr (Feb 23, 2007)

*R32`s*

The best way to fit hids to a 32 is to change your headlights to N1 items,because they use H4 blubs,not H3C as projectors do


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## Spearmint (Aug 7, 2005)

323ian said:


> Has anyone upgraded both the low and high beam of their skyline?
> 
> Do you have to upgrade the headlight fuse to cope with a HID kit?


Nope, infact HID kits draw less current.


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## s2gtr (Jun 30, 2001)

kingsley said:


> Has anyone been through an MoT since fitting an HID conversion? That's the only thing that concerns me, seeing as we don't have auto height adjustment on the headlights (which is I presume the reason that the UK cars had the xenons removed).
> 
> Obviously you'd not expect them to fail OEM lights but if the spec is clearly aftermarket I wondered if it'd be cause for concern?
> 
> I hope not becuase I'd love to do HID conversion on both of my cars.


Here is the legal standpoint:

Fact sheet: Aftermarket HID headlamps
December 2006

In the Department's view it is not legal to sell or use after market HID lighting kits, for converting conventional Halogen headlamps to HID Xenon. If a customer wants to convert his vehicle to Xenon HID he must purchase completely new Xenon HID headlamps. The reason for this is that the existing lens and reflector are designed around a Halogen filament bulb, working to very precise tolerances. If one places a HID "burner" (bulb) in the headlamp, the beam pattern will not be correct, there will be glare in some places and not enough light in other places within the beam pattern.

The following is the legal rationale:

The Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations 1989 regulate the situation in the UK.
Under these Regulations, HID/Gas Discharge/Xenon headlamps are not mentioned and therefore they are not permitted according to the strict letter of the law.

However new vehicles have HID headlamps. This is because they comply to European type approval Regulations. The UK cannot refuse to register a vehicle with a European type approval. These are to ECE Regulation 98 (for the HID headlamps which are tested on a rig in a laboratory) and ECE Regulation 48 (Lighting Installation on the vehicle).

For the after market, a used vehicle cannot obtain type approval because it is only applicable for new vehicles. However we feel that saying "HID is banned in the after market" would not be reasonable. Instead we should make analogies with new vehicles. It would be reasonable to require HID in the after market to meet the same safety standards as on new vehicles. The same level of safety should apply.

Therefore a HID headlamp unit sold in the after market should:

1. be type approved to ECE Regulation 98 as a component.

2. when fitted to the vehicle should enable ECE Regulation 48 to be complied with (although no government inspection will take place).

3. Comply with RVLR as far as "use" is concerned.

In practice this means:

1. The headlamp unit (outer lens, reflector, bulb) shall be type approved to ECE 98 and be "e-marked" to demonstrate this. That can only be done by the headlamp supplier - Hella, Valeo etc. who must test the headlamp in an independent laboratory.

2. Once fitted to the vehicle it must have headlamp cleaning and self-levelling (which can be for the headlamp or can be in the vehicle suspension - some expensive estate cars have "self-levelling suspension" and that is adequate). Also the dipped beam must stay on with the main beam.

3. The headlamp must be maintained in good working order, kept clean, and aligned/adjusted correctly like any other headlamp.

Under the Road Traffic Act 1988 it is an offence to supply, fit or use vehicle parts which are not legal.

In summary it is not permitted to convert an existing halogen headlamp unit for use with HID bulbs. The entire headlamp unit must be replaced with one designed and approved for use with HID bulbs and it must be installed in accordance with the rules stated above.

If you require any further information regarding the regulations covered by this fact sheet, please contact the DfT at the address below:

Transport Technology and Standards 6
Department for Transport
Zone 2/04
Great Minster House
76 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DR

Taken from here:

Department for Transport - Aftermarket HID (Xenon) headlamps

Dave:runaway:


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

Thanks Dave, that's an excellent post.


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## 323ian (Jun 26, 2006)

Spearmint said:


> Nope, infact HID kits draw less current.


Thanks for that mate.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

Spearmint said:


> Nope, infact HID kits draw less current.


Don't they draw quite a lot of current on initial startup though? I'm wondering if you'd need to fit a slow blow fuse, if such a thing is available for car electrics.


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## Spearmint (Aug 7, 2005)

kingsley said:


> Don't they draw quite a lot of current on initial startup though? I'm wondering if you'd need to fit a slow blow fuse, if such a thing is available for car electrics.


The bulb itself requires a good jolt on startup but this is provided by the ballast which usually has an internal or external igniter. Once the bulb is up to temp the power required is reduced. You don't have to go fitting larger gauge wiring, slow blow fuses etc.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

OK that's good.

How quickly do they start up? I'm wondering how effective flashing people would be if installed onto full beam. On a related note, flashing people isn't particularly good on cars with popup headlights


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

kingsley said:


> OK that's good.
> 
> I'm wondering how effective flashing people would be




Probably a 3 years in jail. Anyway I didnt know you owned a long coat :chuckle:


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## jae (Aug 28, 2002)

*OEM Xenon*

Yes they cost stupid money, but they are superb. Dip beam is xenon, main is standard but all have revised reflectors.


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## Spearmint (Aug 7, 2005)

kingsley said:


> OK that's good.
> 
> How quickly do they start up? I'm wondering how effective flashing people would be if installed onto full beam. On a related note, flashing people isn't particularly good on cars with popup headlights


Put it this way, if you haven't got the modification whereby on switching to main beam the dips stay on and you are using both HIDs on high and low you'll be driving along in the dark for a few seconds.

They aren't any good for flashing people etc.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

TREG said:


> Probably a 3 years in jail. Anyway I didnt know you owned a long coat :chuckle:


I don't have a long coat. I just prefer to hide behind doors and pop out at strategic moments.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

Spearmint said:


> Put it this way, if you haven't got the modification whereby on switching to main beam the dips stay on and you are using both HIDs on high and low you'll be driving along in the dark for a few seconds.
> 
> They aren't any good for flashing people etc.


I thought my dips stayed on when I was on full but to be honest I've never checked, I just assumed they did.

I wonder what cars with bi-xenon do for flashing - I thought that it was meant to be a safety feature, as is the horn.


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## bernmc (Dec 26, 2006)

kingsley said:


> I wonder what cars with bi-xenon do for flashing - .


The bulbs have a reflector/shield which moves on the bulb - so the bulb never switches on or off - the reflector jsut changes position from low to high beam.

You can get aftermarket H4 xenon bulbs that do this


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## pupsi (Aug 29, 2006)

As above, I,ve got a set of H4 Bi-Xenons on my Merc, no probs when flashing the lights, they're instantaneous. Cool piece of kit.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

bernmc said:


> The bulbs have a reflector/shield which moves on the bulb - so the bulb never switches on or off - the reflector jsut changes position from low to high beam.
> 
> You can get aftermarket H4 xenon bulbs that do this


But presumably you're not driving with the bulbs on during the day - what happens when you want to flash someone during daytime?

Unless your lights have a quick startup (sounds like pupsi's do) then I can't see how it'd really work?


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

Where can I get a cheap kit for full beam Hid bulbs from?
There was a group buy deal on here a while back for £50.


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## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

best way i found Treg is to just type in your bulb fitment onto eGay and you'll get a list of kits at around £10 than ones' that say "Skyline" in them


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

JapFreak786 said:


> best way i found Treg is to just type in your bulb fitment onto eGay and you'll get a list of kits at around £10 than ones' that say "Skyline" in them




Will take a look mate-Thanks.:thumbsup:


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## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

well an update of my own,i wanted to get xenon's for our old GTR,and i have ended up owning them,my current R33 GTR has them fitted to the car,the OEM Nissan Xenon lamps,and they're awesome,a HID kit can't replicate these,if you can,get them over a HID kit,the lamp itself looks a thousand times better


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## mattysupra (Oct 31, 2008)

JapFreak786 said:


> well an update of my own,i wanted to get xenon's for our old GTR,and i have ended up owning them,my current R33 GTR has them fitted to the car,the OEM Nissan Xenon lamps,and they're awesome,a HID kit can't replicate these,if you can,get them over a HID kit,the lamp itself looks a thousand times better




sorry mate but i disagre sort of. As you know my car has zenons, as for HID kits forget it as the lenses are not desined for them so light is going every where. 


Anyway getting back to my zenons, there crap! I cant see jack all when im driving. I realised this the other night when we was all out and mark was behind me in his U.K spec 34 gtr. (U.K spec GTR's have normal light bulbs) I found that i was waiting for mark to catch up so i could use his headlights (from behind) to light the road up for me! 

Basically, the GTR zenons are crap!


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## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

really? thats interesting,standard R33 GTR lights i think are rubbish,the xenon's on mine i think light up the road a treat,had 3 HID kit's on my old car's,and they were quite good,but can't beat the xenon's on my R33


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## Jags (May 20, 2007)

I'm with Matt on this one. The R34 Xenons are crap- they dont light the road up enough. They do look cool though.


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## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

Jags said:


> I'm with Matt on this one. The R34 Xenons are crap- they dont light the road up enough. They do look cool though.


ah ok,didn't realise they where that bad,i'll stick to OEM lights for when i buy an R34 GTR then 
this thread was made ages back though,and was referring to R33 GTR's,since we all know those are the best ones out of the GTR's  lol


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

I have done the mid beam but does anyone know what lamp it is for the FULL beam??


Thread from the dead


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## R32 Combat (Jan 29, 2004)

Er, this is a bit daft, Xenons and HID are the same.


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

Any idea on what lamp for Hi beam on the 33?


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## Mook (Mar 20, 2007)

Treg, both beams use the same lamps. sorry, meant to reply to your pm.


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## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

initial thread was put up regarding having OEM Xenon lamp's on R33 GTR's,or fitting your own H.I.D kit onto one


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

Cant recall what it was tho and dont want to strip it apart!!

Does noone know either?


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

I think the bulbs are H1 - can someone else confirm? (it's been ages since I've needed to change one and I've forgotten what I used).

... or is that not what you meant, Steve?

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

Yes thats what I need to know Kingsley.

H1 lamps???


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

Its H1 or H7?
Anyone know here?


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## JapFreak786 (Aug 29, 2003)

H1 IIRC mate


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## Mook (Mar 20, 2007)

H1 dude


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

Thanks guys


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

One more question.
If these are fitted to the Hi beams can you still flash your lights or are they too slow for that?


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

I asked that very same question of an HID kit supplier. They told me that they light up to normal halogen bulb brightness almost instantly (as quickly as a normal halogen would) and then reach full brightness a few seconds later. If that's true, then they'd be fine for flashing.

Have you already fitted them to your dip beam? If so, you could presumably test this by either fitting them to full instead, or simulate a dipped beam flash against a wall or something else you could see by switching the lights on and then off again straight away?

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## Cris (Sep 17, 2007)

I think you'll find that flashing them on and off will shorten the lifespan.

All of the OEM systems use some sort of shutter to move between dipped and main beam.

Best bet would be to fit an OEM projector or just use incandescents for main beam with the dipped staying on at the same time.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

I can't imagine that he'll be flashing them very much - it's just handy on occasion. I have to admit to finding flashing a pain when I'm in the MR2 because it has to pop the headlights up first to do it, which looks silly. I had thought about installing some bright LEDs in the side lights and wiring those and the fog lights to some sort of flash, if that's not too arduous. But I digress ..

Are the OEM shutter systems you refer to ones where dip and full beam are on the same lamp? I admit I know virtually nothing about OEM HID systems.

A friend of mine had dual HIDs on an M3. I think, like the GTR, that had a separate lamp for dip and full beam, and dip stayed on all of the time. Not sure whether it ever used a shutter system but I'd be surprised if it did - I don't suppose there'd be a need on that setup?

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

Its just for now and again, when letting people out of give ways and slow outside lane drivers that wont pull over as 60mph is plenty fast enough!
I have them fitted mid beam but thought about some 6000's for high beam?


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## Cris (Sep 17, 2007)

kingsley said:


> I can't imagine that he'll be flashing them very much - it's just handy on occasion. I have to admit to finding flashing a pain when I'm in the MR2 because it has to pop the headlights up first to do it, which looks silly. I had thought about installing some bright LEDs in the side lights and wiring those and the fog lights to some sort of flash, if that's not too arduous. But I digress ..
> 
> Are the OEM shutter systems you refer to ones where dip and full beam are on the same lamp? I admit I know virtually nothing about OEM HID systems.
> 
> ...


Don't take this as gospel but the systems break down like this:

Xenons = dipped xenons/hids with the main beam being incandescents, two separate bulbs/lamps, dipped stays on with main beam

bi-xenons = dipped and mean beam xenon/hid, one lamp with a shutter type arrangement to move between dipped and main

After market kits can cloud the issue but be aware that just because someone makes it doesn't mean it's suitable.

I have heard of separate dipped and main beam xenons with the main beam coming on with the dipped but having a cover blocking the light until main beam is selected. Not sure if they really exist or it's just someone misunderstanding the bi-xenons.

Also worth considering that I know of no OEM systems which use reflectors for hid/xenon. Sometimes they look like reflectors but have a projector in the middle.


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## Cris (Sep 17, 2007)

TREG said:


> Its just for now and again, when letting people out of give ways and slow outside lane drivers that wont pull over as 60mph is plenty fast enough!
> I have them fitted mid beam but thought about some 6000's for high beam?


Don't R33 headlights have a pair of reflectors (one dipped and one main beam)? If so I wouldn't fit a kit to either of them. You could fit a pair of bi-xenons (I think someone has done this on here) or a hid/xenon projector for dipped and 'normal' for main or even one bi-xenon projector and keep the normal main beam as driving lights.


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## enshiu (Aug 20, 2010)

4300k or 6000k If you go over that It will be way too flashy unless projector headlamps.


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

Cris said:


> Don't R33 headlights have a pair of reflectors (one dipped and one main beam)? If so I wouldn't fit a kit to either of them. You could fit a pair of bi-xenons (I think someone has done this on here) or a hid/xenon projector for dipped and 'normal' for main or even one bi-xenon projector and keep the normal main beam as driving lights.




Normal mid beam has already been changed about 2 years ago and work a treat.
Its just working out what to do with main beam.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

Don't be tempted to go for a really high colour temperature unless you specifically want a bluey look. Much over 5000K (if I remember correctly) is above the visible spectrum and so a lower proportion of the light output will be visible light.

Daylight has a colour temp of approx 6500K I think but remember this contains a lot of UV that we can't see.

If you want maximum visibility I'd have thought something like 4300K would be a good one to opt for. In contrast, normal halogen bulbs have a colour temperature of about 2300K I think, so 4300K is still loads whiter than what you're replacing.

I would guess though (and this IS a guess) that 6000K would look slightly more like natural daylight in hue than 4300K but might appear about 5% less bright in terms of perceived overall light output.

Depends on your preference really, but don't fall into the trap of thinking that the higher the colour temperature the more light you get because that isn't so.

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

Fair comment.
I'm just wanting something brighter than standard Hi beam.

So 6000k will burn a hole through the road and blind anyone in its path?


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## Swobber (Oct 8, 2006)

Cris said:


> Also worth considering that I know of no OEM systems which use reflectors for hid/xenon. Sometimes they look like reflectors but have a projector in the middle.


Some Mercedes use a reflector for xenon. Think its some of the older E class cars.


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## Cris (Sep 17, 2007)

TREG said:


> Fair comment.
> I'm just wanting something brighter than standard Hi beam.
> 
> So 6000k will burn a hole through the road and blind anyone in its path?


It's not a brightness rating it's frequency or if you prefer colour. The 'brightest' would be the frequency which your eyes can see the best. For example if the frequency was too high or too low you'd see nothing.


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## TREG (May 20, 2004)

Google Image Result for http://bohemienpoet.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/obi-wan-kenobi-01-large.jpg


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

TREG said:


> Fair comment.
> I'm just wanting something brighter than standard Hi beam.
> 
> So 6000k will burn a hole through the road and blind anyone in its path?


That would be somewhat of a disaster if you make too large a hole because your car will fall into it and you will be stuck. At least you'll be able to see while you're in it 

Seriously, any HID kit is going to be a lot brighter than 55w halogen bulbs. Standard HID bulbs use 35w but put out over 3 times the amount of visible light compared to a normal halogen. You can also get HID kits that use 55w HID bulbs ...

You just need to find something to make that cool "wwwom wwwom" noise now as your car rounds a bend with the lights on. Darth Treg, perhaps?

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## Mookistar (Feb 5, 2004)

Biggest problem is cold lamps when switching between beams. Ideally you want to rig the wiring to keep all 4 beams lit when you flick full beam on otherwise you are plunged into darkness between beams

Mook


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

Mookistar said:


> Biggest problem is cold lamps when switching between beams. Ideally you want to rig the wiring to keep all 4 beams lit when you flick full beam on otherwise you are plunged into darkness between beams
> 
> Mook


I think that would happen anyway on the R33? On mine dip stays on when I switch to full beam.

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## Mookistar (Feb 5, 2004)

Hmmm. I'll check mine. I have hid on my dipped so have the problem going from full to dipped

Mook


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

Perhaps that's why the ones that do full and dip on a single lamp have the shutter arrangement that Cris mentioned?

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

Incidentally I spoke to an MoT tester at the weekend about retrofitting HID lights to road cars in the UK.

He explained that the MoT only covers a subsection of the road traffic act/construction and use/whateveritiscalled.

As far as passing the MoT goes, you can retrofit HID lights and it will pass as long as the aim and beam pattern are correct and that the colour is also correct (either white or yellow). He said lights that appeared blue would fail the MoT test.

He also said that there may be other rules regarding HID lights that don't fall within scope of the MoT test but would still apply for use on the road. He didn't quote anything specific but I have heard from other sources that self levelling and headlamp wash are requirements, though one source told me this was only to OEM installations (that particular source being a supplier of aftermarket HID kits - read into that what you will). Presumably OEM grey imports are a different matter if that's how the car was made originally.

Any which way, I personally would prefer to be able to see properly (without dazzling others, obviously).

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## SPEED MERCHANT (Jun 5, 2006)

Someone on here once did a post showing how on R32's you could do something (wire something to something) so that when you go to full beam or dipped headlights it keeps all the lights on. Does anyone know how to do this as I have new HID's going on in two weeks and need to cure this problem!


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## Cris (Sep 17, 2007)

SPEED MERCHANT said:


> Someone on here once did a post showing how on R32's you could do something (wire something to something) so that when you go to full beam or dipped headlights it keeps all the lights on. Does anyone know how to do this as I have new HID's going on in two weeks and need to cure this problem!


It depends on the HID kit and how it is fitted. Might be best to see how the system is wired up before doing anything.

If it is a problem you could fit a diode from the main beam to the dipped beam to keep both on at once.


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## SPEED MERCHANT (Jun 5, 2006)

Cris said:


> If it is a problem you could fit a diode from the main beam to the dipped beam to keep both on at once.


I know how the wiring is and this will still be a problem, but you've hit the nail on the head. Its what diode and where it fits I need to know. There was a link or thread somewhere which showed you but I'll be dammed if I can find it through the search facility


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## wardiz (Dec 23, 2008)

have you taken a look at this conversion : Wardiz Blog Archive LHD headlight for Nissan Skyline R33 GT-R
there is also an electrical diagram in the PDF file.It might be uselful.


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## SPEED MERCHANT (Jun 5, 2006)

wardiz said:


> have you taken a look at this conversion : Wardiz Blog Archive LHD headlight for Nissan Skyline R33 GT-R
> there is also an electrical diagram in the PDF file.It might be uselful.


I've forwarded this to ECLIPSE who are doing my HID's so hopefully will be helpful. However if anyone out there has the answer for the R32 as well please post :thumbsup:


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## Azim (Aug 2, 2011)

HID is cheap and does the job mate! only issue is the ballast which can blow so buy from a reputable seller with warranty


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## Cris (Sep 17, 2007)

Azim said:


> HID is cheap and does the job mate! only issue is the ballast which can blow so buy from a reputable seller with warranty


I wouldn't worry too much about that. If you want you can buy them for pennies on fleabay. I bought four because they were so cheap. Two are still in the boxes. Can't be all bad!


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

Sorry to bump an old thread but I found out something last night which could be relevant to all this.

It seems the MoT rules are changing in a number of ways, and one of the ways seems to be that cars with HID lights fail an MoT if it's not also fitted with self leveling and automatic wash 

Well, according to this page anyway:

Will the new MOT rules cost you?

I don't know exactly how strictly this will be enforced. Surely they can't refuse to pass any car that has a fully working OEM setup. It does raise the question of retrofitted HID lights though.

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## enshiu (Aug 20, 2010)

Is this rule only for cars from 2005? If yes any old car can pass a MOT.

Otherwise remove them and pass with normal lamps.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

I don't know, it didn't say on that page. I hope that's the case because I want to put HIDs on my cars.

What is the significance of 2005 to the regulations?

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## enshiu (Aug 20, 2010)

As long as the beam line is given properly on the road why would it fail a MOT? 

Who does the MOT for you? Ring them and ask when the washers are obliged and those auto height adjusters.

Is your lamp a projector one or just normal ones? 

Normal ones I would switch to normal lamps for a MOT only.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

enshiu said:


> As long as the beam line is given properly on the road why would it fail a MOT?
> 
> Who does the MOT for you? Ring them and ask when the washers are obliged and those auto height adjusters.
> 
> ...


I take my Skyline to Abbey but the MR2 and my wife's car gets sorted by a local station. None of these cars have projector lights.

Yes agreed I'll have to ask them again. Their previous answer might not stand now the law appears to have changed. What's not clear to me is whether it only applies to cars newer than a particular date. There are a lot of "if the car was originally fitted with X" comments in that page I linked, which would allow it to cater for older cars or newer cars with fewer features as standard.

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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## Cris (Sep 17, 2007)

I wouldn't believe everything on that page. It says if a cat was fitted you cannot remove it. This is not correct for pre '92 cars. Anyway - how would they know if it had a cat fitted or not?

I am also aware that the head lamp washer thing is dodgy. Some UK cars were released with Xenons without headlamp washers. Will these cars suddenly fail their MOT tests?

I'm interested to see what happens as this pans out.


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## matt33gtr (Jun 19, 2011)

kingsley said:


> Sorry to bump an old thread but I found out something last night which could be relevant to all this.
> 
> It seems the MoT rules are changing in a number of ways, and one of the ways seems to be that cars with HID lights fail an MoT if it's not also fitted with self leveling and automatic wash
> 
> ...


Funny u should say that, I read exactly the same on the new mot laws at work, I have factory fitted xenon lamps on my Gtr, but they are not self leveling nor do they have washers. Can't see how it can be a fail if beam adjustment is correct.

I also read any split gaitors will be a instant fail, ie. droplink gaitors etc soon it will all start getting a bit more strict as mots will be issued every two years.
If i remember tomorrow I'll copy the new laws and post them up


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## enshiu (Aug 20, 2010)

If you have a R35 GT-R they have auto leveling system factory installed. (no matter JDM or EDM). Look for a harness around the park lights. I have it.

Again any questions regarding this please contact your local MOT station or wait till SVM answers.


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## kingsley (Aug 26, 2002)

I've just found something useful that hopefully shows this isn't a problem after all.

See page 28 on this document: http://www.motinfo.gov.uk/htdocs/m4_int.zip

(from the page MOT testing manuals and guides)

It talks about testing HID washing and self levelling systems _if they are present_. This doc was issued 1 Jan 2012 so it should be up to date enough for the new regs.



> Vehicles equipped with High Intensity Discharge
> (HID) or LED dipped beam headlamps may be fitted
> with headlamp washers and a suspension or
> headlamp self levelling system.
> ...


I'm now really baffled about the origins of that other page.

Hmm 

Cheers,
Kingsley.


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