At last years MotD I replaced my OEM drivers/rally lights with Hella Black Magics. I had thought to replace the bulbs with HIDs but learned that because of the baffling that make the Black Magics "black", none would fit being too long. I have since learned that h3c bulbs might fit, the "c" standing for compact. If this is true, how hard/involved is the mod? I seriously have no real knowledge of this sort of thing so please type very slow and be kind. If it seems not to be to tough, I will find someone here in Savannah to help.

Thanks.

Jerry

 

I used to have a pontiac and I put 35W Xentec HIDs in the fog housings. The bulbs cleared the front lens by about 1/4". The plastic lamp lenses melted within a week.

I ended up having to replace the plastic lenses with custom cut smoked glass ones before I made my own housings for a projector retrofit.

So I'd say to be pretty careful putting any HID bulbs into a housing with a plastic lens. You're going to need at least a full inch of clearance if you're going to be relatively safe in not melting the lenses. I think Xentec used to make a really tiny HID bulb that was still 35W. I can't remember what the bulb socket was but you might be able to find it somewhere.

 

Thanks for that, calforhelp, but remember, I have no clue... :-) Do the new bulbs just plug in to the existing socket? Looking at "HID kits" online I see wires and metal boxes and see words like ballast.

 

Waste of time/money to retro HID bulbs in Hella BM housings, you would be much better off buying Hellas HID driving/spot lights.

 

So you'll want to see what kind of bulb your driving lights take. Like, 9006, 880, H8, H13, etc.

Then find a kit online for that bulb size. The kit will include a xenon bulb with a base that fits into the original halogen socket.

A xenon bulb works differently than a standard halogen bulb. There is no filament just a bulb of gas and two electrodes. The ballast sends a jolt of something like 7,000V when first turned on to ignite the xenon gas. Once that's done, it sends out a constant current to keep it burning.

Your car's OEM wiring will plug into the ballast and then the ballast will plug into the xenon bulb.

Get a quality kit, otherwise you will be replacing your ballasts once a month. V-LEDs used to make great kits but not anymore. I believe you can also get good kits at theretrofitsource.com

 

Calforhelp, after consulting with therefitsource, I went with a Morimoto kit. Thanks for the help.

 

No problem and good choice. I've been using TRS's Morimoto brand for a while and they are almost OEM quality. I've never had a bulb not ignite on the first try and everything has been great. Cheap eBay HID kits give you more days with problems than days without.

It's really worth the little extra.