Hello Everybody...

Has anybody installed aftermarket xenons kits on their Halogens?

If anybody has any knowledge regarding this, your help will be greatly appreciated.

I found some HID kits on ebay and was wondering if #1 - if they're any good, and #2 would I get error codes because of it.

Here's one of the HID kits I found...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...=STRK:MEWAX:IT

When I asked them about error codes... they said I would need to buy this.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...EF:MOTORS:1123

Thanks in advance.

Of all the Aftermarket Xenon light sets I have physically seen they are not even as bright as the halogens in your car. This is not to say that these will be that way but the ones I have seen have been horrible.

There are other things to worry about as well like how much current to they draw on the wiring harness I have seen the burn up a wiring harness on some motorcycles. Have also heard reports of this problem on some other car forums as well.

Just my .02 cents

Your best bet would be to look in the Modifications section there is more info there.

Thanks for the input schatzy. Supposedly they draw less power than the stock halogen bulbs, but who knows?!?

That could also be why they are not as bright as the halogen, on the ones i have seen in person on other cars.

I installed a 8000k kit in my Jaguar. It was plug and play - easy install. It was delivered in 3 days via Fed-x and was around 100.00 dollars. It had some German Siemens ballasts and they were awesome. Brighter than Halogens for sure.....they draw less current, but some cars require special harness for those with digital wiring data.

Also, my Jag's projector beam lenses were "set up" for Xenons from the factory with a built in shield inside to keep the Xenon light beam wide and flat with a horizontal cutoff point. Without that part in your headlight assembly, these things tend to blind oncoming traffic terribly....

Additionally, since your actual lens is not set up for Xenon light, it will be dispersed more like a flood light instead of a beam of light w/o a decent enough pattern of concentrated light. So your stock lights will actually be working better for you.

Hope this helps.

Even the cheap HID kits should be considerably brighter than the stock halogens, if you don't get carried away and buy a set with a real high color temperature, since these are filtered to get the color, and that reduces output.

The problem is that the way HID bulbs produce light is different from the way a halogen does, and HIDs don't really work well in reflectors not designed specifically for them. This can result in a lot of wasted light (which could explain why Shatzy says they are not as bright), a horrendous beam pattern, or a lot of glare to irritate cops and other motorists. Which is why these kits are illegal and you will not find any DOT approved ones. That said, some light units intended for halogen work fine with HID, and some don't. There's no way to predict.
As to the wiring, while a standard HID draws only 35 watts, they draw a lot more at startup, and this can cause problems either with the standard wiring, or with the cars fault finding system. There is a way around this too, but buying a relay harness that takes power directly from the battery. These are not too expensive, at $20 or so, and make the installation a lot easier. The higher output 55W kits should be avoided, as car manufacturers don't put much extra copper in their cars anymore, and you can easily overload the wires.

Oh, you can get decent HID kits for as little as $40, so if it doesn't work out, you haven't lost all that much.

BTW most of the "German" ballasts and kits are complete counterfeits, made in China.

Do a search this has been discussed a lot. The aftermarket kits are horrible. They will cause bulb out warnings depending on the make plus the lenses are not designed for such bright light and will scatter it all over the road as well as blinding on-coming traffic.

thanks for all the input. maybe i'll just save my money for something else.

but... out of curiosity, wouldn't the light pattern be the same as halogens except just brighter? i noticed that the halogens are somewhat concentrated toward the center because against a wall, i can see the center of the light.

No because the halogen bulbs do not throw as far as a HID bulb. They burn at a different color temperature, which changes how the light disperses, hence the need for a customized reflector system for these bulbs...

... also, the kits you buy on ebay are illegal in most states. The USDOT does not certify aftermarket equipment, contrary to claims made by these kit manufacturers. You'll want to have a pro install a legal kit for you so that you can assure that the proper reflectors are put in and that they are aimed correctly. Otherwise, they're dangerous to you and to other drivers.

I'd consider another mod. Xenons are really something that is best purchased as an option when you buy the car because properly installing them aftermarket is usually more expensive than having just purchased them with the car in the first place.

You're in Cali. There are some really cool LED light mods (ground effects, lighting bonnet scoop, cup holders, etc) you can do around your car that are legal there and inexpensive to do. Check the boards for those and tell us what you decide!