Hanabi HIDs installation completed! yeah!
- Thread starter madfast
- Start date
Hi all it has been a while since my last post. Hope all is well with all and those who have upgraded to HID. And for those who do not know me I am the author of the install guide of the Autolamps-online.com kit. The reason I am posting is there seems to be some posting here that is not accurate, and I am a little confused as to why those who say you need to cut wires to do the install of the Autolamps kit. This is not accurate and it needs to be clarified. The Autolamps kit does not require cutting of any wires. It does not require you "drill" any holes. It is a Plug and Play kit period. The only task to get the wires into the OEM housing is to route them throught the OEM gromet. You can re-read the install article in the Faq section to get a better idea of this and pics. Chris you say, "with out any cutting of wires (eg. Autolamps) or modifying of your stock parts". This kit does not require that you cut any wires, or modifying of your stock parts, That was the whole idea of this project and kit and again I commend Autolamps for helping me out with this project and to provide the community with a great kit that works with NO permenant mods. Guys try and keep it accurate here as I do not think it is fair to me or Autolamps, I worked very hard to make this kit work. The Autolamps kit is of the highest quality HID on the market in my opinion. Also Autolamps only uses Genuine Phillips parts in all of their kits, so buyer beware there is cheap Taiwan stuff out there. I personnaly would not deal with anyone else, because they not only have an awesome kit but they helped me extensivly with the project.
Also if you do not want to solder, crimp or heatshrink wires than you can drill a hole in the cap like some of the other kits and avoid major parts of the install article. But this was the whole reason I developed the install in the first place. To avoid drilling any holes ect... And you save $100 dollars by ordering the base 9006 kit.
BTW, I also put one of their kits in my I30 Infinity, and just in the past couple of days installed their H4 HyLow kit in my Subaru Outback. This kit is the best! It allows you to retain your high beams even though the H4 is a dual filament bulb. So for you people who converted the dreadful H4 halogen and lost your high beams or those of you who have not converted due to the fear of loosing your high beams check this out;
http://autolamps-online.com/gasdischarge/Hylow%20lamp.htm
Hey I know price counts in everything, I shop all the time but sometimes paying more is worth piece of mind. I am not posting this to step on anybodys feet or insult anyone, I just want to set the record straight. And for those who have purchased other kits, great i hope it all works out for you, and Chris nice job with your kit. Hey once you drive with HID there is no going back to halogen. My next step is to get all of my family into HID especially my parents. You know as you age it gets harder to see. Hey lets all buy our parents an HID kit for Christmas :>)!
Take care all and to the best sportscar ever produced!!!
Happy Thanksgiving!
[This message has been edited by dochartung (edited 21 November 2002).]
Also if you do not want to solder, crimp or heatshrink wires than you can drill a hole in the cap like some of the other kits and avoid major parts of the install article. But this was the whole reason I developed the install in the first place. To avoid drilling any holes ect... And you save $100 dollars by ordering the base 9006 kit.
BTW, I also put one of their kits in my I30 Infinity, and just in the past couple of days installed their H4 HyLow kit in my Subaru Outback. This kit is the best! It allows you to retain your high beams even though the H4 is a dual filament bulb. So for you people who converted the dreadful H4 halogen and lost your high beams or those of you who have not converted due to the fear of loosing your high beams check this out;
http://autolamps-online.com/gasdischarge/Hylow%20lamp.htm
Hey I know price counts in everything, I shop all the time but sometimes paying more is worth piece of mind. I am not posting this to step on anybodys feet or insult anyone, I just want to set the record straight. And for those who have purchased other kits, great i hope it all works out for you, and Chris nice job with your kit. Hey once you drive with HID there is no going back to halogen. My next step is to get all of my family into HID especially my parents. You know as you age it gets harder to see. Hey lets all buy our parents an HID kit for Christmas :>)!
Take care all and to the best sportscar ever produced!!!
Happy Thanksgiving!
[This message has been edited by dochartung (edited 21 November 2002).]
dochartung,
I'm sure you're aware that some owners have reported on NSXprime that they have found problems with left-to-right color differences in the Autolamps kit, and have also reported problems returning their kits to Autolamps for a refund. Has Autolamps identified the cause and corrected their kit to prevent such problems in the future?
I'm sure you're aware that some owners have reported on NSXprime that they have found problems with left-to-right color differences in the Autolamps kit, and have also reported problems returning their kits to Autolamps for a refund. Has Autolamps identified the cause and corrected their kit to prevent such problems in the future?
Hey Madfast.. you doesnt have an email registered here so I cant email you. I just want to know that since its that easy, then how come it still takes you 2 hours to install it? Whats there to be doodling for 2 hrs? I'm interested in that kit you've installed since theres already a successful example here which is you and the price is killing. How does it illuminates on dark streets, car parks at night?
I have the Xenons 8000 installed in my car, installation took about 90 minutes, it came with everything you need including the 1" grommet to seal the factory caps, the ballast/igniter fits under the light assembly and not visible. Car lights up incredible at night .They have prices and installation pictures at www.road-fashion.com http://www.road-fashion.com/Gallery_NSX%20Installation.asp
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White 1992
Dali Sway Bars,Eibach Springs, Slotted Rotors,Comptech Exhaust
[This message has been edited by MiamieNeSeX (edited 22 November 2002).]
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White 1992
Dali Sway Bars,Eibach Springs, Slotted Rotors,Comptech Exhaust
[This message has been edited by MiamieNeSeX (edited 22 November 2002).]
Hey the car shown as example there looks like your car ;p
So it is
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White 1992
Dali Sway Bars,Eibach Springs, Slotted Rotors,Comptech Exhaust
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White 1992
Dali Sway Bars,Eibach Springs, Slotted Rotors,Comptech Exhaust
Hi Ken, Yes, there was one case that I know of in which the person experianced color differences with the kit, and return issues, but as far as the return issues were concerned I believe the kit was modified and or damaged by the installer. That was the whole issue, if you recall correctly being the avid poster and contributor to this forum. So Autolamps did take care of problem even though it was not their fault. Now to the best of my knowledge everyone else has been happy with their results including of course me.
The world is not perfect and even a genuine Phillips kit will occasionally have a glitch. Hey even the NSX's are imperfect and expensive to fix, but they are still the best sports cars in the world in my opinion and the best quality.
BTW after Autolamps recieved the kit back from this person they did find it to be modified and damaged.
[This message has been edited by dochartung (edited 22 November 2002).]
edit: I guess the McCulloch/SOS bulbs are tinted bulbs after all. See: http://www.nsxprime.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/005888.html
[This message has been edited by fangtl (edited 23 November 2002).]
[This message has been edited by fangtl (edited 23 November 2002).]
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Yes, they definitely are tinted. I installed a set of SoS HIDs on my friend's car back in August. No one seems to be able to say why they are tinted though. Note that there are ZERO factory/OEM systems that use tinted bulbs.
Personally, I thought the tint gave a weird blue/green cast to the light, much like those blue tinted halogen bulbs do, albeit with HID intensity. You won't notice this though unless you see them side by side with a car that has non-tinted bulbs. The day I did the install, I had my car as a basis for comparison, which has non-tinted Philips bulbs, and pure white light on the road.
-Ben
[This message has been edited by Ben (edited 25 November 2002).]
Personally, I thought the tint gave a weird blue/green cast to the light, much like those blue tinted halogen bulbs do, albeit with HID intensity. You won't notice this though unless you see them side by side with a car that has non-tinted bulbs. The day I did the install, I had my car as a basis for comparison, which has non-tinted Philips bulbs, and pure white light on the road.
-Ben
Originally posted by fangtl:
edit: I guess the McCulloch/SOS bulbs are tinted bulbs after all. See: http://www.nsxprime.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/005888.html
[This message has been edited by fangtl (edited 23 November 2002).]
[This message has been edited by Ben (edited 25 November 2002).]
Well, I don't understand why anyone would tint HID bulbs. Common sense tells us that by tinting something with a deeper color, it makes it darker.
McCulloch uses tinted bulbs to achieve the 5000K color appearance. IMO by doing so they marginalized the effectiveness of the HIDs. I am sure it's still brighter than halogens, but it could've been even brighter if they had no tint and a standard 4100-4300K unit. I wonder how much the tint/blue glaze lowered the lumens rating...
McCulloch uses tinted bulbs to achieve the 5000K color appearance. IMO by doing so they marginalized the effectiveness of the HIDs. I am sure it's still brighter than halogens, but it could've been even brighter if they had no tint and a standard 4100-4300K unit. I wonder how much the tint/blue glaze lowered the lumens rating...
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IMHO-ICBW, it was a pure marketing decision by McCulloch to avoid complaints about the light being "not blue enough" when looking straight at the light. Even though HID is bright white by nature, some people had this complaint about some of the other kits, even though the light on the road was bright white, as it should be. Since the color when looking at the light is mainly a function of the light housing, and not the bulb, the only way to guarantee a more blue "look", regardless of the light housing, when looking at it straight on was to use the blue tint. Also, if you look closely at the bulb itself, it's not actually tinted glass. It looks as if the bulb was dipped in some blue coating solution.
However, most people won't notice the difference in the cast of the light unless they happen to have both tinted and non-tinted HID equipped cars side by side for comparison.
-Ben
[This message has been edited by Ben (edited 25 November 2002).]
However, most people won't notice the difference in the cast of the light unless they happen to have both tinted and non-tinted HID equipped cars side by side for comparison.
-Ben
[This message has been edited by Ben (edited 25 November 2002).]
the hanabi kit that I bought does not have tinted hid bulbs are burn at 6k!!! I am very happy with them cuz they lite up the road just as much as my 6k Hella hids installed in my Maxima and pathfinder.
Sorry for the delayed response, have been out of town.
The McCulloch bulbs (which we use) are not tinted, they are plated. It is a common process used by several HID bulb manufactures to achieve the 5000-5500K color output. Plating does reduce the Lumen output, however, the output is marginal (about 400 Lumen) and it is not noticeable by "eyeballing" it.
The plating process is used by many other manufactures, including expensive premium lines from Japan, such as Belloff (http://www.bellof.co.jp/jp/product/hid_bulb/index.html). Many manufactures offer clear and plated bulbs. The clear bulb output is generally around 4300 Kelvin, which around the average output of OEM lighting systems. McCulloch also offers a 4300 Kelvin kit, however, upon seeing both, it was determined that the 5000K system has a more pleasing output while still having excellent performance of light intensity, sharpness, and glare-reduction. Our kit was designed to be a balance of best worlds with emphasis on avoiding the distracting glare and reduced contrast associated with high Kelvin systems you find on eBay or other sources. We offer both, however, only list the 5000K setup.
Cheers,
-- Chris
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Revolutionize your NSX with ScienceofSpeed
www.ScienceofSpeed.com | [email protected] | 877-863-4520
The McCulloch bulbs (which we use) are not tinted, they are plated. It is a common process used by several HID bulb manufactures to achieve the 5000-5500K color output. Plating does reduce the Lumen output, however, the output is marginal (about 400 Lumen) and it is not noticeable by "eyeballing" it.
The plating process is used by many other manufactures, including expensive premium lines from Japan, such as Belloff (http://www.bellof.co.jp/jp/product/hid_bulb/index.html). Many manufactures offer clear and plated bulbs. The clear bulb output is generally around 4300 Kelvin, which around the average output of OEM lighting systems. McCulloch also offers a 4300 Kelvin kit, however, upon seeing both, it was determined that the 5000K system has a more pleasing output while still having excellent performance of light intensity, sharpness, and glare-reduction. Our kit was designed to be a balance of best worlds with emphasis on avoiding the distracting glare and reduced contrast associated with high Kelvin systems you find on eBay or other sources. We offer both, however, only list the 5000K setup.
Cheers,
-- Chris
------------------
Revolutionize your NSX with ScienceofSpeed
www.ScienceofSpeed.com | [email protected] | 877-863-4520
Basically, Bellof's saying that the 4100-4300K are the brightest of the three, the 5000K units are 4100K units that has been glaced for the sake of pursuing whiter light. The 6000K OTOH is seperate from the 4100K/5000K and uses the normal gasing process to produce the color rather than the glaze.
Interesting though that both Bellof, McCulloch, and many generic companies (K2, Vision, etc) has an "ignitor" seperate from a ballast as opposed to just a single ballast unit found in OEM (Matsushita, Panasonic, Hella) and Phillips retrofit applications.
BMW 5 series with OEM Hella ballast
McCulloch with an ignitor and ballast.
[This message has been edited by fangtl (edited 27 November 2002).]
Interesting though that both Bellof, McCulloch, and many generic companies (K2, Vision, etc) has an "ignitor" seperate from a ballast as opposed to just a single ballast unit found in OEM (Matsushita, Panasonic, Hella) and Phillips retrofit applications.
BMW 5 series with OEM Hella ballast
McCulloch with an ignitor and ballast.
[This message has been edited by fangtl (edited 27 November 2002).]
This is done in order to make the kit more flexible for installation on different applications.
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As Chris said, separate ignitor is more installer friendly, and most of the Matsushita's in the OEM RL/TL applications are that way also. As a sidenote, the 2002 NSX uses slim design ballast from Mitsubishi that I've not seen before. Probably for clearance reasons.
I wonder why they couldn't achieve a 5000K color temperature w/o resorting to tinting, as they have already done so for 6000K.
-Ben
I wonder why they couldn't achieve a 5000K color temperature w/o resorting to tinting, as they have already done so for 6000K.
-Ben
Ben,
I actuall think that by having the igniter integrated into the ballasts is much easier for installation. I have 2 cars with the Hella and installation was a breeze. with a separate igniter, especially when installing on a nsx, u have to look for a place to tuck it in and secure it either with cable ties or drilling holes.
I actuall think that by having the igniter integrated into the ballasts is much easier for installation. I have 2 cars with the Hella and installation was a breeze. with a separate igniter, especially when installing on a nsx, u have to look for a place to tuck it in and secure it either with cable ties or drilling holes.
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On certain applications, the area immediately around the headlights is really tight, and there is no place to put a ballast, and to make it more difficult, the high voltage wire cannot be extended. This means, that you are out of luck if there is no place to put the ballast within reach of the wire. With a separate ignitor, the ignitor is much smaller than the ballast, and there is almost always room to put it withn reach of the high voltage wire. Then, since the ballast to ignitor wires are almost always low voltage, you can extend them to mount the ballasts anywhere where there is room.
Consider the case of the NSX. With the Philips integrated ballast/ignitor, you are pretty much forced by the length of the non-extendable high voltage wire to velcro or tape them to the top of the shock towers. This isn't the optimal solution, because there really isn't any place there to bolt the ballast down, and the high voltage wire is pinched between the hood and headlight bucket.
With a separate ignitor/ballast setup, you can extend and run the low votltage wires through the holes that run from the headlight bucket to the underhood area, and mount the ballast where you like. I have mine on a custom built bracket behind the spare tire. This wouldn't have been possible w/o the separate ballast/ignitor. In the installations I've done, I've piggybacked the ignitor on the sealed cap,
which conveniently let me use the open spots in the factory wiring harness, with the other end coming out on the large connector near the headlight bucket.
I've personally installed over 20 kits on various applications, and the separate ignitor definitely made things a lot easier to do a clean/thourough job.
-Ben
[This message has been edited by Ben (edited 30 November 2002).]
Consider the case of the NSX. With the Philips integrated ballast/ignitor, you are pretty much forced by the length of the non-extendable high voltage wire to velcro or tape them to the top of the shock towers. This isn't the optimal solution, because there really isn't any place there to bolt the ballast down, and the high voltage wire is pinched between the hood and headlight bucket.
With a separate ignitor/ballast setup, you can extend and run the low votltage wires through the holes that run from the headlight bucket to the underhood area, and mount the ballast where you like. I have mine on a custom built bracket behind the spare tire. This wouldn't have been possible w/o the separate ballast/ignitor. In the installations I've done, I've piggybacked the ignitor on the sealed cap,
which conveniently let me use the open spots in the factory wiring harness, with the other end coming out on the large connector near the headlight bucket.
I've personally installed over 20 kits on various applications, and the separate ignitor definitely made things a lot easier to do a clean/thourough job.
-Ben
[This message has been edited by Ben (edited 30 November 2002).]
I'm not an NSX owner yet, so I can't speak on installation specifically on the NSX. Well, at least until I pick up the NSX I'm trying to buy from a friend in February and install my HID kit on it. But anyway, I have had the pleasure to see Ben's HID installation on his NSX in person, and although it was only a brief viewing, he did an excellent job and his custom mounted ballasts was a very unique idea and easily servicable. I plan on doing a similar install on the NSX I buy in February. I also had the chance to aquire 2 HID kit through Ben of the same nature that Ben used in his NSX for my two Acura Legends, and IMHO, the separate ballast and ignitor did offer me a good deal of installation mounting options. I plan on transfering one of these two kits I have to the NSX.
As far as 4300K or 5000+K HID capsules, I never found the need to go with the high kelvin kits as mine have always looked like true OEM HIDs. I have had my kits up against OEM BMWs and other RL/TL HIDS and mine look OEM to me. In fact, a few friends that used autolamps online kits like the look of mine beter since their's have a yellowish look when looking straight on as compared to mine. All look pure white when viewed from the drivers seat though. I have also seen a few really high kelvin kits like the 7000K or 8000K kits that they look fake. It looked too blue and like those fake colored halogen bulbs. I personally would not go over 5000K for my own system. But that is just my personal opnion.
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