young

ah, i found some more info on the parts of the hids kits. see if this helps...

suvlights.com

click on hidsbulbs and ballasts for more info (as well as a serious warning about the ballasts )

eason

Just got my HID kit today and it took me about an hour for the installation. The only problem I came across was the clip that hold the bulb to the housing. Also, one of the bulb was burn right after I installed , the shop said he will replace one for me tomorrow. I have took some pictures, but I will post all the picture up after I install the new bulb tomorrow. I will be in the dealer next Thru to change the setting, guess I need to turn on the light then start the car for one whole week.

Young: I have receive 2 error messages after I start the car. THe HID still works, but I have a L, R low beam warning. I turn the switch to the right to turn on the light, then I switch the key to position one and wait for few seconds. Then I switch on the car.

Are those the right steps? I also notice if I turn on the light then switch on the car right away, the HID will not work. The HID light will flash for 1-2sec, then off for 10sec and back on flashing again.
Just wonder if I installed eveything correctly.

young

sounds like you got everything installed properly.

yeah, i had problems w/ the clips too. but i eventually got it to work.

to use the lights, i just turned them on (at first to just test them). and while they're on, i just turned the car on. i don't think i turned the key to any special position before turning the car on. i think it works b/c the car checks when there is a change in the light (either on or off) only. btw, i think i had daylight running lights off at this point... hmmm, maybe that's what happened w/ brabus' car?

as for turning on the car right away, i think that happened to me too but i was in a hurry so i didn't worry about it at that time. but, yeah, i noticed that the lights have to be on for a few seconds, before i turn the car on.

eason

Thanks, I also found out when I first turn on the light, it is very bright and white, but after 10sec or so, it starts to turn yellow, but still very bright, just wondering how long is the run-in period.
One more question, after I change the Xenon setting, I will start my car as normal right? Is that mean the HID will stay on all the time?

young

the color has a burn in for 20-100 hours... (manual says 100 hours, guy i spoke to at hids4less said 20) i hope it's really not a 100 hours... but, mine has been getting less yellow, so it's working. a slight yellow is ok w/ me as long as they're bright. but i set my lights to daylight running so that the burn in happens faster. about an hour a day so... only 85 more days to go :p

yes, once set to xenons, you can go back to normal usage. mine has been working fine (except a small hiccup...)

eason

Anyone know where to replace our H7 HID bulbs? Just in case they burn out, I couldn't find it over the internet.

eason

Oh just one more question, is there's any difference for the ballasts between the Stage 1 and Stage 2 system? If there's no difference, then can I switch the bulb from the Stage 2 kit?

My whole problem is that, right after I installed my Stage 1 kit, one for the bulb was burn, then I went back to the shop and ask they to replace for me. Just 5 min ago, the guy from the shop said all they have in stock are stage 2 kits. He said he can change the bulbs from the stage 2 kit to me for no charge . If the ballasts and the hardwares are the same, I will go change it tomorrow, or else I have to wait for couple weeks until they have the stage 1 kits in stock.

Vince

why not just try and see if they work. If they do then you get free stage II's, which in my opinion look better. If they don't then no harm done. The shop will most likely replace them again once the stage I's come in stock.

eason

I just found out the ballast for Stage 1 and Stage 2 is the same if you have a Philips LVQ212 L200 or L300 ballast, the only difference is between the bulbs. I will go change the stage 2 bulbs tomorrow and hopefully take some pictures as soon as I finish install.

Have anyone find out where to get the replacement H7 HID bulbs?

Thanks

young

you mean the oem osram/philibs bulbs? try your dealer.

http://www.clairparts.com has a discount, but w/ the shipping, it would probably work out to be the same.

otherwise, you could get H7 bulbs pretty much anywhere (goto pepboys). if you want a fancier bulb, you could go to autolamps.com or a similar place.

eason

Young:
I mean after we used the aftermarket HID H7 conversion kit, if the bulb burn out, where we can get the replacement bulb?

I just installed the Stage II today, actually I have to swap the whole system, everything was different then the Stage I kit I got. The ballast and the starter are completey seal waterproof, which is I think is great design. I just have to wait till Thru to get my setting correct.

p010sp0rt8

wow.. nice looking HID's eason.. if you don't mind me asking how much did all you guys spend to have this done? and is the install easy (meaning i don't have to drill anything)

eason

I paid $775 Canadian ($485 US) for the Stage 2 kit, and the installation took me around 2 hours. The work is not hard, just installing the bulb was painful. I did cut a wire on the bulb, becasue the connector of the bulb can't go thru the metel bracket ( the one that hold the bulb in place) and luckly I can put the wire back together. No drilling require at all, just simply plug and play.

young

actually, i have foreseen such a possible event occuring. if you ordered from hids4less, there is a 5 year warranty - so if it burns out, no problem (hopefully). the lifespan of the bulbs are about 3000 hours which equals about, let's see, 1 hour per day, 300 driving days per year, about 10 years? very rough calc. depending on your driving habits, etc. other vendors may have similar warranties or practices.

however, i did notice that other places sell just the bulbs like suvlights.com so i expect it to be a prevalent practice in the future.

btw, i finally got to use the hids at night yesterday (leaving the crappy flyers game sucking team...) and boy, they are sweeet! the light is actually white now except for a teensy yellowish near the top of the light. and it's dispersion is very satisfactory matching the dispersion pattern i've seen at various light sites.

BrabusCClass

I have to say i was very annoyed because of all the problems I had. Im sure everyone read my earlier threads. Well, after 1 week of driving I love them!! I can't believe how much better it is. I was also scared because the HIDs are so bright and mine have a violet, purplish hue to them. So far I have passed or driven around 4 cops, CHP (California Highway Patrol) and LAPD (Los Angeles Police Dept). I have not gotten pulled over so I guess its not that bad. A CHP was actually right in front of me and he didnt seem to care. Anyways, I like these so much Im going to try to get a group buy together for my girlfriends 2002 A4. It takes the same H7's as me. Hehe. If anyone is interested e-mail me. I am hoping for $390 or less. Here are some pics. Also, what type of lighting is best to show my HIDs? I am trying to make a AVI file of it lighting up. It starts out white, bluish, then purplish. Everyone loves them and 90% think its just stock. LOL! If they only knew what I went thru to get them to work. Sigh.

BrabusCClass

Oh I also have painted side lenses and you can see how much light goes thru them in the pic.

BrabusCClass

another pic.

FrankW

well i guess i have a question

why does your HID have a purpleish hue to it?

i have a stock HID on my C32 and it turn white. when i first turn it on it's blue though.

it's bright as hell...hehe

nice HID mod BTW

young

there is quite a wide range from white to purple in color now. just specify the color temperature and awaaaay you go!

trench

As long as they aren't shining directly in the eyes and your car is otherwise relatively un-obnoxious (exhaust isn't too loud, etc.) I imagine you're probably safe because I doubt the police get breifed on what type of headlights a car is supposed to have. When I was in high school my friend (who lived waaaay out in the country) actually had airplane landing lights installed in his car (for deer avoidance). Now those were BRIGHT.

Cheers, BT

Juke-box

you mean you could specify the color of the HID's at the Mercedes dealer if you wanted to? or are you reffering to the "after market" ones?

Juke

young

juke, just the after market ones.

i think franks' is what the standard mercs are like. i've seen the new audi's oem hids and they sort of have the purplish light from certain angles.

BrabusCClass

LOL!! I bet they were bright.

As for the purple hue, these are not Stock Xenon lights. They are an aftermarket HID kit i bought for $390. There is 2 different colors. The stock Xenon look which is white/bluish, and the Audi/BMW X5 look which is more purplish. Next set im getting is going to be Blueish for my girlfriends Audi and I will switch the bulbs to see which ones I like. She likes these. If anyone wants in on the group buy let me know. I will make a new thread on this later this week.

FrankW

yeah mine is the oem straight from MB. when you first turn it on it's blueish then it will become brighter and whiter. still from some angle you can tell its kinda blueish.

Buellwinkle

Brabus, were these the Hella HID Plus kit? If so did they have the reflector that looks like a spoon at the end? Did you take that off? If you have a chance can you take a pic of your headlights shining on a wall or garage door to see what the pattern looks like.