JDW124

I'm looking at these headlights and they are projector lights but not compatible with HID. Are these Halogen Projectors the same like Halogen Reflectors, in light output? Waiting to go pick up my check, I'm going to buy those today, was just wondering what the difference was . Btw, anybody have 94-95 black hood?

2PHAST

Halogen projectors are designed to project lower lumin halogen light vs. the HID projectors which are designed to project a higher lumin Xenon light with a more distinct beam pattern and cut-off (to prevent blinding on-coming traffic).

It would be interesting to see how HID light would look through a halogen projector, to my knowledge, no one has done this yet.

JDW124

Hmm, listing says the headlamps aren't compatible with HID's. They'll blow up or what? lol. So, will these halogen projectors be the same thing literally as Halogen reflectors?

Thanks for the reply too.

ZorroAMG

Where in the listing does it say NOT compatible with HID's...it actually says you CAN.

JDW124

Here. I previously read that on another listing which had the same headlights (the chrome ones).

"Projector is not compatible with H.I.D. lighting system" What the heck, that's not cool man .


Btw Zorro, omg your car is so damn fine!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ZorroAMG

That ad is contradicting itself...it says can be changed to 4100K and xenon gas then it says no HID. Just buy it and try it...it's only $200

Thanks for the compliments!

2PHAST

I think what they are trying to state here is that the projectors are for Halogen and not HID. The question is, how will the beam pattern and cut-off look if you actually do use HID. Were never going to really know unless someone tries it.

ZorroAMG

I'm trying it this month, 2phast...stay tuned for pics...if it sucks, I'll retro e55 projectors...

JDW124

Hey, um, feel free to let me know if it works . I'd be down for some HID in those lamps

mbnz

ZorroAmg

u got a nice ride!!!

I was looking at getting some hid for my headlights too. I am going to buy some headlights off ebay too first.

I'm from Vancouver too, is there any store that sells an HID retro-kit them for a good price?

how much did they cost you and how much Kelvin is the light?

Can you recommend a good place to get them installed?

With your front spoiler, is that AMG genII ? Where did you get yours, and what was the price?

thanks.

raymond g-

if you take a magnifying glass and try find the sweet spot in order to start a
fire, you maneuver the lens back and forth until you find the optimum focusing
point.

the halogen lens is designed and calibrated to the focal point of the halogen
bulb...which is situated at a predetermined point behind the lens. the projector
bowl helps reflect the light forward as well. bowl, lens, and bulb all work in
concert to produce the best controlled light spread......for that model bulb

by removing the halogen bult and inserting in its place an HID bulb, changes
the focal point. a degree of uncontrolled glare results and spreads. given the
high degree of brightness produced by an HID bulb, there is little room for error,
as the glare impacts other drivers. the driver of the miscalibrated light source,
to a great degree, is oblivious to the glare it may cause others, just that they
look cool and can brag about having HID lighting.

the better option is to swap out the halogen designed projector and in its
place, install an OEM HID calibrated projector. the E55 quoted above would
be a much better and more viable option.

if you go over to HIDPLANET dot com....or even on MBWorld, you will see
photos of HID rebased bulbs inserted into halogen projectors. the results
are troubling and embarrassing....especially when seen on a luxury car such
as an MB. rare is it that you see this budget attempt to acquire HID lighting
result in a well projected, evenly lit....with a well defined cutoff

ZorroAMG

Nothing to lose in TRYING it...everyone said my HID setup in my halogen reflector Bosch euros would be awful but they are actually quite good. I'll take personal experience over anything else....retrofitting other projectors can happen if so needed.

JDW124

Wait a minute, so I wouldn't have to buy a complete new headlamp? Just a HID designed projector? :O Oh snap...

raymond g-

the first time i had this project, was for the 99 E320. it did not come with clear
outer lens, rather the OEM fluted reflector design. But Depo (Taiwan) offered a
clear lens, halogen projector design. Problem was that the halogen projector
itself sucked, big time. With the help of forum member Zam2000, I learned that
the E55 HID projector's physical dimensions were near identical to the Depo's
halogen projector. It was a natural candidate for this swap out.

Popped the Depo into the oven for 5-10 mins at slow heat (to soften the adhe-
sive), pry off the outer plastic clear lens, yank/toss the Depo projector, and
insert the E55 bucket. A little shaving with the Dremel, shimming with washers,
a dab of silicone, and I had myself a bixenon lens with a precision beam.

Since most retrofitters prefer HID projectors from BMWers, or TL, TX, etc, the
oft overlooked E55 projector can be had fairly inexpensively....about $150 shipped.
Sourcing ballast and bulbs was quite easy off Ebay - just be careful and buy
from established seller.

Hope such a project for your 124s lend so such ease of swap. the W210s
have got to be the easiest of all cars.

2PHAST

Raymond, I would have to agree with your statements concerning HID with halogen reflectors and halogen flutted lenses.

Logic would dictate the same outcome when using halogen based projectors with HID burners, but it needs to be verified.

Reflectors don't allow for any type of light control, but the projectors with their internal shields do, so regardless of whether or not halogen bulbs or HID's are used, you should still expect a light pattern cut off (due to the internal shield). Given this, I suspect the "glare" issue is not going to be as prominant as it would be if one were using halogen based reflector headlights.

Will it be just like HID? Hard to say. Your W210 lights are not the same as W124 lights and these projectors can vary, just like the HID projectors used in the TSX (which I own), BMW, Audi, S2000 etc. Some much better than others, so given this, one might expect the same type of variance for the halogen asian made projectors as well.

It really needs to be tested to put this to bed.

BTW, I used E55 bi-xeon projectors in my headlights, they are too big for the most part, the S2000 or TSX projectors would be a better choice for our headlights.

berti_00

hey so do you think i can put an HID kit on those projectors of mine?

raymond g-

i totally agree. just be clear that the odds are against a precision beam, not-
withstanding that it's technically illegal. heck, even the HID projector retrofit
I've done is also verboten.

always pay attention to the glare it may cause others and try to adjust so
that this is minimized on the safe side.

2PHAST

Heres the real issue. If you purchase a H4 HID retro kit, try it on the Asian made headlights with the Halogen projectors and it does not work correctly, then your kind of stuck, as the next step you would need to source some actual HID projectors, take your existing headlights apart and install the HID projectors. Now, your exisiting H4 HID burners won't fit, as HID projectors are going to need D2S burners, so you would have to source a new set. The ballasts and wiring should be fine though, but expect to either convert your burners from H4 back to D2S or purchase a new set.

This type of retro fit should be much easier than what I did.

Here is what I would do;

1. Install the Asian headlights with halogen projectors.

2. Purchase high quality H4 HID kit, small ballests with internal igniter 6000k
Install H4 HID kit, throughly test, adjust beam pattern etc. As per Raymonds pictures, you can see how the HID cut off should be. When driving behind a car, your lights should illuminate up to the top of the trunk lid, they should not "light up" the interior. Factory HID's are aligned this way and its the only way to ensure you don't blind people directly in front of you or on-coming traffic.

3. If you can control the beam pattern, then I suspect you will be ok, the goal is to provide you proper lighting for driving, not to blind drivers in front of you and not to blind on-coming traffic.

I do suggest anyone interested in this kind of modification join hidplanet.com and read up on how other people address these problems.