03ML350

Hi,

I'm trying to put together a group buy for a HID kit. These are OEMed by McCulloch HID USA, I've used them in my other car and they are great!

I've already spoken with a sales rep. and if I can get 10 people to get the kits with me, the price will be $400 per set shipped.

I paid $550 for my other set so this is a good deal.

Anyone interested please leave me a post.

Thanks,

03ML350

SteveB

I might be interested, but I'd like to see some info on the kit-- technicals, etc.

Any idea where that info might be available?

03ML350

Here's some information on the McCulloch HIDs, these are NOT the places that I have the group buy with though.

http://www.sounddomain.com/sku/MCCHID9003T

http://www.mccullochhid.com/hid_difference.htm

These two sites are for information only not the place that I'm going to get them through.

Please let me know what you think.

Thanks,
03ML350

SteveB

If the kit they're offering is the Gourmet Garage Gen IV H7, then $400.00 seems like a good deal. Looks like Gourmet Garage has some connection to McCulloch, and the design of the lights.

I think the 02/03 reflector lights on the ML are the same housings used for the factory HID's, which should make the retrofit work very well.

Any thoughts?

03ML350

Yes I am talking about the H7 kits. I'm pretty sure you are correct about the factory housing and retrofittings.

I'm anxious to get the kit so I can do a "DIY" step by step installation guide for everyone.



So if you're interested please let me know and I'll put you on the list. Please note since the price I'm getting is so low they are only taking cashier's checks or money orders.

03ML350

SteveB

No problem. Yes, I'd be interested, if the dealer you're using is reputable, and the product is what we expect-- the Gen IV ballasts, & not discontinued items, etc. The newest ones are available for $489, so the group buy is ok if it saves $89, but not if it turns out to be for old models that are discontinued.

03ML350

Yes like I said, these guys are reputable, I've used them in the past and their customer service is really outstanding. They went out of their way to help me and they have direct connections with the manufacturer. So their stock is new and NOT refurbished or last generation stuff. Plus they honor the warranty which by my experience they've always dealt with a warranty issue directly versus sending me to of the manufacturer.

That's why I'm going to use them again.

Some Pete Guy

Puting an HID bulb in a headlight designed for a halogen bulb is a poor upgrade.

Lots of glare, not to mention illegal for on road use.

SteveB

Ordinarily, yes. But, it looks as though the reflector assemblies on the 02/03 ML's are the same for both the HID and halogen units. Therefore, changing to a H7 HID unit in that particular headlamp should work satisfactorily, don't you think?

As you know, the Porsche Lits are quite different from the halogen counterparts. A H7 HID for that application wouldn't be advisable. But the ML looks as though it would work.

Some Pete Guy

Nope.

CLick here for more info

SteveB

I've read this before, he makes some good points. However, he's talking in theoreticals, largely. Yes, filiment position, design, & physics of reflectors are important factors determining beam patterns of lights. In a perfect world, he'd be 100% right that trying to retrofit an HID kit into a halogen housing would be a bad idea.
The biggest problem with his argument is that he's assuming that all automobile headlight systems are optimally designed to start with. Take a perfectly designed halogen light, stick a HID bulb in it, and of course the results would not be ideal.
I would challenge anyone to line up all current car models, turn on the lights & show me perfect beam patterns, perfectly designed reflectors, etc.
The lights, like just about every other part on a modern car, are a product of many compormises. Much the same as engines are designed with emissions, mileage, package size, and reliability considerations in mind all of which compromise maximum horsepower. Light housings have cost, aerodynamics, material compatibility, aesthetics, assembly line issues, etc., to deal with.
With that in mind, I would assert that very few production light assemblies are designed to be physically perfect to beam pattern, glare, filament orientation, etc. If this were the case, all lights would perform equally. Sit behind the wheel of various vehicles, and you'll agree that the headlights vary considerably in performance, demonstrating that compormises to light quality have been made in the design process.
The point of all this is that I would bet that HID retrofit kits are going to be a hit or miss proposition, the results being specific to each application. Some model vehicles may adapt adequately, some maybe even dangerously. But, odds are there are a couple of cars that would benefit very nicely. There's too many factors to know for sure, and the manufacturers of the kits are certainly not going to do adequate testing of all cars to determine compatibility.
Caveat Emptor.

Kar don

someone is selling the bi-xenon projectors alone on ebay. I do not think the halogen and bi-xenon are the exact same projector. The bi-xenon has a mechanical eyelid that blocks some of the light output for low beam and opens it fully for high beam. If you were saying they are the same projector, then you car would be at high beam levels all the time (the halogen model has no "eyelid").

tonyML

It look the same but it not physical the same beside the MY ’02 and on the light will shut down if you upgrade to HID either the upgrade kit or the bi-xenon headlight itself. You need to change the setting to get it working and only the dealer can do that if they know how.

Tony

E. J.

and decided that the hid upgrade was going to be fine for my wife's 2003ML500, and if it wasn't then I would remove it.

At the risk of being treated like a dumbass noobie (I am a noobie to this board), let me say that the truck was a demo and the deal was too good to pass up based on no xenons. So, I bought a CATZ system and installed it two weeks ago. Took a couple of hours total and the result is what you would expect - factory like HID low beams.

They have a sharp cutoff point for height and they seem to look exactly like the factory HID beam pattern. I had a friend bring over his 2003 with HIDs and we stared at the same wall together.

The point that pushed me over the edge for the conversion was a post by a gentleman saying he did a conversion similar to mine first, then updated to the factory for the BI Xenon feature. He said the beam pattern was EXACTLY the same on both lights, and it looks like I agree with him from that respect. You can probably find his post and thread if you search hard enough, I don't remember what ML message board it was on.

So, one can talk about abstract principles and hypothetical situations, but I can, and successfully have (and very easily) mounted aftermarket HID lights in a 2003 ML.

Finally, I am not endorsing any modification or product. The conversion worked fine for me, it may not for you. But what I will address are the specific statements that are wrong or did not affect me, and having the computer recoded to accept the xenons in my case is wrong. Since the kit pulls 12vdc from the stock 12v bulb lead, the computer does not know that HIDs are installed. If you are doing a PP or other stock part conversion, you will most likely have this problem. For those of you that do, go here for the screenshots of the actual computer programming process that the dealer must do.

Good luck and have fun.

E. J.

03ML350

Ok everyone,

how many people want in on this group buy? So far, I think I've got SteveB..

Please let me know.

Thanks,
03ML350

SteveB

chirp.....chirp.....chirp.....


I guess nobody else is interested.

oh well...

multiple choi

I would be interested in this. What's the price if we only have 3 buyers?

stolenheartt

I got my hid from these guys and paid $379 including shipping. Here's the site http://www.misterjung.com. I ordered the 5200k with the 3200 lumens. I'm Really happy with it.

03ML350

Thanks for the info on MisterJung. What brand of HIDs are these? Also is this an authorizated dealer in which the the manufacturer will honor the warranty? What type of warranty do they have?

I know the McCulloch HIDs that I have and want comes with an 1 year warranty on the ballast and 90 day warranty on the bulb, the warranty is against manufacturer's defects.

If we have 3 people or more I can get them for $420.00 shipped like I said if I can get 10 or more its $400 shipped all for H7s.

Please let me know if you're interested.

Thanks,

03ML350

multiple choi

Hey, for $420 shipped, it's only $20 more than if we had 10 people which I doubt we'll ever get. I say we do this with the 3 people. Can we pay the manufacturer directly with credit card? If so, I'm in on this yesterday.

03ML350

I am getting the HID Kits directly from a distributor and as I mentioned in my earlier post, since this price is so low they are only taking money orders or cashier's checks. So let me know who is really seriously interested and I'll will let the distributor know.

thanks 03ML350

abello3000

Is that a bi-xenon or a low beam. Please let me know what kind and where did you get it and for how much. Thanks.

03ML350

The HID kit that I'm talking about is the H7, I believe they are low beam only. You won't need a high beam once you have the HID kit installed; they are much brighter making the stock high beams obsolete. They are manufactured by McCulloch HIDs but marketed under HID Club. If we can get 3 or more people it will be $420 shipped, if we can get 10 or more people it will be $400 shipped. It's been a while since I've spoken with my contact at the distributor but I'm sure they'll still honor these prices.

Please let me know whoever is interested.

03Ml350

PHML

Im interested in doing this same mod....however, I heard McCulloch is not soooooo good (at least a 3 yrs ago). Im not sure if quality has gotten better since then.

Pete

raymond g-

...it's not the voltage which provides feedback to the onboard computer.
it's the amp/resistance.