Non-Factory Lighting for Dummies - HID, HIR, etc.

[xtremerevolution]

Here's your one stop for everything you'll need to know about high beam and low beam lighting on your car.

 

To start, light output ratings:

 

Stock 9006 - 55 watts - 1000 lumens

Stock 9005 - 65 watts - 1700 lumens

HIR 9012 - 55 watts - 1870 lumens

HIR 9011 - 65 watts - 2350 lumens

HID 35 watts @ 6000k - 2800 lumens

HID 55 watts @ 6000k - 3350 lumens

 

Here, I'm going to make recommendations for upgraded lighting based on price of install and difficulty from lowest to highest.

 

 

 

9005 Bulbs in 9006 housings

This is the easiest and cheapest way to go. You can retrofit 9005 high beam bulbs into 9006 housings, which will give you a 70% increase in lighting power. I don't recall exactly what you need to modify, but the only difference between the two bulbs in regard to socket fitment is a notch on the 9005 bulb. If you can shave that notch down with a file to make it look identical to a 9006 bulb, it will fit in the 9006 housing. Simply look at both bulbs from the back, and figure out where you need to file down.

 

 

 

HIR Bulbs

HIR (Halogen Infrared) bulbs were initially designed by GE and produced by Toshiba for automotive use up until 2009. After 2009, they stopped producing them, and Phillips picked up production, making some output improvements in the process. These bulbs are the next best thing to HIDs, and use the same amount of power as your factory Halogens do. A few small modifications need to be made as described here:

http://shnu.us/HIR%20Trimming%20Stock.htm

Note that you can fit either a 9011 or 9012 HIR bulb in your stock 9006 housing. 9011 bulbs were generally designed to be high beams, while 9012 bulbs were designed to be low beams. Note in the output comparison that a 9011 bulb (which can be modified to fit into a 9006 housing quite easily), will have a mere 16% light output decrease over 35W HIDs.

These are the ONLY recommended upgrades for high means in cars. HIDs are NOT recommended, for reasons that I will go into in the next section.

HIR bulbs can be purchased at these two websites:

http://store.candlepower.com/hirlighting.html

http://hirheadlights.com/

 

 

 

HID Kits

These kits use a different lighting method that will be described later in this article. This technology uses a ballast and bulb in conjunction to produce a very high light output. Installation of HID kits is recommended ONLY for projector fog lights (Bonneville GXP and similar) and low beams. They are very commonly available from a variety of vendors, but many members have reported great experiences with kits from ddmtuning.com. These kits come in both 35W and 55W variants, the latter of which will provide only 20% increase in lighting power. Installation of these kits is not recommended without modifications to the headlight housing or projector lense retrofit.

 

If you are interested in running HIDs, be very well aware that the central light output location will be different from your typical 9006 bulb. As a result, you will need to readjust your headlights after installing them.

 

Because factory housings are designed to produce a small amount of ambient light, HID kits will spread this light to blind oncoming drivers. You can resolve this problem by either retrofitting projector lenses, purchasing aftermarket housings with projector lenses, or at a bare minimum, deactivating the bottom horizontal reflector in the housing. This modificaiton requires that you remove the lense from the housing, mask off the entire reflector of the low beam except for the bottom horizontal reflector, and paint that reflector with high heat flat black paint. This will significantly reduce the amount of ambient light shining up into oncoming drivers, and may very well keep you from getting pulled over for being a road hazard.

HID kits are illegal, and if a police officer is pulling you over for an unrelated offense and having a bad day, he may ticket you for having them. Keep this in mind when installing these kits, and make every effort possible to ensure the safety of other drivers.

 

These kits are NOT recommended for high beam applications. High beams are not intended to be used while driving through traffic, need to be ready on demand to signal other drivers immediately or to increase you vision at a moment's notice. HID kits take up to 30 seconds to fully warm up, which affects your ability to use them at a moment's notice. In addition, HID ballasts will be damaged by being turned on and off repetitively, which will be the case if you're using them while driving through winding roads and turning them off and on repetitively to prevent blinding other drivers.

 

 

 

Heat comparison: Halogens vs. HIDs

There have been great debates in regard to which runs hotter. The truth is that the core of an HID bulb runs hotter than a halogen bulb. However, that core's heat is a result of light output and energy, whereas halogen bulbs produce light as a result of heat.

 

Halogen bulbs, unlike normal light bulbs, use halogen gas, a tungsten filament, and a quartz encasing. The reason why the encasing is quartz is because if it were glass, it would melt as a result of the heat. The current passes through the filament, heating it to the point to where it creates light. Notice, it has to get hot in order to create that light. The Halogen gas inside the bulb is there to prevent oxidization of the hot filament. To make a comparison, this is like a space heater.

 

HID's use a completely different method. The bulb consists of two electrodes placed in very close proximity to each other. The gas used here is Xenon. Unlike with Halogen-filament bulbs, the light is created by the gas, not by a filament. HID's use a ballast which consists of a series of high current capacitors, transistors, and resistors. To light a Xenon bulb in an HID kit, the ballast takes in a small amount of power and sends a very intense charge of electricity across the electrodes. This is why they're called High Intensity Discharge. The electrical charge excites the gas molecules inside the bulb and causes them to discharge photon particles, producing light. The entire capsule of gas is then "lit," taking up to 30 seconds, and because all of the gas in the capsule is used to create the light instead of just one filament, you end up with much brighter overall light output. The ballast regulates a constant flow of power only to keep the gas molecules excited, while a standard filament based light requires a constant intense electrical current to keep the filament hot.

I have confirmed with a simple test that 55W HIDs run significantly cooler than 55W halogens do as a result of this by placing my hand on the surface of the lense after a 30 minute drive.

 

 

 

Credit where credit is due

http://www.essortment.com/hobbies/highintensityd_siyc.htm

http://hirheadlights.com/

[xtremerevolution]

Luke, you want to add this to your site articles?

[RobertISaar]

ahaha, i've stuck silverstar ultra 9005s in my low beams already... those were quite an improvement, though 70% does seem a bit high...

[xtremerevolution]

ahaha, i've stuck silverstar ultra 9005s in my low beams already... those were quite an improvement, though 70% does seem a bit high...

 

That's what the technical rating is...

[mra32]

just a thought...if the HIR bulbs consume the same power as the stock bulbs, yet put out more light...wouldnt that mean that the HIR lights are cooler than stock, since more power is being used to create light, leaving less energy to be wasted heat?

[xtremerevolution]

just a thought...if the HIR bulbs consume the same power as the stock bulbs, yet put out more light...wouldnt that mean that the HIR lights are cooler than stock, since more power is being used to create light, leaving less energy to be wasted heat?

 

I do believe that's how it works. I remember reading that they have a coating on the capsule that bounces heat back into the filament, thereby heating it more and creating more light.

[RobertISaar]

more or less, it draws the same amount of power, but creates light more efficiently, therefore better output with the same amount of power?

[xtremerevolution]

more or less, it draws the same amount of power, but creates light more efficiently, therefore better output with the same amount of power?

 

Right, and they're generally cheaper than HIDs to boot. Considering the 9011 is merely 16% less bright than 35W HIDs, its a pretty damn good alternative.

[AL]

I didnt see anything listed for 9007 Bulbs which is what my car uses... Am I just out of luck for better light output without going HID

[xtremerevolution]

I didnt see anything listed for 9007 Bulbs which is what my car uses... Am I just out of luck for better light output without going HID

 

Isn't the 9007 a dual-beam bulb that does both high and low beam?

[AL]

Yes, but is there any upgrade to it?

[xtremerevolution]

Yes, but is there any upgrade to it?

 

Nope. You'd have to get a bixenon HID kit.

[jeremy]

Fwiw. Your recommendation of ddmtuning for HIDs is exactly the opposite if what I would recommend. Their products do have a lifetime warranty and are cheap but the customer service flat out sucks and my kits took about a month to receive after they immediately took my money. Now after just a few months I already have a dead ballast and yes they will replace it but who knows how long it s going to take to get the new one and I have to pay to ship back their defective product. They do look great when they work and I would recommend HIDs over all options but I would also recommend paying more money to get a quality kit from a company that actually gives two shits about their customers. Saving a fewdollars wasn't worth it and if I could do it all over again i would be willing to pay 2-3x as much just to not have to deal with them

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[carkhz316]

Now before I get flamed for using these "illegally" (Not so in all states; MN sdiv of statues just states a DOT approved lighting, which the HID's I got are), a couple of the pairs I have bought from this site http://www.vvme.com/single-beam-hid-conversion-kit-9006hb4-hid-conversion-kit-c-44_45_31.html

went into my wife's Impala with DOT approved projector headlights and factory projector fogs. I did use a pair in the Monte for lows, but I do not condone any misuse of them. I will say that they do offer superior nighttime visibility. I haven't been "flashed" or pulled over for having them, yet. Its been about 6 months with all of them and no problems with any of the hardware. Only took a week from when I ordered them to when they were at my door, all the way from China, via DHL. Just my $.02; and to each their own.

[xtremerevolution]

Fwiw. Your recommendation of ddmtuning for HIDs is exactly the opposite if what I would recommend. Their products do have a lifetime warranty and are cheap but the customer service flat out sucks and my kits took about a month to receive after they immediately took my money. Now after just a few months I already have a dead ballast and yes they will replace it but who knows how long it s going to take to get the new one and I have to pay to ship back their defective product. They do look great when they work and I would recommend HIDs over all options but I would also recommend paying more money to get a quality kit from a company that actually gives two shits about their customers. Saving a fewdollars wasn't worth it and if I could do it all over again i would be willing to pay 2-3x as much just to not have to deal with them

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Any recommendations of where else to get them then? They also took a few weeks to get from me, but there are various members on gmforum.com who have now had the same bad experience you had. Actually, neither have I with the 55W kit in the Regal.

[visitor]

If I may add to this (already great) article: It is worth noting that most all factory HID's are 4300k. The higher K you go, the lower the USABLE light output becomes. (as it increases towards blacklight at around 10-12000k.) Guys, be safe.

[xtremerevolution]

If I may add to this (already great) article: It is worth noting that most all factory HID's are 4300k. The higher K you go, the lower the USABLE light output becomes. (as it increases towards blacklight at around 10-12000k.) Guys, be safe.

 

Very good point. I never did bother to look up what the factory temperature rating was for vehicles equipped with HIDs. Thanks!

[GoldSupreme95]

On 7/8/2010 at 11:19 AM, RobertISaar said:

ahaha, i've stuck silverstar ultra 9005s in my low beams already... those were quite an improvement, though 70% does seem a bit high...

I did the same. Great improvement 

[GoldSupreme95]