Troubles with HID in aftermarket projectors

[ggwpty]

contact retrosolutions, clubrsx swear by it and i have a set of those on mine, bright as and smooth cutoff as you can get for projectors

Did you just get HIDs from them or did you get a full retrofit done? I've been looking around at reputable retrofitters and my searching has led me to just US retrofitters. A place called Lightwerkz was one of them and it seems they work together with retro-solutions ... expensive stuff, it's time to get saving lol.

[BlkR]

I got only HIDs from them, but the quality is perfect, as other HID kits will dim overtime, I have had this for 4 years now and still brightness has never changed. They also have a lifetime warranty on their products. Though the only problem is that they are in the US and are LHD. You could ask them though.

[ggwpty]

Yeah, the whole LHD thing is something I've contacted them about. If they can source RHD projectors for me, then I might go ahead and get the retrofit done ... otherwise, there's another American guy I've found who seems to do pretty solid jobs on retrofits. He's told me that he has RHD projectors from the Accord Euro Luxury lying around just waiting to be retrofitted ... charges a pretty reasonable price too.

[ggwpty]

Thought I would update this thread after my saga with trying to cheap out on HIDs. I got a HID retrofit done and here are a few output shots.



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It cost a pretty penny, but I feel it was worth every cent. The difference in the amount of light thrown onto the road compared to the halogens is amazing. I've got 5000k bulbs, but at the moment they probably look more like 4300k; they'll probably colour shift to a pure white over time. And they have of course been aimed properly so I don't blind oncoming traffic. Infact, it looks quite nice from the outside as these projectors produce a lot of colour flicker (as you can see from the blue hue at the cut-off)

[tinkerbell]

wow! 100000% improvement!

[kavehman]

That's a very nice retrofit. Nice cut-off and perfect setting.

What projectors did they end up putting in S2k or TSX ?

[typeS]

Nice cut-off

What's the projector and ballast setup?

Thanks to the holidays, I've finally gotten around to doing my retrofit. Only just finished the RH side.






These are bi-xenon projectors powered with 50W ballasts!
Oh and E46 shrouds

Was contemplating halo's but decided against it.

Going to be a loooong night

[ggwpty]

My setup is mini H1 projectors, dual CCFLs on each lamp and 35W digital HD ballasts. Unfortunately, I'm having issues with the CCFLs at the moment; one of them is out and the other is dimmed. Going to replace the inverters and see if that solves the issue.

I was originally thinking of having the s2k projectors put in, but there was no way I could stretch my budget that far. Settled with TSX's but then my retrofitter recommended I try the mini H1's, which are a very popular aftermarket projector as they are cheaper and provide better output than the TSX. Also, if you were doing the retrofit yourself, they are much easier to work with because of their relatively small size.

@typeS - are you also using mini H1 projectors? Just that I've read a lot about the shrouds melting when paired with 50W ballasts due to the extra heat produced. Apparently, the mini H1's can't dissipate the heat fast enough due to their small size. Either way, it's fantastic to see you're doing a retrofit by yourself! If you don't mind, could you tell me all the materials and equipment you're using to do it? I have a spare set of headlamps and my friend has some spare s2k projectors lying around which he's willing to give to me for free to do a retrofit ... I have a really basic understanding of how to do it myself, but could use a little help, heh

[typeS]

@typeS - are you also using mini H1 projectors? Just that I've read a lot about the shrouds melting when paired with 50W ballasts due to the extra heat produced. Apparently, the mini H1's can't dissipate the heat fast enough due to their small size. Either way, it's fantastic to see you're doing a retrofit by yourself! If you don't mind, could you tell me all the materials and equipment you're using to do it? I have a spare set of headlamps and my friend has some spare s2k projectors lying around which he's willing to give to me for free to do a retrofit ... I have a really basic understanding of how to do it myself, but could use a little help, heh

You've read correct. I'm using FX-R projectors. I saw these projectors in the flesh about a year ago, and fell in love with them in an instant. These projectors were made to provide a wide range of light, with a razor sharp cut-off;
Below is an example (not mine);




To tell you the truth these will put most projectors to shame. However they're a bit bulky and with the DC5 housing they' are a bit of a pain to install, and align.

I'm an amateur to this as well, and it's all just a learning experience. I'm just following this DIY, kindly provided by retro-solutions. It's similar and all the equipment is mentioned, if it wasn't for this excellent guide I probably wouldn't have attempted it. All I can say is have a big oven ready and to take your time

You should definitely have a go at retrofitting the S2k projectors, that would be quite something!

[kavehman]

I have retrofitted the S2k Projectors into my dc2r and it was by no means easy to do. I spent many days dremeling and cutting the projectors to make them fit. I think it was worth it for the wide beam.

But with any projector you do get the plastic lenses distoring the final output unfortunately. Which is pretty unavoidable.

I'll eventually post up pictures of my retrofit one of these days.

I do have a few spare s2k projectors lying around

[ggwpty]

Wow, FX-R projectors - it should look awesome! Please post up a picture of your setup and output when you're finished

I'll eventually post up pictures of my retrofit one of these days.

Please do, I'd love to see how it looks!

[typeS]

Wow, FX-R projectors - it should look awesome! Please post up a picture of your setup and output when you're finished

Here you are, after several nights of frustration


The Cutoff- 5000k (still need some tweaking)






Driving through the bush




Overall I'm ecstatic with these, it's worth all the hassle.

[ggwpty]

Seems like the left projector needs some slight rotation to be perfectly level with the other projector. But bah, minor details! It does look fantastic! Props to your hard work =]