So I was searching and hoping that I'd find a FAQ or how-to on this in here but I couldn't seem to find one. Maybe my search terms were wrong? People seem to love to do the harness and H4 upgrade on here and I'm sure it's fine for some people but having only owned cars with HIDs the last ~10 years I knew I wouldn't be satisfied with even a well engineered halogen system. Hence going HID.
This will eventually (once I get time to start in on the retrofit) be a how-to or FAQ for retrofitting our sealed beams the correct way. I'm sure there are more folks than I who want to do this. But for now it will serve as a FAQ on HID lighting in general, to be updated later (hopefully not much later).
A little bit about HID systems...
The difference between HID and halogen
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-intensity_discharge_lamp)
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halogen_lamp)
What is an incandescent lamp?
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incandescent_light_bulb)
Differences in reflectors/lenses and bulbs
(http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/conversions/conversions.html)
Putting HID bulbs in a halogen lens/reflector is BAD…here’s why:
(http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/conversions/conversions.html)
Legality of throwing HID kits/bulbs in halogen lenses/reflectors:
(http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/conversions/conversions.html)
So, how do I retrofit SAFELY and CORRECTLY?
(http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/conversions/conversions.html)
A little bit on retrofitting from what I have learned
A common set of quality HID projector housings (bi-xenon or single beam) will cost upwards of $100 bucks, generally around $150 from what I’ve seen. There are various types and styles and some are more efficient than others. Whether or not I, personally, care too much about the relative efficiency (or whether I would notice, rather) is to be determined. My main concern is that I don’t blind people and that I am (at least partially) in compliance with the law. That said, here in Washington State I believe it is illegal to retrofit any vehicle not produced with OEM HIDs. Don’t quote me on that.
In terms of most of our Cruiser styles here aftermarket H4 style projector conversion lenses can be found on eBay for cheap. 4x6, 7x6, and 7” round sealed beam H4 projector style replacements can all be found for between $25 and $50. Most, from what I’ve found, are decent quality as well. That helps justifying supporting a sweat shop full of 12 year olds in Communist China a little easier for me…
It is important to note that when purchasing a new housing like this it doesn't matter whether you purchase a projector or normal halogen because when you retrofit with an HID projector it is self contained and will utilize neither the projector nor lens of the kit you buy. It is also important to note that you REALLY need to get a set with clear lenses. The H4 upgrades using the frosted (or whatever they’re called) lenses will NOT let your retrofit function properly. They will scatter/diffuse your light and you will essentially have converted a sealed beam housing for nothing. Good going. You just wasted a ton of time and elbow grease (not to mention that of a 12 year old in that sweat shop in Communist China I talked about earlier…).
There are a few resources which will help guide in the retrofit process…
The first is The Retrofit Source (http://www.theretrofitsource.com/). They sell the good, high quality stuff and don’t dick you around. I have received good service from them and they are more than forthcoming with any information and experience of theirs which will help YOU in performing their retrofit. They offer sales of kits and associated odds and ends as well as the ability to have them perform the retrofit for you. They also offer a list of local places that they endorse that can do retrofits for you. If you happen to live by one, score. Not sure what the price for something like that is, but I am assuming it would be fair.
HID Planet (http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/forum.php) is a forum dedicated to ALL things HID. There are tons of FAQs/how-tos and it’s a great place to ask questions and get answers.
So, that brings me to the end of my current info. As noted I will post/add an actual how-to on retrofitting my FJ62’s 4x6 sealed beam housings when I get to it (hopefully within the next few days).
Hope this helps. PM with questions, suggestions, or corrections.
-Aaron
This will eventually (once I get time to start in on the retrofit) be a how-to or FAQ for retrofitting our sealed beams the correct way. I'm sure there are more folks than I who want to do this. But for now it will serve as a FAQ on HID lighting in general, to be updated later (hopefully not much later).
A little bit about HID systems...
The difference between HID and halogen
High-intensity discharge lamps (HID lamps) are a type of electrical gas-discharge lamp which produces light by means of an electric arc between tungsten electrodes housed inside a translucent or transparent fused quartz or fused aluminaarc tube. This tube is filled with both gas and metal salts. The gas facilitates the arc's initial strike. Once the arc is started, it heats and evaporates the metal salts forming a plasma, which greatly increases the intensity of light produced by the arc and reduces its power consumption. High-intensity discharge lamps are a type of arc lamp.
High-intensity discharge lamps make more visible light per unit of electric power consumed than fluorescent and incandescent lamps since a greater proportion of their radiation is visible light in contrast to heat.
…
Like fluorescent lamps, HID lamps require a ballast to start and maintain their arcs. The method used to initially strike the arc varies: mercury vapor lamps and some metal halide lamps are usually started using a third electrode near one of the main electrodes while other lamp styles are usually started using pulses of high voltage.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-intensity_discharge_lamp)
A halogen lamp, also known as a tungsten halogen lamp or quartz iodine lamp, is an incandescent lamp that has a small amount of a halogen such as iodine or bromine added. The combination of the halogen gas and the tungsten filament produces a halogen cycle chemical reaction which redeposits evaporated tungsten back on the filament, increasing its life and maintaining the clarity of the envelope. Because of this, a halogen lamp can be operated at a higher temperature than a standard gas-filled lamp of similar power and operating life, producing light of a higher luminous efficacy and color temperature. The small size of halogen lamps permits their use in compact optical systems for projectors and illumination.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halogen_lamp)
What is an incandescent lamp?
An incandescent light bulb, incandescent lamp or incandescent light globe is an electric light which produces light with a filament wire heated to a high temperature by an electric current passing through it, until it glows (see Incandescence). The hot filament is protected from oxidation with a glass bulb that is filled with inert gas (or evacuated). In a halogen lamp, filament evaporation is prevented by a chemical process that redeposits metal vapor onto the filament, extending its life. The light bulb is supplied with electrical current by feed-through terminals or wires embedded in the glass. Most bulbs are used in a socket which provides mechanical support and electrical connections.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incandescent_light_bulb)
Differences in reflectors/lenses and bulbs
Halogen headlamps and HID headlamps require very different optics to produce a safe and effective—not to mention legal—beam pattern. How come? Because of the very different characteristics of the two kinds of light source.
A halogen bulb has a cylindrical light source: the glowing filament. The space immediately surrounding the cylinder of light is completely dark, and so the sharpest contrast between bright and dark is along the edges of the cylinder of light. The ends of the filament cylinder fade from bright to dark. An HID bulb, on the other hand, has a crescent-shaped light source -- the arc. It's crescent-shaped because as it passes through the space between the two electrodes, its heat causes it to try to rise. The space immediately surrounding the crescent of light glows in layers...the closer to the crescent of light, the brighter the glow. The ends of the arc crescent are the brightest points, and immediately beyond these points is completely dark, so the sharpest contrast between bright and dark is at the ends of the crescent of light.
This diagram shows the very different characteristics of the filament vs. the arc:
When designing the optics (lens and/or reflector) for a lamp, the characteristics of the light source are the driving factor around which everything else must be engineered. If you go and change the light source, you've done the equivalent of putting on somebody else's eyeglasses: You can probably make them fit on your face OK, but you won't see properly.
Here are some downloadable PDF tests done by DOT and CalCoast Labs on halogen headlamps equipped with "HID kits":
Test #1, with 9004 "HID kit" vs. 9004 bulb
(http://dastern.torque.net/techdocs/HID/HB1_HID_Retro.pdf)
Test #2, with 9006 "HID kit" vs. 9006 bulb
(http://dastern.torque.net/techdocs/HID/HB4_HID_Retro.pdf)
And here is a documentary done by Auto Express showing the results of installing "HID kits" in UN ("ECE", "E-code", "European") headlamps, which are designed for notably tight control of glare on low beam:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Y5n38wDe684
(http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/conversions/conversions.html)
Putting HID bulbs in a halogen lens/reflector is BAD…here’s why:
Now, what about those "retrofit" jobs in which the beam cutoff still appears sharp? Don't be fooled; it's an error to judge a beam pattern solely by its cutoff. In many lamps, especially the projector types, the cutoff will remain the same regardless of what light source is behind it. Halogen bulb, HID capsule, cigarette lighter, firefly, hold it up to the sun—whatever. That's because of the way a projector lamp works. The cutoff is simply the projected image of a piece of metal running side-to-side behind the lens. Where the optics come in is in distributing the light under the cutoff. And, as with all other automotive lamps (and, in fact, all optical instruments), the optics are calculated based not just on where the light source is within the lamp (focal length) but also the specific photometric characteristics of the light source...which parts of it are brighter, which parts of it are darker, where the boundaries of the light source are, whether the boundaries are sharp or fuzzy, the shape of the light source, and so forth.
...
The only available arc capsules have a longitudinal arc (arc path runs front to back) on the axis of the bulb, but many popular halogen headlamp bulbs, such as 9004, 9007, H3 and H12, use a filament that is transverse (side-to-side) and/or offset (not on the axis of the bulb) central axis of the headlamp reflector). In this case, it is impossible even to roughly approximate the position and orientation of the filament with a "retrofit" HID capsule. Just because your headlamp might use an axial-filament bulb, though, doesn't mean you've jumped the hurdles—the laws of optical physics don't bend even for the cleverest marketing department, nor for the catchiest HID "retrofit" kit box.
A relatively new gimmick is HID arc capsules set in an electromagnetic base so that they shift up and down or back and forth. These are being marketed as "dual beam" kits that claim to address the loss of high beam with fixed-base "retrofits" in place of dual-filament halogen bulbs like 9004, 9007, H4, and H13. A cheaper variant of this is one that uses a fixed HID bulb with a halogen bulb strapped or glued to the side of it...yikes! What you wind up with is two poorly-formed beams, at best. The reason the original equipment market has not adopted the movable-capsule designs they've been playing with since the mid 1990s is because it is impossible to control the arc position accurately so it winds up in the same position each and every time.
In the original-equipment field, there are single-capsule dual-beam systems appearing ("BiXenon", etc.), but these all rely on a movable optical shield, or movable reflector—the arc capsule stays in one place. The Original Equipment engineers have a great deal of money and resources at their disposal, and if a movable capsule were a practical way to do the job, they'd do it. The "retrofit" kits certainly don't address this problem anywhere near satisfaction. And even if they did, remember: Whether a fixed or moving-capsule "retrofit" is contemplated, solving the arc-position problem and calling it good is like going to a hospital with two broken ribs, a sprained ankle and a crushed toe and having the nurse say "Well, you're free to go home now, we've put your ankle in a sling!" Focal length (arc/filament positioning) is only just ONE issue out of several.
The most dangerous part of the attempt to "retrofit" Xenon headlamps is that sometimes you get a deceptive and illusory "improvement" in the performance of the headlamp. The performance of the headlamp is perceived to be "better" because of the much higher level of foreground lighting (on the road immediately in front of the car). However, the beam patterns produced by this kind of "conversion" virtually always give less distance light, and often an alarming lack of light where there's meant to be a relative maximum in light intensity. The result is the illusion that you can see better than you actually can, and that's not safe. [Emphasis added]
It's tricky to judge headlamp beam performance without a lot of knowledge, a lot of training and a lot of special equipment, because subjective perceptions are very misleading. Having a lot of strong light in the foreground, that is on the road close to the car and out to the sides, is very comforting and reliably produces a strong impression of "good headlights". The problem is that not only is foreground lighting of decidedly secondary importance when travelling much above 30 mph, but having a very strong pool of light close to the car causes your pupils to close down, worsening your distance vision...all the while giving you this false sense of security. This is to say nothing of the massive amounts of glare to other road users and backdazzle to you, the driver, that results from these "retrofits".
HID headlamps also require careful weatherproofing and electrical shielding because of the high voltages involved. These unsafe "retrofits" make it physically possible to insert an HID bulb where a halogen bulb belongs, but this practice is illegal and dangerous, regardless of claims by these marketers that their systems are "beam pattern corrected" or the fraudulent use of established brand names to try to trick you into thinking the product is legitimate. In order to work correctly and safely, HID headlamps must be designed from the start as HID headlamps.
(http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/conversions/conversions.html)
Legality of throwing HID kits/bulbs in halogen lenses/reflectors:
What about the law, what does it have to say on the matter? In virtually every first-world country, HID "retrofits" into halogen headlamps are illegal. They're illegal clear across Europe and in all of the many countries that use European ECE headlight regulations. They're illegal in the US and Canada. Some people dismiss this because North American regulations, in particular, are written in such a manner as to reject a great many genuinely good headlamps. Nevertheless, on the particular count of HID "retrofits" into halogen headlamps, the world's regulators and engineers all say DON'T!
(http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/conversions/conversions.html)
So, how do I retrofit SAFELY and CORRECTLY?
The only safe and legitimate HID retrofit is one that replaces the entire headlamp—that is lens, reflector, bulb...the whole system—with optics designed for HID usage. In the aftermarket, it is possible to get clever with the growing number of available products, such as Hella's modular projectors available in HID or halogen, and fabricate your own brackets and bezels.
Installing HID optics (such as projectors designed to accept an HID bulb) in halogen headlamp housings can be done, but it is a great deal more complicated and difficult to do correctly than is commonly understood. Typically the process involves baking the headlight assembly to loosen the adhesive, removing the lens, cutting the reflector, mounting the HID projector, and using silicone to reseal the lens. Sounds simple? Sure, but there are significant and substantial issues and challenges. The projector has to be mounted very precisely with respect to its centre of gravity; if not, it will shake out of alignment (and eventually off its mounts). Many sealants, adhesives, and paints produce gases that attack and fog lamp optics. The low beam projector has to be aimed correctly relative to the high beam or else the finished headlamp will be aimable so the lows or the highs are pointed in the correct direction, but not both. Once the headlamp has been opened, it is very challenging to get a good and durable seal against moisture and dirt ingress. None of these challenges is insurmountable, and there are outfits specialising in this kind of optical transplant. Shop very carefully if you are in the market, pay careful attention to the guarantee offered on the work, and be aware that even if the transplanted optics come from a legal headlamp, the end result—the modified headlamp—is no longer compliant with the applicable regulations.
(http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/conversions/conversions.html)
A little bit on retrofitting from what I have learned
A common set of quality HID projector housings (bi-xenon or single beam) will cost upwards of $100 bucks, generally around $150 from what I’ve seen. There are various types and styles and some are more efficient than others. Whether or not I, personally, care too much about the relative efficiency (or whether I would notice, rather) is to be determined. My main concern is that I don’t blind people and that I am (at least partially) in compliance with the law. That said, here in Washington State I believe it is illegal to retrofit any vehicle not produced with OEM HIDs. Don’t quote me on that.
In terms of most of our Cruiser styles here aftermarket H4 style projector conversion lenses can be found on eBay for cheap. 4x6, 7x6, and 7” round sealed beam H4 projector style replacements can all be found for between $25 and $50. Most, from what I’ve found, are decent quality as well. That helps justifying supporting a sweat shop full of 12 year olds in Communist China a little easier for me…
It is important to note that when purchasing a new housing like this it doesn't matter whether you purchase a projector or normal halogen because when you retrofit with an HID projector it is self contained and will utilize neither the projector nor lens of the kit you buy. It is also important to note that you REALLY need to get a set with clear lenses. The H4 upgrades using the frosted (or whatever they’re called) lenses will NOT let your retrofit function properly. They will scatter/diffuse your light and you will essentially have converted a sealed beam housing for nothing. Good going. You just wasted a ton of time and elbow grease (not to mention that of a 12 year old in that sweat shop in Communist China I talked about earlier…).
There are a few resources which will help guide in the retrofit process…
The first is The Retrofit Source (http://www.theretrofitsource.com/). They sell the good, high quality stuff and don’t dick you around. I have received good service from them and they are more than forthcoming with any information and experience of theirs which will help YOU in performing their retrofit. They offer sales of kits and associated odds and ends as well as the ability to have them perform the retrofit for you. They also offer a list of local places that they endorse that can do retrofits for you. If you happen to live by one, score. Not sure what the price for something like that is, but I am assuming it would be fair.
HID Planet (http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/forum.php) is a forum dedicated to ALL things HID. There are tons of FAQs/how-tos and it’s a great place to ask questions and get answers.
So, that brings me to the end of my current info. As noted I will post/add an actual how-to on retrofitting my FJ62’s 4x6 sealed beam housings when I get to it (hopefully within the next few days).
Hope this helps. PM with questions, suggestions, or corrections.
-Aaron