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Hey guys, im pretty new to the forums, hopefully yall dont bash down too hard on me when i ask about hid setups...

ive tried searching through threads and such and have had no luck, not very used to these forum things.

 

anyways i am in the process of buying a z from a guy near me in nc here and have already made a list of things i want to do lol starting with mechanical things to tighten up all the bushings and get all the potential rust areas sanded down primered and coated with bedliner etc..

was wondering what you guys that have hid setups have done? this is going to be a weekend warrior but we all know we like to see the road when we drive at night for sonic meets and cars and coffee meets when the sun hasnt come up yet etc..

i was looking into them and found some plastic housings on ebay i plan to use with some extra sealant around the edges to make sure it doesnt get any extra moisture in them (like every other replacement light housing ive ever bought on ebay does) and since they use h4 bulbs, ill just transplant some hids ive used in my other cars into this one with some fresh h4 bulbs to fit the new housings, on its own relay, and its own straight connection to the battery with the relay attached to the stock headlight switch. has as anyone had any problems of bulb size with hi/low h4 bulbs? as in the bulb behind too long for the housing or not fitting and locking into the housing tightly? everything i do i do down to a tee and dont feel like dealing with returns to these untrustworthy aftermarket ebay companies and hid companies since we all know how easy it is to deal with ebay businesses....

 

ive also seen the makeshift aftermarket hid "globe" setups like you see in the bmws and new fords (and lots of new cars) and am wondereding if anyone has taken apart any of the headlights and put those globes in there that make the beam nice and flat on the top edge so it doesnt blind oncoming traffic...

 

thanks guys!

let me know if you have any suggestions for me!

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This is what you want, much better quality than the stuff you'll typically see on eBay:

 

http://www.dapperlighting.com/products/7-classic-projector

 

 

Also, he's a member on here and has all the information you'll ever need regarding HIDs in S30s. Alternatives are out there, just search what others have done. I personally plan on using Fiat 500 headlights in customized FRP headlight scoops:

 

IMG_20130911_134249_672-1_zps65227184.jp

 

IMG_20130911_134341_086-1_zps04f279c0.jp

 

IMG_20130911_134359_465-1_zpsc8a2fda5.jp

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Nifty on the Fiat 500 idea.  I'd really like to see how that turns out.  I'm working on a set of 06 Mini Cooper lights custom fit to a set of FPR Scoops myself, with the clear plastic covers.  I'd love to find actual shaped glass covers, but it's looking like the only way to do that is to make a mould and slump glass appropriately into it. or have it commercially produced. Either was we're talking bucks.  Those Fiat 500 lights really look like an easy fit.  

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Welcome,

 

I think it should read, ..."potential rust areas, sanded down, cut out, new material welded in, seam sealed, primered and then painted/bed-linered." Very rarely with these cars do they have surface rust that can just be sanded down. I suggest that the plan be to weld in new steel, and be surprised when you don't have to. It is much easier that way, then the other way around.

 

Headlights are a bit of a ways off, I think it best you read a little more reading regarding the matter, it helps if you know the correct terminology regarding the items you are discussing. Generally speaking a cheap plastic housing with cheap glass as found on ebay has a fairly high probability of cracking, especially with the sugar scoop headlight buckets our cars have, and as mentioned does have problems with being sealed against moisture. With that said, you can purchase some pretty complete ones that are popular for other cars with 7 inch housings, like jeeps that come with HID bulbs already installed with wiring harnesses and relays to help with the wiring process. I know for a fact, the city light that most of the housings on ebay come with will not work, as the stock headlight housing sits in a metal bowl, and will not have room for the city/driving light to stick out of, unless you drill out the aiming bowl to accommodate. 

 

Regarding the addition of the globe: The stock housings can't really be taken apart as it is a sealed beam assembly. You would have to buy an H4 7 inch housing and put in a projector (or as you call it the globe), and then convert that bulb into an HID bulb. Or as mentioned above, buy a pre-converted housing with a projector inside. Very popular projector housings come from the new Mini Cooper's and Acura TSX's, although any modern projector housings should give you very clean cut offs if you retrofit (<-the act of putting porjector housings in reflective bulb assemblies) them correctly.

 

I think two companies make complete swap kits for our cars. Those would be the most complete way to get HID's without blinding anybody. Although they would be pricey. Granted a real projector retrofit can easily be pushed into the expensive categories depending on how crazy/what features you want for it.

 

Alternatively you could get the H4 housings, and use an H4 HID bulb and make sure to use eye lids on the glass and adjust the aiming bowls to make sure you don't blind incoming traffic.

 

Regarding high beams, the only way to get high beams in an h4 housing is to have a sliding bulb. Basically a separate signal actuates the movement of the bulb which I believe pulls it further away from the reflective surface and increases the light output/bypasses the cutoff to give you high beams. This unfortunately makes the bulb itself much larger and will necessitate quite an extensive amount of material removal from the aiming bowl. Which will need to be sealed after the bulb is placed in to prevent moisture and dirt from being thrown inbetween the glass housing and the aiming bowl. I have also seen very rarely a dual filament HID bulb with a traditional halogen bulb sitting next to the HID bulb that sits a bit further back and accomplishes the same role.

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I'm working on a set of 06 Mini Cooper lights custom fit to a set of FPR Scoops myself, with the clear plastic covers

Thanks, it was your Photoshop that actually got the ball rolling for me. I looked into the Mini headlights, but decided they were too large to fit without extensive modifications to the housings. Then the Fiat 500 drove across the seafloor, giving us a new option!

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Thanks. That's great to hear.  Yeah with the cooper lights I've had to cut off the entire chrome ring around the outside, and with that it barely fit, but then  I've got to make new mounts for it. I'd like to make it a sealed unit since cutting the ring cut the mounts for the lens. I can glue it all together and since it'll be tight in the scoop it shouldn't be noticeable, but if I had a Glass (pyrex) cover I could eliminate the inner (stock) lens and make it all one unit.   Lance, what are you planning for the mounting? Obviously you're removing the stock aiming mechanism.  I was going to start with wooden blocks to get the height and locations sorted, then print up plastic mounts to integrate the housing to the S30 chassis. I don't expect much if any cutting.

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S2000 projector, Lexus LS460 projector, FXR, are among the best of projectors if you guy want to go retrofit route. I did retrofit many cars before but haven't done this to my s30. Mainly because the 3 inches projector fit in the 7 inches housing will result in a weirdo looking headlight. I am planning run a headlight cover and the projector itself without the 7 inches glass cover, but moist will get in the projector lens and soon or later will mess up the bixenon flap spring. 

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I have a question...

Given the expense and fabrication involved in a proper HID conversion, is the final result really that much better than a good set of H4 lenses/bulbs supplemented with proper driving lights?

 

I would enjoy the modding aspect of the conversion and look forward to seeing how you guys integrate the Mini/Fiat/whatever units into the sugarscoops, I'm just curious how you think the "bang per buck" ratio works out.

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Even a lower end projector will have a cutoff that no reflective housing will really be able to match. And the light intensity below the cutoff will be substantially better than even superwhite h4 bulbs. Plus if you get 5k HID lights, it lights up all the reflective markers on the road like nobodies business. 

 

But...

 

Compared to the seal beams that come stock, a relayed h4 housing will be miles ahead.

 

But...

 

With a projector housing with the HID's there won't be much of a difference between any modern car on the road. If you get used to driving around at night with the later, it will be really hard to go back. I often have to check that the headlights are on when I have to borrow someone else's car.

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All of our units are completely plug and play and come with a 5 year warranty. If you can source your own HID kits, you can get a kit from us with all the necessary wiring for $269. It's an extra $100 to add an HID kit but it also comes with a 5 year warranty.

 

Most folks are running our 7" Classic Chrome and Black as well as our Modern Matte/Gloss.

 

Here's a link to some pictures of the MSA Z Car show. Most of the images are s30s with Dapper Lighting headlights on them.

 

http://www.dapperlighting.com/blogs/gallery

 

PS. Our Classic V2 is out. Comes with a much larger projector and extremely bright LED halo.

 

post-1991-0-05696900-1386876710_thumb.png

post-1991-0-63112100-1386876718_thumb.png

post-1991-0-19725600-1386877061_thumb.png

 

Stock:

post-1991-0-22045500-1386877118_thumb.png

 

Classic V1:

post-1991-0-48796200-1386877133_thumb.png

 

Classic V2:

post-1991-0-64369200-1386877149_thumb.png

 

Edited by bens1088
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Lance, what are you planning for the mounting...

 

...I don't expect much if any cutting.

I haven't really torn into the car yet, though I have given it some thought. First step is going to be cutting away the inner facing portion of the outgoing metal headlight scoops. This will allow me to center the lights with most of a scoop in place, and with a little bit of thick paper provide a template for cutting the FRP scoops (which can then be further tweaked to perfection).

 

I'm pretty much doing the opposite of you, cutting the scoop to suit the headlight, retaining the factory lenses

 

Given the expense and fabrication involved in a proper HID conversion, is the final result really that much better...

 

...I'm just curious how you think the "bang per buck" ratio works out.

It's pretty well known that the sealed beam stockers are uncomfortably dim, especially when compared to factory lighting found on cars today (more so when speaking of factory HID systems). That said, my main reason for the conversion was to modernize the overall appearance of the car. While the sleek lines, and overall design are timeless, the details (truck style side markers, Jeep headlights, chrome trim work, gutters, etc) betray the age of the car.

 

Every exterior light on my Z will be replaced with a modern, and in my opinion, more fitting light system than originally equipped. Bang-for-buck thinking never really came into play, though I was able to get some deals on everything by being patient and buying only when able to get them at a significant discount. Once I get the rear side markers I'm after I'll have everything needed to replace every light. I even picked up some fog lights and a third brake light to make things more interesting.

 

The added light output from the HIDs (which should be comparable to any modern factory equipped car), along with the decreased current draw are just added benefits in my book. This won't be a daily driver, and it will rarely be driven at night, so I have different priorities from most...

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i have an hid brand i like and will use ill just need the replacement housing with the projectors retrofitted in. i like the dapper ones though, looks like quality and minimizes my chances for mistakes and leaks with the retrofit. its one of those small things that you want to do to the car that you dont want to have to redo lol. guys from dapper, ill give you a call when im ready! thanks for the help everyone!

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i have an hid brand i like and will use ill just need the replacement housing with the projectors retrofitted in. i like the dapper ones though, looks like quality and minimizes my chances for mistakes and leaks with the retrofit. its one of those small things that you want to do to the car that you dont want to have to redo lol. guys from dapper, ill give you a call when im ready! thanks for the help everyone!

 

Sounds good! All you'll need are some H1 bulbs for this setup and we give you the rest of the plug and play wiring. Just let us know when you're ready.

 

Ben

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