HID&HID Kits
You are sitting in your car at a traffic light late at night and see a Cadillac CTS-V drive by. The first thing you notice is the bright whitish-blue light that is emitted by the headlights of the CTS-V. The CTS-V is equipped with an HID headlight lighting system, as are many high-end cars today, which put off a much brighter light than your standard halogen light bulbs. There are many aftermarket kits available today that will enable you to add the same lighting system to your car and get the cool glow of the lights, plus dramatically improved lighting.
HID stands for high intensity discharge. Instead of a filament, HID light bulbs are filled with xenon gas. When high voltage is applied, the gas ignites to produce an arc of light. Compared to a standard halogen bulb, the HID bulbs put out three times as much light. The gas also glows at a higher color temperature, producing the distinct color of the light kit. The higher the color temperature, the more color the light will have.
An HID kit will come with two bulbs; two ballasts (igniters) and the wiring required to install the kit. HID bulbs require over 20,000 volts to ignite the gas and the ballasts are equipped with very high quality voltage lines to accomplish this. The ballast will ignite the gas so the bulb can emit light. Once the bulbs are lit, they only require 85 watts to stay lit.
HID bulbs put off three times as much light, even though they burn at 35 watts, whereas traditional bulbs burn at 55 watts. On standard bulbs to increase the light output generally a higher wattage bulb is used. The color temperature of a bulb determines the color at which the light will burn. The kits on the market will generally range from 4300K, all the way up to 12,000K. The lower the number, the more white the light, and also the brighter the light. As the color temperature goes up, the bulbs become bluer, all the way up to purple on some kits.
There are a few misconceptions though about HID kits. For instance, many people believe that the higher the color number, the brighter the light. This is untrue. As the color temperature goes up, the light actually gets dimmer. If you were to compare a 5000K kit to a 7000K kit, the 5000K kits would be 10% brighter. Additionally, a 7000K is about 10% brighter than a 9000K kit. Another misconception is that HID kits put off tremendous heat. This also is untrue. They only put off 35 watts, compared to 55 on a halogen bulb.
Depending on your car, you may or may not need or want a kit for the high beams. Most HID kits are so bright, you will barely ever use the high beam lights. Also, high beam HID kits are not the best option for everyday driving because they take longer to ignite and take over a minute to heat up to full temperature, which would prevent you from using the high beam to "flash" and oncoming driver, or just use in a quick corner. Many companies will offer dual filament kits, but with the time it takes to ignite, it is recommended to use a high quality light bulb for a nice lighting combination.
Installation on HID kits is fairly straightforward and if you are mechanically inclined, you should be able to perform the work. Installation typically takes about an hour, but can vary on different models of cars. To get started, remove the factory bulb, unplug it and set it aside. Next, install the HID light bulb in your light housing where the factory plug was previously located. Then plug the wire for the HID bulb into the connector on the ballast. Next, plug the other connector on the ballast into the factory plug for the factory headlight bulb. The last step, and usually the most difficult one, is finding a place to mount the ballast. Most kits will come with a slide-in bracket for the ballast for ease of install. The ballast has to be mounted within a few inches of the headlight, so right behind the light is best. The last thing you will need to do is run a power and ground wire for the kit to your battery and you are finished. The HID lights will come on with your factory headlight switch, so there is no need to run an extra switch to power the bulbs.
If your car is equipped with aftermarket headlight housings you may or may not be able to install an HID kit. Projector or angel eyes headlights traditionally will not allow for an HID kit to be installed. The reason for this is due to the length of the HID bulb. HID bulbs are longer than halogen bulbs, and with a projector, the housing may not be deep enough to accommodate the bulb. On some lights, you may be able to get the HID bulb to fit, but in most cases it will not.
The market is becoming flooded with many kits, the hardest part has become choosing a quality kit. I would recommend purchasing the kit from a vendor in the US, if at all possible, who stocks the replacement parts, because the bulbs and ballasts do fail occasionally and if you need a replacement you don't want to wait two weeks for it to arrive from overseas. A couple years ago these kits were selling for upwards of $500, now you can pick up a kit for under $200.
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