NEED HELP Wondering what color HID is best suited for night driving?

kickass audio

Member
Aug 25, 2012
955
20140217_234215.jpg

thats what the halo's look like that they were nice enough to toss in for me. The only problem my halos have is that they are ccfl and when its super cold out, the one on my drivers side glows red until it warms up after a minute but its fine and bright as hell. I also have led bulbs on the turn signals.

This is the light output before I aligned the lights vertically. the horizontal alignment is spot on but the vertical was not done yet as I was mocking them up before I sealed the lenses on.

20140217_234127.jpg


very hard to show because of how bright they are but it is the light with the halos (they are wired to my parking lights so when the parking lights are on, the halos are on too) and the hid lit too (wired to only come on when I turn the knob for the headlights all the way)

20140217_234103.jpg


this is the shot from the rear of the headlight housing. The light blue wire is the wire for controlling the bi-xenon cutoff. I hard wired it inside the headlight to the high beam wire. They included a kit on mine where if I wanted to, I could adapt it to plug in the bi-xenon part of my projector and allow the halogen high beam to kick on too but I bypassed the halogen as it was so damn dim that you couldn't see it over the HID on high. The red and black wire are what goes to each relay on the truck that powers my ballasts (I have each ballast on their own independent relay for redundancy). The dark blue/silver wire is for my CCFL halos on the light.

1621729_742943862383919_140333862_n.jpg

1655422_742943762383929_16331050_o.jpg


The light output from the halos and parking lights. Ignore the license plate on my moms car, I hid that after I had taken the picture.
1899878_748507538494218_736010739_n.jpg
 

kickass audio

Member
Aug 25, 2012
955
@dmanns67
The MH1 projector description of the product said ONLY 35W BALLAST. I guess I have to buy another HID kit that a 35w Ballast so I can use those MH1 projector.

The reason they mention that is that for smaller projectors like that, running higher wattage ballasts/bulbs will destroy the projector. It will cause the chrome to start turning white/grey and sometimes even burn off. as i mentioned previously, its the same for our fog lights. They are so small that they heat up really fast and even on a 35w hid bulb like I have on my fogs, they get really hot. Never melted anything but still get hot when in use.

Also, for the need to not wish and run a bi-xenon projector, just get it with it. I never use my highs as the low beams are bright as hell and I can see everything with them when aimed properly. On the highway, I can see about 3 tractor trailers ahead of me and can light up 4 lanes for the width of my light output. I only use highs on them when im in the middle of nowhere and want to look out for animals and stuff to run out in the road or for indicating someone that they can go and pass or something. Getting it with or without the bi-xenon feature will not gain you any more light output or anything like that. If you wanted, you could get a bi-xenon projector and unscrew the cutoff from the projector to make it a high beam always projector. You cannot make a bi-xenon projector always low unless you leave the cutoff portion installed and do not use it.
 

DIY Fixer

Original poster
Member
Nov 10, 2015
104
Wisconsin
Thanks for the mention @dmanns67

you can use any diode really.. all your doing is putting it on the signal side of the relays, so its not drawing hardly any amperage.. Ive used both 3amp and now using 1amp diodes. and the silver stripe on the diode points towards the high beam relay.. I have a very detailed write up about the method HERE and like dave mentioned i do have a few soldered up and ready for shipment if you would rather go that route.

@Midnyteryder196 I am just curious what does the mod really do by the way. I read and watch people online do the mod and all it seem to do when you turn all the lights on everything stay on. Want to know more about it in depth from you.

@littleblazer what I see is that www.theretrofitsource.com sell projector only $20 cheaper than http://www.morimotohid.com themselves. Do I really need the whole kit with HID and everything. Can't I use the HID bulbs I have right now and it will fit into the mounting hole for the light. Really don't need extra parts as my HID Kit is a lifetime warranty and free replacement.
 

Blckshdw

Moderator
Nov 20, 2011
10,685
Tampa Bay Area, FL
Can't I use the HID bulbs I have right now and it will fit into the mounting hole for the light. Really don't need extra parts as my HID Kit is a lifetime warranty and free replacement.

Projectors and reflector bowls use different bulb bases, they can not be interchanged. The majority of projectors use H1 or D2S based bulbs, our reflector bowls use 9006 for low beam, and 9005 for high beam. :twocents:
 

kickass audio

Member
Aug 25, 2012
955
@kickass audio see what you mean. Let say if I send you my headlamp housing and all the parts could you really do it for a price. Just curious to know?

Anyone could do the retrofit but the only problem is this. The alignment of your cutoff will 99% be off a little or even a lot. For example, the plastic clip that the headlights mount to on my envoy is broken on the passenger side from the previous owner being an idiot and hitting things with the corner of the truck (stupid driver lol) so the passenger light leans to the right a little bit and throws off the alignment. Aside from that anyone can do it and make it perfect. Honestly most of my time was used up by slowly getting the headlights separated (I dremeled off the outside edge of the headlight housing since the lens sits inside a C shaped cavity that is filled with sealant) and then I got out the heat gun and warmed up the sealant and pried the lens off the body. The next bulk of my time was using the dremel to trim down the shroud that covers the projector lens to make it look good. It isn't necessary to use the projector shroud but if you don't it looks kinda crappy for the job and can cause light to exit and bounce around and make a shitty output.

The other part that you need to do is align the headlights horizontally. The envoys only have vertical adjustment (you can only adjust the headlight up and down, not left to right) so for mine, I had to add a crap load of washers behind one side of the mounting ears to get the drivers side headlight to aim over to oncoming traffic since it was mostly off to the right. A perfect beam pattern will be level and stay straight at the "step" on the cutoff. The horizontal adjustment isn't totally necessary but for me I went all out on my 2nd retrofit I did on my truck and wanted it perfect.

When I did my retro I mounted the projectors to the headlight and took them outside to adjust the cutoff on the projector until it was perfectly level. Then I had put my truck up to a wall and marked the step on the cutoff pattern with masking tape to the wall and backed my truck up 40 feet from the wall while still keeping the truck on level ground. I confirmed my cutoff was perfectly level and then adjusted the height of the headlights to be at that tape mark on the wall. Then I noticed my drivers side light was aiming more to the passenger side and the passenger side light was aimed perfectly straight. I added washers and used a longer screw to push out the 2 little mounting tabs that the quick release bracket locks onto to make the headlight swing out toward the fender of the truck until the step on the cutoff was right onto the masking tape I had on the wall. Then I went back home, used the windoweld to secure the lens on the headlight and I was done.
 
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dmanns67

Member
Apr 3, 2013
32,979
Ohio
@dmanns67 I am going to switch from 10000K to a very lower temperature color soon. I seen what MAY03LT said that he is using the 4300K 35w ballast which is fine. I like very bright light and thinking about getting 6000K bulbs since I already have a 55w Ballast than it will be plenty bright. Got my HID kit from www.carxenonhidkits.com

The MH1 projector description of the product said ONLY 35W BALLAST. I guess I have to buy another HID kit that a 35w Ballast so I can use those MH1 projector.

Majority of us run 4300k to 6000k HIDs at 35w with projectors. Just makes sense. Why spend money on a retrofit, then reduce the light output by using a 300000000K HID :no:

The "35w only" issue was explained by Kickass very well. I have burnt the chrome in my OE TB fog lights from just running a 4300k 35w HID. Could not imagine what 55w would do. At the same time, the design of the OE TB fog lights were not meant for HIDs.

On top of what Kickass said, running a HID at 55w will drastically reduce the life span of the HID as well as make the kelvin color off. Example, your 6000k bulb might look around 8000k or 10000k. Running a HID at 35w is projected at 2500 hours of use, running 55w is around 1000 hours.

35 watts in a projector is crazy. 55 is just not necessary. There is a retrofit source discount floating around here, if you order this kit https://www.theretrofitsource.com/c...orimoto-mini-stage-3-kit-h1.html#.VrSVXXpOnqA you will have literally everything you need.

Why yes there is. 10% off your order "TRSHJ". No expiration date.
 

Blckshdw

Moderator
Nov 20, 2011
10,685
Tampa Bay Area, FL
If you are going with H1 projectors and bulbs, they will have the Amp style connector (2 wires out the back) so you should be able to use the same ballasts. Just keep in mind what's been mentioned about the lifespan of using the higher wattage.
 
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DIY Fixer

Original poster
Member
Nov 10, 2015
104
Wisconsin
@Blckshdw I know the more wattage less usable hours.

I see that their ballast is made the same way as mine are..
morimoto_xb55_amp_ballast_-_1.jpg

Here is my ballast I have right now from Car Xenon Hid Kits..
kits.jpg

Looking at the Morimoto Kits their Ballast are way more compact than mine and that what I like. Less wires to be toss around.
 

Daniel644

Member
Feb 27, 2015
576
color wise I wouldn't go any higher then 6000k, the light isn't bright above that and is actually straining your eyes which tires you out. I have personally run 6000k on 35 watt, 5000k on 35 watt and on 55 watt between the different cars I have, 6000k is a bit on the ricer/bluish color, 5000k is nice clean and sharp, very elegant looking and then on 55watt ballasts it shifts closer but not all the way to a typical halogen bulb, about halfway between a Sylvania Silverstar bulb and 5000k on 35 watts.

whats also important is the quality of the ballast, some ballast are just crap that cause it to color shift to the blue spectrum and the light output is much lower. there is a great video on cheap ballast on youtube I can point you to, but if you want to know you have quality then go with the RetrofitSource, we've got that running on my brothers Lexus.

also you NEED to resolve the DRL issue, either by killing the DRL or doing the capacitor mod to keep the DRL running at 100%, running HIDs on these trucks without a DRL killer or capacitor mod fucks up your bulbs causing weird color shifts and fries your ballasts (since the DRL's basically flicker on and off many times a second) so you don't damage any new equipment.

personally I just went with the 9012/9011 bulb swap, it's the easiest thing you can do (and the cheapest) that will give you better light output then factory, I have a HID Retrofit on my firebird and honestly living in the mountains a cutoff really limits how well you can see the road when going up and down hills, so I decided to keep with the halogen bulbs on this truck and just did the diode mod for quad high beams.


also the Retrofit Source kits are labeled to make them pretty idiot proof (not that HID kits are complicated).
 

DIY Fixer

Original poster
Member
Nov 10, 2015
104
Wisconsin
@Daniel644 for me since I will be driving at night a lot more I like better lighting and I am willing to get rid of the 10000K bulbs but keeping them because they are still usable.

You are saying 6000K and 35w is far more than enough light output. For those high beams mod I won't be doing that at all since I am a city driver and highway driver mostly. I don't live in the woods or mountains so I am not worry about having Quad high beams.

For the DRL kill mod I guess I will have to do it like this.
 
Dec 13, 2013
1,490
Osceola,Ia
@Midnyteryder196 I am just curious what does the mod really do by the way. I read and watch people online do the mod and all it seem to do when you turn all the lights on everything stay on. Want to know more about it in depth from you.

im not the first to do it by any means.. but yeah that is basically what it does.. on the diode mod, your putting a diode between the high beam, and low beam relays on the "switch" side of the relay so when you go to high beams, the current flows through the wire and diode to the low beam relay and basically "tricks" the relay into thinking that it got power from the switch so it keeps the lows on while the highs are on.

Instead of factory when switching to highs, your lows and fogs go off.. this is really a highly recommended mod when having hids, as since the lows stay on, there is no "warm-up" time when switching from highs back to lows.

EDIT: as far as drl killer, if you follow this schematic it just kills the drl and perimeter lighting, no quad beams as you posted in the vid..
Trailblazer DRL Killer.jpg
 

DIY Fixer

Original poster
Member
Nov 10, 2015
104
Wisconsin
Still wondering why all of these stupid GM Auto Maker have to put DRL on the Low Beams. Why couldn't they put the DRL on the High Beams like they have done back in the 1990. I did own one of their vehicle with DRL High Beams.
 

DIY Fixer

Original poster
Member
Nov 10, 2015
104
Wisconsin
@Midnyteryder196 I will have to think about doing that because I don't want to do so much electrical stuff to my 03 Envoy as it was previously own by another person before me. Mileage I got my vehicle at was 109,000 so I am not trying to go all out crazy.
 

DIY Fixer

Original poster
Member
Nov 10, 2015
104
Wisconsin
If anyone can figure out a mod that when you put the vehicle into Reverse or Drive the Daytime Running Lights goes into the High Beam mode. Like the olden years all DRL was High Beam when you shift into reverse or drive. That a mod I would like to do if it is around and possible.
 
Dec 13, 2013
1,490
Osceola,Ia
@DIY Fixer the diode mod is super simple to do, goes in the front fuse box.
Here is mine with quad headlights, top is my 6000k lows, bottom is my lows and halogen highs.
quad on.jpg

to each their own man. we all do things differently than others, we've just gave you a lot of info that now you can decide what exactly you want to do. we can only give you our advice, and there have been lots of great points with the temp of hids, and retros, and everything else... so just take a step back and think about what you wanna do. then just have fun making the truck your own..

Happy Modding!! :2thumbsup:
 

DIY Fixer

Original poster
Member
Nov 10, 2015
104
Wisconsin
@Midnyteryder196 I do know what I have to get first is a brand new kit with projectors if I want the light to have long distance. Than I will go from there and take my time thinking of what next.

With your Quad mod do you send instructions with it too.
 
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Blckshdw

Moderator
Nov 20, 2011
10,685
Tampa Bay Area, FL
@DIY Fixer the diode mod is quite easy. You will likely spend as much time opening your hood and removing the fuse box covers, as you will making the 2 connections for the mod.
 
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Daniel644

Member
Feb 27, 2015
576
If you do the DRL killer relay mod in May03lt's video you get the quad highs as well (with no further work, no diode or anything like that), and really you WANT quad highs if you are doing HID because you DON'T want the low beams switching off everytime you turn on the highs, because when you switch back to the lows you have to wait for the HID's to warm back up (which leaves you with crap light for about 20-30 seconds depending on the quality of the ballasts), also you don't want to cycle HID's on and off that often. Just do that it and it gives you everything you need for running HID lows.

6000k works but 5000k looks nicer in my book.
 

DIY Fixer

Original poster
Member
Nov 10, 2015
104
Wisconsin
@Daniel644 when I look around most HID company they only sell 3000K, 4300K, 6000K, 8000K, 10000K and 12000K. My ballast is a AC Ballast so not sure on how fast the start up those are.
 

Daniel644

Member
Feb 27, 2015
576
@Daniel644 when I look around most HID company they only sell 3000K, 4300K, 6000K, 8000K, 10000K and 12000K. My ballast is a AC Ballast so not sure on how fast the start up those are.

5000k is a little harder to find (especially for it to be in stock ready to ship), but I got my last ones from one of the cheap 15-17 dollar replacement HID bulb sets on Amazon and the set before that was the Morimotos so they are out there, you've just got to look for them.
 

dmanns67

Member
Apr 3, 2013
32,979
Ohio
Might have missed it, but what is your budget for your retrofit? Since TRS went to their XB35 line, they no longer offer 5000k, but offer 5500k HID.

All HIDs eventually color shift after use. The more hours on the HID, the more the electrodes wear inside of the bulb causing the bulb to run at a cooler kelvin temp. Example, my 4300k HIDs have quite a few hours on them and have a 5000k look to them now.
 

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