[Vorch]

Is there a way to retrofit HID headlights? The stock headlights are projectors and I don't think you can use HID in projectors.

 

[Vent5]

No (yes long answer) , and no, no to all three statements

1. There is no easy way to retrofit HID headlights. You would have to make something custom and fit a HID projector from another car.

2. You have reflector headlights not projectors. Projectors look like little round lenses. Unless someone put in something aftermarket, in which they are probably projectors for halogens and not HIDS.

3. I think you are confused about reflector - projector. And HIDs are found in both reflectors and projector BUT those reflector headlights which use HIDs are designed specifically for HIDs. If you put HIDs in your stock headlights, it will look horrible and I hope you get ticketed for blinding other people.

 

[tokendog]

You can put a HID bulb in a projector housing if it's a perfect fit in terms of filament depth and focus. It's not perfect and it's definitely not as good as an OEM hid light but depending on the match it could work fine. Sometimes it's ok, sometimes it makes a lot of glare. You have to match the projector to the bulb. Check out the hidplanet forums, they have some more tips there.

 

[chittychittybangbang]

No, we have reflector lenses. I have seen enough HID retrofits into projectors to know that:

1. It'll never be as good or sharp as an OEM xenon, there are lots of hotspots and glare
2. People who buy them always say that it looks great - yeah because you just spend $100 on something.
3. The best alternative for these cars is cleaning the lenses and putting in a brighter bulb.

Remember, even if you retrofit a projector housing into the stock housing, the lens will mess up the projector beam since it was designed for a reflector. Look through the FAQ, there is an article that shows how to modify the lowbeam bulb to use a high beam bulb. This does not blind oncoming traffic because the bulb's aim and lens pattern is still pointing down for a low beam. In fact, it's not even as bright as an HID bulb but it is brighter than the E-spec headlights. Euro-spec headlights are also an option since the lenses are glass, it won't yellow the plastic lenses.

 

[Vorch]

It looks like if you have even the e-bay HID kits, most people ahve positive reviews as long as it's going into the correct projector. Now I just have to find a good projector.