Kizashi Club

Im in the US looking specifically for the oem HIDS offered on Euro and Aussie models, how can i get my hands on some?

No parts here in the UK. I had to import my options (pedel set, billit set etc) from the USA. Suzuki in the UK sells very little of these cars. The target for 2012-13 was 500, only 191 regestered as of the end of Feb, thats one years sales!

Why not spend a lot less money and headache and get yourself a H7 HID kit?
Doesn't the Euro/Aussie spec factory HID option also come with headlight washers? If those are anyhow mounted to the headlight, then you would have to either remove the washer or get a compatible bumper. You would also need to wire in the leveling dial for vertical adjustment (found on all factory HID cars, I believe. It's by law in the US).

Other than the benefit of a crisper beam from a bulb housing made for HID, I can't imagine there are many benefits for a factory HID headlight install over a HID kit. Retrofitting HID bulb housings is an option for some cars, but if you have factory projectors (we all do for the Kizashi low beam), then the cut off is still decent. It's nothing like putting HID bulbs in a multi-reflector headlight like in a Honda Civic.

My Kizashi has 6000K HIDs in the low beam. They work great and the cut off is decent. Road light coverage is far superior to halogen bulbs. Yes, they may not be as super sharp as an Audi's HID beam, but mine were aftermarket in a non HID bulb housing.

Considering price and hassle for the performance, you should seriously just get an aftermarket HID kit.

The part prices here in Australia are horrendous, the cost for posting items overseas is also expensive. As an example something I paid US$16 to get freighted to me from Amazon cost me AUS$64 to return...... Our $ is worth more than the USA $ too!

PS: to give you an idea here's an advert off Ebay Aust for a new halogen Kiz headlight http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/HEAD-LIGHT-S ... 5d35fab08e AUS $620 for one halogen headlight!

Another (major) problem you'll have is we're right hand drive so the headlight beam patterns will be totally wrong! You'll need to find a left hand drive country.

sounds like it would be easier to import the whole car

Live with the halogens and just buy better bulbs eg. Osram Nightbreaker. Proper HID lights also have the headlight washers and a self leveling mechanism built into them- to stop them dazzling other drivers. The internal optics of a proper HID light are also different to a halogen. There's nothing worse than having someone with an aftermarket HID kit blinding you at night.... They're illegal to fit here in Australia, but I'm not sure what overseas country's rules are?

PS: I had factory HID low beams on my last vehicle and would much rather just have decent halogen bulbs. There's a lot less to go wrong and the lighting difference isn't that huge.

murcod wrote:Live with the halogens and just buy better bulbs eg. Osram Nightbreaker. Proper HID lights also have the headlight washers and a self leveling mechanism built into them- to stop them dazzling other drivers. The internal optics of a proper HID light are also different to a halogen. There's nothing worse than having someone with an aftermarket HID kit blinding you at night.... They're illegal to fit here in Australia, but I'm not sure what overseas country's rules are?

PS: I had factory HID low beams on my last vehicle and would much rather just have decent halogen bulbs. There's a lot less to go wrong and the lighting difference isn't that huge.

No disrespect, Murcod, but my experiences and opinions are the opposite.

Over the years, I've had my fair share of experimenting with optimal headlight lighting. I am kind of obsessed in a way. I have tried Sylvania (Osram) Silverstars, IPF Super Low Beams, hi-gauge headlight harnesses, aux driving lights, aux fog lights, etc. and I must say that HID is really the best for light output. There is simply no comparison even if you get the best PIAA, IPF, Hella, or whatever halogen bulb.

Also, many of these high output halogen bulbs run hotter than a normal halogen. The result often ends in damaged headlight housings, damaged bulb adapters, melted wires, etc. I had IPF bulbs (reputable Japanese performance bulbs similar to PIAA) in my former Mazda3. They were better than the stock halogens, but nowhere close to HID in light ouput. After they damaged by bulb adapter from heat, I finally decided to give a HID kit a try. What a difference. Absolutely a world apart in performance even though the IPF bulbs were among the best. After HID, I can't go back to halogen bulbs for optimal light performance.

HIDs are about 300% brighter than halogens of the same color temperature. They illuminate by a chemical reaction in xenon gas instead of a current through a filament in halogen gas.

Also, HID bulbs last about 7 years on average. Therefore, they are known to last a lot longer than a halogen bulb. They are also not susceptible to vibration damage like a halogen filament (an issue especially among offroad vehicles and motorcycles).
Given that the Kizashi requires the removal of the front bumper and headlights to change most bulbs, having HID is a huge advantage for this car, in my opinion.

Also, HIDs consume less power (most are 35W vs. the typical 55W halogen) and the bulbs also generate less heat.

I can't compare halogen in the Kizashi vs. a HID kit personally because my pre-owned car came with a HID kit. But given my personal experience with my former Mazda (which also had projector low beams just like the Kizashi) there is simply a huge difference in light output.

Also, as Murcod said, having HID in a non HID housing is not optimal. Having HID bulbs in a housing made for HID is the best option, but if you have a projector housing, the cut off of the projector lens actually does a good job not blinding oncoming traffic. That's kind of the point of the projector lens anyways; focused light where you need it and not where you don't.

HID kits are actually illegal in most places. It's illegal in the UK and the USA, but they are sold for "show purposes". The good thing is that if you are responsible and aim your light properly, it actually is not a problem. Having blue, pink, or purple HIDs and/or HIDs in a multi-reflector housing is clearly dumb, but 4300K to 6000K bulbs in projectors is actually similar to OEM HIDs. In fact, most law enforcement can't tell the difference so that's why it's not an issue.

Factory HIDs (HID bulbs in HID housings) are the best. I would say the second best is a HID kit in projector lenses.

Just my opinion.

Hey, I've got no doubt the illegal aftermarket HID kits put out significantly more light than a legal high output halogen bulb in the same headlight. (In my previous post I was comparing a factory fit low beam HID head light to a street legal 55W upgraded bulb in two different vehicles I owned.)

The reason those kits are illegal is because they output so much light that it's a hazard to oncoming drivers (or people who are being followed.) The beam cutoff pattern is altered and light intensity is also changed from how the original headlight was designed to function. All lights go through stringent testing procedures before they are certified for use on public roads. I personally am sick of being blinded by those illegal kits.

The halogen bulbs that usually cause the melting issues are the high power type- more power/ wattage results in higher current being drawn; this means more heat generated and wiring or headlight plastics don't tend to like that. I only use the type that have the same wattage (ie normally 55 Watts)

I agree the brighter halogen bulbs can have shorter lives, but I've also heard of plenty of issues with the cheap HID kits (eg. wiring burning out due to the high start up current, ballasts failing.)

At the end of the day one is legal and the other isn't. Blinding an oncoming driver could result in them having an accident, you could feasibly be held accountable.

Curious, what car did you have with factory HIDs that you did not think was better than halogen?

All cars I have seen with factory HIDs (BMW, Merc, Audi, Infiniti, etc.) seem to output much better light, even compared to aftermarket HID kits. Even if the light output is the same, the HID housing of the factory headlight offers a more crisp light than a aftermarket HID kit.

Also, I used to live on a mountain. Up there, there are no street lights or traffic signals. Stop signs are what controlled traffic. At night, it was pretty much your headlights alone that illuminated the path. On curvy, cliff-lined mountain roads, headlight performance was of the utmost importance. From driving up there, I became far more interested than the average person in headlight output and performance. I agree that HID kits pose a great risk to other drivers if improperly aimed, but when you are driving on a mountain or rural area at night, lighting up the road real well will keep you safer. (Especially true with the Kizashi's passenger-side beam bias nonsense.)

i have 5000k in mine and i love the way it looks... if i keep this car i will be getting a retro fit done to the headlights.