Bumper Removal, Headlight Removal, and HID Kit Installation

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KuroNekko
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krell wrote:Ok guys i upgraded headlights to the The Morimoto hid kit 5000k notice the hid not as bright even my wife notice this i was expecting a little more, when i had my 2010 Sonata i upgraded to hid and i could see a big difference now I'm wondering if i should have got the 55 watt kit also i wanna upgrade the DRL don't wanna go the led route was planning to go with the Philips Diamond Vision 5000K , is this a good idea? now for the fogs don't know what to do with them maybe use led for the fogs or Philips Diamond Vision, can i get you guys suggestion.
I'm rather shocked to hear that you don't think the 5000K HIDs are bright enough. Is the output like mine in my photos? Did you get the 3Five bulbs or the XB35? You used the relay harness right?
The 55W ballasts will give out more light, but reduce the lifespan of the bulbs. TRS claims a 20% increase in light output but a 20% decrease in lifespan. Warranty may be shorter too, but I'm not sure.
As stated earlier in this thread, I've got the Morimoto 5000K HIDs with the 35W ballasts and the XB35 bulbs and think they are plenty bright.

As for the DRL/high beams to Philips Diamond Vision 5000K bulbs: These halogens appear to be painted bulbs which give off a whiter light, but probably not as bright as clear bulbs of similar specs. Painted bulbs are whiter, not brighter. To tell you the truth, because the DRL mode runs on such low wattage, it's still going to look yellowy instead of white. I had two different H7 halogens before my LEDs and they were both the blue-tinted type. The low wattage burn of the DRL mode made them look yellowy although less than normal clear bulbs.
If it's the pure white look you are going for, I really don't think you're going to get it unless you go the LED or HID route. You are definitely going to need a capacitor for HIDs as DRLs. My LEDs can use them too, but have been doing better since the weather warmed up. They have never flickered when the RPM was above idle.
Overall, I'm quite happy with my VLEDs LED kit. I'd recommend them, but I wanted to share their drawbacks so I posted about it in their respective thread.

Lastly, the fogs: Halogens or LEDs are probably the way to go. I have HIDs and they are okay, but I fear a little too bright as fog lights. In actual fog, I think they may spread too much light and cause glare which is not what you want in fog.
Had the previous owner not put in a HID kit, I may have gone with a LED conversion kit to try them out. Personally, I'd go with clear or yellow output bulbs and not blue-tinted ones for fog lights.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
krell
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Location: New York

This is what i got
Item Sku Qty Subtotal
H7: Morimoto Elite HID System HIDKIT-H7-RELAY-H7-35AMP-H7-5K 1 $150.00
Ballasts
1 x AMP: Morimoto 3Five DSP $0.00 35AMP
Bulbs
1 x H7: 3Five 5000K $0.00 H7-5K
Harness Type
1 x HD Relay: H7 $0.00 RELAY-H7

What the difference between the 3Five and the XB35 bulbs or the difference in kit
Last edited by krell on Wed Mar 12, 2014 10:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Open your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you're living?
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KuroNekko
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krell wrote:This is what i got
Item Sku Qty Subtotal
H7: Morimoto Elite HID System HIDKIT-H7-RELAY-H7-35AMP-H7-5K 1 $150.00
Ballasts
1 x AMP: Morimoto 3Five DSP $0.00 35AMP
Bulbs
1 x H7: 3Five 5000K $0.00 H7-5K
Harness Type
1 x HD Relay: H7 $0.00 RELAY-H7
The only difference between mine and yours are the bulbs. I got the XB35 bulbs but I can't imagine that the difference would make you think they are not bright while I think they are very bright. You might want to talk to TRS if you are not satisfied.

Also, did you follow my tutorial and ground them in a similar fashion to mine? You want to make sure nothing is loose.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
krell
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Location: New York

I did everything you did.. but wait i should add that i only been driving around in Brooklyn i haven't been on any dark roads yet since i install the kit so i might be wrong here.
Open your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you're living?
bootymac
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krell wrote:I did everything you did.. but wait i should add that i only been driving around in Brooklyn i haven't been on any dark roads yet since i install the kit so i might be wrong here.
There's your problem. It'll be hard for any HID kit to overpower street lights
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KuroNekko
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bootymac wrote:
krell wrote:I did everything you did.. but wait i should add that i only been driving around in Brooklyn i haven't been on any dark roads yet since i install the kit so i might be wrong here.
There's your problem. It'll be hard for any HID kit to overpower street lights
I think this is the issue as well. I've noticed that projector lenses cast a beam wide and even so if the road is lit up well with street lights, the headlight's beam isn't that noticeable. Multi-reflectors have a more distinct, concentrated pattern that you can see better on a lit road, but don't have as good of a wide and even light distribution.

Given you live in Brooklyn, I imagine all the roads are lit up by street lights which actually are HIDs themselves. When I'm in downtown DC, I barely see my HID light on the road. However, if I'm on roads that are not lit well, the headlight's performance is very noticeable. Basically, in the city, your headlights are more used as "been seen" lights while in rural or suburban roads, they serve as "to see" lights. I sometimes drive around downtown DC at night with my DRLs in parking mode (so my tail and side lights are lit up) since I got the LEDs. They are very noticeable by other drivers but don't cast much usable light on the road. I do this because LEDs have about 10x the lifespan of HIDs.

I'm also planning to post a driving video soon to demo my own set up. I've posted pics but realized they don't demonstrate the reality too well compared to a video. I tested it out today during the daytime by mounting my iPhone5 to my dash via a dash mount and recording. It worked better than I thought so if it captures night roads well, I will post a video soon to the forum. I will demonstrate my HID lows, HID fogs, and my LED DRL and high beams. Most of my photos are taken on the same road I plan to shoot the video. It's out in the countryside and part of it goes through a wooded area that is very dark at night so the video should portray headlight beam effect rather well.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
~tc~
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I have the Morimoto with XB35 bulbs, and the difference is definitely noticeable, especially in the dark. Frankly, I prefer driving on roads with NO street lights to avoid the glare on the windshield, but especially with the HIDs. Such a bright, uniform light.

I believe the XB35 has the return wire on the other side to minimize shadowing.
2011 Sport SLS with nav Black Pearl Metallic
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KuroNekko
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~tc~ wrote:I have the Morimoto with XB35 bulbs, and the difference is definitely noticeable, especially in the dark. Frankly, I prefer driving on roads with NO street lights to avoid the glare on the windshield, but especially with the HIDs. Such a bright, uniform light.

I believe the XB35 has the return wire on the other side to minimize shadowing.
I have the XB35s as well and after careful observation, I can see my return wire shadow. It's not a big deal though.
I believe the return wire modification for the XB35 only applied to certain bulbs. The only one I know of is the H11 because TRS made a video on it that I posted. I don't think the return wire was modified for the H7 XB35s. I just checked the H7 XB35 vs. the H7 3Five bulbs and the return wire is in the same place in respect to the bulb base's tab.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
Bizzenn
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I have a question. IfI am just replacing the bulb, is there an easier way to get to the driver side light without removing the bumper. That would be a pain just to replace a bulb. Thanks
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KuroNekko
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Location: California, USA

Bizzenn wrote:I have a question. IfI am just replacing the bulb, is there an easier way to get to the driver side light without removing the bumper. That would be a pain just to replace a bulb. Thanks
What country are you in? Driver side differs based on country.
If you are in the US or Canada, then you are Left Hand Drive (LHD). In that case, the bulbs are better accessed by removing the air filter housing. It's actually very easy and will give you so much better access to the LH bulbs.
I discussed it in this thread so look at the photos:
http://www.kizashiclub.com/forum/viewto ... =32&t=2623
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
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