Stay away from cheap hid kits most of them are a joke hella makes hid kits most are 300 bucks.You can have a high beam depending on your kit and bulb but most good hid kits low beam is brite enough.

 

Just a heads up, those aren't projector housings, they're basic reflector housings. Projector housings have what looks like a small crystal ball, they project an even light pattern versus the spotty patches of light from traditional reflector houses the auto industry is in love with in this country.

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As far as the HIDs you get go, it depends on what bulbs you need. If you need 9000 series, don't bother with bi-xenon bulbs, the high beam will be useless. Headlight housings are designed to work with specific bulb dimensions, in a standard 9000 bulb, it has two filaments in the bulb about 1/8" apart, the housing is designed for different beam patterns depending on which filament is lit. The bi-xenon bulbs you get will not work properly because the secondary bulb for the high beam is not positioned properly, so you will have a very crappy light output. The other "alternative" is a pivoting or telescoping bulb that supposedly physically moves the bulb the required 1/8" to get the proper high beam, the trouble with these is they're very unreliable and break easily.

A general caution also applies to 9000 series HID bulbs, nearly all of them are made in China regardless of where the kit you buy comes from, the trouble is, they don't use 9000 bulbs in China, and they don't manufacture the proper specifications into the bulbs, so most of the bulbs they make aren't adjusted to proper spec to allow for correct operation- this is why the bi-xenon things are a joke.

If you need H-series bulbs you'll be much better off, since they're much better at making those type of bulbs. The trouble with those is you still end up using two different bulbs for high and low beams. The advantage though, with a proper setup, and HIDs in the low beams, you'll rarely need to use high beams because the output is much better so you can stick with regular halogen bulbs in the high beams.

A final note as well, if you opt for HIDs, aim them properly!! If you don't aim them properly, not only will you not be getting bad beam patterns and reduced visibility, but you'll be blinding oncoming drivers. Take the 15 minutes at an open flat spot with a wall and aim them to spec, so other drivers can see and you won't be a selfish pig. If you put HIDs in the fogs to act as high beams, know if you have fog light housings or driving light housings. Fog light housings put out low light only, they have a cutoff in them, driving lights just put out light everywhere. You can drive toward someone with fog lights on, but not with driving lights on.

 

I've used several sets, and most people on the BMW forums I'm in also use them with no problem. I've been using them since 2002, and haven't had any problems, except for one bad ballast which was replaced without any complications

They are 1000X's better than the factory bulbs.

 

[QUOTE=Nabster;5535639]Just a heads up, those aren't projector housings, they're basic reflector housings. Projector housings have what looks like a small crystal ball, they project an even light pattern versus the spotty patches of light from traditional reflector houses the auto industry is in love with in this country. QUOTE]

These actually are a weird hybrid projector and reflector housing. It doesn't look like it, but there is the crystal ball in the middle of this light. But you're right, it does look more like a normal reflector.

Second, I strongly agree with the whole secondary light glued inside the reflector. I don't like it, BUT....the lights are aimed pretty well, so my headlights are about twenty times brighter than stock, with a pretty good pattern, and yes, I've basically given up on the highbeams because the HIDs are bright enough. I absolutely agree that you MUST AIM THEM PROPERLY. I have a big white wall that I aim all my headlight at, and it makes a big difference.

And lastly, yes I know this isn't the 100% best option, but for those of you on a budget and want to make a really cool upgrade, I really recommend it. And most people that do it are very happy with the results. If I had unlimited money, I'd be have power disk brakes on all four wheels, but I don't, so this post is just how I did it on my car. And I am not claiming to be a lighting expert.

I know plenty of people will disagree with me, and I've been in plenty of debates about adding ebay HIDs to cars, so before you say, how stupid or cheap or whatever, save it, I've heard it all, including detailed lessons in light refraction/reflection theory. I'm just saying that this is what I've done, and I enjoy it. As long as I make sure of not blinding or distracting other drivers, I will do this upgrade everytime. It's just funny that I'll post how I did this, and people will shoot it down in flames, and then someone else will post it later and have a ton of positive comments.

 

We added Halogen "blue" headlights to the 66. Here is a link to our website for the do it your self wiring and relays and part numbers.

Thanks
Ron

http://chris66dad.tripod.com/id15.html

 

Unfortunately, I am still a newbie here and am not allowed to post pics yet. But the xe7r's are on mine. Both low and high beam switchable (but high is almost never needed). Here is the link to their website if you want it.

http://www.xesighting.com/products.html

I havent fried any wires yet, but you do have to modify the headlight buckets to make them fit. Been on the car since Feb. this year.

 

[QUOTE=petespokerplanet;5535840]Those are not projectors, the "crystal" is just the lense, that actual part of the projector that makes the cutoff line is a metal strip. I would be very impressed and surprised if the hybrid projector/reflector was anything more than a sales pitch. Please post a pic of your cutoff.



Where can you buy clear lens headlight bulbs for a 69? I put fx35 projectors in my 99 grandprix and i wanted to retrofit some into the mustang but i need clear lenses, not the weird stock lenses. Sorry, i can't remember what they call that lens type. A quad projector setup would be amazing!!!!!!

For those of you who are interested.
The difference between stock bulbs and hid's are amazing. The difference of true projector hid's and reflector hid's is even more amazing! With my grandprix, i noticed a larger difference going from reflector hid's to projectors than from the stock bulbs to reflector hid's. I will never do reflector hid's again! If you are going to do it, do it right the first time and retro fit some projectors. Check out hidplanet.com for lots of good free info.

Now about the not needing high beams with hid's. I would say they are not necessary but most of the people who say this have not seen projectors in high beam mode. If you did, you would say you can't live without high beams. You will light up more than football field in length and 60 ft out on each side of the car. You will have more light than you know what to do with.

I highly recommend doing a high low projector retrofit. You will not be disappointed with the end results. For those of you who do not know how the high beam works in a projector, it has a solenoid that moves the cutoff bar out of the way. So basically you get the same intensity of light that you get below the cutoff everywhere now.

 

[QUOTE=snorulz;5556428]Good info, thanks. This is the first time that I have needed to install a "bi-xenon" headlight. All my other applications have been separate highbeam and separate lowbeam. And most of my conversions have been with the European ellipsoid housings that are true projectors from BMW.

Can you post a price estimate on what a HID projector setup would be? Like I said, the bulbs from ebay have never let me down, but it's true that the housings are all over the place. As far as cutoff, yes, it's not as tight or focused as my Audi's HID, but it's still much better than stock.

 

my retro for the grand prix was
$75 for a pair of FX35 projectors with bulbs, they were used on ebay
$30 for a pair of clear lenses, not really needed, i was going for better color in the cutoff band
I used the ballast from my PNP HID kit so i don't know what the good ones run. If i was starting from scratch i would buy a used set off ebay that came factory on a car, the quality is much better. I am going to guess $200 if you shop around on ebay.
$50 in glue, epoxy, paint, screws, cv axle boots(unique to my app.)
The main cost can be time. I have roughly 100 hours in my grandprix retro. It was super hard though because the headlights are smaller than the projector i chose. The mustang has huge headlights so it should take much less time. My guess 20 hours start to finish if you want to do a good job.

It does cost more but it is worth it. Plus it just looks amazing!
If you shop around and are patient to wait for deals, Id say you can do it for 300 to 350. If you get a really good deal, it can cost less. The market was flooded with fx35 projectors when i bought so they were cheap, i don't know what they go for now. I would love to do a quad setup on the 69, money is going to be the only issue though.

 

Here is a link to a place that sells the 5 3/4" dia. that a 69 uses...
http://www.streetbeatcustoms.com/round.html