once again, another HID retrofit

[bgood12]

I knwo there are tons of these on here but I thought that I should put in my two pieces. I will update this at least every week.

Story. I have done a lot to my G but I figures HID is the next thing. I was lucky enough to get OEM Mazda RX8 headlights from the junk yard for only $50.00. yes both headlight assemblies with HID ballasts and bulbs for $50.

Well Its night 1 and I took the broken headlight assembly apart.
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/SU1HMDAwODctMjAxMTA4MTAtMDA1Mi5qcGc.jpg


After much confusion and all I have figured out finally how to get them to light. I went to HIDplanet.com and found out I could use an old PC mains power supply as a 12 volt bench supply so I did that and bam they came on. This headlight was busted open and the lens and bulb were open to the elements, that being said, it still lit up perfectly so the other headlight will be fine. more later.

click to view the short video

http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/th_VID00001-20110810-0046.jpg (http://s946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/?action=view&current=VID00001-20110810-0046.mp4)

[oakrdrs187]

50 bux, What a steal!!

[bgood12]

50 bux, What a steal!!

Yea I got very lucky I usually have one guy that's pretty easy on me and another that's not. This time the one that's not let me have them for cheap I think cause I knew they were there and the headlight assemblies were not even in their system as being on the car. When he asked me how much I said 65 for one and he said wow how about 50 for both and I did not argue.

[bgood12]

Here we go. I made a video of taking apart the 2000 Mitsubishi Galant headlight. Enjoy!

http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/th_8gHeadlight.jpg (http://s946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/?action=view&current=8gHeadlight.mp4)

[bgood12]

Ok here is one of the RX8 headlights i was able to get http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG00086-20110809-1338.jpg

After, taking it apart per the video above, I tested the HID bulbs and ballasts. the lenses that came in the RX8 were nice but they were fresnel lenses( conical rings on the lens). So I ordered some mini moritomo hd porjectors from theretrofitsource.com. that had clear lenses here are pics of them installed.

http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG00088-20110815-2151.jpg

http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG00091-20110815-2153.jpg

Once installed, I bench tested the setup against the wall the only lights I left on was the tv, so all the light in the photo is the hid. first on low beam and second on high beam.
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG00089-20110815-2152.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG00090-20110815-2152.jpg

[hedonism]

Anybody know if the FX-R's fit into our reflectors (they're hella small)

The D2S sucks btw.

[wetamup2k3g]

I believe so, OMEGA PHX has them in his reflectors. I've been reading that the MH1's are the better Morimoto projectors, but that relegates you to aftermarket bulbs only.

[hedonism]

I believe so, OMEGA PHX has them in his reflectors. I've been reading that the MH1's are the better Morimoto projectors, but that relegates you to aftermarket bulbs only.

Well, I think I'm going to do it. I'll let you know if I end up with a big piece of useless reflector.

[carl3g]

Anybody know if the FX-R's fit into our reflectors (they're hella small)

The D2S sucks btw.

The depth, height and width of the fxr is less than 20mm more than the mini d2s. I can give you more accurate dimensions if you need.

[hedonism]

The depth, height and width of the fxr is less than 20mm more than the mini d2s. I can give you more accurate dimensions if you need.

So you think it'll fit? You thinking of getting rid of your D2S too?

[carl3g]

Well I don't drive an 8g. From the description on trs, it says it will fit all headlights but small ones. I can imagine it will.

[bgood12]

Hedonism, Instead of saying DS2's suck say well i hear that "blah" are better than DS2 because or etc....
Because I have no way to reply to your post as I don't know what you are referring to. . .
I chose them mostly off of a suggestion from staff at theretrofit source. They are installed and seen to be fine as we all now oem 8g headlights are crap. I stuck with ds2 bulbs because 1. They came in the headlights I got off the rx8, and 2. when you get ballasts, bulbs, and headlamp for 50 why try to bit different bulbs. But since you have brought it up whats the suckiness about ds2?

[johnygezony]

I believe so, OMEGA PHX has them in his reflectors. I've been reading that the MH1's are the better Morimoto projectors, but that relegates you to aftermarket bulbs only.

The mini series is made by morimoto silly !

[wetamup2k3g]

The mini series is made by morimoto silly !

I know that lol, bad grammar on my part, I should have said I've been reading that the MH1 is the better one of the two Morimoto Mini projectors, I see how I worded that and how it looks now though lol!

[oakrdrs187]

Hedonism, Instead of saying DS2's suck say well i hear that "blah" are better than DS2 because or etc....
Because I have no way to reply to your post as I don't know what you are referring to. . .
I chose them mostly off of a suggestion from staff at theretrofit source. They are installed and seen to be fine as we all now oem 8g headlights are crap. I stuck with ds2 bulbs because 1. They came in the headlights I got off the rx8, and 2. when you get ballasts, bulbs, and headlamp for 50 why try to bit different bulbs. But since you have brought it up whats the suckiness about ds2?

You did an awsome job man. There is nothing wrong eith D2S, its just a bulb size. Just not easy to come by in aftermarket kits and more expensive. Saying they suck is like say 9006 bulbs suck and H11's are better. Its just what fits.

[bgood12]

You did an awsome job man. There is nothing wrong eith D2S, its just a bulb size. Just not easy to come by in aftermarket kits and more expensive. Saying they suck is like say 9006 bulbs suck and H11's are better. Its just what fits.

Ok, thanks I was wondering what that meant. I figure that oem parts are made for one thing, to last,they are not the most "performance oriented" and most times are not the most practical but they are usually chosen to last for a while for some reason I knwo the ballasts in mazdas are some of the most well known to be reliable and even though ds2 bulbs are 60 a pop the longevity in life should about average out.

[bgood12]

Ok well upon taking out the lights I had in my car I chose to leave these parts out, I had too much silver going on and wanted some accent it makes the car look more aggressive in my opinion.
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/SU1HMDAwOTMtMjAxMTA4MTgtMTMwNC5qcGc.jpg

So here is what they looked like back in the car
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/SU1HMDAwOTgtMjAxMTA4MTktMjAxNC5qcGc.jpg

after about a full day of wiring, rewiring, taping, buying, and drilling i fit two enclosures into my engine bay to give the ballast some protection and what not.
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/SU1HMDAwOTYtMjAxMTA4MTktMjAxMi5qcGc.jpg

And here go the lights
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad307/dcitmf/SU1HMDAwOTUtMjAxMTA4MTgtMjE1NS5qcGc.jpg

[oakrdrs187]

Ok, thanks I was wondering what that meant. I figure that oem parts are made for one thing, to last,they are not the most "performance oriented"

No Prob. And that statement you made about OEM components is in fact wrong.
OEM HID components superior to aftermarket. For one they use the best temperature for visibility, 2: they do last longer. Downside is, you are limited to which components you can use for retrofits (some may be too big) and they are more expensive. The deal you got for $50 was an easy $300 for just the projectors, bulbs and ballasts.

BTW: Properly aim your lights to get the most out of the light output.

[wetamup2k3g]

Hedonism, Instead of saying DS2's suck say well i hear that "blah" are better than DS2 because or etc....
Because I have no way to reply to your post as I don't know what you are referring to. . .
I chose them mostly off of a suggestion from staff at theretrofit source. They are installed and seen to be fine as we all now oem 8g headlights are crap. I stuck with ds2 bulbs because 1. They came in the headlights I got off the rx8, and 2. when you get ballasts, bulbs, and headlamp for 50 why try to bit different bulbs. But since you have brought it up whats the suckiness about ds2?


You did an awsome job man. There is nothing wrong eith D2S, its just a bulb size. Just not easy to come by in aftermarket kits and more expensive. Saying they suck is like say 9006 bulbs suck and H11's are better. Its just what fits.


Ok, thanks I was wondering what that meant. I figure that oem parts are made for one thing, to last,they are not the most "performance oriented" and most times are not the most practical but they are usually chosen to last for a while for some reason I knwo the ballasts in mazdas are some of the most well known to be reliable and even though ds2 bulbs are 60 a pop the longevity in life should about average out.

Naw fellas, when they were saying D2S's suck, they were referring to the D2S Morimoto Mini Projectors, and that's only in comparison to the H1 Morimoto Mini Projector which has a much brighter light output than the D2S version, they don't mean the bulbs themselves lol.

Morimoto D2S projector output @ 50ft
http://s59.photobucket.com/albums/g297/jvxdriver/LensTest/Set2/DSC_4177h.jpg

Morimoto H1 projector output @ 50ft
http://s59.photobucket.com/albums/g297/jvxdriver/hidplanet/DSC_3676h.jpg

The D2S projector is gonna put out light that way better than your reflector could still.

[bgood12]

got ya, now as far as aiming goes I want my beam pattern to look like that picture where both headlights line up and are on top of each other? Im having trouble with my passenger headlight cause its an aftermarket light and will only adjust so far before it craps out of alignment

[hedonism]

got ya, now as far as aiming goes I want my beam pattern to look like that picture where both headlights line up and are on top of each other? Im having trouble with my passenger headlight cause its an aftermarket light and will only adjust so far before it craps out of alignment

Yeah sorry, I just assummed everybody knew I was talking about the mini D2S. I also agree OEM is much better, one reason I went the OEM route in D2S.

You would have to aim the left more down and the right more up, then it should be good.

[carl3g]

got ya, now as far as aiming goes I want my beam pattern to look like that picture where both headlights line up and are on top of each other? Im having trouble with my passenger headlight cause its an aftermarket light and will only adjust so far before it craps out of alignment

I believe the right way to aim the lights is to park about 25 feet away from a wall and the lights should be about 24 inches off the ground on the wall. Ill post up a picture to help explain when I get on the comp tonight. Im on my cell phone right now.

[oakrdrs187]

Naw fellas, when they were saying D2S's suck, they were referring to the D2S Morimoto Mini Projectors, and that's only in comparison to the H1 Morimoto Mini Projector which has a much brighter light output than the D2S version, they don't mean the bulbs themselves lol.


Haha did I have my shit backwards.

I can see why he label the D2S projectors as full of suck.
But like you said 100 times better than HID's in stock reflectors.

[wetamup2k3g]

got ya, now as far as aiming goes I want my beam pattern to look like that picture where both headlights line up and are on top of each other? Im having trouble with my passenger headlight cause its an aftermarket light and will only adjust so far before it craps out of alignment

This is what you would want for aiming you lights:
http://cache.pakwheels.com/forums/2010/5/6/3/7/8/555.attach
It's hard to see, but both headlights are pretty much on the exact same horizontal level in this pic, both lower steps lined up and both higher steps lined up, when driving they'll look like one beam instead of two.

I know you have aftermarket lights, but try to get them as close to level with each other as possible, the blended light will be brighter and give you more distance vision. Good luck, you've got great progress so far, I need to do this myself!

[hedonism]

So I'm mounting the FX-R directly to the housing to eliminate shaking from the reflector having too much stress on the OEM screws. Weta, I'll keep you updated.

[wetamup2k3g]

So I'm mounting the FX-R directly to the housing to eliminate shaking from the reflector having too much stress on the OEM screws. Weta, I'll keep you updated.

Not a bad idea, I'll keep looking out!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk fam!

[rowdyprouty]

I used some medium density foam I cut into strips and put some on the top and bottom of the reflector, basically between the housing and reflector to help with the vibration or bouncing that may occur. It still allowed for adjustment and I haven't had any issues. It may have been fine, I just did it because I didn't want to have issues or anything come up down the road.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[oakrdrs187]

I used some medium density foam I cut into strips and put some on the top and bottom of the reflector, basically between the housing and reflector to help with the vibration or bouncing that may occur. It still allowed for adjustment and I haven't had any issues. It may have been fine, I just did it because I didn't want to have issues or anything come up down the road.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good call brotha...

[hedonism]

http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/showthread.php?41276-How-To-Mount-FX-R-s-Directly-Onto-Housing!-Whoo!&p=420869#post420869

It can be done. haha.

[oakrdrs187]

FX-R (top) vs Mini D2S (bottom). You decide which one is better.

http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/7351/aadwdasdwdw.jpg

http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/5684/img5j.jpg


I'm confused, here it says the top is the FXR and bottom is D2S, IMO the bottom has more light....

[wetamup2k3g]

I'm confused, here it says the top is the FXR and bottom is D2S, IMO the bottom has more light....

This is misleading. The bottom has more light because it doesn't have a foreground limiter. However, that is up against a wall. On the road, that translates into a lot of light right in front of your car, which will condition your eyes for more brightness, closing your iris and decreasing your distance vision. Plus, look at the top one, and look at the "hotspot" right at the steps, just below the cutoff. That brighter region is gonna translate to more distance light, and since it's right at the cutoff on those bi-xenon projectors, when the shield flips down for the high-beams, they're gonna really be bright. To truly compare the superiority of the FX-R over the Mini D2S, one needs either more distance from the wall, or simply look at some road output shots.

50' shots:
FX-R Low Beam
http://s59.photobucket.com/albums/g297/jvxdriver/LensTest/Set2/DSC_1534h.jpg

Mini D2S Low Beam
http://s59.photobucket.com/albums/g297/jvxdriver/LensTest/Set2/DSC_4177h.jpg

FX-R High Beam
http://s59.photobucket.com/albums/g297/jvxdriver/LensTest/Set2/DSC_1536h.jpg

Mini D2S High Beam
http://s59.photobucket.com/albums/g297/jvxdriver/LensTest/Set2/DSC_4178h.jpg

Road Shots, the real decider:
FX-R Low
http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/k525/wetamup2011/4ae4089e.jpg

FX-R High
http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/k525/wetamup2011/d061c0a3.jpg

Mini D2S Low
http://i371.photobucket.com/albums/oo158/johnsenn03/2010%20Toyota%20FJ/P1040170.jpg

Mini D2S High
http://i371.photobucket.com/albums/oo158/johnsenn03/2010%20Toyota%20FJ/P1040171.jpg


FX-R's all day!

Edit: I don't think the exposures on the road shots are the same, those FX-R's are incredibly bright in those pics, and the D2S's are rather dim, but according to HIDP members, that's the case, misleading exposures or not!

[johnygezony]

LoL @ last pic ! those bulbs have some seating issues !

[wetamup2k3g]

LoL @ last pic ! those bulbs have some seating issues !

Yeah, something has to be up, those are the quickest shots of D2S's I could find, but they are too dim to be normal.

[oakrdrs187]

I did see the hotspots in the FXR's, and the pictures did throw me off. I did get it, but rather misleading without multiple shots like the ones you posted up Gregs. If and when I do a retro I'm going to go FXR's or not at all. LoL.

[carl3g]

I did see the hotspots in the FXR's, and the pictures did throw me off. I did get it, but rather misleading without multiple shots like the ones you posted up Gregs. If and when I do a retro I'm going to go FXR's or not at all. LoL.

Got mine in today. Woot

[hedonism]

I did see the hotspots in the FXR's, and the pictures did throw me off. I did get it, but rather misleading without multiple shots like the ones you posted up Gregs. If and when I do a retro I'm going to go FXR's or not at all. LoL.

Sorry for the crappy pictures in the thread. Best I could do, I didn't feel like driving after the work it took installing them.

I'll get some wall shots.. Eventually.

[hedonism]

Yeah, something has to be up, those are the quickest shots of D2S's I could find, but they are too dim to be normal.

Nono.. That's normal..