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High beams conversion?

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Old 05-13-08, 10:55 PM
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eyezack87
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Question High beams conversion?

I was sort of wondering if there was anyway we could put the high beams as our low beams. I was in the parking lot and was thinking that having 4 projectors at the same time would be pretty cool. Of course, I know that the highs would have to be adjusted, but is it possible to run both at the same time with little modification? Just an idea but with eyelids this would be pretty cool if someone were to pull it off...

(I don't use the high beams at all so might as well put them to good use )

Sorry if its a stupid question guys, I'm sorta in that sleepy mode where you feel drunk and I'm also in that mod bug mode

Cliffs:
-want all 4 projectors on the low beam harness if possible
-is it possible to aim the high beam down for safety reasons?
Old 05-13-08, 11:15 PM
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cliffud
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sounds like you'd have to retrofit some new low beams into your high beams...

ooooooooor - maybe some bixenon projectors like these in all 4 sockets?

Old 05-13-08, 11:47 PM
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tuan92129
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Quad HID lowbeams would look SICK -blinds-
Old 05-14-08, 09:38 AM
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BadViper22
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Originally Posted by tuan92129
Quad HID lowbeams would look SICK -blinds-
And a nice pair of eyelids would give you the sexiest pair of headlights in the world! Do it!!
Old 05-14-08, 02:23 PM
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eyezack87
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Haha, so I guess I'm the first to come up with an idea like this?

So I take it that the only way to make it run on the same circuit is by retrofitting the lows in...hmm, I guess I'll need to read up on retrofitting things haha. Guess this is my new Summer project. Too bad it isn't as easy as putting the high beams lower
Old 05-14-08, 04:35 PM
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rtk7
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with our headlights when you switch them to high beams they are all 4 on. you just cant notice it because your high's take over your low's so all you need to do is really.. aim your projectors down and run high's all day
am i correct?without retrofitting anything and just having 4 beams on at once that is
Old 05-14-08, 05:04 PM
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There is only one vertical adjustment that controls both high beam and low beam for each headlight assembly, so if you adjust your high beams down so you can leave them on all the the time without blinding oncoming traffic then your low beams would be aimed way too low.
Old 05-14-08, 09:09 PM
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swifty562
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I think bi-xenon will be the best route... i thought of this in the past but from the looks of the projector its too big, i could be wrong.

also, note that no matter how low u put the high beam it will still blind people. the projector is totally different from the low beam and its made to project all around and the beam pattern is totally different from the low beam.
Old 05-14-08, 09:18 PM
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EGainer
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Do not waste your money trying that. I played with my headlights so much on that car, I could melt them and take them apart in less than 5 minutes. HID projector retrofit is the best way to go, leave your high beams for what they are, high beams. I have Bi-xenon adaptive headlighting in my audi, so I'm spoiled, but in my Lexus I had HIDs in my stock halogen projectors. The cutoff was very clean, and it worked plenty well for what I was doing. If you want the best vision, you need to get retrofit projectors. Second best, HIDs in your halogen projectors.

Remember, whatever you do, you still have to deal with the foggy front plastic of the decade old headlights, which is why I say don't spend so much money and time trying to re-aim your brights.

After someone hit my car, I had one of the headlights replaced. It was crystal clear and looked awesome, but the headlight cost over $500 (which is nothing compared to headlights now)

Pics of new headlight vs. old

these are pics of my car before I sold it in 03, after lots of time polishing the old headlight trying to get it as clear as possible




Last edited by EGainer; 05-14-08 at 09:21 PM.
Old 05-14-08, 10:07 PM
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swifty562
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Egainer.... wow u spent 500 on 1 piece of head light o.O!!!!

thats a rip off buddy.


besides that, your passenger side head light can be restore with maguire plastic X.

with some elbo grease u can't go wrong!
Old 05-14-08, 10:21 PM
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eyezack87
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Wow, thanks for the info EGainer. I guess it really depends on if I want to spend the money or not into the HID projector retrofits then

Well, I'm not even sure how long I will keep the car so I guess Cliff has a customer then. Guess I should read up on baking and cleaning the projectors since they are quite cloudy right now.

Its odd to see the old vs new pictures though. I could accomplish the same clarity of the new with just my PC and some light polish . Of course, the dust makes the chrome not stand out as much but its still clear nonetheless.

Thank you guys for the tips. I hope this idea surfaces in the future for some other person hoping to mod their ES to the extreme, but I must pass due to the costs and materials needed to retrofit. Who knows, if I keep the ES past graduation from college I'll consider it again, but for now, cost is everything
Old 05-14-08, 11:22 PM
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tuan92129
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Originally Posted by swifty562
Egainer.... wow u spent 500 on 1 piece of head light o.O!!!!

thats a rip off buddy.


besides that, your passenger side head light can be restore with maguire plastic X.

with some elbo grease u can't go wrong!
The plastic X does clear surface oxidation from UV damage, but the lens itself is always going to be degraded from age and UV exposure.
The inside of the housing is also dirty from condensation (even though you can't see it, the rear ventilation holes let in dust and moisture)
The other down side is that you are using twice as much power for the quag beam....and its not even needed if you put HID fogs in, or retrofit the low beam.
A better idea is to do a low beam bi-xenon projector retro. Then get rid of the high beam bulb, and put in a cluster of high wattage leds to match the bi-xenon low beam.
Old 05-15-08, 06:22 AM
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EGainer
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The entire headlight was over 500. Including projectors and all. I didn't pay for it, I saw the printout that the other driver's insurance was covering. I wanted them to go for another headlight because they wouldn't match... but that wasn't going to happen.

I melted mine, tried all kinds of polishing compounds, scratch removers, plastic restorers. Couldn't ever get it to look as good as the brand new headlight.
Old 05-15-08, 01:47 PM
  #14  
3000
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Originally Posted by tuan92129
Quad HID lowbeams would look SICK -blinds-
How about bixenon, and 4 fogs! Turn the old high beams into fogs. Have yellow fogs on top and white on bottom... Or any other way.
Anyways check out the fog light kit on this autocouture LS
http://www.auto-couture.com/lexus/usf40_pg/index.html

Last edited by 3000; 05-15-08 at 02:03 PM.
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