Which HID Kit

gsobol · 12-13-07, 05:55 PM

I saw couple of posts for different HID kits, and I was wandering what are the opinions about them. I have narrowed down my selection to Genesis and Mcculloch, as they appear to be plug-n-pray

. I have also found a disturbing post, that not all HID kits will work well with the Lexus computers, plugs, sockets (???). Just trying to learn from others that have taken the (sometimes very painfull, frustrating and expensive

) leap.

The G Man · 12-14-07, 06:27 AM

The safeest bet for a PNP system are Mcculloch and Phillips kit. Many have use them on the GX and had no problems years down the line. I had both, and find the Phillips HID bulbs much brighter. The Philips ballast usually last longer.

19psi · 12-14-07, 06:55 AM

i actually have both a phillips and mcculloch kit. i bought the phillips kit in 1998 when aftermarket hid first came out, $800! i still have that kit which is now in my jeep. i had one ballast go bad about 5 years ago. luckily they are factory style ballasts and i happened to have picked up an extra from a car at work so i was able to replace it for nothing. aside from that, they work great.
my mcculloch kit, i bought in early 2004 for my galant vr4. worked great. sold the car a year ago, swapped it over to my LS. still works perfectly. no problems.
i also have another kit, a cheap chinese kit off ebay, cost $75 shipped. i have it in my WRX, had it for a year, works perfectly, no problems and actually the brightest of the three.

The G Man · 12-14-07, 07:34 AM

19psi, were all three kits 6000K? From my experience, 4300K is the brighest.

19psi · 12-14-07, 08:08 AM

the only 6000k was the mcculloch. the wrx with ebay cheapos and the jeep with phillips oe parts are 4300.

The G Man · 12-14-07, 09:10 AM

You cant really compare a 6000K kit to a 4300K as far as brightness is concerned. The 6000K claims to have 15% less lumen output than the 4300K on paper, but in real life situation, its more than 15%. The 6000K is almost useless in rainy situations. As far as the Philips kit is concern, you said they were 5 years old, therefore the output of that bulb is down to about 70% of what it use to be.
I thought about those $75 kits on ebay, but I was worry about putting a $75 kit on a $50000 truck.

gsobol · 12-14-07, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The G Man

You cant really compare a 6000K kit to a 4300K as far as brightness is concerned. The 6000K claims to have 15% less lumen output than the 4300K on paper, but in real life situation, its more than 15%. The 6000K is almost useless in rainy situations.

Doesn't 4300K yellow over time? How about 5000K instead of 6000K?

The G Man · 12-14-07, 11:35 AM

Actually, when a 4300K HID bulb gets to about 100 to 250 hours, depending on manufacturer, it will get whiter. Its call color shifting, try to google it. I had the 5000K before I change them to the 4300K. The 5000K was no brighter than my stock halogen in the rain. One reason why the 5000K or the 6000K does not color shift as much as the 4300K is that they are tinted. The problem with tint is that it takes away Lumens.
It really depends what you are looking for in a HID kit, performance or the wow factor. Most kids who like to rice up their car with 8000K or 10000L bulbs really dont have any concerned about light output. I bought the HID kit because I am getting older and I have a hard time seeing at night. The 4300K really made a big diff. when driving at night. Shame on Lexus for not putting HID in the GX from the factory.

gsobol · 12-14-07, 11:43 AM

Definitely interested in light output and penetration more than wow factor. My eyes are not what they used to be and even with the Sylvania's bulbs I'm having a hard time seeing at night and during adverse weather.

Also, how about the 3000K for the fog lights. Would that provide for a better penetration during foggy conditions? Again, don't care for the looks, just performance.

The G Man · 12-14-07, 11:50 AM

If light output is what you are after, I would get the philips 4300K kit. Maybe get some silverstar ultra or Hoen for the fogs. I have never try 3000K HID on the fog, I believe a few people here have try it.
I had some aftermarket yellow fog on my last car. They are ok, we dont get that much fog around here.

19psi · 12-14-07, 11:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The G Man

You cant really compare a 6000K kit to a 4300K as far as brightness is concerned. The 6000K claims to have 15% less lumen output than the 4300K on paper, but in real life situation, its more than 15%. The 6000K is almost useless in rainy situations. As far as the Philips kit is concern, you said they were 5 years old, therefore the output of that bulb is down to about 70% of what it use to be.
I thought about those $75 kits on ebay, but I was worry about putting a $75 kit on a $50000 truck.

i think you're right about the 6000k bulbs. however, my phillips kit has new bulbs, as i've had that kit in several cars and they all required different bulb styles. i had to buy new bulbs each time, so they aren't that old.
i just ordered 2 more of the $75 kits for some other cars i have. we'll see how they work.

19psi · 12-14-07, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gsobol

Definitely interested in light output and penetration more than wow factor. My eyes are not what they used to be and even with the Sylvania's bulbs I'm having a hard time seeing at night and during adverse weather.

Also, how about the 3000K for the fog lights. Would that provide for a better penetration during foggy conditions? Again, don't care for the looks, just performance.

i'm sure that the output will be greater, as with HID in general, aside from the crazy colors. i'm puttting some 3000k in my stock fogs soon.

gsobol · 12-14-07, 01:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 19psi

i'm sure that the output will be greater, as with HID in general, aside from the crazy colors. i'm puttting some 3000k in my stock fogs soon.

I would be really interested to know if you see a marked difference in penetration/visibility, or are they just bouncing off the fog and whitening out.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The G Man

Maybe get some silverstar ultra or Hoen for the fogs.

I have the silverstars on right now, but they are white and that does not help much in the fog. I use them all the time right now as they light up the road right in front of the truck, but I think that with the HIDs in the main headlights, I wouldn't need to use them while driving everyday. So, by putting in the yellow 3000K HIDs in the fogs, they would be exclusively for when I would need them in the fog/rain. Providing they work like a good quality fog lights. I read somewhere that good fog lights is not only the yellow light, it's also the way the glass is cut and the reflector is shaped. I'm just wondering if our fog lights on the GX are really true fog lights, and if the addition of HIDs would really make a difference.

The G Man · 12-14-07, 03:07 PM

Some PIAA fog lights are white.

directfml · 12-14-07, 04:24 PM

I installed the phillips kit in my old car and helped a few friends with different kits over the years. From personal experience, I would go with Xenondepot. Very Very well made kits and better light output that other HID bulbs and kits I have seen. Plug and play in every way possible!!!

http://xenondepot.com/product.php?product_id=55

Email Steve @ info@xenondepot.com if you have ANY questions.

I went with the 6500k and the light output is honestly about 3 times better than sylvania halogens.

Let me know if you have anymore questions.