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HID Headlight Conversion Kits-Your experience?

kantuckid

New member
I'm back to looking at the many HID kits out there for sale. As these are typically not specific to any model motorcycle, I'm posting here. Many kits come with adapters for various bulb bases. Some MC's like Harley & Goldwing there are bike specific kits but even though some are listed as such they are actually generic in fact.
My particular model is a G650GS which uses a 35w H4/9003 bulb.
There are fairly recent improvements in these kits from what I've read so far. Having researched the ebay feedbacks from many sellers there it is obvious that one must do some homework as many kits simply don't measure up. Prices are all over the place & many kits being sold are a partial of a car kit. Web Bike has a nice writeup on them from a BMW rider as did Paul Glaves awhile back in ON. There's also a recent kit install on the F650 Forum under modifications threads. many sellers are Asian & others are USA resellers of the same stuff-some having a phone,etc., others are not so informed from trying a few chats with various sellers.
It seems that not all of the higher price point sellers necessarily offer more for your buck. Some say they're German as if that's better stuff? Phillips bulbs cost $30 ea more than the Asian ones & have a double glass tube which is said to be better based on the UV glass used as preventing deterioration of the plastic HL lens? One seller I called (the OP's seller from the f650 forum) said it was the heat with no mention of UV but her Chinese accent(?) clouded the conversation. It was clear that she was not a tech as purported by the phone number.Some bulbs have a "bi" feature that allows them to tilt , thus the same bulb does HI & LO beam. Also a shade over the lens comes into play for LO. Some bulbs have a halogen inserted into the base for the HI beam & the LO is the xenon bulb. Ballasts come in various sizes, thus some are easier to place on a MC. Some are said to be more weather & vibration resistant for a MC or offroad use. Some have longer wire leads for MC's while the car versions cause you to splice the short leads on a MC install. Then you have all the bulb colors to choose from if your into "being cool". Warranties are all over the map & often an extra charge for over a year.
I did a search here but found not much & have done the google thing too-I would still like to see what others have experienced with the various kits out there?
 
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I've installed a bunch of them from different ebay vendors and reliability is uniformly bad. It's a tossup as to whether the ballast or bulb will fail first. Just buy cheap and buy a spare set because price has nothing at all to do with quality. The last H4 bi-xenon kit I put on a Honda CRV in the spring lasted 4 days before a ballast failed.
 
I've installed a bunch of them from different ebay vendors and reliability is uniformly bad. It's a tossup as to whether the ballast or bulb will fail first. Just buy cheap and buy a spare set because price has nothing at all to do with quality. The last H4 bi-xenon kit I put on a Honda CRV in the spring lasted 4 days before a ballast failed.

I had a kit installed in my sports car and one side failed after three uses.

So Tom, does that site mention any kits that are reliable?
 
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I put my first HID low beam on my 98K12RS in 2004 it die after 3yrs. The second HID was install in 2007 and it still going strong. I cant remember who I brought it from.(CRS:scratch) I better find some wood to knock on.


ROC
 
Try Pirates Lair

I got mine from Pirates Lair, pirateslair.net. The difference in lighting on my 03 K12rs for the low beam is amazing. There is some stray reflected light that actually enhances what I see from the bike. It does dazzle a bit but no one has ever flashed hi beams at me to dim my lights (that used to happen some when one of the motolights on the calipers had gotten moved so it pointed up a little.) The light on the bike is actually better than the HIDs on our old Volvo XC90. (they are mechanical Hi/lo and really fail in providing good light)

I also bought some from Pirates Lair and put them in another car. In that, one of the ballast was bad. Pirates Lair stood behind the product, sent me another set and asked that I return the extras then with the bad ballast. They have always been a true pleasure to work with.

As for visibility, A friend I used to ride with put HID in his R12GS. I was amazed at how little daytime visibility his bike then had on low beam. When behind me, it was like his low beam wasn't even on. It provided just enough down the road point of view lighting to make the light not look like a dark sport. As far as getting any attention, it didn't. Hi Beam on his GS did provide the needed light to get some attention.

NCS
 
The only SAFE way to upgrade to HID is to replace the housing too.


Yes Yes, many on here (and elsewhere) have done it and say it's just fine.

But HID bulbs run much hotter than Halogens (Lower wattage does not mean cooler. It's a different technology)

I have used complete lamps from the retrofit source and had good luck with them.
Here is one they sell for sportbikes.
http://www.theretrofitsource.com/product_info.php?products_id=927

My 2 cents which will probably get shouted down here.
 
No reputable lighting company makes these so this is a comparison of garage-based businesses selling a collection of parts that when installed as intended are illegal for highway use.
 
No reputable lighting company makes these so this is a comparison of garage-based businesses selling a collection of parts that when installed as intended are illegal for highway use.

So are we to believe that the factory installed Xenon HID lights on BMW motorcycles were made in a garage & are illegal on the highways in the USA ?.:scratch Both of my LT's have 35 watt low & high beam HID lights & they both just passed their annual state inspection again. .
 
I got these http://www.ebay.com/itm/281008218250?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649 which is what Jim von Badon showed in an install topic on Adventure Rider. There is a lot of info over there. I have a DDM 55W on the high beam and the ones above on low. The 55W DDM's on low worked except they would throw lampf! errors all the time. DO NOT buy lights from HIDSRUS. Long story but lost two ballasts and two lamps in the first year. Warranty is a total pain and customer service less than poor. If you run HID on high beam I recommend running LED's in the high beam circuit because they are instant on where HID's have a couple second delay. I have Denali Xtremes and the combination doesn't attract too many low beam flashes from oncoming cars and high beam is like running in daylight. Conversion is easy and all you have to do is carry one of your original bulbs as a spare if the HID fails.
 
Did you try a kit from www.kbcarstuff.com? Were any you tried said to be "German quality"?

I have their Polarions on my R1100S, hi and lo beam. In about 10 years/90,000 miles I have replaced absolutely.... nothing! Not a bulb, not a ballast, not a relay. Stone cold reliable, excellent quality, Phillips-based bulbs.. with superb light output. Can not recommend them highly enough.
 
Now days, most all these kits are cheap...some less than price of good Halogen bulb.

Most are simple plug and play...good that you can revert back to Halogen on the road if necessary...

Ballast...are tiny...you need that.. (have four ballast mounted, read on)

I have used these kits for years without issue...cheap enough to keep a spare....

On my 1200GSA, have converted both the High and Low beam, also converted the stock fog/running lights, just need the kit with L shape HID bulb...

And converted my Motolights to LED as well... LEDs will soon be the ticket on all your lighting.....

Road test: had 80,000 on last set on a GSA... in all types of roads... even the Haul Road ....so got the mud and water plus shake test too...(of course you don't need all that light in Alaska :))

Hope this helps...
 
So are we to believe that the factory installed Xenon HID lights on BMW motorcycles were made in a garage & are illegal on the highways in the USA ?.:scratch Both of my LT's have 35 watt low & high beam HID lights & they both just passed their annual state inspection again. .

My thread is about kits not "your lights" which are OEM & have approvals from the guvment-my sav has them too.
 
My thread is about kits not "your lights" which are OEM & have approvals from the guvment-my sav has them too.

My HID lights are not factory installed. I bought the kits & installed them a long time ago. It was so long ago I don't remember the name of the company that I got them from. They were around $35 per kit. My 2004 LT has had the same HID kits for about 120,000 miles now & my 2000 LT has about 30,000 miles with the same kits.
 
Thanks for the clarification! I was just reading comments on the "Candlepower" website r.e., how some have experienced lens & or reflector degradation of lights from the heat/UV from HID kits. Seems to be a guess on the part of some which was the culprit.
 
Thanks for the clarification! I was just reading comments on the "Candlepower" website r.e., how some have experienced lens & or reflector degradation of lights from the heat/UV from HID kits. Seems to be a guess on the part of some which was the culprit.
The kits are offered in 35 & 55 watts. I have always used the 35 watt kits with no lens problems. During daylight hours I always run both the low & high beams which on my 2004 LT would be around 100,000 miles with no problems at all. It is important to have a good solid ground. A weak ground can cause the ballast to fail prematurely.
 
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