Yet another HID experiment

[bmwhd]

Some install pics:

The Boot meets The Bulb:

You have to take the bulb apart to get the boot on:

Two small cuts in the lip of the inner boot allow the servo cap to fit perfectly:

Zip tie the boot folded back for installation:

Left side in place (the "easy" one). The right bulb is a right bitch to latch in place but it can be done:

The control pot zipped to the steering stem fairing support bracket:

Tonight we test the beam pattern!

The ballasts. I hated to give up the glove box so I left enough wire slack so the ballast can be lifted out to access the 12v port:

 

[ponyfool]

I'm getting goose bumps waiting to see how these run! $129, hell even $175 is something I can part with for sumpin' like this!

 

[Grumpy]

I take it back......I couldn't see the shield with the cutout. The cutout and repositioning the arc tube underneath it should give you a great high beam. The shield with the arc tube under it is what makes the sharp cutoff on the low beam. The cover over the end doesn't do anything.

jim

 

[bmwhd]

OK, some pictures of the beam patterns. Note that the HID pics were taken before I adjusted the aim which sharpened them even further. The apparent spill across the top of the low beam is actually not nearly as pronounced in reality as it appears in this picture. The cutoff is actually nearly identical to the OEM bulb but it's so much brighter that it overwhelms my poor camera.

On the street (the real test) these things rock and I'm very happy with them.

OEM H4 Low Beam:

HID H4 Low Beam:

OEM H4 High Beam:

HID H4 High Beam:

Here's a short clip of the high/low switching in action.

 

[Grumpy]

Well, that sells me.....I just ordered my kit. Appreciate your good work.

jim

 

[Toecutter]

Nice!

Now, would you please ride to the fairgrounds in Sonora CA so we can get some definitive pics with your setup, as compared to mine, as well as Skyway's OEM lights and Soltek Fuego's?

Barring that, maybe one of my CA brothers will go forward with this install and get together with us for some night ops (& BBQ!).

Good man!!!! These are the ones I cannot understand people haven't used since the beginning. That shutter thing is the most moronic idea I had ever heard - no wonder it didn't work.

Perhaps if the original discussion about those was allowed to play out, we would have come to that conclusion in time to all buy this setup, instead of being cast into shuttered hell. I've been tweaking and farkling this farkle for months to try and make it work as it should have from the box.

BMWHD, after seeing the pictures I'll predict that they'll have great high beam performance, but you'll lose the sharp cutoff on low beams.

From the pics, it looks like Grumpy was right. There's a lot of light above that cutoff on the door. Have you had somebody evaluate it from an oncoming vehicle standpoint?

One more: Does the seller have these in 4300k?

 

[NightShine]

One more: Does the seller have these in 4300k?

Yep.

 

[bmwhd]

Nice!
Now, would you please ride to the fairgrounds in Sonora CA so we can get some definitive pics with your setup, as compared to mine, as well as Skyway's OEM lights and Soltek Fuego's?

Barring that, maybe one of my CA brothers will go forward with this install and get together with us for some night ops (& BBQ!).

Good man!!!! These are the ones I cannot understand people haven't used since the beginning. That shutter thing is the most moronic idea I had ever heard - no wonder it didn't work.

Perhaps if the original discussion about those was allowed to play out, we would have come to that conclusion in time to all buy this setup, instead of being cast into shuttered hell. I've been tweaking and farkling this farkle for months to try and make it work as it should have from the box.

BMWHD, after seeing the pictures I'll predict that they'll have great high beam performance, but you'll lose the sharp cutoff on low beams.

From the pics, it looks like Grumpy was right. There's a lot of light above that cutoff on the door. Have you had somebody evaluate it from an oncoming vehicle standpoint?

One more: Does the seller have these in 4300k?

Took another test ride tonight. While the low beam cutoff doesn't look as sharp against the door in that pic, they work very well in practice. In fact, if you look very closely at the OEM low beam picture above, you can see that same spill pattern above the cutoff, it's just very faint.

When driving, you can clearly see the cutoff of the beams on the road surface just like with the OEM bulbs. No cars flashed their lights at me or seemed bothered when I was coming up behind them. None of that reaching for the rear view mirror you often see if your headlights aren't aimed correctly.

These are the first 6000K HIDs I've owned after many 4300K units. I can't tell any practical difference in the color. They are very, very bright and a pure pleasure for night driving. I wanted to go just a touch more blue because my number 1 reason for doing HID conversions is daytime visibility to oncoming cages. Of course, they're not broke in yet. I find most HIDs "blue" a bit more after 10-15 hours of use.

 

[FJR-Richie]

Sweet - what's your assessment of the high beams on this setup, relative to stock?

 

[BugR]

Great job Todd

I'm sold, I ordered a 4300K set this morning.

Chris

 

[bmwhd]

Sweet - what's your assessment of the high beams on this setup, relative to stock?

You know, I'm sad to admit I've had relatively little experience with the stock high beams. Because my long trips now tend to be through deer infested areas, I've stopped riding a lot at night and I've very little need for the high beams during my daily commute. I think these HID highs are very good but I really need to do a side-by-side comparison with a stock FJR. I'll try to arrange that soon.

There is no doubt that the low beams are spot on and expose enough of the night time scene that you may not even need the highs :yahoo:

 

[Toecutter]

I think these HID highs are very good but I really need to do a side-by-side comparison with a stock FJR. I'll try to arrange that soon.

Come on out to Sonora. I'll buy the BBQ!

 

[Bounce]

I'm finally getting around to trying the H4 Bi-Xenon kits that I've used to great success in the past on my '06 FJR.

got a chance to see Todd's work yesterday. these bulbs "snap" into position when moving from high to low beam. i was under the impression that they kind of gently glided (which takes time to transfer). nope! these things flick between high and low without any noticable delay that i could see.

sweet!

 

[Toecutter]

these bulbs "snap" into position when moving from high to low beam. i was under the impression that they kind of gently glided (which takes time to transfer). nope! these things flick between high and low without any noticable delay that i could see.

Same for the shuttered version. My right one is still operational, and very useful for lighting my way through turns (when banking over brings the low beam cutoff real close) at night.

 

[bmwhd]

I think these HID highs are very good but I really need to do a side-by-side comparison with a stock FJR. I'll try to arrange that soon.

Come on out to Sonora. I'll buy the BBQ!

Wish I could make it! Used all my kitchen passes (home and work) to go to Big Bend last week. :glare:

I will try to setup a side by side with a stock FJR (and just for grins, a R1150RT and a R1200GS with HIDs) and snap some pics.

Any other HID equiped FJRs in the DFW area that want to get together to compare notes, let me know.

 

[TruWrecks]

Looking really good for the price. I'll have to look into that setup for mine. I find I use my high-beams a lot for riding in traffic. Idiots around here don't seam to see anything beyond their windshield. More :asshat: 's here then I've seen anywhere else.

 

[vol210]

Bit the bullet. One set on the way here

Jim

 

[Toecutter]

Bit the bullet. One set on the way here

Now I'm wondering on the possibility of an outside chance that these capsules will either plug & play, or be able to be modified to connect to my wiring harness.

Does anybody have some detailed pictures of the capsule unit connectors? I wouldn't want to mess around with the high voltage pieces, but the solenoid switching wires could be modified.

 

[vol210]

So you're talking about leaving your ballasts in, changing the bulbs, then just modifying the solenoid wiring to operate off a seperate relay from the Hi/Lo switch. Am I getting that right? From what I could see in the photographs it looked like the jack going to the bulb now goes to the ballast/ignitor/and a relay for solenoid actuation, but that's just guessing from the photos at this point. Todd may have the quick answer soon.

Jim

 

[bmwhd]

Bit the bullet. One set on the way here

Now I'm wondering on the possibility of an outside chance that these capsules will either plug & play, or be able to be modified to connect to my wiring harness.

Does anybody have some detailed pictures of the capsule unit connectors? I wouldn't want to mess around with the high voltage pieces, but the solenoid switching wires could be modified.

The high voltage leads to the bulbs look to be identical to many HID kits I've used in the past so using your ballasts might work.

The additional lead coming off the bulb you see in the picture at the start of this thread is the trigger for the solenoid. It should be possible to drive 12v to that (I'm assuming that's what the solenoid expects) directly off the high beam lead of the OEM headlight connector. Surely those solenoids don't draw more than the 60w those wires were designed for.

Having said that, I'm not sure that would be any easier than just installing the control module and wires that come with the kit.