99 Explorer Projector headlights

[vroomzoomboom]

keep it civil guys.....

depends on which ones you want....


I have a FX-R kit going in my car and for now I'll be running morimoto 5000K's, but once I can afford it I'm going to switch to Osram 66240 CBI bulbs. They are the newest and hottest bulb on the market, more lumens then a 4300K bulb with 5000K output

They are pretty expensive though lol

i went to the 6000K because i knew that there would be a blueish tint to the projectors all ready, and i also knew i would loose out on output with the higher K lights. i know if i were to get new d2's there are something like $125 a bulb
also if i am not wrong however the aftermarket bulbs do not last as long as the oem's and the way i built the lights, its a pita to change them to.

 

[00meangreenXLT]

Well since you guys are talking about projectors, here's my MH1's...5000k 35w

low beams w/ halogen foglights

during the day

they were still warming up in this picture, which is why they look pretty blue

 

[celly]

Well since you guys are talking about projectors, here's my MH1's...5000k 35w

low beams w/ halogen fog lights....]

Timely post. My stuff arrived today to do something similar to my truck.

 

[dreddog47]

Uh, almost, but not even close.

First off, I never said there weren't cars that come from the factory with clear lenses. Want to point out where I did say it? I only said there was a reason fresnel lenses were used on many projectors. Maybe I could have been more clear, but I didn't think anyone would really get wood over trying to tell me that clear lenses did not just magically appear out of nowhere. I had thought that the OEM Bosch projectors on an e46 used a fresnel lens, if I was incorrect, then that is my mistake.

Second off, reread my post before you try and lecture me. I said quite clearly that the reason for switching some OEM lamps to the smooth lenses from the fresnel lenses was to get that sharp colorful cutoff.

Lastly, don't presume to lecture me on optics. A smooth lens will gain VERY little increase in raw lumen ouput, except in certain areas of the beam. Fresnel lenses are not ONLY intended to soften the cutoff to make it easier on the eye, they are also used to diminish the hotspot in the center of the beam pattern by scattering some of the light.

You said

but there was actually a reason smooth lenses weren't used in the first place

Which sounds like, theres a reason OEM's didn't use clear lenses in the first place, not, theres a reason why some projectors have clear lenses and some dont

Secondly, Bosch E46's do use a fresnel lens, ZKW E46's use a clear lens. They also have a plastic bowl which is infamous for burning the chrome off, so many people take the ZKW lens and put them on bosch e46's, because the bosch E46 has a metal bowl


Also, if you reread MY post, I never claimed that clear lenses give a million lumen increase, but apparently you don't know what the word "slight" means...









This thread is going to explode like an under inflated firestone wilderness A/T :roll:

 

[dreddog47]

keep it civil guys.....



i went to the 6000K because i knew that there would be a blueish tint to the projectors all ready, and i also knew i would loose out on output with the higher K lights. i know if i were to get new d2's there are something like $125 a bulb
also if i am not wrong however the aftermarket bulbs do not last as long as the oem's and the way i built the lights, its a pita to change them to.

6000K's are as high as you can go before you are dimmer then a halogen bulb...

And yes aftermarket bulbs don't last as long as OEM's due to the fact they don't have alot of salts inside the capsule...

If you want a good replacement look at the morimoto D2S bulbs... They are not philips or osram quality but they are close, and beat the hell out of any DDM, Xentec, VVME bulbs out there...

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/product_info.php?products_id=1250

You could also use a D2H if space is an issue
http://www.theretrofitsource.com/product_info.php?products_id=4126

Or theres the new D4S bulbs...

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/product_info.php?products_id=3180

 

[vroomzoomboom]

hey thanks! thats the other problem out there. new HID suppliers are popping up like a bad rash so you dont know who is good and who isnt. are those a pair, or per bulb, it doesn't say. btw, space is good, its just the....um....way i had to seal everything up. not proud of it, not saying either lol.

 

[FIND]

You said


Which sounds like, theres a reason OEM's didn't use clear lenses in the first place, not, theres a reason why some projectors have clear lenses and some dont

Secondly, Bosch E46's do use a fresnel lens, ZKW E46's use a clear lens. They also have a plastic bowl which is infamous for burning the chrome off, so many people take the ZKW lens and put them on bosch e46's, because the bosch E46 has a metal bowl


Also, if you reread MY post, I never claimed that clear lenses give a million lumen increase, but apparently you don't know what the word "slight" means...

This thread is going to explode like an under inflated firestone wilderness A/T :roll:

So, in other words, you decided that for whatever reason, you should lecture me because of something completely unrelated to what I said, and you were making assumptions based on taking things I said out of context to back up what you were saying, THEN, after lecturing me on what was a minor issue that I did not include due to the fact that I thought it was unnecessary, you feel that I am being unfair to you for pointing out that you misspoke about the difference in light output between a fresnel and optically clear lens by attempting some type of ad absurdem.

Jeez.... go have a beer and chill out.... If you want to call someone out on something, call them out on being wrong about something, not because you have penis envy or whatever the heck is driving you to launch such angry posts because I failed to write a three page post about the history of lenses and optics.

 

[celly]

Oh, the drama.

 

[vroomzoomboom]

keep it civil guys.....

Oh, the drama.

yeep. come one guys. its headlights we are talking about, not hockey. everyone has a opinion, and it can be voiced. if it makes you all feel better i had my newest neighbor call my truck a pile of **** the other day, and just brushed him off.

 

[00meangreenXLT]

yeep. come one guys. its headlights we are talking about, not hockey. everyone has a opinion, and it can be voiced. if it makes you all feel better i had my newest neighbor call my truck a pile of **** the other day, and just brushed him off.

called your truck a pile of ****?!?!? WTF what an @sshole! I saw ur truck at Carlise w/ Dreddog47 and it is most definetly not a pile of ****...

 

[TekMan05]

yeep. come one guys. its headlights we are talking about, not hockey. everyone has a opinion, and it can be voiced. if it makes you all feel better i had my newest neighbor call my truck a pile of **** the other day, and just brushed him off.

Same with me. And you do the right thing by ignoring it. It really back fires on folks when you do that. Jealousy, hating, and just flat out no-brain insults are some of the biggest forms of flattery. Gotta take the bad with the good sometimes.

 

[celly]

yeep. come one guys. its headlights we are talking about, not hockey.

We can always start a riot! Any Vancouver area peeps care to show us how it's done? :

i had my newest neighbor call my truck a pile of **** the other day.

Your neighbour is a moron.

called your truck a pile of ****?!?!? WTF what an @sshole! I saw ur truck at Carlise w/ Dreddog47 and it is most definetly not a pile of ****...

I figured you were Dreddog47/offroadkarter's buddy. He used your retrofit example as motivation for me to take advantage of the group guy and get some components to do the same. All the goods are sitting behind me right now in my office.

Now I've just got to get the motivation to do the work. Too bad Jersey is so far. I'd love to learn in person from those who have done the trick. I've been known to drive long distances to get some assistance (had my TMH installed in Kansas two summers ago).

Your truck looks good with them. The whole 2nd gen/retrofit look has grown on me.

(There you go Tim....I said it.

 

[dreddog47]

hey thanks! thats the other problem out there. new HID suppliers are popping up like a bad rash so you dont know who is good and who isnt. are those a pair, or per bulb, it doesn't say. btw, space is good, its just the....um....way i had to seal everything up. not proud of it, not saying either lol.

And the bigger problem is, most of these different companies get all the junk from the same few factories.

And yes, thats for a pair of bulbs, I know OEM's usually sell them per bulb.

here is a shot of one of my morimoto 5000K D2S' in one of my new FX-R's

So, in other words, you decided that for whatever reason, you should lecture me because of something completely unrelated to what I said, and you were making assumptions based on taking things I said out of context to back up what you were saying, THEN, after lecturing me on what was a minor issue that I did not include due to the fact that I thought it was unnecessary, you feel that I am being unfair to you for pointing out that you misspoke about the difference in light output between a fresnel and optically clear lens by attempting some type of ad absurdem.

Jeez.... go have a beer and chill out.... If you want to call someone out on something, call them out on being wrong about something, not because you have penis envy or whatever the heck is driving you to launch such angry posts because I failed to write a three page post about the history of lenses and optics.

lets agree to disagree, this threads about to snap like a SOHC timing chain

 

[vroomzoomboom]

Too bad Jersey is so far. I'd love to learn in person from those who have done the trick. I've been known to drive long distances to get some assistance.

Ha, i drive 27 hours for a car show! lol

guess i should post up picks of mine.

low beam

high beam

 

[GuardianSport]

I'm rather close to the wall here but it's the best I have at the moment.

 

[00meangreenXLT]

I figured you were Dreddog47/offroadkarter's buddy. He used your retrofit example as motivation for me to take advantage of the group guy and get some components to do the same. All the goods are sitting behind me right now in my office.

Now I've just got to get the motivation to do the work. Too bad Jersey is so far. I'd love to learn in person from those who have done the trick. I've been known to drive long distances to get some assistance (had my TMH installed in Kansas two summers ago).

Your truck looks good with them. The whole 2nd gen/retrofit look has grown on me.

(There you go Tim....I said it.

Lol yeah he showed me your thread on HID planet...which projectors did u end up going with?? The MH1's were really super easy to put in because they don't require any cutting on the housing or anything they pretty much just go right in

Oh and BTW Celly, I am EXTREMELY jealous of your Explorer V8 intake badge and your whole engine bay in general lol

 

[celly]

Lol yeah he showed me your thread on HID planet...which projectors did u end up going with?? The MH1's were really super easy to put in because they don't require any cutting on the housing or anything they pretty much just go right in

Oh and BTW Celly, I am EXTREMELY jealous of your Explorer V8 intake badge and your whole engine bay in general lol

I think I ended up with what you've got. That's was Dreddog recommended for me anyhow and he based that on your install.

I like the virtual "plug and play" aspect to doing this. The headlights don't seem to have much room to work with so getting some huge honkin' projector and cutting the headlights all the hell seemed like massive overkill to me and a real hassle. I like the compact nature of the MH1s and I'm told the performance is excellent. I already have several H1 HID capsules in reserve so I felt it was a no-brainer to go this route.

I don't really "mind" my current setup in the slightest. WAY better than stock and so much better than just slapping a HID kit in reflector housings. Talk about glare (been there, done that before I got my current lights). My headlights have seen better days. I screwed them up a bit during initial install, but otherwise they've held up quite well.

That's why I'll take my time doing the install. I scored some new "Diamond Cut" headlights and corners, in addition to the stuff from the group buy. I was going to get a new set of one piece projector lights before Dreddog put the idea in my head.

Thanks for the comments on the engine bay. Couldn't have done it without mod extraordinaire, "Turdle". He did it for me while I was down there in Kansas two summers ago. Also got the headers and a UI spacer installed while there too (and some upgraded hoot struts). Good times.

The "Explorer V8" badge I think was only available in '96. Sort of hard to come by. I've scored two via eBay in the past. I had my second one sent to Jon (Turdle) and obviously he weaved his magic with that too.

I may need to pick your brain once or twice to do the retrofit. How much time did it take you in total, from start to finish. Any general pointers? I'm hoping to do the deed before a long road trip planned at Christmas (Calgary->Milwaukee area and back). How do you like your setup? I went with 4300K (as I always do when I go HID). I did the "faux Philips" upgrade from TRS.

Cheers,

Brad

 

[TekMan05]

Hey, anyone know how to fit HIDs in the fog lamp housings?

 

[celly]

Hey, anyone know how to fit HIDs in the fog lamp housings?

I researched this a while back before I decided against it. I personally feel it's overkill, and there are glare concerns, but to each his own.

I seem to recall that you'll need to remove the OEM sockets, and find a way to seat the HID capsules in the housings, and then seal them up with silicone etc. Obviously they won't work directly with the standard OEM hardware/sockets. Simply no room in there to slide HID capsules in with the sockets in place.

Others have done it. Any luck in the archives?

 

[dreddog47]

Hey, anyone know how to fit HIDs in the fog lamp housings?

theres two ways to do it... But keep in mind they will glare like a mo fo

One is to take the stock 9145 bulb holder, cut the plug off, stick a H1 HID bulb in and silicone it in place


The other is to get a H10 or 9006 bulb, dremel down one of the tabs, and lock it in just like the stock 9145/h1 setup