cryptiq
Member
- Joined
- May 20, 2011
- Messages
- 48
- Reaction score
- 0
- City, State
- Florida
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- '11 XLT
========== THREAD OBJECTIVES ==========
1) Identify which aftermarket kits are being used, price paid, where ordered from, and overall satisfaction including pros/cons.
2) Install summary. Please report difficulty and overall time to install. Discuss if any permanent modifications are required.
3) Before/after photos.
I realize there are a lot of anti-HID critics out there. Your concerns are certainly warranted but I respectfully ask that you keep the flaming in another thread as it would be off topic for the purposes of this thread. Believe you me, I have much disgust for those that put aftermarket HID kits in cars with reflector headlight housings as this certainly results in obnoxious glare and hotspots to oncoming drivers. That said, my hope is the projection beam design of the new Explorer headlights somewhat alleviates this issue. I say somewhat because after some research I understand that depending on the orientation of where the HID arc of light is created vs. where the filament on the original halogen bulb is located, you can still potentially wind up with a less than desirable beam pattern. I do plan to take careful consideration of this in my review and try to provide photos/videos to illustrate this concern. On that note, if there are other concerns I should consider when doing the review, please PM me so i can take it into account and keep this thread on topic.
========== BACKGROUND INFORMATION ==========
Not familiar with HIR bulbs? Read this: http://hirheadlights.com/
In a nutshell, headlight bulbs have 2 characteristics that matter when you're driving, lumens and color temperature.
Lumens are used to characterize how bright a bulb is, it's a measurement of the total amount of visible light emitted from some source.
Color temperature is used to characterize the color of light produced by a bulb. Most people describe the light from halogen bulbs as yellowish. OEM HID light kits produce a white light for the driver, but may appear bluish to oncoming drivers because of the focal properties of the projection lens and the arc of light produced in the HID bulb. Japanese cars driven by 16-25 yr old males with after market light kits produce a blue or purple light.
You can expand this discussion to talk about beam patterns and other factors, but since the thread is meant to discuss bulb upgrades, lumens and color temp are the most relevant items.
1) Identify which aftermarket kits are being used, price paid, where ordered from, and overall satisfaction including pros/cons.
2) Install summary. Please report difficulty and overall time to install. Discuss if any permanent modifications are required.
3) Before/after photos.
I realize there are a lot of anti-HID critics out there. Your concerns are certainly warranted but I respectfully ask that you keep the flaming in another thread as it would be off topic for the purposes of this thread. Believe you me, I have much disgust for those that put aftermarket HID kits in cars with reflector headlight housings as this certainly results in obnoxious glare and hotspots to oncoming drivers. That said, my hope is the projection beam design of the new Explorer headlights somewhat alleviates this issue. I say somewhat because after some research I understand that depending on the orientation of where the HID arc of light is created vs. where the filament on the original halogen bulb is located, you can still potentially wind up with a less than desirable beam pattern. I do plan to take careful consideration of this in my review and try to provide photos/videos to illustrate this concern. On that note, if there are other concerns I should consider when doing the review, please PM me so i can take it into account and keep this thread on topic.
========== BACKGROUND INFORMATION ==========
Not familiar with HIR bulbs? Read this: http://hirheadlights.com/
In a nutshell, headlight bulbs have 2 characteristics that matter when you're driving, lumens and color temperature.
Lumens are used to characterize how bright a bulb is, it's a measurement of the total amount of visible light emitted from some source.
Lumen Comparison
Halogen: 1700 lumens or about 55% as bright as HIDs.
HIR: 2500 lumens or about 80% as bright as HIDs, about 45% brighter than halogen.
HID: 2800 - 3500 lumens about 25% brighter than HIR.
Halogen: 1700 lumens or about 55% as bright as HIDs.
HIR: 2500 lumens or about 80% as bright as HIDs, about 45% brighter than halogen.
HID: 2800 - 3500 lumens about 25% brighter than HIR.
Color temperature is used to characterize the color of light produced by a bulb. Most people describe the light from halogen bulbs as yellowish. OEM HID light kits produce a white light for the driver, but may appear bluish to oncoming drivers because of the focal properties of the projection lens and the arc of light produced in the HID bulb. Japanese cars driven by 16-25 yr old males with after market light kits produce a blue or purple light.
Color Temp Comparison
Halogen: 3250K warm yellow light.
HIR: 3600K whiter light than halogen, but still a warm yellow.
OEM HID: 4300k white light approaching natural sunlight. Ideal for driving.
8000K - 12000K Aftermarket HID Kits: 8000K - 12000K color temps will appear blue, purple, pink. These colors are achieved by tinting the HID bulb. Any time you tint a bulb, you're blocking some of the light produced by the bulb and decreasing the amount of lumens the bulb is capable of. Ideal for impressing other 16-25 yr old males with Japanese cars.
Halogen: 3250K warm yellow light.
HIR: 3600K whiter light than halogen, but still a warm yellow.
OEM HID: 4300k white light approaching natural sunlight. Ideal for driving.
8000K - 12000K Aftermarket HID Kits: 8000K - 12000K color temps will appear blue, purple, pink. These colors are achieved by tinting the HID bulb. Any time you tint a bulb, you're blocking some of the light produced by the bulb and decreasing the amount of lumens the bulb is capable of. Ideal for impressing other 16-25 yr old males with Japanese cars.
You can expand this discussion to talk about beam patterns and other factors, but since the thread is meant to discuss bulb upgrades, lumens and color temp are the most relevant items.