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HID lights

ZING

Member
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April 15, 2009
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City, State
Raleigh, North Carolina
Year, Model & Trim Level
'97 Sport
im wanting to put HID lights on my explorer. do i have to get a conversion kit or just get the bulbs? whats the best way to do it?
 



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in order to have hid's you must have an ignitor to light the the ballist.

there are plenty of good sites out there that will provide everything you need to have hid's for under $75
 






http://ddmtuning.com/
Is well known on the forum and is often suggested, I'm running 3 sets of their HIDs now.
Great prices too, I've never seen anywhere else for a lower price and such quality.
 






http://ddmtuning.com/
Is well known on the forum and is often suggested, I'm running 3 sets of their HIDs now.
Great prices too, I've never seen anywhere else for a lower price and such quality.

Lifetime warranty and quality products. I have 6 sets of their HIDS in my offroad lights and in my headlights. No complaints and very quality product.
 






i know it sounds cheap but i got mine off of ebay. some brand called xentek... came with slim ballasts and the bulbs. 60 bucks shipped. pretty simple install. just be careful! but to answer your question yes you do need the whole kit not the bulbs.
 






i know it sounds cheap but i got mine off of ebay. some brand called xentek... came with slim ballasts and the bulbs. 60 bucks shipped. pretty simple install. just be careful! but to answer your question yes you do need the whole kit not the bulbs.

The DDm kits are only 45 for a 35W kit and 55 for the 55W kit which is significantly brighter than the 35W. Shipped to your door its 65 bucks and they're not cheaper ebay kits. Lifetime!
 






You cannot get much cheaper than DDM for the product. Just installed a 35w kit in my Mustang....seems like very quality equipment for $45 I just hope the ballasts last.
 






ha very true. but dude believe it or not the ebays actually have a very good quality! great output, the wiring is all covered by almost like a heat wrap sort of thing for protection against whatever! great quality but thats just coming from one person. if more than one person is recommending this hid kit from this website and say they have great quality, get that particular one due to its popularity. hope all this helped!
 






You cannot get much cheaper than DDM for the product. Just installed a 35w kit in my Mustang....seems like very quality equipment for $45 I just hope the ballasts last.

The ballasts last and if not they are life time warranted so no worries. They last off road just fine Im sure theyll last forever in a street car, lol
 






http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/Apexcone-Raptor-HID-Kit

Just wondering how complete these kits are, I see there are a few add ons for them, are those necessary?

What are your recomendations for bulb color?

Do they plug into the factory harness or is there some wiring that needs to be done?

For the price of the kit its cheaper then buying two new regular headlamps...
 






http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/Apexcone-Raptor-HID-Kit

Just wondering how complete these kits are, I see there are a few add ons for them, are those necessary?

What are your recomendations for bulb color?

Do they plug into the factory harness or is there some wiring that needs to be done?

For the price of the kit its cheaper then buying two new regular headlamps...

The 35w kit just uses your stock headlight bulb wiring. It comes with prongs that you stick inside the stock bulb holder. I chose to use taps on the wiring instead.

The 55w kit comes with a relay harness.

I would recommend the DDM slim ballast kits, they are $35. Apexicone have larger ballasts and are only $5 cheaper.
 






its pretty simple as of install. i hate wiring, but be very careful just not to bend the wires or touch the bulbs. as of color the higher the number the bluer they color. my brother has 8k which is blue. i have 5k which is white like oem white. they should maybe have some kind of color scale that they have so maybe go have a look into that but its completely up to you what color you want.
 






Here's a shot of 5k DDM HIDs compared to Silverstars in the fog lights on my car:

hid4.jpg
 












Here are all 8 of my offroad lights converted using DDM 55w conversions. All 5000K. They have a color scale on their website. The 55w bulbs will wash the blue out a little more than the 35w kit. A 5000k 55w will be more white than a 35w 5000k

164790_1574352484273_1399387291_31340897_78722_n.jpg
 






Here are all 8 of my offroad lights converted using DDM 55w conversions. All 5000K. They have a color scale on their website. The 55w bulbs will wash the blue out a little more than the 35w kit. A 5000k 55w will be more white than a 35w 5000k

164790_1574352484273_1399387291_31340897_78722_n.jpg

Looks good.

Did you notice a huge difference going to HID's as far as distance down the trails or more shadows?

I've never been in a vehicle that had HID's so am unsure of the difference from the drivers seat.
 






Looks good.

Did you notice a huge difference going to HID's as far as distance down the trails or more shadows?

I've never been in a vehicle that had HID's so am unsure of the difference from the drivers seat.

I didn't have the roof lights before so I couldn't tell you with the roof but I had the three on the bumper and they're 200 percent brighter at least and the light is so white it makes a huge difference and better spread out front. Considering it took 15 minutes to do the modifications on the front lights and less that 100 bucks for the three Id say absolutely need to do!
 






I bet that puts quite a strain on your electrical system!
 






No. The 8 lights are on three switches and you dont fire them all at the same time. They run on less amps than halogen lights too. Plus with a 240 alternator it has no problem
 



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Xentec sucks! Bulbs are of extremely poor quality, I haven't had a problem with the ballasts though. I would recommend 5000k bulbs. They are so bright I can have them on in the middle of the day and actually see the light on the road. The higher the k rating, the bluer it gets which puts out less visible light. I used to run 10,000ks in my old 95 and in the rain, it was like driving with nothing on. It was hard enough to see on a clear night. Go with a more pricey, DIGITAL 35w kit and you'll be amazed at the difference. If your running them in stock housings, be sure to spend time precisely aiming them so you don't blind incoming traffic. Despite what others say, it can be done.
 






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