New '06 Explorer: What About HID Retrofit?

As many of you many know, I recently upgraded the headlamps on my '98 X to HID kits (Retro-solutions) and they have transformed my older X into a great night-driving machine.

Last weekend, my wife bought and took delivery on a '06 Explorer XLT. Well wouldn't you know it, the headlamp system leaves a lot to be desired.

So I studied the manual and looked up bulb types. It uses H13/9008 for the headlamps and 9145/H10 for the fogs.

I found a kit on Retro-solutions' store for the 9008 and even the 9145 bulbs.

Now here's my question: Is there anything electronically different about the light system on the '06 that would present issues with an HID upgrade? I'm asking about OBD-related and possibly DRL issues, mainly.

There is a shield in the lamp housing that looks like it sits really close to the bulb and I wonder if this will interfere with the top of a DS10 bulb from the HID kit. Anyone put HIDs in an '06 X?


Secondary question: possibly for next year, I may also upgrade the fog lights to HID. Now here's the issue with these... they turn off when using hi-beams and flash to pass. That doesn't go well with HID due to hot-restrike issues, although the Retro-solutions kit claims to have digital electronics that gracefully handle hot restrike without damage to the bulb.

What is involved in wiring that fog lamp system so it doesn't get interrupted with high beam useage? In fact, it makes a great fill light when high beams leave a dark area nearer the vehicle, so I'd definately want them on under those conditions.

So, anyone do a HID retrofit on their '06 yet?

 

[jafranci]

As many of you many know, I recently upgraded the headlamps on my '98 X to HID kits (Retro-solutions) and they have transformed my older X into a great night-driving machine.

Last weekend, my wife bought and took delivery on a '06 Explorer XLT. Well wouldn't you know it, the headlamp system leaves a lot to be desired.

So I studied the manual and looked up bulb types. It uses H13/9008 for the headlamps and 9145/H10 for the fogs.

I found a kit on Retro-solutions' store for the 9008 and even the 9145 bulbs.

Now here's my question: Is there anything electronically different about the light system on the '06 that would present issues with an HID upgrade? I'm asking about OBD-related and possibly DRL issues, mainly.

There is a shield in the lamp housing that looks like it sits really close to the bulb and I wonder if this will interfere with the top of a DS10 bulb from the HID kit. Anyone put HIDs in an '06 X?


Secondary question: possibly for next year, I may also upgrade the fog lights to HID. Now here's the issue with these... they turn off when using hi-beams and flash to pass. That doesn't go well with HID due to hot-restrike issues, although the Retro-solutions kit claims to have digital electronics that gracefully handle hot restrike without damage to the bulb.

What is involved in wiring that fog lamp system so it doesn't get interrupted with high beam useage? In fact, it makes a great fill light when high beams leave a dark area nearer the vehicle, so I'd definately want them on under those conditions.

So, anyone do a HID retrofit on their '06 yet?

I am going to be honest.... please forgive me.



I really dislike people putting in "HID conversion" kits that fit into stock housings. These cause glare and can blind on-comming traffic. I would prefer to use actual HID lights/housings. These can be mounted inside the OEM headlight housings, and then aimed correctly. This will not blind on-coming traffic.

I suppose, it would be ok to use the Conversion for off-road use only.

 

[mweiss]

No one has been able to point me to a ready-made HID housing for Explorers, so I had to roll my own conversion on the '98.

Realistically, I cannot drive the stock headlamps at night, especially in inclement weather. I can't see the curb, obstacles ahead, or if a deer is about to jump into the road ahead. I can't see side roads where I need to make a turn. I almost drove over a curb the other night in the new X because I could not tell where the side road was, the lights are so dim.

Frankly, I am familiar with the issues with the conversions, but I've tried all the wiring harnesses, 110W halogen bulbs and still didn't have enough light. I do a lot of long distance night driving in upstate NY and find it difficult to stay awake with the 'brown' light from the stock lamps. When I installed the HID kit last August in my '98 X, it was the fix I needed. Finally, I could see the road without getting a migrain after 20 minutes of driving and I no longer feel drowsy when driving 1 hour + road trips. Ironically, I don't get flashed as often as I did with the stock, factory-adjusted headlamps, either, so I believe the way I have them adjusted, they are more friendly to oncoming traffic than stock Ford headlamps, which are aimed way too high.

Anyway, back on topic, my question is whether the '06 has any electronic OBD-II related issues with a retrofit, or whether the computer will work the same with the HIDs. I have read that some vehicles have problems because of DRLs and OBD-II resistance readings for the missing halogen bulbs. Also, the '06 appears to have very tight clearance between bulb and low beam shield.

If anyone has experience retrofitting the '06, I'd like to hear your results. Thanks.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/e...0298747267&sspagename=STRK:MEWAX:IT&viewitem=

The above is the kit I'm about to buy..

 

[Bill Kemp]

I am going to be honest.... please forgive me.



I really dislike people putting in "HID conversion" kits that fit into stock housings. These cause glare and can blind on-comming traffic. I would prefer to use actual HID lights/housings. These can be mounted inside the OEM headlight housings, and then aimed correctly. This will not blind on-coming traffic.

I suppose, it would be ok to use the Conversion for off-road use only.

This topic (glare from conversions) has been discussed at length and your objections are now noted.

Since anyones opinions hold less weight than the person who is doing the conversion all that can be stressed is that the lights are AIMED in a correct fashion to reflect (no pun intended) the increased brightness of the HIDs.

 

[jafranci]

No one has been able to point me to a ready-made HID housing for Explorers, so I had to roll my own conversion on the '98.

Realistically, I cannot drive the stock headlamps at night, especially in inclement weather. I can't see the curb, obstacles ahead, or if a deer is about to jump into the road ahead. I can't see side roads where I need to make a turn. I almost drove over a curb the other night in the new X because I could not tell where the side road was, the lights are so dim.

Frankly, I am familiar with the issues with the conversions, but I've tried all the wiring harnesses, 110W halogen bulbs and still didn't have enough light. I do a lot of long distance night driving in upstate NY and find it difficult to stay awake with the 'brown' light from the stock lamps. When I installed the HID kit last August in my '98 X, it was the fix I needed. Finally, I could see the road without getting a migrain after 20 minutes of driving and I no longer feel drowsy when driving 1 hour + road trips. Ironically, I don't get flashed as often as I did with the stock, factory-adjusted headlamps, either, so I believe the way I have them adjusted, they are more friendly to oncoming traffic than stock Ford headlamps, which are aimed way too high.

Anyway, back on topic, my question is whether the '06 has any electronic OBD-II related issues with a retrofit, or whether the computer will work the same with the HIDs. I have read that some vehicles have problems because of DRLs and OBD-II resistance readings for the missing halogen bulbs. Also, the '06 appears to have very tight clearance between bulb and low beam shield.

If anyone has experience retrofitting the '06, I'd like to hear your results. Thanks.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/e...0298747267&sspagename=STRK:MEWAX:IT&viewitem=

The above is the kit I'm about to buy..

I havent found any ready-made HIDs for the explorer.. i have an 07 and i looked all over.

It would be more expensive, but you can buy a housing from lets say a BMW or another similar car.. then fit (cut, mount etc) the projector in the OEM stock headlights.. I think that'd be best. Anyone on this forum ever do that?

Anyways, yeah I dont think we have many options for the xplorer...

 

[mweiss]

As much as I like the projector modification, it is just too much of a project for me to take on at this time. For my old '98 X, I might have considered it, since I changed out the lamp housings, but my wife's not going to let me modify the light housings on her '06 X. So a non-destructive retrofit is the only option.

From what I can tell, it appears that the '06 reflectors produce a cleaner beam pattern than the diamond cut housings I bought for the '98. I am looking forward to the performance of HID bulbs in these housings.

The retro-solutions folks got back to me and mentioned I will need an "error canceller". I suspect that might be a large power resistor, which presents a dummy load for the on board computer, so it doesn't think the headlamps are burned out. Anyone know exactly what it is?

 

[jafranci]

As much as I like the projector modification, it is just too much of a project for me to take on at this time. For my old '98 X, I might have considered it, since I changed out the lamp housings, but my wife's not going to let me modify the light housings on her '06 X. So a non-destructive retrofit is the only option.

From what I can tell, it appears that the '06 reflectors produce a cleaner beam pattern than the diamond cut housings I bought for the '98. I am looking forward to the performance of HID bulbs in these housings.

The retro-solutions folks got back to me and mentioned I will need an "error canceller". I suspect that might be a large power resistor, which presents a dummy load for the on board computer, so it doesn't think the headlamps are burned out. Anyone know exactly what it is?

I wonder if we can get a group of lets say 100 people.. would a company make them for us?

 

[adambodkins]

I am not sure on your HID setup as I have HIDS in my camaro and I had to cut and piece in a projector cause of hazard to other drivers. But for the fog light modification you would basically have to do a relay line in mod as you would with adding aftermartket lights. Tap into the power of your parking lights and add a relay. That is what I did. And you are right it does help with the fill in on your normal bulbs. BUT since you are putting in HID's you shouldn't ever have that problem unless you are also doing it for looks.

 

[mweiss]

I suspect the optics on the '06 X are much better than the optics on the Diamond clear housings I am using in my '98 X and they are pretty good, since I aimed them at such an angle as to put oncoming lane in darkness at low beam setting.

The '06 has a better cutoff above the beam.

The kits I'm using replicate the beam pattern I got with halogen bulbs very closely. Maybe some cheaper HID kits are all over the place with the arcs, but Retro-solutions QCs their kits to very tight specs, as the kit I got for my '98 was uniform and replicated the 9007 bulb beam patterns with a good deal of precision. If their 9008 kit is as good as the other one I installed, then I see this as being even more friendly for oncoming traffic than the installation on my '98. Certainly the 55W 4500 lumen power of the bulbs really lights up the darkest roads and provides enough scattered light to see a deer in the fields to the side of the road. Not so in the '06 with stock lamps. Two nights ago, I almost hit a pedestrian dressed in dark clothing. Neither my wife nor myself saw him--it was the fast movements of his little dog that got our attention and then we realized there was a human standing in the lane. We missed him by suddenly swerving at the last second. Had I had the HIDs, I would have seen him with plenty of time to react without engaging the anti-rollover technology. And we were only going 25mph at the time. I
can not imagine had we been on a state road going 40!

 

[Spokanedad99037]

So tired of the Projector HID BS..in 06 & Up

If you have a 06 & up go to http://retro-solutions.com/. Complete plug and play kits that took me less than an hour to install.

After re-aiming the lights down just a touch they are perfect. They use the H13 bulbs so you get Low/High. They complete with the proper resistors so no warnings from the information center.

You DON'T need projectors. The 06 & up have a light housing that is more than adequate enough to handle HID.

Complete thread/discussion here: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=351682

Don't be afraid to do this.. Night and day difference.

 

[Ronin8002]

+1 on the retro solutions kit. I decided to go the projector route using their mini H1 projectors and have not been disappointed, though it was a good deal more work than a simple bulb swap.

The headlight system uses canbus circuitry that causes the car to display "bulb out" errors because it doesn't detect the ballasts as bulbs. The 4 50W resistors that come with the retro solutions kit fix that issue though.

 

[Spokanedad99037]

+1 on the retro solutions kit. I decided to go the projector route using their mini H1 projectors and have not been disappointed, though it was a good deal more work than a simple bulb swap.

Did you have to pull the headlights apart to retrofit the projectors? Do you feel it was worth it?

 

[Ronin8002]

Did you have to pull the headlights apart to retrofit the projectors? Do you feel it was worth it?

yeah I had to bake them to soften the glue. Once they were apart, I removed the bulb shield, the teeth that are around the bulb hole, and had to sand the shoulder on the back of the reflector down a bit. After that, the projectors fit in fine and I was able to get them secure. I just took my time and managed to do it without screwing up my original housings. Really it wasn't hard, just had to be patient and mildly careful. Of course the modifications mean its a permanent kind of deal...so I can completely understand why most people would want to go with the more plug and play option.

I feel it was worthwhile both in terms of output and the looks. They are very focused when in low beam mode (probably a good thing for my truck since I'm lifted), but if I need more of a flood effect when I'm not around other cars I just hit the high beams.