Spyder halo lights?

[feared100]

I know that the halo headlights are a popular item for the ford explorer. I was looking into them. For $250.00 i don't think its too bad. But i don't know how good the beam pattern, or the light output is. I know it has one projector in it. So i would do an hid conversion right away. (i think they come halogen as stock)

Just wondering if these lights are worth it, and i they do actually put out a better beam of light. And yes....i like the "angel eyes" look.

 

[tgrubbe]

I have a pair of those, and I only paid 179.99 with free shipping. So if you look a bit more you could save a fair amount of money. And as for looks, They are amazing. I hooked the Halos and LEDs to my fog light switch because I put LED bulbs in my fog light assemblies and I run them as day running lights along with the mod to use fog lights separate from your headlights. The only issue is that my right side ones turn signal holder for the bulb would not fit without some modifications to the light socket itself. It is something that can be done with a pair of needle nose pliers and will not cause any damage. I'm not sure if you would have to do this or not but I did on my 96 Eddie Bauer Explorer. Also, if your grill is the same as mine, you probably have to remove the entire grill to install these.

EDIT:

Heres a link to the same pair but much cheaper, http://www.ebay.com/itm/BLACK-95-01...96|Model:Explorer&hash=item1e7853f87a&vxp=mtr

 

[feared100]

Yea Ik I would have to take out my grill. I put in clear lenses with hids. But I really want the projector for the hids. And you wired it differently. So how would I usually wire it? If you have any pics that would be appreciated!

 

[tgrubbe]

Sadly I cant get pictures anytime soon because I have an iPhone but it dropped and the camera lens shattered. But I just piggybacked my wiring for halos and LEDs off of my stock fog lamp wires and then the brights, normal headlights, and turn signals all just plug in, except for my issue detailed above. Something else I should mention is that the parking light is a orange LED in the housing already so you will have to cut off the current one, strip the wire and connect the new one. As for normal wiring, I think most people do it different ways and to be honest, I don't know the proper way but I would assume you connect them to a voltage source that is only live when the car is running.

 

[66427]

I am very interested in these as just a plug and play, not any additional wiring for DRL.
Is the pattern and light output with halogens better than factory?
Can the projector be upgraded to HID with a bulb change and ballast?

 

[FIND]

The pattern on the low beam is pretty good, high beam... take it or leave it. Do a relay mod to keep the lows on with the highs.

The high beam output will of course be higher since it uses a separate bulb for the high, as long as you do the relay mod to keep the lows on with the high beams. There are a few members on here that have them, and they are all pretty happy with them. Anyone who has broken a set, got the same style to replace them.

You will have no additional wiring for DRLs as long as you are using the halogen bulbs because the factory DRL works by sending a lower voltage to the headlight bulb so the headlights just come on dimmer.

You can switch the low beams to HIDs, and they don't make a horrible pattern like you will see from stock reflectors, but then you lose your DRLs, and you will still need to do the mod to keep the lows on with the highs. You aren't really gaining much by switching the lows to HIDs other than appearance and a slightly higher output.

 

[66427]

The pattern on the low beam is pretty good, high beam... take it or leave it. Do a relay mod to keep the lows on with the highs.

The high beam output will of course be higher since it uses a separate bulb for the high, as long as you do the relay mod to keep the lows on with the high beams. There are a few members on here that have them, and they are all pretty happy with them. Anyone who has broken a set, got the same style to replace them.

You will have no additional wiring for DRLs as long as you are using the halogen bulbs because the factory DRL works by sending a lower voltage to the headlight bulb so the headlights just come on dimmer.

You can switch the low beams to HIDs, and they don't make a horrible pattern like you will see from stock reflectors, but then you lose your DRLs, and you will still need to do the mod to keep the lows on with the highs. You aren't really gaining much by switching the lows to HIDs other than appearance and a slightly higher output.

Thanks Find.
I do not have factory DRL's, so switching to HID would not be an issue for me in that respect. Are these better than the Anzo replacements? I have read conflicting reviews on the Anzo's.
Also, is the relay mod simple? Is there a sticky?

 

[feared100]

So its a waste of time to do an HID sawp??? I already have em in my stock housings (Ik bad bad) but I'm an idiot and followed everyone else. so I could do an hid for the projector and leave the high beam halogen?

 

[Nixthebomb]

You could, but the manufacturer advises against it, I used this style headlight with a relay mod for close to two years, liked the look, but the light output IMO was worse than stock, I just finished a retrofit close to two months ago, that is the one of the best mods I think I've done overall to the truck

 

[feared100]

so you think the retrofit is a better idea?

 

[Nixthebomb]

For me, it was a much better idea, they produce a much more even usable light ouput

Got the retrofit done, from a distance the lenses looked smoked, but up close they are crystal clear, and the light output is amazing

In the last pic it looks like there's a hot spot, there is really not, complete even light output

 

[FIND]

Thanks Find.
I do not have factory DRL's, so switching to HID would not be an issue for me in that respect. Are these better than the Anzo replacements? I have read conflicting reviews on the Anzo's.
Also, is the relay mod simple? Is there a sticky?

Basically your low beams are powered by one wire, and your high beams are powered by another wire. You wire the high beam power on wire to a relay that powers both the high and low beams. That way, when you use the low beams, they are being powered as normal. When you use the high beams both get power.

 

[feared100]

For me, it was a much better idea, they produce a much more even usable light ouput

How challenging was it?

 

[Nixthebomb]

Not too bad, I looked at a few different guides for the Morimoto Mini H1, but if you decide to do the retrofit, be sure to find a guide for the solenoid, I thought it would be fine, tested both of them before i installed, and then the passenger side stuck open, had to hit the housing a few times to get it to drop, still need to disassemble them and do that

 

[feared100]

I would think the physical aspect was easier than the wiring?

 

[Nixthebomb]

Wiring is pretty straight forward, they send you the wiring harness and all the connections are labeled

 

[HopsnBarley]

Nix, did you use the eBay black housing lights? ANd which HID kit did you use that came with the labeled wiring harness?

 

[FIND]

Nix, did you use the eBay black housing lights? ANd which HID kit did you use that came with the labeled wiring harness?

Those are the ones you want to use.

The HID kits are called Morimoto Minis from The Retrofit Source

Their customer service is really good too. They will answer any question you have.

Also check out HID Planet's forums for more about headlight retrofits

 

[Nixthebomb]

Those are the ones you want to use.

The HID kits are called Morimoto Minis from The Retrofit Source

Their customer service is really good too. They will answer any question you have.

Also check out HID Planet's forums for more about headlight retrofits

Yep exactly what I would've told you just got a chance to look at the forum, I used a full set of ebay clear housings, the corner light were already black, but the headlights were chrome reflectors with black sides and top, just sprayed some duplicolor adhesion promotor, then black fusion, matches exactly to the corners

 

[HopsnBarley]

OK, slick. I have a set of MDX projectors I may try and use to do a retrofit soon, thanks!

BTW, Looks really good!