Awesome, finally.
Retrofitting projectors. Good idea.

OK, Do you think that there could have been a good reason why Ford and the manufacturers of that headlight assy. dropped the production???? And you don’t see it being used in any other model or make????

As you know, from the very start of this thread I have been for getting good if not the best bits and pieces so you don’t have to change and upgrade them all the time.
Not only does it cost a lot more but it takes so much more time and at end of the day you get fed up with all the problems and headaches you had to fix and deal with and you still have most of them still remaining.

As a Halogen projector , they were a total disaster. Adding HID bulbs to them….. Hmmmm I don’t know.

As the saying goes: Same donkey with a new shiny saddle.

Remember the facts I have posted about HID bulbs?
The arc is located 27.1 mm from the base.
The arc orientation is Axial.
Nominal arc length is 4.2mm
Nominal arc diameter is 1.1mm
Nominal arc bending is 0.5mm.

Compare that with your Halogen bulb, be it H4 or H3 or whatever, and you will see the difference between your “sourceâ€￾ of light.

Mismatching a HID bulb and a Projector that was made before HID was even released in the market, is very easy.

Now, if you want to have the same problems as you had with your present set up (installing HID in a standard Halogen reflector). YOU are on the right track.

I am not saying that installing HID in a projector designed for Halogen is not going to work. No.
But, again, it will work in very few projectors.

Most new Hi beam projectors are made for Halogen bulbs, mainly H7s.
The ONLY reason for that is because you can not turn on/off HID bulbs since they will burn out fast.

Some of projectros can be used with HID bulbs but most can not.
The reason is the shape of the reflector used in these projectors. They are too small and narrow. Then there is the shields inside them that differ.

So, before you go ahead and start cutting into your headlights, try the HID bulb you are going to use in one of these projectors, connect it to the battery, turn it on and point it to a wall and take a very good and close look at the beam patter emitted from this combination.
It may be absolutely beautiful, and you will have a perfect sharp cutoff line with all the colours of rainbow on the edge of the cutoff line.
OR, it could look like you know what.

And it will not cost you anything at all.

Here is a couple of pics from the latest Valeo Projectors. One is Bi-Xenon and the smaller one is for Halogen Hi beam. Just to give you an example of the difference.
Now if you want to get the BEST projectors in the market. Here they are.
Used by, MB, BMW, VW, AUDI, Saab, Volvo...... and many others.
The Bi-Xenon one has just been awarded as the BEST Bi-Xenon in the market.
Uses D1S and D2S/D4S bulbs.
A “bitâ€￾ more expensive BUT far better.



In regards to the "burnt hole" in your reflector.....
It must be from something else.

 

 

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Halogen.jpg [ 61.21 KiB | Viewed 126 times ]

Yes and no .. it's not a case of heat that has caused it though.
It's a case of light intensity ... but the headlight assembly still gets pretty warm though ... the HID does cause "hotspots" unlike halogen (well they do but not a intensified as HID does.

My headlights were brandnew when i installed the HIDs .. so nothing wrong with the assembly ... what the problem was, was installing an aftermarket HID kit into a halogen reflector headlight ... works fine for a short while ... but beam pattern and glare is hard to control ... then the beam starts losing it's bright ness as well (when the reflector starts getting burnt).

MAVS19:

The burnt "mark" is directly above the HID arc (as there is a sield underneath the globe bouncing the beam straight up into the top region of the headlight.

I was just thinking of going back to halogen though and ditching the HID ... seeing as it is a halogen projector ... I might test the HID in it ... but I'd need to get a H1 HID globe to fit it anyway (seeing as I run H4 at the moment.)

I'll take photos when i get the new headlights installed and show the difference between the HID and halogen.

Also the NC Fairlane projectors do not use a metal shield inside them from what I have been told ... so i don't want the same "burning" issue like I have now.

Will let you know on the progress anyways.

Can you post a pic of the place that has been burnt? Please?? It really sound intriguing.

If the NC projector does not have a shield in it, then it is just a Hi beam projector.
You really need to set few days aside to design and redesign shields and you may or may not get a beam pattern. Well you will definitely get a beam pattern of some kind. How good ???? Can't even guess.

Since the shield needs to be at a certain distance from the lens. It could be in towards the bulb or out from it. You need to first find that place.
Then there is the issue of how much the cutoff line of the shield should be above the centre line of the bulb.
Then how much to cut it down from the centre to the side of the shield to get a RHD beam pattern.
And most important of all, is it going to work after all this or was a waste of time??? Have a guess.....

Otherwise you can always use it as a Hi beam projector.

But then that is not what you are after? Is it?? Since the quality of light emitted from that projector is almost as good as what a standard 55/60W bulb will manage in a standard reflector.

What I would suggest to you and others who are planning to retrofit projectors in your headlight assys, is to get hold of a very cheap headlight assy. for your vehicle.
It does not matter which side.
Get yourselves a real good projector. Could just be a Xenon or if you want to go all the way find a Bi-Xenon.
You could always start with one and the buy the other projector later.
Then practise on the cheap headlight assy. make all the mistakes you need to make.
Post pics as you go along and I will help you with things as they come up.
Plan what you are going to do. Post it and I will let you know.
Once you have done one, you now know what to do next time.
You may even do a lot better second and third time.
And most importantly, you did not damage your headlight assy., you could use your vehicle and you could take all the time you needed to do a real good job.

Will I am looking at a pre-made up headlight for the AU .... the projector has a shield in it ... it's not a metal shield though. So it might no withstand a HID globe.

Hence why I am going back to halogen. Which is what the NC projcetor is designed for. SO it will be using a H1 halogen ... I might be able to test with H1 HID ... but i don't think it will be that good (and might damage the shielding inside the projector as well.

I don't have the ute with me tonight on nightshift .... so i can't get a pic of it at the moment.

If i had the time and knoewledge ... and the tools ... I'd be trying the Hobnda Euro projectors (I still have a slightly damaged one sitting at home) .. but nothing to really test it in.

PLUS ... at the moment the driver's side HID keeps flickering on and off ... but it sounds like it's a cabling issue (as the cabling is pushed down behind the battery out of the way .. but the fuse box is tight in that area as well) ... I have been meaning to pull it out and check it out as well.

So it's annoying at night when the driver's side light keeps turning off an on.

i got a question for ya mavs.. When i push the hi beam thingo forward, sometimes one or both of my hids will flicker and turn off.. the first time it happened i shat myself that id blowen them. but when ya switch it back to normal they dont re ignite ya have to turn the headlight switch back to parks and back again.. it works fine when ya pull it back tho..

I have no real need for my hi beam anymore, all they do is make a real nice colour brown.... NOT

i was just curious

Sounds like a relay issue.
I had to put an extra set of relays in my loom to get the high beams working properly.

its due to a voltage drop. If I hit my high beams while at idle, various lights will flicker on/off. If I do it with a few extra rpm, then theres enough voltage to feed all 4 HID lights

Hi SIM,

I would like to ask you few questions.

1- Is your Hi/Lo set up a H4 and a H something else i.e. H3, H7?

2- Also when pushing down your lever to gain Hi beam , do you know if your H4s, Lo filament is switched off or not?

I have noticed that in most cases when pulling the lever up to flash Hi beam both Hi and Lo filaments of the H4, plus the filament of the extra Hi beam bulb in this case say H7 are switched on.
But if you push the lever down to have constant Hi beam, then ONLY the Hi filament of H4 together with filament of H7 is switched on and the Lo filament of H4 is switched off.

3- What type of HID bulb do you have?
Is it a single HID Xenon bulb or is it one of those dual bulb (1 Xenon and 1 Halogen on one base) scenarios that you have??

If , you have a single HID Xenon bulb, well you problem is obvious.

Here is what happens: When you push the lever down to gain constant Hi beam, UNFORTUNATELY, the power is switched OFF to your HID ballast.
And UNFORTUNATELY, you get power from the opposite direction of your H7 bulbs positive through your H4 bulbs Hi filament making your system go crazy.
If you remove one of your H7 bulbs you should get one side HID plus H7 working , which is the problem that Mechan1k has had all the time.

This is a very simple issue to fix.

The best thing to do is NEVER use your Hi beam, that is NEVER push your lever down. Sooner or later you will burn the system.

However, if you have a double bulb HID H4, it is a much more sinister problem.
But, I think scenario 1 is your case. Which is one of the most common problems most people encounter after installing a HID kit.

So, examine your set up and let me know.

Then of course if you do not have above mentioned set up or something similar, then you probably need to look at what Waggin has mentioned.

I have a single low beam filament hid set up.

with halogen bulbs when you pull back (to flash someone) all globes go on, in my case being a fairmont which use H4's for there low and H3 for there hi's. All filaments light up. thats 2 in the H4 bulb and the H3's turn on.

When you push the hi beam to have in fixed on, the H3's and the hi beam filament in the H4 bulbs turn on.. turning the low beam filament in the H4 bulb off.

I wonder why only sometimes it has no worries running the HID's and the H3's when i push forward. I do have a new battery and alt..

This Hi beam stuff is really not a problem that worries me, but it would be good to have things workin 100% if for some reason i needed them

Thanks.
There you go. You have exactly the set up I described earlier.

I don’t have access to the Shop Manual for that specific model. But, knowing Ford, they have probably used 2 relays. One for Lo and 1 for Hi beam set up.

This set up is good for the standard Hi/Lo system used on Fords , BUT UNFORTUNATELY, is the main KILLER of Ballast/Igniter /HID bulb in the market.

What ever you do, DO NOT push the Hi beam lever down for constant Hi beam.

I can help you to fix this problem once and for all, but you need to find and post a copy of Fords Shop Manual for your model. The Page called: Exterior Lighting.

I can then send you a "how to" so you can fix this simple problem.
You then can have HI beam both when you push and pull the lever. Without any problems.

Cost involved $2-3 and a bit of you time.

So basically dont use HI beam,dont even flash anyone.I can handle that,i dont do much of both anyway.

You can always flash anyone you like.
Don't use constant Hi beam (Don't push the lever down).

hey people,

im tossing up between a 6500K HID kit or a 8000K kit,

i want a nice bluey icy white, which would you recommend?

Hey Ryan0001 I think you would be stoked with one of those 6500k kits. Altho I'm not the expert, thats mavs, If your after the best light output 6500k would be great. Hyena has one i think its hard to keep following who's got what kit these days and his pics look nice. Get EFd's 8000k kit should be arriving soon, I think he has the same globe type as yours. He should have some pic's up shortly.