buddyantunez1
00' 3.8L v6
i still dont have the balls to cut up my headlights and possibly **** up a new set of projectors. someone needs to start a company retrofitting them.
How To Retrofit HID Projectors Into New Edge Headlights
- Thread starter CougarStang
- Start date
mac_mogul
Ned knows best.
They're street legal here and I've had no complaints for the last six months I've been using them. The light output is arguably better than stock and I have my lights aimed so that nobody gets blinded. I tested them with friends at varying distances and driving heights to be sure of it.
vertstang232
New Member
I am pretty sure they are illegal everywhere unless if they come that way from the factory.
mac_mogul
Ned knows best.
I asked local authorities and was told they are acceptable
They weren't when I was in Oklahoma, but when I moved last year I asked to be sure.
Domingo
LT's on a vert
Everything is illegal in DC/VA. I was told having non-OEM mufflers was illegal.
CougarStang
I do my own stunts
Yeah that's why I advised to be careful about how much material is taken off of the top. The bowl itself is surprisingly robust, but with an open top you can lose a lot of structural integrity, especially since the projectors are surprisingly heavy. I'm currently experimenting with ways of alleviating the shaking cutoff problem.
Wow, excellent writeup! Very detailed.
Might have to try that this summer if I get some free time. The extra width on those HID's would be very beneficial in spotting deer on the side of the road.
The width is probably my favorite feature of these projectors. Not a lot of people realize how important a wide, even beam pattern is. HID bulbs are obviously much brighter than halogens, but properly engineered projectors deal with this extra light by widening the pattern in an even fashion. I agree, spotting deer at night will be easier now.
Great write-up. I have a serious question for you, though.
1) Would you ever consider making a set of these for me? I can do the wiring and everything myself, but I wanted to know if you could retrofit a set for me.
2) How much for everything, if you could do it?
Projects like this are hobbies for me. I don't see myself doing this stuff to turn a project, especially since I just entered a career that demands plenty of time, combined with the fact that I tend to be too meticulous with projects like this. You could find a retrofitter on the hid forums, but I think Domin8's right you'd be looking to spend a pretty penny. There's no denying it, when it comes to true HIDs you have to pay to play, either in labor or in money.
HID drop in kits, as well as full retrofits technically, are not DOT-approved, hence are not legal for road use. Local authorities have been notoriously laid back about enforcement of HID kits though. Whomever you spoke to probably belonged to a department that doesn't see this as a big deal, despite the evidence to the contrary.
I agree on one thing you said: the light output IS better than stock. Afterall each bulb is 3x brighter than 9007s. Just because the output is better though doesn't mean you can see better. Read the motivation section of my article for details on this. If you're not into optics, make a little experiment of your own: Open your back door and turn off all lights at night, shining a focused flashlight on an object 50 feet away in your backyard. Now turn on the light in the room you're standing in. Give your pupils a few second to adjust to the light in front of you. Can you see where your flashlight is shining as well as before? Now imagine what's happening with your HID kit. Yeah, SO much more light is being thrown out, but is it being thrown where you need it? No, you need that light focused in certain places. Having much more light around you can make you feel like you see better, but think about reaction times at 80+mph and that distant object that you can no longer see as well.
Headlight optics are tricky folks. Too much light is almost always a bad thing unless it's focused in the right places.
There are a few companies out there that just do retro's. I thought about it at one time but it's just really labor intensive to get the projector aimed correctly. I am really wanting to redo another set though. I may or may not cut up the set I have now and swap the projectors + lens to the new reflector I paint and cut. If I don't it'll most likely be sold as is since one of the tabs on the reflector of my pass side I think broke off, they still work but can't be aimed heh, just need to crack em open and swap the reflector over to a new headlamp with working adjustment screws.
TRS has projectors + shrouds + ballasts + bulbs for tons cheaper than when I did this, so you can realistically get the projector retrofit done for $400 including a new set of headlamps.
Oh and CougarStang, TRS also responded to an email I sent them about the shaking, they are currently working on a much smaller projector that keeps the 2.5"lens thats gonna be lighter and the bowl is supposed to be highly polished.
I am debating that option and the possibility of keeping these g35's to be swapped over to a new reflector. I have been calling a few body shops though to see if they would glass the mounting area for me.
sudbury33
New Member
While cleaning my garage today, I almost threw away my old headlights, but decided to keep them. They are 2000 OEMs, but really fogged up. Im considering using those to do this project, but I have a couple questions.
If I reused my stock headlights, I would want to smoke them to cover up the paint inside the lenses (yes there is paint, not just condensation.) Would the retrofit still have a noticable difference with a layer or two of VHT?
If I reused my stock headlights, I would want to smoke them to cover up the paint inside the lenses (yes there is paint, not just condensation.) Would the retrofit still have a noticable difference with a layer or two of VHT?
CougarStang
I do my own stunts
That doesn't surprise me. Matt's always working on something cool. It's tough to give up the output of the FXs though. This is true with the morimotos, as the output is great, but just a hair lower than that of the FX projectors. Hopefully these new lighter ones will perform up to par with the FXs and also use OEM bulbs.
Surprisingly, the answer is yes. Even the stock clear plastic lens cuts down on output dramatically. I noticed this when I was doing my testing with exposed projectors, compared to when I sealed everything up and retested. I thought something wasn't connected right, but it turned out to be the outer lens. That being said, people have also found out that even the clear 3m film cuts down output. Certainly the smoke lenses hurt output even more.
If you resurface the stock lenses, make sure you sand evenly. If you don't, you run the risk of distorting your sharp cutoff. Also, as mentioned in my writeup the stock Ford units are very difficult to open up. If you do choose to go this route, you'll probably have to use a hot knife to open it along the back and plastic weld it shut. I don't recommend using OEM units for this reason, compounded by the fact that many of them don't have horizontal adjustment screws.
leo2hot4tv
2hot4GT:LOL
Nice writeup and clear, accurate concise information. 
He said they should be just as good as the fx-r's as the bowls are gonna be almost identical. Wish I had more money so that I can pick up a set and start up on the next retro. I hate being broke=/
96whitelightnin
ZEX FTW
nice write up!
CougarStang
I do my own stunts
super nice guide! even better with a fat tire. but fat tire doesn't go this far east.
what kit did you get from theretrofitsource? i'm already confused just looking at all the possibilities of a kit. haha
It just came to NC about a year ago, so expect it to show up in PA in the near future.
I actually didn't get a kit from theretrofitsource, but would have probably done so if I knew about them ahead of time. I did, however, buy shrouds from him. If I had to do it again, I'd use a different shroud because of fitment issues with the mounting method I chose.
chaoticdismay
the rippin and the tearin
i bought the FX-R Bi-xenon Stage 3 Kit from TRS about a month ago.
super nice guide! even better with a fat tire. but fat tire doesn't go this far east.
what kit did you get from theretrofitsource? i'm already confused just looking at all the possibilities of a kit. haha
Hey guys I found this post which is the holy grail at the moment for the retrofit I want to start soon...
I was just curious about the use of the reflector bowl. is it possible to paint it all black or not use it at all? I guess I'm comparing the look of yours to another one. That was done by lightwerks. It looks as though the bown has been removed.
lmodularfords.com/forums/showthread.php?t=118689
I have a 2001 Cobra and will be starting the job soon. Also I've heard the knockoff headlight housings actually work better than the OEM ones. Any truth to that you think?
I was just curious about the use of the reflector bowl. is it possible to paint it all black or not use it at all? I guess I'm comparing the look of yours to another one. That was done by lightwerks. It looks as though the bown has been removed.
lmodularfords.com/forums/showthread.php?t=118689
I have a 2001 Cobra and will be starting the job soon. Also I've heard the knockoff headlight housings actually work better than the OEM ones. Any truth to that you think?
Yes you can paint the reflector bowl, and the aftermarket headlamps are easier to seperate. I painted the reflector bowl black on mine and the headlamps used were AM ones.
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