corvettedaddy11

I have several hid questions

1.Are all the hid kits made the same, Example ebay kits 50 bucks ,2 local shops ones 100 bucks for low's and another shop is 150 for low's does it really matter
2.Is 8000k low beams and 6000k fogs to bright
3.Simple pros and cons
4.What kelvin is against the law if any!!
5.Whats a good hid brand!!

dcd58

ALL good questions. I'm just giving a bump here and hoping JWM jumps in ( I have his HID set up )

Mr.Bill

In my opinion 8000K is way to blue/purple, I use 6000 in my Lows, Highs and fogs and they still have a tint of blue.

brian ns04

6000k here if you go higher you will get more of a blue to purple tint.

mcgilles

people's eyes seem to see things differently! I have 6000k low beams and I only see a small hint of blue during start up. once they are running they are pure white. 8000k is cool bluish but absolutely no purple at all (only in my opinion! I think the projector/housing and the wear on it makes a big difference)

personally my fog lights are 8000k as a leftover from me trying to decide which is best. go with 6000k, 8000k you lose too many lumens. I had 8000k low beams and its amazing how much less light there is than 6000. 4300 should be even better but (again imo) 4300k looks way too yellow so I stay away from it.

now as for different companies yes! I've found that it does make a difference. buy from JW just do yourself that favor. I have several sets of ebay HIDs. 35W. when I fire them up they make a high pitched squealing sound during the warm up process. they also draw a tremendous amount of power. 25+A for the pair of them. I just thought that was the way it was until I ordered my first set of JW's HIDs for my brother for Christmas. we activated it on his car and the color temp was nicer even though they were both supposed to be 6000k, his kit is 55W. the ballast didn't make any noise at all during warmup, and the ammeter shows it drew 5-6A during warmup, which is the same as its continuous draw. now that was for just 1, my test on the ebay HIDs was a pair of them which drew 25-30A during warmup then settled on 10-11A or so. JW's products are way better quality than what you'll get on ebay, and no one on ebay will stand behind you the way JW will. I point everyone in his direction, and he'll be the only person I buy HID equipment from!

another note on temps, HID bulbs will change color temp over time. a bulb labeled 6000k will start out between 5000k-5500k most likely. burn in takes 50 or so hours of use and you'll see it gradually color shift over to its advertised temp. they will ultimately end up higher than advertised, 6500-7000k if they've been in use for a few years.

HIDs also last much longer, their rated life is 10 times longer then halogen bulbs, in the long run they are cheaper than the stock bulbs! don't cheap out on them, just buy a good set. its worth it.

JMc

I'm running 5000k 55w mains and 4300k 35w in my fogs. 6000k were too dim for me - gave me eyestrain. 8000k would lead me to suicidal thoughts from the eye strain. The higher in kelvins you go, the less light you are putting on the road in usable lumens and the more "blue" it is, the more it will be sucked up by the blacktop.

Patches

4300K puts out the most light so that's what I always install in my cars. After all, isn't that the primary reason to switch from halogen to HID?

JMc

I'm not going to disagree, because you're spot on correct. I had 35w 4300 mains for awhile, but I wound up splitting the difference and going with 55w 5000k because they are still plenty bright, especially with the higher wattage output, but have kind of a nice look to them that go a little better with my switchback LED's up front. I've been VERY happy with the 5000k's.

These were the 6000k mains and fogs



These are 4300k mains with 4300k fogs



Here's another helpful comparison shot.

4300k mains and fogs vs 6000k mains and fogs on the same car.



Same setup, but with the fogs turned off



Same split setup, on the road.



5000k are a lot hard to find, but I highly recommend them. They still have that "contemporary HID" look that is attractive, but they have great usable light output as well. Don't be mislead by the blinding glare in the photo. These are in projectors with stepped cutoffs and do NOT blind oncoming drivers they way HID in stock housings most definitely DO.

SCM_Crash

4300-5000 is the only way to go IMHO. I don't like the blue or purple tint. The whiter the light, the better your visibility is going to be anyway.

damilleniumboy

6000k

Patches

Good points, JMc. The reason I changed the wife's halogens to 4300K ACA's a couple of years ago is because she could no longer see to drive at night. She was terrified of being caught having to drive home at night so I was so relieved when I first tested the ACA's as they gave her back the night. I ordered the 4300K's for her knowing the output was the highest and would give the best lighting performance.

Now I'm about to install a new design of HID in my vette to see how those do for me. They are 4300K's as well.

REZ1

Patches.....what are you trying out....are they in yet...PM if needed
Thanks
Arnie

mcgilles

the way I look at it 6000k still puts out 4x the lumens of the stock bulbs. that will be plenty!

just keep in mind with this type of pic that the camera's self-adjustments make it look like this. 6000k only without the cooler temp to throw off the balance won't look like this, even my 8000k's don't look anywhere near this blue in real life

Bobd207s

I have the 4300's for my low's and also the high beams - what a difference !! Love the HID's

Blue 92

5000k in both lows and fogs. They have just a very slight blue tinge to them.

Toque

6000K here in my lows and fogs... (just a pinch of Blue)
4300K is too yellow for my taste
I had my car lined up with a 4300K car and he agreed his lights looked yellow.

The light output is INCREDIBLE !

JW Motorsports

Car 1- 6000k
Car 2- 4300k
Car 3- 8000k
Car 4- Halogen for now (brand new). I will upgrade to 5000k when I get a free hour to swap them out.


1. No way! Ebay kits suck for the most part. At least the cheap ones do.

My suppliers offer low costs kits as well, but I can't buy those. I buy the best quality kits I can to offer to my customers. A lot of companies offering HID kits claim they warranty them for life or 1-2 years. That looks good, but most won't respond when you have a problem. I hear this all the time from CF members interested in my kits.

2. Nope. 8000k is a little blue though.

3. No cons if you ask me. You will look at halogen lights in a different way. Stock C5 lights will look like a product of the 70s. Two flashlights mounted on the hood would provide more light.

4. You should be fine as long as you don't go too blue. Technically none are legal. If you go too blue they will look modified. 4300k/5000k will be the hardest to tell from factory HIDS.

5. Ours have been pretty reliable. With anything electrical things do go out sometimes. We stand behind our warranty

JW Motorsports

Another thing to note is the temps will look different depending on where you buy them. Toque's kit would be 4300k/5000k for us. They look more white than our 6000ks.

Toque

I got mine before you were a vendor here...
I know where to go for replacements if I need them though.
There was still a HUGE difference between my 6000K's and another guys 4300K's. His were REALLY yellow in comparison.

Toque

JMc

Regardless of the camera auto exposure, the 4300k's are significantly brighter than the 6000k. And I personally find the 5000k a great compromise between looks and performance.