What is the brightest HID lights I can install on my car?

[MaxSD]

I have a 2004 Infiniti Fx35. I would like to make my headlights more brighter to HID lights which are easy to install instead of rewiring things. I know that the factory lights are xenon lights but I would like to make it to a Blue HID light that is really bright. I am also wondering what is the brightest foglights I can get too. I would like to get Blue HID lights for my foglamps. And lastly, I am wondering where can I buy these lights? Thanks!

 

[DM51]

We have an Automotive section here, so I'll move your thread there for you.

 

[Alaric Darconville]

Welcome to the CandlePowerForums!

Blue HIDs are not "really bright". They produce less light, yet more glare.
The maximum road-legal HID wattage is nominal 35; the only road-legal HID color temperature is 4100-4250K.

The FX35 already has HIDs that use the HID-D2S capsule. Stick with those.

HID foglights are absolutely pointless, especially in blue. The only non-white color you should consider for foglights is selective yellow.

If you have factory foglights, they use the 9006. If you insist on swapping out the factory bulbs, get these.

 

[bshanahan14rulz]

You can get 85122 off of ebay for pretty cheap. I got a new 85122 pair from hidbulbzrus for like, ~$80. Stick with stock. Aftermarket is crap. I'm not being elitist, either. Aftermarket kits don't provide the right power to the bulb, the bulbs run hotter than OEM, colors are off.

Note on colors, anything other than OEM white and you are losing lumens.

 

[tay]

Keep in mind, although 85122 are the stock bulbs, HID bulbs lose brightness slowly over time. Unlike halogen, which are at full brightness until the filament breaks and they burn out, HID bulbs slowly decrease in brightness so that you don't notice it as significantly. If the bulbs have never been replaced, simply getting a brand new pair of 85122 bulbs might improve your light output significantly.

 

[StarHalo]

You could consider getting an HID spotlight for backroad/offroad use, but laws vary from state to state on how you can have one mounted on your car (in Cali, for example, the light must be covered on public roads), and you definitely couldn't use it on public roads at all. The perennial favorite is the GoLight (http://www.magnalight.com/c-23-golight-spotlights.aspx), with its multiple mounting, power, and control options. A really simple configuration is the magnetic mount powered by a cigarette plug controlled with a wireless remote..

 

[-Virgil-]

halogen, which are at full brightness until the filament breaks and they burn out

Not true. Halogen bulbs lose intensity and luminance with use. It's not significant in bulbs with a relatively short lifespan, but "long life" bulbs last long enough to lose substantial output and luminance.

 

[MichaelW]

MaxSD: Do you drive with your fog lights on? If so, turn them off.
What is the intensity of your dashboard [instrument panel] lighting? Try driving with it as low as you can tolerate.

Since the US does have any rules that stipulate that the higher the mounting height, the lower the aim, how about you adjust yours down? Then you stock lighting will seem brighter.

 

[Mtrhd0024]

Keep in mind, although 85122 are the stock bulbs, HID bulbs lose brightness slowly over time. Unlike halogen, which are at full brightness until the filament breaks and they burn out, HID bulbs slowly decrease in brightness so that you don't notice it as significantly. If the bulbs have never been replaced, simply getting a brand new pair of 85122 bulbs might improve your light output significantly.

Not true. Halogen bulbs lose intensity and luminance with use. It's not significant in bulbs with a relatively short lifespan, but "long life" bulbs last long enough to lose substantial output and luminance.

x2... Halogen bulbs dim significantly over time... I'm thinking "Tay" has it backwards... While I'm not aware whether HID bulbs dim over time or not, I know for sure that halogen bulbs do. As Scheinwerfermann stated, its especially apparent with the longer life bulbs. HID bulbs are essentially a controlled electrical arc through a small capsule filled with a special gas. So there is no filament to break, and HID's are actually quite robust...

That said, I would stick with normal halogen bulbs in your fog lights... You could upgrade your factory HID headlights from 35w to 55w if your electrical system will take it, however i'll just advise you that this is not technically legal...

Some of the CPF users will moan at me for saying that, but honestly its better than putting HID's in a civic... At least your headlights were designed for HID's. So as long as you retain the same type bulb as Infinity provided from the factory, you shouldn't cause any problems with glare. It probably won't be as reliable as factory however... The other issue, is that some of the aftermarket HID's take a substantial time to warm up. You will flick them on and barely get any light for the first few seconds, then they slowly come on brighter and brighter!

~Awaits the flaming~

 

[TorchBoy]

You could upgrade your factory HID headlights from 35w to 55w if your electrical system will take it, however i'll just advise you that this is not technically legal...

Some of the CPF users will moan at me for saying that, ...

~Awaits the flaming~

You're expecting some? How about just reminding you of Rule 11? You agree, through your use of this BB, that you will not use this BB to post any material which is knowingly illegal or promotes illegal activity.

Furthermore, changing 35 W HID to 55 W HID will increase glare considerably, which really is a really really inconsiderate thing to do to other road users.

 

[Mtrhd0024]

You're expecting some? How about just reminding you of Rule 11? You agree, through your use of this BB, that you will not use this BB to post any material which is knowingly illegal or promotes illegal activity.

Furthermore, changing 35 W HID to 55 W HID will increase glare considerably, which really is a really really inconsiderate thing to do to other road users.

Okay, you might be right, and if so then I stand corrected with regards to the glare issue... However, how is running 55w HID (in an HID housing, I'm not talking about putting them in a Halogen housing!) any different than running 65w Halogen bulbs in the place of the factory 55w Halogen bulb.

Its still illegal (any more than 55w halogen on the road, is illegal) but I see it suggested on CPF quite often. Its simply installing a brighter bulb of the same form factor and type. (i.e- HID for HID, instead of Halogen for Halogen) I also see people providing information on how to wire your headlight bulbs via relays, directly to the battery, to increase the current going to the bulb, which increases its brightness. Also technically illegal, and its putting a "brighter than factory" bulb in your car, but I see it suggested quite often.

Not trying to cause trouble, I'm just pointing out that it seems the second anyone mentions doing anything involving HID's, they get flamed... Leave out the HID part, and everything is A-OK...

 

[TorchBoy]

However, how is running 55w HID (in an HID housing, I'm not talking about putting them in a Halogen housing!) any different than running 65w Halogen bulbs in the place of the factory 55w Halogen bulb.

Its still illegal ...

Not trying to cause trouble, I'm just pointing out that it seems the second anyone mentions doing anything involving HID's, they get flamed... Leave out the HID part, and everything is A-OK...

I'm sure you'd come up with some good reasons for it if you gave it a few moments thought. At the same efficiency, a quick calculation indicates a 55 W HID is producing 57% more blue light than a 35 W HID. As I said - considerably more glare. A 65 W halogen is producing roughly 18% more yellow light than a 55 W halogen, which doesn't have much glare-causing blue light anyway. Similarly with improving the voltage getting to a 55 W halogen bulb - it doesn't cause huge amounts more glare.

As for flaming, quite apart from wanting to stick to the law, that glare is highly unpleasant and dangerous.

 

[Mtrhd0024]

I'm sure you'd come up with some good reasons for it if you gave it a few moments thought. At the same efficiency, a quick calculation indicates a 55 W HID is producing 57% more blue light than a 35 W HID. As I said - considerably more glare. A 65 W halogen is producing roughly 18% more yellow light than a 55 W halogen, which doesn't have much glare-causing blue light anyway. Similarly with improving the voltage getting to a 55 W halogen bulb - it doesn't cause huge amounts more glare.

As for flaming, quite apart from wanting to stick to the law, that glare is highly unpleasant and dangerous.

But illegal is illegal according to the forums...

Just saying...

Anyway... I'm not going to argue the issue any further. I stated it was illegal for on-road use in my post so he was warned... I have HID Driving lights on my truck. They're illegal for on-road use, however there are many other legitimate and legal uses for them. (I.e, I do a lot of off-road driving where they are perfectly legal.)

I'm not going to withhold information about my driving lights just because they COULD be used in an illegal manner. I provided the information, warned him it was illegal for on-road use, and how he chooses to use that information is a matter of his own discretion.

 

[tay]

x2... Halogen bulbs dim significantly over time... I'm thinking "Tay" has it backwards... While I'm not aware whether HID bulbs dim over time or not, I know for sure that halogen bulbs do. As Scheinwerfermann stated, its especially apparent with the longer life bulbs. HID bulbs are essentially a controlled electrical arc through a small capsule filled with a special gas. So there is no filament to break, and HID's are actually quite robust...

That said, I would stick with normal halogen bulbs in your fog lights... You could upgrade your factory HID headlights from 35w to 55w if your electrical system will take it, however i'll just advise you that this is not technically legal...

Some of the CPF users will moan at me for saying that, but honestly its better than putting HID's in a civic... At least your headlights were designed for HID's. So as long as you retain the same type bulb as Infinity provided from the factory, you shouldn't cause any problems with glare. It probably won't be as reliable as factory however... The other issue, is that some of the aftermarket HID's take a substantial time to warm up. You will flick them on and barely get any light for the first few seconds, then they slowly come on brighter and brighter!

~Awaits the flaming~

Nope. The electrodes on the HID capsule slowly vaporize. The gap between the electrodes increase, and the output characteristics change (the electrodes produce a very blue light, and as they vaporize and deform, the output of the HID capsule can "colorshift" to being slightly bluer than it initially was).

HID bulb wear is a bigger issue than halogen bulb wear, simply because there is no filament to break. HID bulbs cannot fail from a broken filament, which is part of the reason they last so much longer. Because of this, they are often installed for a long enough time to significantly dim or colorshift. Nowadays, we see many cars from the early 2000s with 100k miles and 10 years on their factory HID reflector bulbs, which by now are far below the legal light output minimum, as well as often being colorshifted to a blue color (Philips) or a pink color (Osram).

I was unaware that there existed output degradation on aged Long Life halogen bulbs, but it is less of an issue with halogen in that, with the exception of the LL bulbs, most of the time the filament will physically break before the reduction in light output becomes significant enough to warrant replacement.

 

[Mtrhd0024]

Nope. The electrodes on the HID capsule slowly vaporize. The gap between the electrodes increase, and the output characteristics change (the electrodes produce a very blue light, and as they vaporize and deform, the output of the HID capsule can "colorshift" to being slightly bluer than it initially was).

HID bulb wear is a bigger issue than halogen bulb wear, simply because there is no filament to break. HID bulbs cannot fail from a broken filament, which is part of the reason they last so much longer. Because of this, they are often installed for a long enough time to significantly dim or colorshift. Nowadays, we see many cars from the early 2000s with 100k miles and 10 years on their factory HID reflector bulbs, which by now are far below the legal light output minimum, as well as often being colorshifted to a blue color (Philips) or a pink color (Osram).

I was unaware that there existed output degradation on aged Long Life halogen bulbs, but it is less of an issue with halogen in that, with the exception of the LL bulbs, most of the time the filament will physically break before the reduction in light output becomes significant enough to warrant replacement.

I stand corrected then, thanks for the explanation! :thumbsup:

But yea, halogen bulbs degrading is certainly also an issue... Often times long life headlight bulbs are designed to last 1000 hours or so... Which is a couple years for the average driver... Replace a 2 year old set of halogen bulbs with the exact same type of bulb, and you'll notice a big difference!