About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
11-27-2013
#1
About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
I've been wanting to do a retrofit for months... and TRS has a 25% sale on all orders over $300 for the next 4 days! All I need to do is push the CONFIRM button. Here's what I'm looking at for my stock housings:
Bi-xenon Morimoto Mini Stage III Kit
Halos: Amber LED ... I rarely see anything other than white ones
Bulbs: H1 XB35 4300K ... A relatively cheap upgrade from the regular 3Five bulbs
Ballasts: Morimoto 3Five (35w)... Couldn't justify the extra $90 for Denso
Projectors: LHD (North American Standard)... duh
Re-sealing Glue: Yes... because you just never know
Shrouds: Mini Graphite (standard model)... they're compatible with the halos
Wire Harness: Relay: H4/9003... This was the most confusing part for me. From what I understand, the relay is supposed to match the original bulb type, right?
I'm gonna do it man... I'm gonna pull the trigger (then post the pics later of course)! Any last words of advice? I've never done this before!
Bi-xenon Morimoto Mini Stage III Kit
Halos: Amber LED ... I rarely see anything other than white ones
Bulbs: H1 XB35 4300K ... A relatively cheap upgrade from the regular 3Five bulbs
Ballasts: Morimoto 3Five (35w)... Couldn't justify the extra $90 for Denso
Projectors: LHD (North American Standard)... duh
Re-sealing Glue: Yes... because you just never know
Shrouds: Mini Graphite (standard model)... they're compatible with the halos
Wire Harness: Relay: H4/9003... This was the most confusing part for me. From what I understand, the relay is supposed to match the original bulb type, right?
I'm gonna do it man... I'm gonna pull the trigger (then post the pics later of course)! Any last words of advice? I've never done this before!
Last edited by Poopies; 11-27-2013 at 09:08 PM.
11-27-2013
#2
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Re: About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
DO IT!! I did my retro last year with the same sale.
You are correct on the harness, should match OE configuration.
Might want to upgrade to 55W. I sometimes think that it would be better to be a little brighter on the back country roads. The 35W kit does a great job though.
Have you looked into painting your cutoff shields before the instal? Juat a little extra custom thing you can do.
You are correct on the harness, should match OE configuration.
Might want to upgrade to 55W. I sometimes think that it would be better to be a little brighter on the back country roads. The 35W kit does a great job though.
Have you looked into painting your cutoff shields before the instal? Juat a little extra custom thing you can do.
11-27-2013
#3
Re: About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
I saw you mention that in the other post... what kind of paint did you use?
11-27-2013
#4
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Re: About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
Personally, I'd buy from SportsAutoTech.
Their Mini H1 package sells for $190. And you can get 55w ballasts.
http://sportsautotech.com/shop/compl...-retrofit-kit/
I'd check them out. The owner is a friend of my brother's, and his customer service is fantastic.
Their Mini H1 package sells for $190. And you can get 55w ballasts.
http://sportsautotech.com/shop/compl...-retrofit-kit/
I'd check them out. The owner is a friend of my brother's, and his customer service is fantastic.
11-27-2013
#5
Re: About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
Never mind about the paint, I read the thread on your post. haha
Hmm... I'm not entirely sold on the 55W ballasts, what with their shorter lifespan and all. I'm not digging the selection of LED rings either. The prices would be similar (still a little cheaper even) than the discounted TRS. So many things to ponder... thanks for the suggestion though!
Personally, I'd buy from SportsAutoTech.
Their Mini H1 package sells for $190. And you can get 55w ballasts.
http://sportsautotech.com/shop/compl...-retrofit-kit/
I'd check them out. The owner is a friend of my brother's, and his customer service is fantastic.
Their Mini H1 package sells for $190. And you can get 55w ballasts.
http://sportsautotech.com/shop/compl...-retrofit-kit/
I'd check them out. The owner is a friend of my brother's, and his customer service is fantastic.
11-28-2013
#8
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Re: About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
Just a word of caution to anyone else wanting to do the morimoto retro... DO NOT go 55w. You'll risk melting the shrouds.
That is all.
That is all.
12-02-2013
#12
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Buy a heat gun for like.. $20
Gently heat up the seal, and do like 3-4 passes. Carefully pry apart
A hairdryer will work, too. It'll take a bit longer, but it'll work.
Gently heat up the seal, and do like 3-4 passes. Carefully pry apart
A hairdryer will work, too. It'll take a bit longer, but it'll work.
12-02-2013
#15
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Rep Power: 485 Re: About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
That made me giggle a bit.. LOL
Here's a bit more how-to on OEM headlights
There are... 3-4 clips (?) that kinda help keep the lens on. Pry them bitches off. A flat head screwdiver will do the trick. Be careful though, they might fly somewhere.
Gently heat up the seal starting at one end. I usually use the inner corner. Heat up about half of it, being careful not to burn or melt any plastic. Now, pry that bitch open from the inner corner outward. The flat head screwdiver may help a lot bit at getting it started, being careful not to break anything. As you're prying, take breaks from prying to heat up the adhesive further down the way. Keep going until you have all of it off.
You may have a bit of internal resistance from components within the headlight, so be wary of that. It's been a while since I ripped apart a stock headlight, so I may be talking out of my ***. Just remember: slow and steady does the trick. You don't wanna accidentally break something then be SOL. Once you have both halves separated, get as much of the old adhesive out as you can. It'll give you a better surface to work with when you go to put the stuff back together.
While you're waiting ever so (not really) patiently for your retro kit to come in, go to autozone and grab stuff you're gonna need. In the exhaust/adhesives aisle at autozone, they have stuff to reseal headlights and windshields and stuff. Grab a roll of that, unless, of course, you nabbed some from TRS. The stuff TRS sells is an oci-butyl rubber glue. The stuff autozone has is a butyl rubber "round bead ribbon sealer." The stuff I used was 3M Windo-weld ribbon sealer. In any case, it should be some sort of butyl rubber stuff that comes in a roll and stays rather tacky. A roll will be enough for you to rip apart your headlights a million times over and use new sealant every time. It may seem a bit much for the seam, so what I ended up doing was stretching it out a bit like taffy and laying a healthy bead in the little channel on the headlight housing (you'll know what I mean when you rip 'em apart).
Also, if you're feeling frisky, you can remove that chrome bezel and paint it. A lot of people like blacking it out, some people go gunmetal, some people match it to the color of your car. Also, some people like removing the amber lens. The choice is yours, and yours alone. You will, however, need access to a Torx bit to remove the chrome bit from the headlight lens, or if you're handy with a flat head screw driver, you can finagle it off, too.
Since I'm lazy, what did you end up buying altogether?
Here's a bit more how-to on OEM headlights
There are... 3-4 clips (?) that kinda help keep the lens on. Pry them bitches off. A flat head screwdiver will do the trick. Be careful though, they might fly somewhere.
Gently heat up the seal starting at one end. I usually use the inner corner. Heat up about half of it, being careful not to burn or melt any plastic. Now, pry that bitch open from the inner corner outward. The flat head screwdiver may help a lot bit at getting it started, being careful not to break anything. As you're prying, take breaks from prying to heat up the adhesive further down the way. Keep going until you have all of it off.
You may have a bit of internal resistance from components within the headlight, so be wary of that. It's been a while since I ripped apart a stock headlight, so I may be talking out of my ***. Just remember: slow and steady does the trick. You don't wanna accidentally break something then be SOL. Once you have both halves separated, get as much of the old adhesive out as you can. It'll give you a better surface to work with when you go to put the stuff back together.
While you're waiting ever so (not really) patiently for your retro kit to come in, go to autozone and grab stuff you're gonna need. In the exhaust/adhesives aisle at autozone, they have stuff to reseal headlights and windshields and stuff. Grab a roll of that, unless, of course, you nabbed some from TRS. The stuff TRS sells is an oci-butyl rubber glue. The stuff autozone has is a butyl rubber "round bead ribbon sealer." The stuff I used was 3M Windo-weld ribbon sealer. In any case, it should be some sort of butyl rubber stuff that comes in a roll and stays rather tacky. A roll will be enough for you to rip apart your headlights a million times over and use new sealant every time. It may seem a bit much for the seam, so what I ended up doing was stretching it out a bit like taffy and laying a healthy bead in the little channel on the headlight housing (you'll know what I mean when you rip 'em apart).
Also, if you're feeling frisky, you can remove that chrome bezel and paint it. A lot of people like blacking it out, some people go gunmetal, some people match it to the color of your car. Also, some people like removing the amber lens. The choice is yours, and yours alone. You will, however, need access to a Torx bit to remove the chrome bit from the headlight lens, or if you're handy with a flat head screw driver, you can finagle it off, too.
Since I'm lazy, what did you end up buying altogether?
12-02-2013
#17
Re: About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
Bi-xenon Morimoto Mini Stage III Kit
Halos: Amber LED ... I rarely see anything other than white ones
Bulbs: H1 XB35 4300K ... A relatively cheap upgrade from the regular 3Five bulbs
Ballasts: Morimoto 3Five (35w)... Couldn't justify the extra $90 for Denso
Projectors: LHD (North American Standard)... duh
Re-sealing Glue: Yes... because you just never know
Shrouds: Mini Graphite (standard model)... they're compatible with the halos
Wire Harness: Relay: H4/9003... This was the most confusing part for me. From what I understand, the relay is supposed to match the original bulb type, right?
Halos: Amber LED ... I rarely see anything other than white ones
Bulbs: H1 XB35 4300K ... A relatively cheap upgrade from the regular 3Five bulbs
Ballasts: Morimoto 3Five (35w)... Couldn't justify the extra $90 for Denso
Projectors: LHD (North American Standard)... duh
Re-sealing Glue: Yes... because you just never know
Shrouds: Mini Graphite (standard model)... they're compatible with the halos
Wire Harness: Relay: H4/9003... This was the most confusing part for me. From what I understand, the relay is supposed to match the original bulb type, right?
12-02-2013
#18
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Cool beans. I have a Morimoto D2S retro waiting for new housings. I went with the Gatling Gun 2.0 shrouds and I'm putting some xB LED rings behind it.
Going for this look:
Unfortunately, got into a big bit of a fender bender (car vs curb @ 40-ish) Wednesday night
Edit:
On another note, I wonder if they're gonna wait to ship your stuff or send you the current gen Morimoto 3Five ballasts. I started having illumination problems with the current gen Morimoto 3Five ballasts and e-mailed 'em about it. They said they found the problem and put me on a waiting list for the new gen ballasts, and they're gonna send a pair free of charge. They said those should drop shortly after December 10th. The problem, from my understanding, is that the igniter in the ballast would intermittently (particularly in colder weather) not produce the 16kV necessary to create light, and something about the control board inside the ballast couldn't keep up with the instabilities in the light arc, which can lead to light flickering. The new ballasts have igniters capable of putting out 20kV and have a new IC chip that's faster and more efficient.
edit 2: Here's what they said in the e-mail
Going for this look:
Unfortunately, got into a big bit of a fender bender (car vs curb @ 40-ish) Wednesday night
Edit:
On another note, I wonder if they're gonna wait to ship your stuff or send you the current gen Morimoto 3Five ballasts. I started having illumination problems with the current gen Morimoto 3Five ballasts and e-mailed 'em about it. They said they found the problem and put me on a waiting list for the new gen ballasts, and they're gonna send a pair free of charge. They said those should drop shortly after December 10th. The problem, from my understanding, is that the igniter in the ballast would intermittently (particularly in colder weather) not produce the 16kV necessary to create light, and something about the control board inside the ballast couldn't keep up with the instabilities in the light arc, which can lead to light flickering. The new ballasts have igniters capable of putting out 20kV and have a new IC chip that's faster and more efficient.
edit 2: Here's what they said in the e-mail
Originally Posted by TRS Customer Service
Thank you for your email and patience waiting on a response here. We are sorry to hear about your issue. Admittedly since the weathers turned cold, we've had a small handful of customers' report a similar issue and it appears to be plaguing about 10% of newer Morimoto ballasts. Though the ballasts have been built just the same way since late April, we've only encountered the issue recently.
Over the past several weeks we have been working non stop to study and correct the issue and have concluded on two necessary changes for the ballasts:
1) If you're experiencing a mis-firing bulb: We found that the magnetic core used in the igniter sometimes won't put out the necessary 16KV to create a strong enough arc, especially when cold.
Solution: The new standard igniter will be capable of producing up to 20,000 Volts. Rather than going with an externally mounted igniter because the existing ballast shell is too thin, we have opted to increase the ballast's thickness by 2mm to accommodate the massive igniter. It's like putting a V8 in place of a V6.
2) If you're experiencing a slight "flicker" - this is because the reaction time of the ballasts circuit board isn't fast enough to keep pace with the instability in the arc inside your HID bulbs.
Solution: We are replacing the current IC-Chip with a more advanced ASIC-DSP circuit that reads and adjusts output much faster and more efficiently. This will eliminate any chance of flickering. Kind of like replacing a computer that's a couple years old with a brand new one.
Over the past several weeks we have been working non stop to study and correct the issue and have concluded on two necessary changes for the ballasts:
1) If you're experiencing a mis-firing bulb: We found that the magnetic core used in the igniter sometimes won't put out the necessary 16KV to create a strong enough arc, especially when cold.
Solution: The new standard igniter will be capable of producing up to 20,000 Volts. Rather than going with an externally mounted igniter because the existing ballast shell is too thin, we have opted to increase the ballast's thickness by 2mm to accommodate the massive igniter. It's like putting a V8 in place of a V6.
2) If you're experiencing a slight "flicker" - this is because the reaction time of the ballasts circuit board isn't fast enough to keep pace with the instability in the arc inside your HID bulbs.
Solution: We are replacing the current IC-Chip with a more advanced ASIC-DSP circuit that reads and adjusts output much faster and more efficiently. This will eliminate any chance of flickering. Kind of like replacing a computer that's a couple years old with a brand new one.
Last edited by xRiCeBoYx; 12-02-2013 at 10:35 PM.
12-03-2013
#19
Re: About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
EDIT: Nope, it's in Doraville, GA now!
Last edited by Poopies; 12-03-2013 at 01:59 AM.
12-10-2013
#20
Re: About to pull the trigger on a retrofit...
My kit finally came in today!
Unfortunately (for my car at least), I'm going home this weekend so I won't be able to do my retrofit until January... lame! I tested the LED rings with a 9V battery and my god, they are BRIGHT! They can easily light up my room.
The only issue I'm seeing now is how I'm going to fit them into my shrouds... a guy here (http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/show...-shrouds/page2) had to cut off the three little tabs within the shroud and make a slit on the side for the wiring to make it fit inside. Doesn't look like I have much of a choice.
Unfortunately (for my car at least), I'm going home this weekend so I won't be able to do my retrofit until January... lame! I tested the LED rings with a 9V battery and my god, they are BRIGHT! They can easily light up my room.
The only issue I'm seeing now is how I'm going to fit them into my shrouds... a guy here (http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/show...-shrouds/page2) had to cut off the three little tabs within the shroud and make a slit on the side for the wiring to make it fit inside. Doesn't look like I have much of a choice.
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