Headlight Blub Question
Thread Starter
00 Hatchback Owner
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,589
Likes: 0
From: Houston, Texas, US
Rep Power: 0 
Headlight Blub Question
Hey guys, I've been wanting to change my headlights again, but I wanted some H-town feed back. Should I save and get HID's, or buy different blubs? Because I want a really blue headlight... but I dont know that many brands that are blue. I got silverstars in there right now, and they work great, really bright white... but im tired of it :-D i want to change... let me know what you would do! later! 
Second Place is the First Loser
iTrader: (1)
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 4,469
Likes: 0
From: San Antonio, Texas, US
Rep Power: 343 Originally posted by dragoon
6000k or greater HID. aim me when you're ready to buy. don't blame me when you get pulled over, though.
6000k or greater HID. aim me when you're ready to buy. don't blame me when you get pulled over, though.
Originally posted by cryption
Yeah man i would say HID .. i saw thids one hid kit that was purple lights .. that was off the freakin hook. BTW I have silver stars too .. they rule
Yeah man i would say HID .. i saw thids one hid kit that was purple lights .. that was off the freakin hook. BTW I have silver stars too .. they rule
Originally posted by cryption
why don't you like em?
why don't you like em?
* Silverstars put out no more light than OEM, and in many, cases, less.
* They cost 40 to 50 bucks for the pair. **** that.
* They're blue tinted. Blue tinted bulbs are always dimmer than clear ones. Buy ricer whites for $9 a pair instead.
* Not only are they not any brighter, but they're hardly whiter than OEM anyway. Put a set of silverstars next to OEM projector halogens like the new SATURNs, and they'll be even more yellow.
* If you absolutely want Silverstars, go to www.suvlights.com and look for the ECE spec Osram Silverstars. (Sylvania/Osram same company, but these are a different product). In fact, I would recommend this. They are untinted and very nice. And a few bucks less than the highway robbery Silverstars they sell at autozone.
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 9,137
Likes: 1
From: Ontario
Rep Power: 379 
I retrofitted Audi s4 HID's into my Sonar projecters on my 03 'vic. I removed the Halo over the low beam and put it over the high beam with 2 upgraded T1 LED's (much brighter). DOT standards say that your cutoff line with HIDs should be no more than 2 inches below or above the height of the center of bulb itself at a distance of 25 feet away. If you are within those guidelines, you're legal. Here's the email I received back:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ::::::::::::
Dear Mr. Hughes,
HID conversions have always been illegal for sale and installation. In fact, it is very likely that the headlamps that you fitted to the Civic that are not the OEM design, were also illegal to be sold because they probably to not comply with federal headlighting regulations. These regulations do not apply to vehicle owners, however, most states have similar laws that do apply to vehicle owners and drivers.
The problem with HID conversions is that most of them use an HID bulb in place of a Halogen bulb. Even if the arc is placed in exactly the correct location where the filament had been placed, the best result is a tripling of intensity everywhere in the beam. This means not only on the road, but also in the eyes of oncoming and preceding drivers. Done poorly, the glare to other drivers can be 10 or more times as intense.
Regarding aiming, presuming that what you did was to install a once complying OEM HID headlamp into your Civic, aiming should be fairly straight forward. The OEM headlamp should have had the letters "VOL" or "VOR" on the lens. That is to tell you that the lower beam is to be visually/optically aimed using the left side (VOL) of the beam pattern, or the right side (VOR). If it is a VOL lamp, then the cutoff on the left should be aligned to be 53 mm (2 inches) below the center of the lamp, when the vehicle is on a level surface and placed 7.62 meters (25 feet) from a vertical wall, and the beam is projected on that wall. If the lamp is a VOR, then the cutoff on the right side of the beam should be aligned to be the same height as the center of the lamp.
Richard L. Van Iderstine
Chief, Visibility and Injury Prevention Division
400 Seventh Street, S.W., Room 5307
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Washington, DC 20590
001 202 366 2720 V
001 202 366 4329 F
richard.vaniderstine@nhtsa.dot.gov
Dear Mr. Hughes,
HID conversions have always been illegal for sale and installation. In fact, it is very likely that the headlamps that you fitted to the Civic that are not the OEM design, were also illegal to be sold because they probably to not comply with federal headlighting regulations. These regulations do not apply to vehicle owners, however, most states have similar laws that do apply to vehicle owners and drivers.
The problem with HID conversions is that most of them use an HID bulb in place of a Halogen bulb. Even if the arc is placed in exactly the correct location where the filament had been placed, the best result is a tripling of intensity everywhere in the beam. This means not only on the road, but also in the eyes of oncoming and preceding drivers. Done poorly, the glare to other drivers can be 10 or more times as intense.
Regarding aiming, presuming that what you did was to install a once complying OEM HID headlamp into your Civic, aiming should be fairly straight forward. The OEM headlamp should have had the letters "VOL" or "VOR" on the lens. That is to tell you that the lower beam is to be visually/optically aimed using the left side (VOL) of the beam pattern, or the right side (VOR). If it is a VOL lamp, then the cutoff on the left should be aligned to be 53 mm (2 inches) below the center of the lamp, when the vehicle is on a level surface and placed 7.62 meters (25 feet) from a vertical wall, and the beam is projected on that wall. If the lamp is a VOR, then the cutoff on the right side of the beam should be aligned to be the same height as the center of the lamp.
Richard L. Van Iderstine
Chief, Visibility and Injury Prevention Division
400 Seventh Street, S.W., Room 5307
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Washington, DC 20590
001 202 366 2720 V
001 202 366 4329 F
richard.vaniderstine@nhtsa.dot.gov
mine too. Oh well. 
Thread
Thread Starter
Honda Civic Forum
Replies
Last Post
civic98?
Mechanical Problems/Vehicle Issues and Fix-it Forum
4
Aug 13, 2015 01:32 AM
DerbyDad03
Wheels, Tires & Brakes Modifications
3
Jul 27, 2015 11:34 AM
NoobyKid
1st - 5th Generation Civic 1973 - 1995
4
Jul 13, 2015 07:53 AM
