do hid's last?

one of the biggest justifications of the new HID package is that they won't burn out as often as the standard lighting set up? is this in fact the case? what kind of life are HID users getting out of bulbs? i have had my car for six months and replaced four bulbs. I like the PIAA'S but i have already paid enough to have done HID's.

longevity is the primary factor that got me to make the switch. i never really had a 'thing' for hids, but i was losing expensive (silverstar) halogens every other month.

 

the clean look and modest bump in performance for such a relatively cheap price makes me want to give myself a kick for not doing it sooner.

mine are coming up on a year, no hint of tiring, and i use them fairly often, sometimes just to be visible (overcast days, tree-shaded backroads, etc.).

if they do ever go down, all parts are covered for lifetime

 

you mentioned you have piaa; my plasma ion fogs have been going strong so far; i was losing silverstar fogs far too often, as well.

i stayed halogen down low because the piaas are generally reported to be a long lasting bulb...

are you losing piaas at that rate?

I had one of the 1st gen HIDs on my Old Accord V6 back in like 01' They still work fine, only thing that went bad was 1 of the bulbs last year. Replaced both HID bulbs real cheap and good to go again.

 

I was replaceing high output halogens on the Accord every 6 months before I went over to HIDs.

I have the Apexcone 55w HID setup which I have had about a year. I have replaced one bulb already and I think a balast is about to go. If I could do it over again I would get the Phillips OEM quality kit or replace the projectors.

one of the biggest justifications of the new HID package is that they won't burn out as often as the standard lighting set up? is this in fact the case? what kind of life are HID users getting out of bulbs? i have had my car for six months and replaced four bulbs. I like the PIAA'S but i have already paid enough to have done HID's.

 

 

KNOCK ON WOOD 2 years 40k miles and still working fine on HID some cheap ebay brand also which i paid like 100 bucks for

longevity is the primary factor that got me to make the switch. i never really had a 'thing' for hids, but i was losing expensive (silverstar) halogens every other month.

 

the clean look and modest bump in performance for such a relatively cheap price makes me want to give myself a kick for not doing it sooner.

mine are coming up on a year, no hint of tiring, and i use them fairly often, sometimes just to be visible (overcast days, tree-shaded backroads, etc.).

if they do ever go down, all parts are covered for lifetime

 

you mentioned you have piaa; my plasma ion fogs have been going strong so far; i was losing silverstar fogs far too often, as well.

i stayed halogen down low because the piaas are generally reported to be a long lasting bulb...

are you losing piaas at that rate?

 

underpowered, what brand hids are you running? i have done Piaa in the lows and silverstar, both only seem to last about a month and half. i have had piaa's in my vw's and had great performance and life, but not on the gt. will put piaa ion's in teh fogs for winter for sure.

 

thanks,

easy

Hey easy,

 

I'm thinking of going with Xenon Expert's 'Xtreme' HIDs-- he says the quality is markedly better than the Apexcone/DDMs. I wish the Xtreme came in a 55w variety for the extra output, but Xenon's own LGT wagon setup with the 35w Xtreme kit and 4300K Phillips bulbs looks pretty nice:

 

http://www.xenonexpert.com/guides/lgt_1.jpg

 

http://www.xenonexpert.com/guides/lgt_2.jpg

I am running DDMs (4300K/35W), easy.

Xenon Expert is a very good vendor here, and those 'Xtremes' above look pretty sharp

As I understand when it comes to hids, you're either serious, and go all out (retro), or you just want to step it up a bit and get the best deal you can for your $ -- for the halos I would have blown in a year alone, my kit's already earned my 110 bucks I like the warranty, it's kind of what sold me on the kit.

 

bummer to hear about the piaas failing . I have also heard that they last forever on other makes.

good excuse to go hid fogs if they go on me, though

good luck with whatever you choose.

thanks boys

Xenon Expert is a very good vendor here

 

The jury is out on that statement. I will let you guys know, but at this point me =

I have had HIDs for over two years now. Xtecs..35W kit, 5000k. No problems <knock on wood>

The jury is out on that statement. I will let you guys know, but at this point me =

 

If you have a problem please PM me. I'll take care of you.

 

Oliver

If you have a problem please PM me. I'll take care of you.

 

Oliver

 

I've sent you 4 already.

I have also heard that they last forever on other makes.

good excuse to go hid fogs if they go on me, though

good luck with whatever you choose.

 

I've got HID fogs, and if you want some serious improvement in light output down low, that is definitely the way to go. HUGE difference from any halogen bulbs I've run.

 

FWIW, I've got 55w DDM's in lows and fogs, and thus far they are trouble free and look pretty sharp, too. I also switched because of constant bulb changing.

this thread caught my attention. really getting frustrated with constantly changing bulbs.

 

whose got the best price on HIDs?

subscribed

man I dunno, I'm thinking of running driving lights. mostly I want more lights for the backroads around my house. no street lights.

 

may go driiving lights first before I make the investment in HIDS.

Factory HIDs last a lot longer than these ~$130 aftermarket stuff we can buy. The aftermarket HIDs seem to be hit or miss in life expectancy. Mine are a miss. I think I am gonna try these halogens. http://store.candlepower.com/osraulhiouh7.html

 

I've heard good things about the Osrams but I'll probably save up for a good set like the Phillips mentioned earlier.

So far so good on a 35 watt Xenon Expert DDM kit from Apexcone. It's been less than a year, but no issues yet.

Factory HIDs last a lot longer than these ~$130 aftermarket stuff we can buy. The aftermarket HIDs seem to be hit or miss in life expectancy. Mine are a miss. I think I am gonna try these halogens. http://store.candlepower.com/osraulhiouh7.html

 

I've heard good things about the Osrams but I'll probably save up for a good set like the Phillips mentioned earlier.

 

That's a good price on those but you'll be replacing them in less than a year.

+1

 

Those are good bulbs, with excellent brightness and color. You probably can't beat them in a halogen. I used them for a couple of years, but you'll still have to replace them. I think I averaged about 6 months, so even at that cheap price, you're looking at $80/year. You can get a 35w HID kit for less then that, that in theory should last 3 or 4 years before you have to replace a bulb.

 

Just some thoughts.

In theory they should last. However my Apexcone kit degraded over the 5 months I had it installed. It was great when it worked, but I was pulled over twice b/c my passenger side light didn't fire. It went from usually working to sometimes and finally to never. I know it's not a bulb issue b/c I switched the bulbs into the opposite ballast and got the same result. According to a certain vendor on here, who is not returning my emails, Apexcone tested my suspected bad ballast and it worked as it should. That just leaves the wiring harness.

 

At 20 bucks for the Osrams though I might as well give them a try. They are still cheaper than Silverstars I have in currently and have a much greater light output as well.

Definately go with the Osrams if you're going back to halogens. I could have already paid for HID's for the low beams and fogs with what i've invested in halogens thus far...so i'm going to try out HID's this time around

So far so good on a 35 watt Xenon Expert DDM kit from Apexcone. It's been less than a year, but no issues yet.

Same, had mine over a year, no problems. I got the lifetime warranty just in case, but I haven't needed it.

I've had 3 DDM ballasts go bad on me in about a year...