Who wants to complain more about HIDs?

Alright, this topic has definitely been beat to death, I know. This just got under my skin when I found about it...the "refreshed" 2006 WRX STi gets HIDs. This begs the question, what is the Subaru flagship? The Leggy has got the size and class, but not all of the bells and whistles...nobody to my knowledge mentioned that the Legacy Spec B-oring was going to get HIDs.

 

I just can't beat into my skull why the Rally-Replica STi needs HIDs (or why a WRX with leather is going for upwards of $28K, but that's another issue). This is a 2006 option that should have found its way to the LGT.

HERE, HERE.

 

If the WRX "limited" with leather and a sunroof gets em, I'll be even more suprised, and ticked.

 

SOA canned the non-limited model Legacys, so you have to buy the higher-margin trim package, yet they don't offer HID with that package. No NAV with a stick in the sedan. No NAV AND NO STICK in the wagon, and no interior color choices AT ALL. Bass Ackwards business planning. Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid!!!

 

At least with the WRX STi's new projector headlights getting HID low-beam projectors, there is hope that the WRX projectors and LGT/OB projectors are somewhat the same size, and perhaps even interchangeable.

 

Hopefully they have the same projector units that the JDM WRX STi and JDM Legacys get, and the US WRX STi just has reversed cut-off sheilds, for Left-Hand Drive pattern. If that is the case, then USDM WRX STi projectors can be swapped freely, or with minor wiring modifications into a Legacy GT. One would just need to get the projector assembly, and put it in a Legacy headlight housing.

 

And all the more reason that SOA should just put the damn things in the car at the factory!!!!

Well the 04 & 05 STi have HIDs...

One word: bling.

 

 

 

 

Alright, this topic has definitely been beat to death, I know. This just got under my skin when I found about it...the "refreshed" 2006 WRX STi gets HIDs. This begs the question, what is the Subaru flagship? The Leggy has got the size and class, but not all of the bells and whistles...nobody to my knowledge mentioned that the Legacy Spec B-oring was going to get HIDs.

 

I just can't beat into my skull why the Rally-Replica STi needs HIDs (or why a WRX with leather is going for upwards of $28K, but that's another issue). This is a 2006 option that should have found its way to the LGT.

Well the 04 & 05 STi have HIDs...

 

Yes, yes, I wasn't making myself clear, sorry HID projectors. Subie taketh away from the Leggy yet continue to giveth to the STi. We get chrome headlights...ooooooo!

 

At least with the WRX STi's new projector headlights getting HID low-beam projectors, there is hope that the WRX projectors and LGT/OB projectors are somewhat the same size, and perhaps even interchangeable.

 

hmmm...don't tell my girlfriend...sounds expensive but highly plausible...

Legacy has HID in other coutries , they went cheap and took them out for our market.

my LGT was $24.3k. if i want HID's (i don't), i can add them for $500. i bought a portable nav (that i'm sure is far better than the one in the 2006 LGT) for $440, and i can use it in any car.

 

so add $1000 to the price of my car. factory nav is a $2000 option, and i don't know what they would jack the price up to if they included HID's.

 

 

no thanks!

but a supply of LHD HID projectors (hijacked from WRX STi parts...) in the domestic US could be easier to retrofit than getting RHD HIDS from other Legacys in other markets...

 

Since SOA is stupid enough not to provide the equipment in the midsize sport sedan category. Audi, Volvo, Acura, and just about every other competitor is already, or will shortly have HID lights optional for similar money to the LGT.

 

I'd spend 1k for HIDs, financed into the price of the car. That is one less headache for me to add. I don't have to worry about wiring them, I don't have to worry about haxoring my headlights so much (I'll still de-amber them...), putting HID capsules in halogen projectors, or trying to fit alternate HID projectors and make them fit, aiming, etc.

 

I would have it be optional, as with NAV, so that people can pick an choose to have it or not. I would choose HID, and I would pass on NAV, even aftermarket NAV. but that is just me. I know where I am going, but I want to see it if I happen to get there after dark.

 

And HID is not just bling, even if that is the reason they put it in the boy-racer WRX STi. It is proven technology, with a proven advantage, when done correctly. More lumens from less watts, with an arc that isn't susceptible to vibration, rather than a filament that is.

Well, let me put it this way. In Dec. 2002 I bought a new Maxima SE, a great car at a great price. I stole it from the Dealership in ATL for just over $24K. Anywho, traded it after 4 months for my late GTI (don't ask why). The damn thing had HIDs, and ever since I wanted it back. I don't want the Maxima back, but it seems to me that HIDs can be done in our market niche within financial reason. Subaru is trying to separate itself from the rest of the pack, as a unique offering in the automotive world, Xenon should be a part of that offering in its larger sedan.

fer crying out loud, go buy some HID's for less than $350 and install them yourself:

http://www.legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17448

 

what do you think Subaru would charge for optional HID's? hint: more than $350.

I was surprised that the Legacy didn't come with HIDs as an option, but it didn't really matter. The windows didn't come tinted either and I found a way to solve that problem. HIDs are not that expensive and probably one of the easiest things to do to the car if you like them that much. They probably would have put substandard HIDs in that you would have felt the need to upgrade anyway. Look at this as subaru saving you money by not putting something in the car they know you are going to change.

I was surprised that the Legacy didn't come with HIDs as an option, but it didn't really matter. The windows didn't come tinted either and I found a way to solve that problem. HIDs are not that expensive and probably one of the easiest things to do to the car if you like them that much. They probably would have put substandard HIDs in that you would have felt the need to upgrade anyway. Look at this as subaru saving you money by not putting something in the car they know you are going to change.

 

Fantastic! Easiest mods? That's good news, as I am a total noob and don't know anything about wiring.

 

We're planning to get HID's soon, and I could use your advice when the time comes.

 

Are the $350 ones linked above any good?

I paid $280 for the the McCullough HIDS and they are fantastic. As previously noted, if Subaru HAD offered them as an option, they would have raped you on them. The install was painless, the results are fantastic, far superior to stock halogens. As far as the nav is concerned, the stock nav is $2k and, from what I have heard, is not that great. For a little more, $2.4K, you can get an Ecslipse 5495 NAV/DVD/Mp3, yada, yada, and it does a whole lot more and looks stock in the cubby. Just food for thought for people out there wishing for more.

put me in the "Don't care about HID" bucket. IMO 90% of the people want them for the bling factor. "If audi/mb/bmw has them, then I have to have them too."

SOA canned the non-limited model Legacys, so you have to buy the higher-margin trim package, yet they don't offer HID with that package. No NAV with a stick in the sedan. No NAV AND NO STICK in the wagon, and no interior color choices AT ALL. Bass Ackwards business planning. Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid!!!

 

Marketing strategy does'nt seem to be Subaru's strongpoint. In the early '90s the SVX model was introduced. After a few years of steady declining sales, (could it have been due to only offering it with a lackluster 4 speed automatic?) it was decided to offer an SVX front wheel drive model to lower costs and attract more customers. Sales of the SVX declined even faster.

At the time it was Subaru's sport luxury model. They still dont market properly.

^^+1

(Plus have you guys seen the new ad campaign in "news and rumors" section, yuck)

Fantastic! Easiest mods? That's good news, as I am a total noob and don't know anything about wiring.

 

We're planning to get HID's soon, and I could use your advice when the time comes.

 

Are the $350 ones linked above any good?

 

They are a piece of cake. I got the $280 ones from JINSU-POWER and they work great. I'm more than happy to help you figure out how to install them. It takes 30 minutes tops to do both sides once you know what you are doing.

 

I don't think people get them just for the 'bling' factor. I got them because they seriously put down better light. When I do drive at night it is out in the middle of nowhere and I need all the light I can get. Just look at the difference in light that is put down in front of the car that the camera picks up. Those are stock halogens on the left. HIDs may look cool, but they are also way more functional than halogens.

 

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/OCDetails/Compare1.jpg

First off, HIDS, or lack of HIDs is not a deal breaker. Otherwise we would all be saying that Audi, Volvo, Acura, etc. are better.

 

The thing is HIDs are something Subaru should offer on their technically better car. Subie's AWD and Turbo H4 are better/more powerful than the competition. We just want this flavor icing on the cake. Especially when the neighbors HAVE that flavor on the same kind of cake.

 

Why not get a cheap HID kit???

 

First of all, they are illegal. Retrofitting a HID bulb into a halogen rig might work "ok" but it might also NOT. It NEVER works as well as a proper HID setup, complete with the correct projector, or a HID-designed reflector.

 

The Subaru Legacy's H7 projector is easy to fit a HID bulb into. And the pattern looks better, and does put out more light to the naked eye. But it is nowhere near as efficent with it's light pattern or cutoff than a true HID projector. The 06 WRX STi will have a true HID projector, as do the overseas market Legacys that have HIDs.

 

To the person who complains about HID headlights from behind at night... how many of those that really annoy you are illegal retrofits? Probably most, if not ALL of them.

 

It is all about the cutoff. There is a blade in front of the bulb, or around it that causes a strict horizontal pattern cutoff, so that it lights the road below the cutoff very well, and no light is projected higher than the cutoff. little or no blinding oncoming or preceding drivers.

 

The cutoff blade and the reflector in the USDM Legacy's low-beam projector were designed for a halogen filament. Putting an arc-type HID bulb in, even if the filament and the arc are in the same position, doesn't focus or cutoff the same way. That is true for most HID retrofits, some worse than others, and is why other drivers get glare.

 

VXCL and I, and many other members here have discussed this at length in the exterior/lighting forum, and there is a lot of good information there, as well as VXCL's pics of his retrofit of HID PROJECTORS into his Legacy headlights, and some beam comparisons.

 

When done right, HIDs with proper cutoff and pattern will amaze people who have never used them, with how much more light is output to the road, because so much more light is generated. This isn't a "tornado" hype type of thing, this is a real advantage when driving after dark.

 

This isn't a "BMWs have it, so I must also..." scenario. This is that BMW and many other manufacturers have recognized the advantage of HID lighting, because it is a distinct improvement. I want a Subaru Legacy GT for many reasons, and this feature is something I wish it had. (and does have in other parts of the world. US Legacys even have a breakout in the fuse panel for the relays and fuses, it is just absent.)

 

The thing is, that in the Legacy's price class, considering it's competition, Subaru should be offering this option. I DO NOT think it should be standard equipment. If I want it, I'll pay more for it to be correct, and legal. You shouldn't have to if you don't want it. I don't want NAV, and don't want to pay for it, in much the same way, but others do.

eh, JDM GTs get HIDs.. you can buy a factory HID kit for the GT from Japan.. the car already has the wiring for it... I prefer halogen now because of the ease to replace a bulb and not cost a billion dollars for a new lightbulb if something happens.

 

 

Keefe

Holy cripes, how much would something like that cost Keefe?

And just a heads up... The japanese market cars drive on the other side of the road.

 

So your headlight cutoff will be higher on left than the right, and it will blind oncoming drivers.

 

IF one could buy a LHD Subaru Legacy OEM hid kit from continental europe, that might be a better choice.

I think it's been pretty clear for the last few years that the Impreza is truly the flagship car for Suby.. it's the one that truly got them the most exposure. If it wasn't for Rex's and STi's being so prominent over the past few years, and their rally cred, I may not even own my legacy. I only got the legacy because of the need for room for my growing family. But the Rex is in my heart.. and I will own one eventually.

 

I always love the looks I get in my Legacy.. everyone around Mich seems to own Outbacks.. they all stare at my car as if to say.. "thats like my car, but it's not all trail looking... what the?!?!?!" I haden't even considered a Legacy before I was looking at them. Why.. I was looking for an Impreza.. they just weren't big enough.

Are we really missing out by not having HID? My headlights work fine, and I can see pperfectly at night even w/o contacts or glasses..I know the BLING effect, but why bling only at night??

And just a heads up... The japanese market cars drive on the other side of the road.

 

So your headlight cutoff will be higher on left than the right, and it will blind oncoming drivers.

 

IF one could buy a LHD Subaru Legacy OEM hid kit from continental europe, that might be a better choice.

 

 

I thought the focal points and cutoffs are still len based, not the actual HID bulb itself.

 

Keefe

Are we really missing out by not having HID? My headlights work fine, and I can see pperfectly at night even w/o contacts or glasses..I know the BLING effect, but why bling only at night??

 

It's not just for the bling, HID does produce more usable light. Drive a car with OEM HIDs and you'll see the difference. The only thing I dont like personally is the glare that I get (me and my pathetic eyes) when there's too much light coming back at me.. it's really hard for me to adapt the black abyss of the night and where the HID shines. Add some fog and rain and it really suX0R for me.

 

I'll keep my yellow "HID" halogen bulbs from PIAA (Ion Crystal halogens).

 

 

Keefe