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HID install - XenonDepot Philips 4300k


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I know, I know, another lighting thread:spin:

Note that this is an install guide, not some random question being asked for the 5th time...not that that ever happens:rolleyes:

 

Anyway...

 

I ordered XenonDepot's H11 Xtreme HID kit with the optional Philips 4300k bulbs. http://www.xenondepot.com/H11-HID-Kit-Xtreme-HID-p/xt-h11.htm It showed up a day ahead of what FedEx predicted so I was pretty stoked to get it installed. Everything was packed up tight and the bulbs had extra layers of bubble wrap to keep them safe.

 

The instructions weren't very detailed but that wasn't a big deal to me, it was pretty easy to figure out.

 

Summary of install:

The car's plug goes into the connector that's part of the molded rubber grommet.

That short extension/adapter cable goes to trigger the relay.

The relay is connected to positive on the battery.

The ballast is plugged into the other end of the relay.

Then the bulb is connected to the ballast with 2 plugs.

 

 

I started by putting the bulb into the socket to prevent the risk of it getting damaged while hooking up the relay and ballast. Then mounted the ballasts with the included 3M tape.

 

Passenger

http://i.imgur.com/j7OCAE6.jpg

 

Driver

http://i.imgur.com/nC1VQP6.jpg

 

 

Next I mounted the relays and small box that's connected to the ballast.

 

Passenger (box is mounted below light with wires pointing straight up toward bulb - not pictured)

http://i.imgur.com/uWjEHGM.jpg

In order for the passenger (+) wire to reach w/o too much strain on it I mounted the relay to the air intake.

Wire was ran along the grille and ziptied to the support posts.

http://i.imgur.com/A9kJq66.jpg?1

 

Driver's side

http://i.imgur.com/SlEqXDq.jpg

The ballast, black box, and relay are all mounted fairly close to each other.

 

 

You do have to ground the system somewhere near the light. On the driver's side there's already a ground location for the car, I unbolted the connector and slipped the ring terminal onto it. On the passenger's side there's a bracket to support the airbox. I used its bolt into the body for ground.

 

Unfortunately, the positive connectors don't fit on the main battery terminal. However, they do fit on the terminal clamp's screw. I didn't get a picture of this and really don't feel like going out to take another one so excuse my poor drawing:lol: if you pull your terminal cover off and look at it it'll make sense.

http://i.imgur.com/jDYOTXo.jpg?1

 

That's pretty much it for the install. Feel free post any questions or concerns below.

 

http://i.imgur.com/siMN6X1.jpg

 

 

Comparison:

http://imgur.com/DeUHOGo.jpg

While LED's give off a very even light, mine lacked the "hotspot" necessary for good distance lighting.

 

The beam pattern is nearly identical to the original halogens, just a heck of a lot brighter!

http://i.imgur.com/0ZZtJnb.jpg?1

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While LED's give off a very even light, mine lacked the "hotspot" necessary for good distance lighting.

 

I had always noticed with my LED's that the light spread was fantastic, but I was almost straining to see further down the road. I think these pictures explain it perfectly! I've got 30 minutes until I'm off of work, and will be testing mine in the dark for the first time.

 

Great write up!

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Andrew, you do not need to use the relays or tap the battery when installing this kit on a Legacy...just an FYI. Simple plug-n-play as the ballasts draw little current and the factory wiring can easily handle them.

 

I had originally installed mine with the full wiring as well, but after talking to Steve at XenonDepot, decided that there really was no need for the extra wiring and hookups to the battery, so I took the 5 minutes and took all the extra wiring back out. Everything works really well, and I have been totally impressed with the output of the lights!

 

The only thing I have noticed is that my cutoff seems to be slightly higher than it was with the LED's or the halogens. May adjust my headlights just a little bit to make sure I'm not blinding anyone.

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I realized after the fact I didn't need to use them, I may remove them to help clean up the wiring.

 

@1692 I'd park in front of a wall and put a halogen back in to compare, I expected to have to adjust mine down but they ended up dead on.

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@1692 I'd park in front of a wall and put a halogen back in to compare, I expected to have to adjust mine down but they ended up dead on.

 

I actually did that today, and realized mine were spot on as well... Maybe I'm just not used to having the good long distance visibility :lol:

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Maybe I'm just not used to having the good long distance visibility :lol:

 

^^This!

 

I'm going to try some nighttime back road testing tonight or this weekend, but these past few mornings leaving for school I've been impressed. I can clearly see the light pattern cutoff on the road even as it's getting light out.

 

LEDs are great for high beams but I've realized you really need something with a similar beam pattern to a halogen bulb to get a proper light pattern in our projectors.

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I realized after the fact I didn't need to use them, I may remove them to help clean up the wiring.

 

@1692 I'd park in front of a wall and put a halogen back in to compare, I expected to have to adjust mine down but they ended up dead on.

 

How many watts did you get? 35 or 55 watts?

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  • 2 weeks later...

Just had a thought.

 

If I'm considering the JDM grill for my car and I do this install the same way you did by running the wire across the grill. Will I have issues removing the front bumper and replacing the OEM grill? Should I do the grill first and then the HID install after?

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You don't have to run any wires across the grill when installing HIDs on a Legacy. You do not need or use the relay kit. Very simple plug-n-play install.

 

So it's as simple as just removing the factory Halogen Bulbs and replacing them with the HID bulbs? Am I missing something? I hate doing electrical work because it makes me nervous, so I'm just trying to clarify...

 

I did see that in the comments above

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So it's as simple as just removing the factory Halogen Bulbs and replacing them with the HID bulbs? Am I missing something? I hate doing electrical work because it makes me nervous, so I'm just trying to clarify...

 

I did see that in the comments above

 

Pretty much. You will have to find somewhere to mount the ballasts (I did mine on the metal under the headlight) and the rest is plug and play. Was one of the easiest installs that could be done... even though I hooked up the relays and everything at first.

 

If you are ever in Colorado Springs, I can show you my set-up if you would like so you can see how easy it is.

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Pretty much. You will have to find somewhere to mount the ballasts (I did mine on the metal under the headlight) and the rest is plug and play. Was one of the easiest installs that could be done... even though I hooked up the relays and everything at first.

 

If you are ever in Colorado Springs, I can show you my set-up if you would like so you can see how easy it is.

 

 

I live in the Tech Center about 60 miles from CS. While I never drive down there, I would not at all mind coming down for lunch to check out your set up at some point. When mounting the Ballasts, how are you securing them to the metal?

 

Edit: does the 3M mounting tape feel secure?

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I live in the Tech Center about 60 miles from CS. While I never drive down there, I would not at all mind coming down for lunch to check out your set up at some point. When mounting the Ballasts, how are you securing them to the metal?

 

Edit: does the 3M mounting tape feel secure?

 

I work right off of I-25 at exit 148, so would make for a slightly easier drive if you want to come down sometime!

 

I did use the 3M mounting tape, and it has held up through the cold weather... so I'm not too worried about it holding up over time. I actually used about half the amount of the tape (since they give you pieces that are larger than the ballast itself) and they haven't budged at all.

 

Of course, I'm waiting to see how it does in the summer and see if it will still hold up!

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I work right off of I-25 at exit 148, so would make for a slightly easier drive if you want to come down sometime!

 

I did use the 3M mounting tape, and it has held up through the cold weather... so I'm not too worried about it holding up over time. I actually used about half the amount of the tape (since they give you pieces that are larger than the ballast itself) and they haven't budged at all.

 

Of course, I'm waiting to see how it does in the summer and see if it will still hold up!

 

Sweet! Sounds great!

Did you by any chance do the fog lights or the high beam LED replacements?

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Sweet! Sounds great!

Did you by any chance do the fog lights or the high beam LED replacements?

 

I did the self install of the fog light kit, but kept the standard halogen stock bulbs in, and have not done the high beam LED's either. I like having the DRL's as they are and don't want to tamper with them since I believe it's a good safety feature. I have upgraded my turn signals to LED's though.

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I did the self install of the fog light kit, but kept the standard halogen stock bulbs in, and have not done the high beam LED's either. I like having the DRL's as they are and don't want to tamper with them since I believe it's a good safety feature. I have upgraded my turn signals to LED's though.

 

I understand about the high beams. I've been thinking the same thing and would rather not mess with them.

For the turn signals, do you have the hyper flash issue or whatever it's called? Is the fix easy? Did you do both front and rear?

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If you replace the HB bulbs you maintain the DRL function...only brighter. You do not lose the safety feature. Not sure where the concerns coming from.

 

The concern is for blinding people, which is well-documented in other threads. It seems to me like most people are happy with it and don't feel like oncoming traffic or other vehicles in-view of the headlights are blinded by them. However, the whole point of the safety feature is so cars can see the headlights in the event they can't see the car. Well, if they see the headlights then there is potential for blinding to occur. While i will concede this is probably rare and unusual, it doesn't eliminate cause for concern or possiblility of occurrence. Cost/Benefit situation here

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I understand about the high beams. I've been thinking the same thing and would rather not mess with them.

For the turn signals, do you have the hyper flash issue or whatever it's called? Is the fix easy? Did you do both front and rear?

 

I have another thread that explains the process with the installation where I used load resistors to keep the hyper flash from happening.

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/leds-turn-signals-244408.html?t=244408&highlight=LED+Turn

 

There are a couple of places online that you can order these from, and you don't have to cut into any wires at all.

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If you replace the HB bulbs you maintain the DRL function...only brighter. You do not lose the safety feature. Not sure where the concerns coming from.

 

I'm one of those assholes that likes to flash my brights at times... and having this done doesn't allow me to flash the brights anymore unless my headlights are on... :spin::lol:

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Just had a thought.

 

If I'm considering the JDM grill for my car and I do this install the same way you did by running the wire across the grill. Will I have issues removing the front bumper and replacing the OEM grill? Should I do the grill first and then the HID install after?

 

Like securityguy said relays aren't necessary. If you do use them the wire can be tucked behind the grille supports from under the hood, no removal of anything is necessary. Only reason I kept mine in was I tapped into the extensions to trigger the 4 relays for my fog as DRL setup.

 

The concern is for blinding people, which is well-documented in other threads. It seems to me like most people are happy with it and don't feel like oncoming traffic or other vehicles in-view of the headlights are blinded by them. However, the whole point of the safety feature is so cars can see the headlights in the event they can't see the car. Well, if they see the headlights then there is potential for blinding to occur. While i will concede this is probably rare and unusual, it doesn't eliminate cause for concern or possiblility of occurrence. Cost/Benefit situation here

 

I got these high beam replacements a week ago or so; they're fantastic, match the 4300k HIDs perfectly and put out very even light that shouldn't be blinding during the daytime as DRLs. [ame=http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B010XKZMAO?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage]Amazon.com: Car Rover 30W Cree Chips 2S LED Headlight Super Bright 3600LM 4300K Headlamp - Replaces Halogen & HID Bulbs - 9005(H10/HB3): Automotive[/ame]

 

I'm one of those assholes that likes to flash my brights at times... and having this done doesn't allow me to flash the brights anymore unless my headlights are on... :spin::lol:

 

Flashing brights during the day also turns on your low beams. My understanding is with HIDs you don't want to flash them as this causes "cold strike" which burns them out faster.

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