[hybrid]

I decided to just install an aftermarket HID Kit into my ct200h


Package Content

-2 Slim Ballast
-2 6000k H11 Bulbs
-2 Metal Mounting Plates
-6 Screws and Nuts

Time to install: 30mins -1.5hrs


***PLEASE READ*** REGARDING POLARITY!
Red wire (Xenon Kit) ---> Purple wire (Harness for OEM bulb)
Black wire (Xenon Kit) ---> White/black wire (Harness for OEM bulb)

Installed the mounting plates

Driver side was mounted on a screw holding the fuse box directly behind the driver side headlight

Passenger side will be mounted by the container that holds the pink liquid. You can unbolt the 2 screws that hold the container to tuck the wires behind (underneath) the containers (shown in the second pictured below)

Night time view

Daytime picture

Cutoff

Overall, satisfied with a $60 kit with lifetime warranty on both bulbs and ballast. Although, the periphery illuminance could be better, $60 versus $1200 LED option justifies, in my opinion, the reduced performance.



Other Members Kits

jblack - DDM Raptor 4500k

 

[PhoenixINX]

Although, the periphery illuminance could be better, $60 versus $1200 LED option justifies, in my opinion, the reduced performance.

Nice job!!! Can you talk more about the peripheral illumination?

How would you say it compares to the stock bulbs? Is there something about this kit, which is not allowing it to act like the OEM halogens?

Congrats again!

 

[hybrid]

Can you talk more about the peripheral illumination?

I feel that the light beam does not stretch far enough to the left and right. Now, I am basing this off the beam of the LS. However with that being said, the light peripheral light is more than adequate.

How would you say it compares to the stock bulbs? Is there something about this kit, which is not allowing it to act like the OEM halogens?

The hid kit produces more lumens, hence brighter than stock halogens. However, I felt the stock halogens were more than enough to do the job. I rarely like to mess with OEM since they spend millions of dollars research, but like I said before, I am more than happy.

 

[2hunny]

Looks good! Keep us updated with the status of the system.

 

[Kristi]

Perfect timing for me that you posted these pics. I'm installing HIDs this weekend...well, my husband is! Thanks much!!

 

[jimmyc13]

Wow, nice work. I had no idea an HID kit was that cheap, that's awesome. Lights look great! Wow, so the HID lights now make your LED's look a bit yellow?

 

[jimmyjamez]

HID Kits, BMW Aftermarket Bumpers & Lighting, DEPO - DDM Tuning

I've heard these are pretty good for the price. Might want to verify though.
I'm thinking of installing these.

 

[jimmyjamez]

btw, great job on the HID!, they look great!

 

[cenix]

looks nice! good job!

 

[jimmyjamez]

35W looks good.

I think i'll stick to that too.. the 55W might be too much.

It's a bit hard to tell but does the light shine any tint of blue with your 4300k?

 

[Hey Gurl]

Wow, great job.

What are the pros & cons of the HIDs? I want all my lights to be bright white, but I don't want any electrical issues or illegal lights.

Can someone shed a little light on this? (no pun intended hehe)

 

[Feraz]

Well technically speaking all aftermarket HID kits are illegal lol. Pretty much any headlight housing that was not designed for HID lighting and in turn only designed for Halogen is illegal. No glare cutoff to stop light travelling other than in front of the road to a certain distance, hence blinding oncoming traffic. Now taking into consideration that our CT's have a projector based headlight it makes things a little easier (still illegal though) but manageable. Basically you'll aim your low beams a slight angle towards the groud while still getting AMAZING light output from the HID and controlling glare to oncoming traffic, be advised though there will always be that hint of glare to oncoming traffic. If I were you I would not go for anything higher than a 5000k setup, go 4300k if possible as this will be the best light output you can get. As for you electrical system, the only time a HID setup takes more power than our halogen based lighting is when you fire them up, the ballasts need all the power they can get. So I would advise when turining them on make sure the vehicule is running, just to take a slight load of the current running through your electrical system, and you shouldn't have any problems with a HID kit besides the fact that most are made in China and are not reliable at all. Just be prepared to be replacing bulbs and/or ballasts alot more than if it was OEM. You mught get lucky though, I've seen some guys running off aftermarket HID kits for over 2 years without problems. When it comes to that its a coin toss. The end results are so worth it especially for night driving, it's 2-3 times brighter, especially a 4300k. I am very impressed even from these basic halogen projectors that the beam pattern is quite wide, better than most on the road I would say. I wouldn't compare the light output to that of the 2004-2006 LS430's those were insane, capable of lighting up to 8 lanes wide, but my CT200H has no trouble with lighting up 3-4 lanes on the highway nicely, thats better than most BMW,Audi,Mercedes with Bosch and/or Valeo trash projectos. Hell my Ct200h lights up the road better than my dad IS350, and his vehicule was designed with HID, just the projectors really suck.

Hope that helps

 

[Hey Gurl]

Thanks Feraz.. that definitely helps. I think I better leave well enough alone. I'll just do the whitest LEDs that I can find. One less thing to me to worry about, especially since the dealer already charged me $122 to change my low, high & fogs.

 

[Feraz]

Ya I work at the dealer and it is quite expensive to have most aftermarket mods setup correctly as we say LOL. I f I were you I would certainly take the plunge though and go HID, most ppl that have used HID on other vehicule have a hard time going back to halogen, I being one of them. It's really not that hard and I'm sure many memebers on this board including myself would be happy to walk you through it. I'll post pictures of my setup by the end of this week when I get a sec.

 

[jimmyc13]

Hey Gurl, why did you have to have your bulbs changed already?

 

[jimmyc13]

To the OP - hybrid:

Just got a call that my car likely wouldn't be here until October (I was originally told July). Apparently the one part of my order that was holding this up was the LED headlamps. After seeing this thread, you just saved me about $1,200 and 3 months on my delivery! I can still likely be in my CT by July. Sorry, no, I can't share the $ you just saved me with you!

 

[Feraz]

I think that the HID even on our stock Halogen projectors do a marvelous job of lighting up the road, not to say the LED's aren't nice because they are amazing! I just couldn't see myself spending the extra money here in Canada to opt for the nav package in order to have the LED's.

 

[hybrid]

Wow, so the HID lights now make your LED's look a bit yellow?

No, the DRL are still white. It was just the lighting in the picture that made the DRL LEDs look yellow.

It's a bit hard to tell but does the light shine any tint of blue with your 4300k?

I used 6000k, which has a very slight blue tint to it. I'd say 85% white/15% blue. Again, it is all relative. If I had to do it again, I would not go higher than 5000k.

What are the pros & cons of the HIDs? I want all my lights to be bright white, but I don't want any electrical issues or illegal lights.

Can someone shed a little light on this? (no pun intended hehe)

After a weekend of driving I can answer this question a little better...

Pros:
-better visibility, and by visibility I mean the HIDs illuminate the area in front of your car much better than the stock halogens.
-looks nicer than the stock halogens, in respect to the aesthetics of the car.

Cons:
-have not noted any so far, but I will update if I do come across any.

@Feraz: thanks for your constructive contribution!

Hopefully people will post pictures of their aftermarket HID kit as references to other members. I will try to link each post to in the first post of the thread.

-brand of kit
-temperature of the bulb
-a shot of night time driving or something

 

[Feraz]

I have to agree with @Hybrid, the illumination is much better in front and even to the sides, this is not typical of halogen projectors with HID bulbs, but I guess we got lucky. Secondly the flicker of these projectors seems to be purple which I think is amazing. They flicker purple/blue from far, and closely resemble vehicules like the Range Rover Sport/ Cadillac Escalade and 2004-2009 Nissan Maximas which use very colorful projectors, although they are not grat they have color! I am sure most ppl on this forum will appreciate the potential these projectors have!

 

[Feraz]

As long as the the beam pattern and height are aimed downwards at least 0.3-0.4 inches, glare should be very minimal to oncoming traffic. However when going up a hill or down a hill during the night, don't be surprised if you get high-beamed by other drivers