xentec hid conversion kit review

[eyezpinned]

my brother bought me an hid conversion kit for christmas (which i couldn't resist installing as soon as it came). so i figured i would give my two cents.

the kit:
i got it from an ebay merchant with really good feedback for $55 shipped. it came with two 5000k bulbs in sockets that had pos and neg clips, two ballasts with clips that ran to those clips, and a clip that ran wires from the ballast to a stock socket adapter. you have to construct the socket adapter, but it's as easy clipping pos and neg wires to the appropriate holes to connect to the stock socket wires. kit also came with double sided tape and zip ties.

the install:
pretty simple. all plug and play wiring. i did have to build up the socket adapters with some electrical tape to get a tighter connection. i got the regular sized ballasts which are a little bigger than a deck of playing cards. the cleanest mounting location was achieved by running the driver's side ballast behind the radiator fill tank. it's a nice snug spot that was really secure after adding the tape and a zip tie to the a/c line in the area. I ran the passenger side ballast wiring behind the power steering fill tank and mounted the actual ballast in the shelf-like area of the stock engine ground. The 35 watt kits dont require relays. so that's it. install time: less than an hour.

performance:
awesome. i have a hard time seeing at night so i had previously upgraded to sylvania hyper-whites. the hids blow them away in functionality and looks. i believe 4300k produces the most light with 5000k being virtually identical except for maybe a very faint bluish hue. visibility improves dramatically and they make our entire headlight look like a glowing orb. it feels as though there is less strain on my electrical system also, as i used to experience a small but noticeable hiccup when firing up my old lights

overall:
i definitely recommend this mod to anyone looking to upgrade their lighting system. the only downside is that you lose functionality of your highbeams. i personally never used mine anyway and the hids give way more visibility on low than oem highs anyway. the plug and play nature also allows you to reinstall stock light whenever you like with a simple unclipping of the socket adapter

[colinf004]

$55 IS A STEAL!

I hope they last you

[Mnemonic]

most of the cheap ebay HID kits come with a 2 year warranty on bulbs and ballast. Really if they last over 2 years then go out i would say its a good buy, you'll spend a decent amount on some decent bulbs so why not go cheap HID. The only down side to HID in non HID cars is generally your going to piss off everyone in front of you or coming at you.

[fowljesse]

This is all great to know! I was going to get those, because I have seperate High-beams that work awesome, and my regular lights don't point up quite high enough. I have modded Civic projectors, and want the slightly bluish ones to match the "Halos" around the running lights.

[eyezpinned]

i used my garage door as a reference point when installing the bulbs and got the light stream as close to where my originals were as possible. the most intense part of the light source is hitting the road, and not the windshield of oncoming traffic. the most impressive part is the reach of the light which seems to light up a 5-10 foot radius beyond the most intense part of the light. it's pretty subtle, yet very effective... it's like an aura that almost has like a nightvision feel to it.

*UPDATE* i myself very seldom listen to the radio (i've never liked the sound quality of radio and have been running an ipod through my system for years). anyway, if you do listen to your radio, the hids will interfere with the signal when the headlights are on. it's only when they're on, but is very noticeable.

[shameem]

Do the ballast have proper ground - if not try touching the metal part of the ballast to a proper ground and see if the interference goes away....
Make sure your head unit is grounded properly also....